Of all Christian moral principles, the one which probably finds the most acceptance by people of all walks of life and religious backgrounds is the Golden Rule: “Do unto others what you would have them do unto you.” In fact, many religions have similar versions of it. Though sometimes using different wording, it is found throughout the Bible (Lv 19:18, Tb 4:15, Sir 31:15, Mt 7:12, Lk 6:31, Gal 5:14).

It communicates a simple and clear message. Unfortunately, simplicity sometimes lends itself to a lack of specificity. Which is why, until we see things as clearly as Jesus does, we will still need a little help applying it lest we run the risk of misusing or misunderstanding it.

It is meant to be understood in the context of everything else Jesus teaches, as He understands it, never in isolation or arbitrarily. This is also why His Apostles were given the Holy Spirit and entrusted with the care of His Church until He returns — including being given the authority necessary to clarify moral matters when needed.

It can be very easy at times to cite the Golden Rule, but actually end up contradicting the heart of what it is meant to teach.

This seems to happen frequently in a society which defends nearly any choice as being equal to any other, one that is often focused on the pursuit of pleasure, and one where moral relativism becomes an acceptable form of moral reasoning. Such thinking may go like this: “I wouldn’t want you telling me I shouldn’t do what I want, so I will support whatever you want to do.”

On the surface this might appear a little like the Golden Rule, but in actuality it violates it completely.

This reasoning is really focused on me getting what I want, not on what is good for someone else. It is a round about way of trying to ensure that no one stands in my way, by not standing in anyone else’s way. This is not what Jesus taught.

It must be understood that the Golden Rule is not about personal preference or simple desire, but rather a summation of an attitude of love properly understood in a Christian sense. Not just any definition of love works. Christian love involves a willingness to sacrifice myself or what I want to focus on another’s true and ultimate good. It looks at the whole picture, not just the immediate one, when applying the Golden Rule.

Likewise, Christian love can never condone choices which are sinful since they end up harming or destroying the person making them. It is neither an act of love nor a correct application of the Golden Rule to support someone making moral choices that would keep them from their ultimate happiness or trap them in wrong patterns of thinking, action or belief.

Unfortunately, however, in our modern context, the Golden Rule is sometimes invoked as a reason to not stand up for something that should be defended or for making a choice which goes against the Church’s moral teaching. Jesus’ teaching never treats all choices as equal or good. In fact, He was very stern in condemning sin because of the harm it causes and its ability to hinder or destroy our chance for true happiness — one that can only come from Him.

If we understand the Golden Rule in the context of authentic Christian morality, we see a very different application than one we might encounter in a society which accepts the concept but rejects the actual content of this principle.  In a morally confused society like ours its not difficult to see how even a Christian principle like the Golden Rule might be corrupted in an attempt to justify unchristian moral choices. For us as Christians though, we must combat this by living the truth that the Golden Rule always and only calls for truly good moral choices.