Golden Rule Confucianism

Nearly every single major religion out there endorses the Golden Rule and has some type of version of it. And with most of the world being religious it is only logical to say that the Golden Rule is universal. However, regardless of someone’s faith practically everyone is familiar with the straightforward modern interpretation which says to “treat others the way you would want to be treated”. It is still unclear who spoke about this moral code first, but Confucius is probably the most well-known person to have said it. According to a translation of The Analects, the authors state that when Confucius was asked about what may serve as a rule of practice for a person’s life he responds by saying “What you do not want done to yourself, do not do

He says to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (New International Version, Matthew 22-39). This is the first appearance of the “Parable of the Good Samaritan” which virtually every person knows. This is candidly stating that since humans love themselves so much, they should love anybody and everybody just as much. So in order to live a righteous Christian life and like a “good Samaritan” you must follow “The Great Commandments”. Therefore, if ⅓ of the world is Christian, then in a literal sense it is reasonable to say that the Golden Rule is already about ⅓ universal with people following Christianity alone. An abolitionist named Angelina Emily Grimke provides another interpretation on the Golden Rule with her book named An Appeal to the Christian Women of the South. It was written 150 years ago, during the era of slavery in America, and in it she tries to plea with the Christian women that encourage slavery. Angelina Grimke questions the thinking of the advocates of slavery and references the golden rule by putting women’s children in the position of the

She brilliantly criticizes the hypocrisy behind the views of slavery supporters. She exploits their prejudice and even indirectly calls them cowards. This is the Golden Rule used at its finest because it puts these people in their place. Grimke is showing how if these women are true Christians they must know the Golden Rule. However, they obviously don’t follow it because they support such an inhumane thing while they could never imagine their loved ones or even themselves being enslaved. Slavery is a thing that Jesus would never approve of yet these people did not find it sinful at