A culture of honor preserves dignity, engenders respect - Column for August 2, 2019 Las Cruces Bulletin

     Twenty years ago, as part of a “Countdown to the year 2000” in one of my previous 

communities, I was asked by the local newspaper to share some insights for shaping a 

productive and positive future. I included in my article suggestions that were firmly rooted in my heritage:

• Sing the praises of successful programs already established in our area.
• Respect other people and try to discover their inner feelings, beliefs, and hopes.
• Communicate - Try to talk to and with each other more than about each other. We should do our best to listen to one another, to agreeably disagree, but always to agree to be partners in advancing towards the future. 
• Do acts of kindness - volunteer on a regular basis to help someone in a school, home, community center or helping agency facility. 
• Give thanks - express appreciation to those who offer support, and show gratitude by returning that support in kind.
• Celebrate - create places and programs that gather together people of all ages to relax and to enjoy each other's company.

       I look at these statements now and, rather than wondering whether or not I was dreaming, I still firmly believe in the importance of this type of approach to community life. 

    There was an organization in the American Jewish community called Synagogue 3000 which, for many years, developed programming to promote new ways of thinking about congregational purposes and programs (strategies which could also apply to communities and cities). 

   One of the founders of Synagogue 3000, Dr. Ron Wolfson, described this innovative approach in his book, The Spirituality of Welcoming.  One principle which Dr. Wolfson emphasized was that communities should create and sustain a culture of honor, rather than a culture of blame.  

    At a conference of that organization, Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt, a modern Orthodox rabbi from New York City, addressed this concept of maintaining a culture of honor.  He noted that congregations that should be seen as sacred communities do not always reach that level.  Instead of creating a culture that honors every human being, where people see each other as being made in the image of God, many congregations are rife with dissensions, fights and arguments among the very people charged with leadership. Rabbi Rosenblatt challenged congregational leaders to learn what their tradition says about honoring each person in a community, and confronting shortcomings without ascribing blame, while building a community that is responsible for what happens within it. The goal of this approach is to preserve dignity and engender the highest level of respect for all those who work for the betterment of a congregation.  His recommendations can apply to organizations, workplaces and communities that seek to create a culture of honor.   

    I realize that my own statements from 1999 were intended to engender that type of culture.  As we approach 2020, here are suggestions which I would add to my earlier list:  

• Be humble, and remember to learn from other people, because everyone has something to teach.  
• Take responsibility for your actions and, when necessary, sincerely apologize and make amends.   This is not weakness.  It is positive human behavior. 
• Be steadfast in the principles by which you live, and, if you seek to change them, be sure that you are doing so in the interest of furthering true respect, compassion, kindness and even love.  
• And, finally, in the words of the ancient rabbi Hillel, “In a place where there are no decent human beings, strive to be a decent human being.”