Religion column: Follow the ‘Golden Rule’ – Daily Press

For sure, theres one Bible verse thats politically correct, no matter the context or situation. It was posted in my first-grade classroom. Parents, no matter the presence or absence of religious affiliation, have depended on it to shape or control behavior. And I suspect its been heard in legislative assemblies as well, at least in the public sphere if not in the back rooms and corridors.

Its entered the culture so thoroughly that it has its own moniker: The Golden Rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Its use actually predates the Holy Scriptures, appearing in ancient Egypt as well as in other pre-modern cultures. Sometimes called the maxim of reciprocity, it is touted by many as the hallmark ethic of a civilized society.

Well. If that be the case, friends, we are living in a less-than-civil world.

Perhaps a closer look at its biblical origins may be helpful in these days when civility, especially in public discourse and action, seems to be on a very long sabbatical.

While many might identify the Golden Rule as no more than a familiar proverb, it may be interesting to know that the scriptural roots of this saying first occur in the Hebrew Bible in Leviticus (19: 9-18, the section that addresses moral holiness in an expansion of the Ten Commandments). There one reads the words, Love your neighbor as yourself. It occurs at the conclusion of a passage that emphasizes community life and justice.

In the Greek Bible, Jesus, as reported in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, further expands this foundation of moral law. In each of these writings, the context is what we know as Jesus Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:12) or the Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6:31).

Both show us a Jesus who has no fear of being called a radical. Here, he talks, not about the religious insiders (as perhaps we hear in Leviticus), but about the excluded ones: the poor, the hungry, the sick, the oppressed, the alien. It is for those marginalized ones that he demands an ethics of compassion that is rooted in justice. Justice that remembers that all are created in the image of God.

No sweet talk about being nice so that someone will be nice back to you, as I was taught.

But a hard commentary on those who would use power and wealth to win, no matter how badly anyone else loses.

With apologies to Thomas Paine, we may be living once again in times that try mens and womens souls. When every day, no, every hour, brings another personal attack, I-have-the-power-so-Ill-use-it-however-I-please moment ... well, these are the times that try all souls. And, by try, I mean in the Lords Prayer sense: do not bring us to the time of trial. Jesus knows, as we do also, that each moment of life tests our commitment to his command to love God and to love neighbor. And that neighbor is everyone, everywhere!

If I want good health care for myself and my family, then I want the same good health care for everyone else. No exceptions. No Cadillac policies for a few and Yugos for the masses.

If I want freedom to worship as I choose, then all must have that same freedom to choose, without my harsh judgment or punishment.

If I wish my children to have the best opportunities for education, then I must work so that all children have the same chances for a good and prosperous life.

And if I want to be spared political oppression and suffering, then I must welcome those who are fleeing torture and sure death.

Its right there in the Holy Scriptures. Jesus says it. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Isabel F. Steilberg is a priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia. She can be reached by email at isabel.steilberg@gmail.com.