The Golden Rule

“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” ~Matthew 7:12

We find iterations of this rule arising in almost all the major religions in the world. For example, Hillel, the Jewish rabbi, said, “Do not do to thy neighbor what is hateful to thyself.” Socrates, the Greek philosopher, declared, “What stirs your anger when done to you by others, that do not do to others.” And Confucius, the Chinese sage, similarly remarked, “What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others.”

Do you see that these injunctions are quite different from the command of Christ? They are all variations of a negative exhortation requiring a passive response: What you wouldn’t want to be done to you, don’t do to others! As always, Jesus exhorts His followers to go the extra mile: “Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them.” He goes beyond merely forbidding evil; He requires the Christian to take the initiative with real, tangible, helpful generosity towards his neighbor. In all situations, treat others the way you would want them to treat you if the roles were reversed.

This one rule injects a radical simplicity into the Christian ethic. By internalizing this one standard, God removes the need to give an endlessly complicated list of situational directives. Would we rather be helped or hindered, given a hearing or ignored, slandered or spoken well of, encouraged or disheartened, included or rejected, defended or attacked? To ask the question is to answer it.

In a conversation, for example, you hear an absent third party being criticized. How do you respond? A number of questions are clearly germane to this question: Is this criticism true or false, wise or unwise, fair or unbalanced, timely or untimely, necessary or unnecessary, loving or unloving?  As you consider the answer to these questions, ask yourself, If I were the one being criticized here in absentia, would I want someone to say something in my defense? Would I want them to pile on, adding additional “juicy” information to the fray, or would I want them to keep that to themselves? What could they say in my favor? What would I want them to say? Would I want them to put the worst possible spin on my behavior or suggest a more favorable one?

At a party, if we happen to see someone obviously struggling to connect with the group, out on their own, looking lonely, how ought we to respond? If I were in their shoes, how would I want my neighbors at the party to treat me? Would I want others to let me wallow in my lonely exile, or would I want them to reach out a welcoming hand to draw me in?

Every day, as we go about our business, we must remember how our behavior constantly impinges upon the lives of others. We do well to remember that we can harm our neighbor by forgetfulness, carelessness, and neglect, as well as by deliberate malice. We are, Jesus says, to be more than just our brother’s keeper; we are to be his benefactor as well.