Golden Rule Radical

Posted By David on June 9, 2009

How will we respond to the opportunity inherent in Barack Obama’s emphasis of the Golden Rule in his speeches, and indeed in his exemplification of it in his efforts to open a new global dialogue?

This will be the third article I’ve dedicated to Barack Obama’s use of the Golden Rule. The others are here -

• Obama cites Golden Rule in Cairo
• Obama’s Proclamation Includes Golden Rule

As you can see if you read the comments on the Proclamation piece, those who want to fuel the antagonistic and confrontational worldview that has characterized politics, and for that matter much of the world, for so long are ever quick to try to derail any progress Obama might make. It is up to all of us to ensure that doesn’t happen.

If I were a believer in the interventionist kind of God of some theologies, I would say that God must have intervened to get Obama elected in the first place. But I think the answer is more mundane, if no less awe-inspiring – enough people of good conscience across the US realized they needed to act, and then they did.

But his election provides not so much a solution as it does an opportunity, an opportunity for all of us who believe that the principle that we’ve come to call the Golden Rule is the only viable global ethic for what is rapidly becoming a global civilization, to raise our voices. Not just Americans, not just the west, but all of us, globally.

Responses to the President’s speech in Cairo emphasized that words were not enough – that they must be followed up by actions. I could not agree more.

But if we expect that action to come from the President alone, or even from one country alone, it is doomed to fail; and those who prefer strife to peace, prosperity for the few and poverty for the many, exclusionary dogma over inclusive vision, will continue to drive the world to the apocalyptic destiny that feeds their paranoia.

The action must come from all of us.

Never before in the history of the world have we had the tools and the opportunity for change come together in such an auspicious way. Never before has the world faced so many global challenges at the same time. Environmental, political, or economic; these are challenges that force us to realize that we cannot act in isolation. Never before has the developed world been so interconnected, allowing us to act in unified ways; making it more difficult for those who would control the message to silence the voice of peace and reason.

From events that ripple around the world as time zones fly by, be it noon, midnight, or the 8:30 PM time chosen for Earth Hour; to blogs and videos and emails that flash globally in seconds, the message of interconnectedness has never been so clear.

The interfaith and Golden Rule communities have an incredible opportunity, and a new champion. Never before have so many been spiritually seeking. Never before, despite what the extremists say, and indeed what the media puts before us, has the grip of dogma been so tenuous. Never before have we had a universal message so ready for delivery.

How will we respond to the opportunity that President Barack Obama has presented us? Will we speak up? Or will we sit back, merely “wishing him well.” That, it seems to me, is rather like sending a man naked into battle, with no more than a pat on the back. It forces him, no matter his lofty intentions, to survive by dodging, rather than neutralizing, the people we sent him into the fray to save us from.

Or will we stand up and be counted? Will we make our voices heard, our resolve clear? Will the forces opposing Obama know that they must oppose us as well? And that we outnumber them exponentially?

I’m a fan of what I suppose might be called “lone hero” movies – you know the kind – a single hero comes into a town that is oppressed and victimized by a gang of one kind or another, the populace cowed, certain it can do nothing. Past champions have been “made examples of.” Eventually, the hero faces the gang, his defeat seeming certain. But this time, the townspeople step up, this time they overcome their fear and apathy; this time they realize the power of unity to end oppression.

It is up to us my friends – will we act? Or will let our apathy, masked as “tolerance” or the desire to “go along to get along” paralyze us?

It only takes a small effort to “raise our hands” and be counted.  Here are four ways that we can start. I invite you to suggest more -

• Sign the Golden Rule Resolution, a call for political, economic and corporate guidance based on the Golden Rule.
• You can also sign the
  • Golden Rule Declaration, a pledge of personal action
  • Charter for Compassion, Karen Armstrong’s project, (coming in late 2009)
• Start a discussion – comment on Golden Rule Radical material using the form at the bottom of the article.
• Spread the word
  • use the Share/Save button to tell others about this effort
  • add a link to your email – let people know about our efforts with every message you send
• Subscribe to the blog (you can use the form or link to the right) – the more people subscribed, the more obvious it is that we support the universal Principle of Muutality embodied in the golden Rule
  • And if you blog, link to us, and tell us about what you’re writing so we can link to you

As many a motivational speaker has noted, success is often a matter of knowing when to seize the day, whether that’s success in business, our personal lives … or in changing the world.

Together we can make this a Golden Rule world. What are we waiting for?

Categories: Change
Tags: barack obama, believer, cairo, confrontational approach, destiny, dogma, global challenges, global civilization, global dialogue, global ethic, Golden Rule, history of the world, interconnectedness, interfaith, paranoia, poverty, prosperity, strife, universal principle