Where it comes from
The command is found in Leviticus 19:18: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Rabbi Akiva called it a great principle of the Torah.
The Talmud (Shabbat 31a) tells of a man who asked the sage Hillel to teach him the whole Torah while he stood on one foot. Hillel answered: “What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the whole Torah; the rest is commentary. Go and learn it.”
What it means
Hillel’s version turns a lofty feeling into something anyone can practise: before you act, ask how it would feel to be on the receiving end. Love of neighbour becomes a daily discipline of fairness, patience and kindness, in business, in families, in how we speak about each other.
In every faith, and for none
This is the Golden Rule, and almost every tradition has its own form of it. Jesus quoted the verse from Leviticus as one of the two great commandments. A well-known saying of the Prophet Muhammad teaches that none of you truly believes until you wish for your brother what you wish for yourself. Confucius gave nearly the same words as Hillel. People of no religion live by it too.
Lives that embody it
Many of the people on Jews Impact lived this value, in laboratories, courtrooms, classrooms and rescue work.
Lillian WaldNurse who founded New York’s Henry Street Settlement, coined the term “public health nurse” launched school nursing in the U.S. and helped create the federal Children’s Bureau.
Henrietta SzoldFounder of Hadassah; through Youth Aliyah, rescued thousands of Jewish children from Nazi Europe.
Leonard BernsteinConductor & composer; "West Side Story," New York Philharmonic, music educator to a generation through the Young People's Concerts.
Stories to read
- United Hatzalah: the volunteer medics who aim to reach anyone in 90 seconds
- The Loan That Asks Nothing Back but the Loan: Jewish Free Lending
Living it today
- Before you speak about someone, ask whether you would want it said about you.
- Do one small favour today that no one asked for.
- Make peace with someone you have drifted from.
This value is one thread of tikkun olam, the repair of the world, and it belongs to anyone who wants to take part.