Self-preservation

“Love your neighbor and yourself alike” Leviticus 19:18 (translation by Martin Buber)

Love – What does it mean to love your neighbor as yourself?  Perhaps Martin Buber helps us peel away the layers of religious distortion by offering this translation.  To love my neighbor is to act toward my neighbor with exactly the same self-preserving choices that I make for myself.  The standard of love for my neighbor is not some set of defined rules.  The standard is this:  how would I act to take care of me?  When there is no difference between my self-preservation and my preservation of my neighbor, then I have loved him.  Where my behavior toward myself surpasses my behavior toward my neighbor, I have violated God’s law.

Jesus gave us the same standard in a different format.  Do unto others what you would have done undo you.  The measure of my action toward others is how I want to be treated.  John Maxwell suggests that this is the only rule of ethical behavior.

If we understood Hebrew, we would never have been confused about loving our neighbor.  The Hebrew word ahav (love) is completely and entirely contained with the concept of action toward others.  It is not a mental attitude, a spiritual disposition or an emotional feeling.  It is what I do. Ahav is a word that is saturated with community.  Love demands working relationships filled with pragmatic benevolence.  That is why John can say, “If you tell me that you love God, but you don’t act with compassion toward your fellow man, you’re a liar!”  It is not possible to love God and hate my brother.  Why?  Because ahav is acting with grace toward others.

There are several words for “love” in Hebrew.  There are more in Greek.  But when it comes to God’s clarification about the meaning of love, there’s no confusion.  Love is defined by my behavior, not my intentions or my proclamations.  We say what we believe, but we do what we value.  And if we value love, we will display loving acts toward others.

“I love you.”  Now what does that mean?  Can I deceive you?  Can I cheat you?  Can I put you at risk?  Can I jeopardize your reputation, your way of life, your family?  Can I withhold my care and concern?  Can I use you to serve my ends?  Can I take advantage of you?  Can I ignore you?  Mistreat you?  If I love you, and love is an action word, then I will always act in your best interest, just as I would act in my best interest.  I will treat you just as I treat me.  The measure of my love is the equality between my self-interest and my interest in others.