The Golden Rule: The One Rule We Need to Solve All the World’s Problems
Excerpts from ‘A Yearn To Discern’ by R. L. Maco
It’s time for us to concede that it’s well overdue for us to seriously talk about The Golden Rule. I mean seriously! Just in case you are unfamiliar with this Rule, The Golden Rule stands for the principle that you treat people the way you want them to treat you. This principle may be found in more than one source, but it is firmly established in the New Testament of the Holy Bible. Luke 6:31 states “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” (Holy Bible, ESV). Matthew 7:12 states it similarly as follows: “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Holy Bible, ESV).
The premise behind The Golden Rule is quite simple: treat people the same way you would want them to treat you. If we all thought about this Rule before we spoke to someone, how differently would our words and actions be toward one another? Would we even approach someone under certain circumstances if we thought about this Rule first? Think about the fact that we all want to be treated with respect and dignity. Keeping that thought in mind, the question becomes, when we initiate interactions, especially when we approach someone to complain or criticize, do we approach everyone with the same respect and dignity we expect to receive in return?
Also think about this: when we are met with anything less than dignity and respect, do we respond in a way that takes into account our actions or thoughts that may have precipitated a particular response from someone? Think long and hard about your answers to these questions for a moment. Sometimes it is the thought(s) we carry around in our minds about the person or situation we are approaching that dictates how we convey a message to them.
As humans, we all have this innate belief that we should be treated with dignity and respect. This is an expectation that we all have. However, and ironically enough, not all of us believe that we should treat others with the same respect and dignity that we all believe we deserve. And that posturing, ladies and gentlemen, summarizes the fundamental problem with humanity and, arguably, the primary reason for most, if not all, of the major and minor conflicts prevalent in the world today. Whether today’s or yesterday’s conflicts are tied to issues of religion, culture, politics, race, socio-economics, class, gender, or any other issues that we find permeating through one’s oppression and violence towards another, when we strip down the issues to its meager beginnings, we will find that the basic issue underlying all other issues is the fundamental issue of respect and dignity or a lack thereof.
Despite how we treat one another, as humans, we all expect to be treated with respect. Yes, this is an expectation that we all have and there is nothing wrong with having this expectation. Knowing that we all have this expectation, we should all know that respect is reciprocal. Yet and still, we constantly find ourselves in situations where people are demanding our respect while treating us as less than deserving of respect. It’s sad to say but there are a number of people who use their prejudices, social status, wealth, education, race and a whole host of other factors, as weapons for the primary purpose of denying others the fundamental human right of respect and dignity. And they do this while simultaneously believing that they should be automatically respected at all times. Anyone walking around with that attitude and belief system is dangerous. And unfortunately, many of us actually walk around with such a mindset.
Now here is the most interesting part of all this: if we all followed The Golden Rule, this problem of lack of respect, along with the conflicts it creates, would be eliminated. Again, The Golden Rule is rather simple: I’ll respect you and you respect me. This Rule does not take into account anything other than the fact that we are all human beings, Period! It does not take into consideration your race, gender, ethnicity, sexual preference, education, culture, social status or anything else. If we were to take into account anything other than the one common denominator that we are all human beings, we now enter that slippery slope of leaving the realm of objectivity and entering the realm of subjectivity. Leaving the realm of objectivity is wrong because now we are creating a false narrative. The fact that we are all human is the one and only fact we share together; it is our universal connector. No other fact applies to all of us besides the fact that we are all human. In other words, the fact that we are all human is the only fact you need in order to treat everyone with respect. Any other facts are distractors, that is, information used subjectively to uplift some and alienate others. I’ll tell you that adding subjective considerations onto The Golden Rule only serve to validate some at the expense of others. Put simply, adding more information onto the fact that we are all human is a flawed response that one uses when they’re hurting on some level, whether they know it or not; in turn, they project that hurt onto others. This is irresponsible on so many levels.
