June
4, 2001
The Golden Rule Principle:
Global Religious Leaders Called to Refocus on this Universal Objective
of the Interfaith Community
A Call to Action by Stephen
M. Apatow, President and Founder of Humanitarian Resource Institute.
.
Each day in the developing
world, 30,500 children die from preventable diseases such as diarrhea,
acute respiratory infections or malaria. Malnutrition is associated with
over half of those deaths. (UNICEF, World Health Organization)
In developing countries,
one child in 10 dies before his fifth birthday. By comparison, in the United
States one child in 165 will die before turning five years old. (UNICEF).
Almost 800 million people—about
one-sixth of the population of the world's developing nations—are
malnourished. 200 million of them are children. (Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations)
In the last 50 years, almost
400 million people worldwide have died from hunger and poor sanitation,
according to the report. That's three times the number of people killed
in all wars fought in the entire 20th century. (BFWI)
Virtually every country in
the world has the potential of growing sufficient food on a sustainable
basis. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has
set the minimum requirement for caloric intake per person per day at 2350.
Worldwide, there are 2720 calories available per person per day. Over 50
countries fall below that requirement; they do not produce enough food
to feed their populations, nor are they able to afford to import the necessary
commodities to make up the gap. Most of these countries are in sub-Saharan
Africa.
The wealthiest fifth of the
world's people consume an astonishing 86 percent of all goods and services,
while the poorest fifth consumes one-percent.
32 percent of the population
in the developing world live below $1 per day (WDI). 2.6 billion people
lack access to basic sanitation (UNICEF).
880 million people lack access
to adequate health services.
--Statistics: Bread for the
World Institute for Hunger and Development
In the United States requests
for emergency food jumped 17% in 2000, while need for emergency shelter
climbed 15%. The increases in demand for both services were among the highest
the survey has recorded in the past decade. 62% of people requesting
food were from families, and 32% were employed. About 13% of
requests for food were unmet; 23% of requests for shelter were unmet. (2000
US Conference of Mayors Hunger and Homelessness in American Cities Survey)
There are 1.3 million runaway
and homeless youth in the United States. 5,000 runaway and homeless youth
die each year of assault, disease, and suicide. (National Runaway
Switchboard Statistics)
THE GOLDEN RULE PRINCIPLE
The golden rule as endorsed
by all the great world religions is best interpreted as saying: "Treat
others only in ways that you're willing to be treated in the same exact
situation." To apply it, you'd imagine yourself in the exact place of the
other person on the receiving end of the action. If you act in a given
way toward another, and yet are unwilling to be treated that way in the
same circumstances, then you violate the rule.
The golden rule, with roots
in a wide range of world cultures, is well suited to be a standard to which
different cultures could appeal in resolving conflicts. As the world becomes
more and more a single interacting global community, the need for such
a common standard is becoming more urgent. - Gensler, Blackwell Dictionary
of Business Ethics
In the light of growing global
humanitarian needs, Stephen M. Apatow, founder of Humanitarian Resource
Institute is making an international appeal for religious leaders to refocus
on "The Golden Rule Principle," as the most significant objective and message
for their faith communities.
The Golden Rule Principle:
Christianity: "So
in everything, do to others, what you would have them do to you, for this
sums up the law and the prophets" -- New Testament: MT 7:12 NIV
Buddhism: Treat not
others in ways that yourself would find hurtful.-- Udana-Varga 5.18
Baha'i: Lay not on
any soul a load that you would not wish to be laid upon you, and desire
not for anyone the things you would not desire for yourself. -- Baha'u'llah
Gleanings
Confucianism: One
word which sums up the basis for all good conduct...loving kindness. Do
not do to others what you would not want done to yourself. -- Confucious
Analects 15:23
Hinduism: This is
the sum of duty: do not do to others what would cause pain if done to you.
-- Mahabharata 5:1517
Islam: Not one of
you truly believes until you wish for others what you wish for yourself.
-- The Prophet Mohammed, Hadith
Judaism: What
is hateful to you do not do to your neighbor. This is the whole torah;
all the rest is commentary. -- Hillel, Talmad, Shabbat 31a
Native Spirituality:
We are as much alive as we keep the earth alive. -- Chief Dan George
Janism: One
should treat all creatures in the world as one would like to be treated.
-- Mahavira, Sutravitanga
Sikhism: I am
no stranger to no one; an no one is a stranger to me. Indeed, I am a friend
to all. -- Guru Granth Sahib, pg.1299
Taoism: Regard your
neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your neighbors loss as your own loss.--
T'ai Shang Kan Ying P'ien, 213-218
Unitarianism: We affirm
and promote respect for the interdependent of all existence of which we
are a part. -- Unitarian principle
Zoroastrianism: Do
not unto others what is injurious to yourself. -- Shayast-na-Shayast 13.29
. |