It’s surprising how important Buddhist beliefs and practices have been to evolving world communities and their ability to live together in peace and mutual respect. I first learned about Buddhism during the 1960s Vietnam War, when Buddhist monks led nonviolent protests against American aggression. At its height, the U.S. committed 500,000 American soldiers to the war. Every man in my college class had to face Vietnam one way or another.

Back home at my Jesuit college, we studied Catholic philosophy and Jewish philosophers such as Martin Buber. My “non-Catholic” roommate was allowed to...