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The Wisdom of Desmond Tutu

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Bishop Desmond Tutu is someone who should be nominated and confirmed as a saint. As a black man growing up in the nation of South Africa, he experienced the rigors of the apartheid system. His was a strong voice in favor of change and I can recall interviews where he showed his extreme frustration with the apartheid political system when it still existed in South Africa.
But his greatest success was as chair of the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission created after majority rule was established in South Africa. This idea was due to the genius of Nelson Mandela, who understood that the only way that South Africa could succeed was if whites and blacks worked together. It was the job of Bishop Tutu to chair this commission and bring the truth out into the open. The most spectacular achievement of Tutu was the tremendous amount of forgiveness that he had for the former oppressors of him and his people. When you contrast that with the disaster that has overtaken Zimbabwe, you appreciate the magnitude of what he has done.
This small book is but a sampling of the great man that Tutu is. In only 46 pages, you are exposed to some of the simple, yet profound beliefs that he has. The word God appears often, but these are stories of general faith in humans, public policies based on compromise and an incredible and incurable optimism. If you want to understand why South Africa was able to make such a peaceful and stable transition away from apartheid, simply read this book. Tutu is a living embodiment of how potential conflicts can be avoided.