Have you ever stopped to wonder why people need specific laws in order to do the right things and be good people? Whether it is the laws here in America or the 10 commandments from the bible people need specific laws. How would it be possible to enforce an abstract moral principle like; be a good person?
Character and the individual are concepts we do not hear discussed a lot these days.
Goals without bounds
Telling people to be good without giving them specific directions is useless. It is like telling a small child not to burn themselves. If they don’t understand the concept of hot and what things produce hot; what have you really communicated?
Have you ever met a person who didn’t think they are good? Most people even those who are not good believe they are good and that they do good. Heck, such people don’t need things like the 10 commandments. But let’s use the 10 commandments as our example for discussion because there are far fewer of them than there are of local, state and national laws and regulations. Besides, they are generally known and who knows what’s in the law.
Did you ever notice the 10 Commandments are written as prohibitions? They tell us what we shall not do. Only the fourth and fifth are positive and they have negative components. The commandment to keep holy the Lord’s Day is essentially a work prohibition on that day. The commandment to honor one’s parents is a prohibition against offending the dignity of one’s parents.
A stable and decent society
What is the first prerequisite for a stable and decent society? Let me posit to you it is for people to desist from wrongful behaviors. What does that mean? That means; first and foremost do no harm. This is why we have an emphasis on prohibitions in our laws. It reflects our self-awareness as humans of our tendency to do things without considering the consequences of our actions.
Now, let’s think about individuals who believe themselves to be preoccupied with doing good. There are whole ideologies and political parties running around proclaiming good intentions. But a great deal of evil is done by such individuals. They, and only they, can know the “right” way. There can be no other way. Isn’t that how we got the old saying, “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.”?
It goes without saying that we should be preoccupied with doing good. But good intentions are not enough. Good intentions do not guarantee good results. For that reason, we must ask ourselves whether the good we intend will do harm. This is as true personally as it is society-wide.
Examples
Let’s think this through. Parents are preoccupied with doing good things for their children. That’s a pretty normal, nearly universal approach. Parents also tend to make relatively few demands on their children. The question becomes: Is this good intention ending up helping or hurting the children? If a parent spoils a child they are producing an ungrateful individual. Aren’t ungrateful individuals unhappy and more likely to not be good people? This is a too frequent, if unintended consequence.
Staying with the example of the 10 Commandments, they are set in terms of obligations rather than in terms of rights. Certainly, the bible recognizes basic human rights. They are fundamental. The bible asserts people are created in the image and likeness of God. This seminal text makes clear people must first feel morally obligated to others. That comes before any consideration of rights. Don’t we forget this too often today?
There is a bible verse in Leviticus that requires us to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” That’s a moral obligation. Not acting lovingly toward your neighbor is a problem. It is unacceptable behavior. Just as importantly you have a right to expect reciprocal behavior.
Action and the individual
All action comes in the singular. Action does not come from any group. True, forming groups can amplify the effects of any action, but all action is initiated with the individual and done by an individual. In this way all of the 10 Commandments are in the singular. This was done to emphasize the words in the commandments are directed to each person individually.
A good society is composed of good individuals doing what is right. So, how can we make every individual as good a person as possible? We have a society in which too many parents are too concerned with their children’s happiness, intelligence, success and popularity. Shouldn’t we be more concerned with the children’s character? Perhaps we are watching as our lack of character is causing our society to spiral down.
Probably these thoughts are all wrong… but just give them a few minutes. Character and the individual are concepts we do not hear discussed a lot these days, but maybe we should.
