‘Be human against all odds'

Editor’s note: The following are the words of Prof. Richard W. Hull during the dedication of Frederick Franck’s sculpture, “Seven Generations, at the Hallowed Ground Park in the Village of Warwick last Sunday, May 13: Friends, family, fellow citizens, we are gathered here today to dedicate a work of art which is a marvelous physical expression of one of Warwick’s greatest humanists and cultural geniuses, the late Frederick Franck. This inspiring and deeply meaningful work of steel and mica was perceived by Frederick not as a sculpture but as a series of “signs or icons.” As he put it: “Icons denote a window on to the sacred … they are symbolic forms that in their simplicity, their directness, invite reflection, free association, and self-confrontation.” This particular work is enormously significant not only because of its sheer beauty but because of the timely and timeless meaning that it conveys. It speaks not only to our generation but to those that have come before and those that will follow ours. Frederick himself was initially mystified by what he had created yet within a very short time he discovered a passage from the Great Law of the Six Nations League of the Iroquois. And then it suddenly clicked, for the passage intoned that “In all our deliberations we must be mindful of the impact of our decisions on the seven generations to follow ours.” He was also reminded of a passage from Rachel Carson’s seminal and path-breaking work “Silent Spring,” published some 45 years ago, in which she almost presciently lamented that “man has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall.” Carson warned that this lack of foresight may lead to the destruction of the very earth itself. Thus, this extraordinary art form became a visible warning that we humans, today, when making decisions, must be ever mindful of their consequences not only on the living but on future generations of all living things on our planet earth. This, and indeed almost all of Frederick Franck’s works, asks the fundamental question: “What does it take to be truly human?” And, in essence, his answer is to revere the earth and all that dwells therein. Dr. Franck said that “to be human against all odds, or not to be, is in a nutshell mankind’s eternal predicament.” You might ask: Why have we chosen this little park in our village as the site for “Seven Generations?” We may consider that parks are places to discover the humanness in humans. They are public spaces where humans can find inner peace and inspiration and where all that divides us — our gender, color, social position, and age — can be put aside. It was on this very ground , this hallowed ground, where some 243 years ago a group of pioneers from across the Hudson River came into this valley full of hope and vision for a better future for themselves and for their descendants. It was here where the sacred and the secular, the past and the future, so profoundly intersected. It was here where dreams became realities and where the foundations of our community today were laid. One evening many years ago on a visit to Takayama, Japan, a little poem came into Frederick’s mind from “nowhere” as he put it. And I think it captures the essence of why we are here today, on this Hallowed Ground, on this place of vision: When we return To where we have always been We do not have to ask - whether in East or West - what it means when it is said of a man: he is so human of a woman: she is a real human being, highest praise! So do not ask For we all know it Just as we know: This water is cold, is warm This fruit is sweet, is sour, We know what it is to be human. We know: There is no future Without peace, No peace without Human justice, Human insight, Human foresight, Human compassion. Thank you, Frederick, thank you Claske, thank you all who contributed your time, your energy, and money to make this happen today in this community that we all love so much. And may our presence be our pledge to future generations that the legacy we leave them will be one of goodness and one for which we can all be proud. Go well and God bless.