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Al-316 and I will each draw from our traditions to illustrate this point. We are all in this life together. It's best we work together, in an atmosphere of mutual respect and tolerance. If you have something from your tradition, be it that of a religious or humanistic nature, please feel free to share.
This is from our good friend Al-316. It is his view regarding some of what Christianity offers on brotherhood.
Part I. (Al-316)
This portion of the discussion concerning the brotherhood of man is devoted to one word. That word is, Love.
To most of us, that word is very important. It takes on added importance when you hear someone say to you, I love you. These words have the power to brighten our lives for a lifetime. The failure to use those words can cast a shadow on one's life as well. Those words could be coming from one of your family member's, one of your dear friends, or your romantic interest. The personal relationships these words imply is one to the most significant relationships we will ever have in our life.
It is interesting to observe that the word, love, is used 281 times in The Holy Bible. 124 times in the Old Testament, and 157 times in the New Testament.
In English, the word, Love, is used to indicate numerous and various favorable degrees of affection. Whether it be used to indicate a positive reaction to the smell of a flower or how we feel towards our children. The word, Love, is used to express one of man's strongest emotions.
How we regard each other as human beings varies, but is of considerable importance. God considers how we interact with our fellow brothers and sisters so important that The Bible addresses this issue separately. The Bible tells us that we should love one another. In fact, Jesus commands us to love one another.
To some, The Bible might appear to only be a confusing Book of rules. Telling us to do this, don't do that, over and over again. As a Christian, one might wonder how important is this command to love one another. Interestingly, this question is answered in response to a different question posed to Jesus by a lawyer. The lawyer asked Jesus what is the most important commandment of all. The actual exchange between the lawyer and Jesus can be found in Matthew 22:35 through Matthew 22:40. The following is from the King James version:
Matthew 22:35 Then one of them which was a lawyer, asked him (Jesus) a question, tempting him (Jesus) and saying,
Matthew 22:36 Master, which is the great Commandment in the Law?
Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord they God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Matthew 22:38 This is the first and great Commandment.
Matthew 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
Matthew 22:40 On these two Commandments hang all the Law and Prophets.
Notice how Jesus mentioned the importance of loving our neighbors without being prompted with a question. Jesus further emphasized its importance by indicating its ranking when He compared it to the most important Commandment. And Jesus did not stop there. He said that all of the other laws are a reflection of these Commandments. My conclusion is that loving each other is supremely important in G-d's eyes.
Now, lets take a closer look at the definition of the word, Love, as we find it in The Bible. This is necessary because, you will recall, The Bible is a translation from other languages. The New Testament in which the Book of Matthew is found, was translated from manuscripts which were written in Greek. A study of Greek will reveal that there are three different Greek words for, Love, whereas English just uses one word. So, in order to obey the Commandment to love thy neighbor as thyself, we need to determine exactly what Jesus meant by His use of the word, Love.
To answer this question, we will find that the Greeks had three different words which meant, Love.
They are: Eros ------ Love in a romantic or sexual context.
Phila ------ Love as within friendship.
Agape ---- Love as in an unconditional manner without expectation of reciprocity. This is similar as in the love between a parent and a child. Doing a little research we will learn that the Greek word used to record what Jesus meant when He said, Love, was Agape.
And finally, let us look to see what Jesus meant when He used the word, Neighbor. Again we will consider the Greek word which was used in the original manuscripts to record the record of the words of Jesus. The word which we read as, Neighbor, was translated from the Greek word, Plesion. Plesion literally means anyone in close proximity without regard to gender, nationality, or religion. Put another way, it means everyone, without exception.
In summary, as a Christian, we are commanded, in order of importance, to love God and to love our fellow human beings, no less than, and in the same manner as we love ourselves. And on a side note, Jesus says that all of the other Commandments are intended to reflect and embody the love we should have for each other.
Imagine for a moment, that this world would be like if everyone did as Jesus stated. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share my understanding of God's word.
Part II. (Enoch). This is my take on part of what Judaism has to share about our being in this life together.
In Parsaht Vayekrah - Kedoshim (Leviticus 19:3) Laws regarding Ritual and Fundamental Morals) it is written, You shall fear every man his Mother and his Father, and you shall keep my Sabbaths.
This is a repetition, in slightly different words and order, of two of the Ten Commandments. To honor your parents, and to remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it Holy. In a commentary on this passage in Rabbinical literature, the story of Dama is told. It is a beautiful tale. It speaks of how people of different religions and cultures share common values. How we can use those values to work with, learn from, and teach one another. How it can all come together for mutual benefit.
Dama was not of the Jewish People. He was a dealer in Jewels in Ashkelon. He had in stock a jewel needed to replace one of the precious stones for the High Priest's Breast Plate. Buyers were sent from Jerusalem to negotiate the gemstone. Dama agreed to sell the Jewel for one hundred Dinars (currency of time).
When Dama went to his stock room to get the article, he found his Father sleeping there. He returned and said he could not sell the stone after all. The agents offered him first two, then three, and ultimately one thousand Dinars for the Gem. Dama refused. The buyers took their leave.
Soon afterward, Dama's father woke up. Dama ran after the buyers with the Jewel. They offered him the one thousand Dinars, which was their last offer.
He refused that sum. He reminded them the original deal was for one hundred Dinars. He told them he would not profit from the honor he paid to his father, by not interrupting the man's rest. He would accept only one hundred Dinars, the original and fair deal all agreed to do.
What I get from this story is that we are all in this life together. The universality of filial reverence, and of the value for honesty in our interactions is a basic part of us. The need to work together, and the desire to be true to our values, and fair to others spans and transcends things which separate us.
In Proverbs it is written, Shem tov como shemen tov. A good name is like a precious oil. Dama was indeed a man with a well earned good name. He respected his father. He was honest in his business dealings. He would not unfairly profit by exploiting the needs of others. He respected others as himself.
We are all in this life together. When we respect each others differences, when we find common ground upon which to form coalitions, to work together for the greater good we are doing our part to be in this life successfully together.
As Rabbi Hillel is often quoted in Pirke Avoth, The Sayings of the Fathers, Im ain anili, mi li? Im lo besvili leat's mi? V'eh im lo akshav, ad matai? If I am not for myself, who will be? If I am only for myself, what am I? If not now, when?
In this life, we need to self-advocate, to work well and look out for (be our brothers keepers). Not tomorrow. For if we wait until then, we may run out of time. The time to work with each other for mutual benefit is now.
