The Golden Rule

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Guernica - Pablo Picasso

Truth is seldom complicated. A simple admonition like the Golden Rule, when obeyed, is arguably all anyone needs by way of a moral code governing relationships. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus clearly sets out examples of what such relationships look like, but the underlying principle is easily missed: individual well-being is reliant upon community health, but community health rests on individual behaviour; life is a circle, not a straight line.

In a way, this principle is evident in an evolutionary view of life on earth. Lions as a species grow strong feeding on the weakest of the buffalo herd. The overall health of both species is favoured; individuals are sacrificed to the process of “natural selection.” The strongest reproduce and the weak … don’t.

But what makes applying this principle to humanity treacherous is that unlike lions and buffalo, we have been granted consciousness. Consciousness both releases us from being instinct-dependent and grants us choices as complex as can be imagined. We can befriend and care for our human kin; we can choose to denigrate and exploit them.

The urge to be master, not servant; to be powerful, not weak is ever-present. That’s not surprising; life is fragile, the survival instinct strong. The words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount can be understood as a warning about reverting to “animal instincts:” Don’t respond to violence with more violence, don’t let disagreements fester, don’t do to your neighbour what you wouldn’t want done to you. These are not lessons in good manners; they constitute a blueprint for the well-being of a human community.

Unfortunately, to choose a “survival of the fittest” excuse for accumulating to oneself resources that are meant for everyone’s well-being is not possible without rejecting the very words of Jesus, including the Golden Rule. We cannot serve two masters, after all.

Even more unfortunate is the church’s repeated misinterpretation of scripture to justify ideas as unscriptural as the “prosperity gospel,” for example. Since the Reformation, we’ve predominantly seen the relationship to God as personal, individual. Clearly our understanding of that relationship is experienced personally, but to act as though individual freedom of choice were the ultimate good has community consequences.

The very simple, “Do unto others as you would be done by,” certainly applies to my relationship with my brother or sister, my parents or my children. More than that, though, it signals that the mind of God foresees the dire consequences for ALL OF US if we choose to serve ourselves first or only, the community (family, nation, world) only if it doesn’t inconvenience us personally.  

North American countries are at a crossroad right now. It’s a time that recalls the words in Joshua 24: “But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, [whether money, power, fame or pleasure]. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

Nothing in my lifetime clarifies the community/individual circle of life better than the Climate Change dilemma. With our amazing consciousness, we can predict disaster on that account for many, many people. Still, the refusal to act communally in favour of individual interest can draw us to a stalemate, so much so that we will actually deny reality and/or pass the consequences on to future generations as if our responsibilities didn’t extend beyond our front gate.

 

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