Friday 01 November 2019

Psalm: Psalm 149

Background

Today the church celebrates All Saints Day where we remember those who have gone before us and inspired us in our faith. We give thanks for those whose life and teaching continues to influence us today, and for those we knew who nurtured us in our faith.

Our passage for today includes the beatitudes. In the Catholic Church people are beatified to become saints: blessed for demonstrating the types of values found in the beatitudes such as love, humility and forgiveness. These are qualities that all people can aspire to and today we remember those who taught us these values.

At heart of this passage is a moral that transcends faith boundaries and speaks of our shared humanity: "Do to others as you would have them do to you." This has become known as the ‘Golden Rule’ as it is shared among the world’s religions.

For instance:
In Judaism: "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow man." –Talmud: Shabbat 31a
In Islam: "No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself." – Al-Nawawi’s Forty Hadith, 13
In Hinduism: "That is the sum of duty: do naught to others which if done to thee would cause thee pain."
– Mahabharata 5.1517
In the Baha’i faith: "Lay not on any soul a load which ye would not wish to be laid upon you, and desire not for any one the things ye would not desire for yourselves." – Baha’u’llah, Gleanings, 128

In our multi-faith society it is not just Christians who can inspire our faith. My appreciation of prayer and dedication to social justice have been invigorated by a Jewish friend. My passion for equality has been enhanced by meeting people of the Baha’i faith. When we open ourselves up to learning from those who are different to us, we can gain an even greater understanding and appreciation for our own faith.

To Ponder:

• Who has inspired your faith?
• What can we learn from people of other faiths?