However, if we leave the subjectivity out of the equation, and, therefore, choose to Discern, we would use The Golden Rule and take into account the only relevant pieces of information that make up this Rule, which are the following:
We are all human, and
All human life should be treated with Respect and Dignity.
That’s it folks! All you needed to know to process and implement The Golden Rule is the fact that we’re all human, so let’s respect one another. Some of us fail to understand that giving another human being respect should be done so without any strings attached, especially strings that are attached due to a perceived social status used to pre-judge and condemn another’s life.
Do you understand how we could change the world just by simply following this Rule in our daily lives?! This Rule should be applied in both our professional and personal relationships. For example, take the current pandemic we are facing. Some individuals had to shift their mindset and learn to respect employees in the food service industry once our dining options were limited. When that happened, suddenly many began respecting and revering food deliverers more than ever before and were happy to see them in a way they never did before. But the truth is, the pizza delivery person, the sanitation worker and all other employees in-between should be respected just as much as professionals including doctors, lawyers, politicians, and the like. Why? Because, once again, we’re all human.
The professional titles we hold are distractors as it relates to the respect we should give one another. For example, take the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’. That phrase was meant to convey the message that certain lives, Black Lives in this case, matter just as much as all other lives. You need to understand that there is an implied message within the ‘Black Lives Matter’ mantra that ‘All Lives Matter’ because across the board we are referring to human lives. The phrase acts as a reminder that these lives matter too, not that they matter more than or to the exclusion of other lives...this is also why there is no need to respond to the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ by saying ‘All Lives Matter’. That message is already incorporated into the intended meaning. The phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ simultaneously makes a statement that these particular lives are not being respected and that these lives should be respected just as much as other lives are respected. In other words, the underlying message of ‘Black Lives Matter’ IS that all human life matters.
Now, contrast the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ with the phrase ‘Blue Lives Matter’ and note that there is a difference. The difference is that while ‘Black Lives Matter’ focuses on human lives (black and all other lives), ‘Blue Lives Matter’ seeks to highlight certain lives who hold a particular professional title. The message is that these individuals who work in this profession should be respected. Unfortunately, this positioning is problematic because, remember: professional titles we hold are distractors as it relates to the respect we should give one another. Now let me pause right here to ask this question: Do law enforcement officers matter? You better believe they do! We should all respect police officers, security officers, correction officers, first responders and all who work in law enforcement, 100 percent! But let’s be crystal clear here: individuals who work in law enforcement matter and should be respected because they are human, not because of the employment position they hold. So, in effect, when you create the phrase ‘Blue Lives Matter’ in response to ‘Black Lives Matter’ you are creating a false narrative by elevating the reasoning why we should respect certain individuals based upon their position and not their life. When we do that, we create tension and we’re now in the slippery slope of subjectivity; and as I’ve stated before, once we begin adding subjective factors to lives, we change the narrative and we will not find common ground. This is dangerous. We should respect each other without condition simply because we are all human beings. And we certainly should not wait until a pandemic is thrust upon us to realize this fact. This is why The Golden Rule is Golden! The Golden Rule elevates us all, not a chosen few. If we follow The Golden Rule, we realize and understand that we are all deserving of dignity and respect as human beings and not because of any other factor we decide to add on to that fact.
But, unfortunately, for some people, including those who are in positions of authority and power, The Golden Rule will never be incorporated into their daily lives because it is not part of their belief system. Said differently, some people start with the mindset that not everyone is deserving of respect or that some of us are deserving of more respect than others. As a result, these people will continue to encounter and/or create negative and life-threatening situations when they encounter others due to their behavior and overall thought-process. The thought-process I’m referring to is the incredulous belief that certain human lives are more valuable than others. Such a thought-process is tragic. In fact, I find no other thought-process more dangerous than this one. And on a global scale, persons with such mindsets create and implement policies that have caused and will continue to cause the senseless death of millions. This is why our world will continue to experience unnecessary conflict and strife that will be perpetuated from generation to generation. This type of mindset and belief system, my friends, is about as far away from Discernment as you can possibly get.
