A new book on Jesus has hit the streets: The Political Teachings of Jesus, by Tod Lindberg, June, 2007. From a recent review in the Wall St. Journal:
“Mr. Lindberg deliberately presents Jesus' political teachings without any reference to his religious ones. This strategy may at first seem misguided; after all, Jesus regarded right conduct as a form of obedience to God. But Mr. Lindberg believes that Jesus' teachings deserve our attention whether or not they have the force of divine law. They offer, he says, a "coherent account of how to live in the world"....
“The revolutionary idea finds its most powerful expression in the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. The familiarity and brevity of the Golden Rule sometimes obscure its radical implications. Unlike the Ten Commandments or various secular codes, it does not list a series of prohibited acts. Instead, it provides a way to think about how to behave toward one's fellow man.”
I like the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have other do unto you.” But I think Jesus stole it from the Mother Goddess’s Mother Rule, “Do unto others as you see healthy mothers do unto their children.”
The Mother Rule is better than the Golden Rule ‘cause you can see it in action. You can look around and see how healthy mothers treat their kiddies.
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thnx to ej for the foto
I like that distinction.
ReplyDeleteThe Golden Rule has another flaw in that it encourages projection of our own wishes and even pathologies onto others.
How about treating others as they prefer to be treated?
I've named you for the Rockin' Girl Blogger Award. You rock. Consistently.
Why, thank you kindly, virushead! It's an honor you've bestowed upon me, to be sure.
ReplyDeleteThis is a complicated issue, isn't it -- the whole area of how to come up with a "good" method of determnining how to treat other people? AT first blush it looks so simple.
I hadn't really thought about your Golden Rule flaw. Good one!
Right off the top of my head, I think treating others as they prefer to be treated would be okay -- as long as those *others* don't have pathologies.
The thing about healthy mothers is that they love you unconditionally. You can therefore fairly well count on them to treat you the way you need to be treated in order to thrive.
Wow! Congratulations, Athana!
ReplyDeleteThe Golden Rule is much older than Christianity.
ReplyDeleteI'll have to go search for it, but it's one of the main arguments of Atheists when presented with that 'can't be moral without God' old chestnut.
..and the Atheists always have provable sources!
Love,
Terri in Joburg
PS
ReplyDeleteThat award is well-deserved indeed-Athana consistently challenges my conceptions.
Love,
Terri still in Joburg