In a comment to a previous post, Daddy Democrat mentioned the term "golden rule Democrat," and provided a link to one of his blog posts that discusses it.
This post from Street Prophets has a profile of Ted Strickland and includes his discussion of the term.
Interesting. I hope it catches on.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Golden Rule Democrat
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5 comments:
In addition to alienating many non-Christians, use of that phrase in connection with either party is hypocritical in my view. Sorry, I seem to be very disagreeable today. I'm a crotchety old bastard.
But I hate when any pol makes an allusion to religion or God. I hate when Rs claim God is on their side and don't like bumper stickers claiming that Jesus was a liberal.
Both views assume that finite minds can understand the infinite. Best to leave God or religion out of political debate. Lincoln dealt with lots of generals who claimed God was on their side. He said he was more worried about whether he was on God's side.
see I don't see the line as an inherently religious line. I see it as a values based line. Treat others the way you would want to be treated. I learned that from my Mom and Dad. My pastor helped to reinforce it.
I think the idea of being a Golden Rule Democrat has legs. People want a certain amount of fairness from their representatives. Saying you live your life by the Golden Rule says that you value that fairness.
I slept on it. I'm not so disagreeable as yesterday. But I believe when either the left or right starts leaning on a particular religion, they tread on dangerous ground. LVDem, your comment actually proves my point. You refer to your pastor. Some of us have rabbis who did not espouse the Golden Rule, at least not by that name.
And the Golden Rule does not mean "fairness," as you say. It means love, even for your enemies. You dilute the Golden Rule when you apply it in the political realm.
"The state cannot indulge in self-sacrifice. If it is to treat the poor well, it must do so on grounds of justice, appealing to arguments that will convince people who are not followers of Jesus or of any other religion. The norms of justice will fall short of the demands of love that Jesus imposes. A Christian may adopt just political measures from his or her own motive of love, but that is not the argument that will define justice for state purposes."
Some of us have rabbis who did not espouse the Golden Rule, at least not by that name.
Bernie,
The above quote actually proves a point as well. But only when you realize the term "Golden Rule" is not inherently Christian. It may be associated with Christianity by some people, but the idea behind it is not exclusive to a particular religion.
I'd argue that you can absolutely implement the idea without espousing a particular religion (or any religion at all). Damning the notion of being considerate of other people's concerns simply because some religious traditions espouse the idea makes no sense.
Damning that notion simply because you don't like the idea of considering other people's concerns, on the other hand, makes perfect sense - if that's the angle you're taking.
There are just too many good things we'll end up throwing out with the bathwater if we're going to run from every benign practice that happens to coincide with religious philosophy.
Bernie, you're confusing the Golden Rule (treat others as you would want to be treated) with Christ's greatest commandments... love your enemy as yourself is a Christian tenant. Treating others as you would want to be treated is entirely about fairness.
I don't see loving your neighbor as yourself being the same as treating somebody the way you would want to be treated. As a Golden Rule follower, I treat people as equals and with fairness. As a Christian, I embrace the person who condemns me. To me there is a huge difference.
For the record I tend toward the Golden Rule more than loving my neighbor. Some neighbors are just difficult to love.
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