The Key to Upholding The Golden Rule:
The Golden Rule Places the Onus on Each of us to GIVE Respect FIRST with Each Encounter! The Respect You Give Is Not Premised Upon Someone Earning or Deserving Your Respect
Here is why you should follow The Golden Rule: The most important aspect of The Golden Rule, and the one aspect of the Rule that most people do not comprehend, is the fact that your implementation of this Rule requires that YOU GIVE Respect to EVERYONE because YOU WANT EVERYONE to treat you with Respect. In other words, the Rule places the onus on YOU to be proactive and approach each person you encounter with Respect because that is how you would want others to approach you. The giving of Respect is not dependent upon the other person showing Respect towards you first. Rather, the Respect you give is solely dependent upon your expectation of being treated with Respect as a human being….YOUR expectation, not anyone else’s expectation or perception of you.
The Rule, however, does not guarantee that your expectation will be fulfilled with each person you encounter. Keep in mind, the Rule does not state: ‘Respect People Who Respect You!’ Or ‘Respect People Who Earn Your Respect!’ Nonetheless, The Rule does require that your Respect be given to people because you have an expectation that people will Respect you in return. Now here comes the hard part: This is an expectation that you must maintain despite the fact that some people will never approach you with Respect. As unnatural as that may sound and as difficult as it may be to implement for some, this is necessary because by acting in this manner, the Rule allows you to be in control of your emotions and in control of each situation you encounter.
Furthermore, your offerance of Respect will not be dependent upon another person’s moods, bias, prejudice, or negativity that they may bring to you. Instead, you will GIVE Respect PROACTIVELY because as an enlightened person, you will continue to expect to receive Respect and even if you do not receive it from someone, you will not respond in kind because you will not succumb to someone else’s behavior and disposition in life. Remember, you are a Discerner. Therefore, you will continue to conduct yourself in a respectful manner until you are able to remove/disengage yourself from the person acting disrespectfully towards you. Because if you dispense with the Rule during an encounter and you withhold Respect due to the lack of Respect or outright disrespect displayed by another towards you, you give that person control over you during that encounter. And now your response will include an emotional element that may change the course of the encounter and possibly your life. Think about it! In any given situation, all it may take is one emotional response to what you perceive as another’s disrespect towards you and your life can be changed forever. If you dispense with the Rule and place your emotions in charge, a life-altering change is a distinct possibility you may face. However, if you are Discerning, you will uphold The Golden Rule, a Rule that is not dependent upon anyone else except YOU. The application of the Rule does not change with each person you encounter. On the contrary, the application is uniformly applied to everyone. The Rule requires you to expect to receive Respect in return. In order to do that, you must be hopeful that your encounters with people will be respectful. Keeping ‘Hope’ at the forefront of this Rule is crucial.
Individuals who do believe and follow The Golden Rule on a daily basis and learn how to avoid numerous negative encounters and conflicts with others are better able to handle the negative elements in life that seek to stump personal growth. They reap huge benefits, one of which is peace of mind while staying on the path to purpose and enlightenment. These are the people who will choose to stand on relevant facts when encountering a person who does not believe they are deserving of respect. These people use knowledge productively by not responding in kind; in fact, they will Discern that sometimes a response to a disrespectful person is not even required. Their response is one of disengagement instead of escalation. But no matter what their response is, their response, if any, will be led by their ability to Discern and will keep them on the right track and in control of their actions and emotions.
The Golden Rule is and always has been the key to solving the persistent conflicts we find in the world. If we truly understood the profoundness of this very simple Rule, we would use it as a guiding principle in our lives and avoid so many unnecessary and dangerous encounters. Considering the current state of the world, we should understand the need to follow The Golden Rule now more than ever before. Our failure to understand this concept is the greatest cancer killing humans today. If we do not change course immediately, our demise is all but certain as lives will continue to be unnecessarily lost. The value of Discernment and The Golden Rule cannot be overstated. Making a commitment to Discern and follow The Golden Rule is life-altering and lifesaving. It’s time to implement both on a global scale today.