A Path to Unity

The Golden Rule

The Golden Rule invites people to treat others the way they would expect to be treated. While Jesus is best known for teaching the Golden Rule, variations of the principle is found in many religions and moral philosophies. The Golden Rule appears very prominently in Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism, and is promoted by moral philosophers. 

The Buddha made the Golden Rule one of the cornerstones of his teachings. It appears in various forms throughout the Tripitaka. One of the sayings attributed to the Buddha in Udanavarga 5:18 is, “Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.” 

The ancient Hindu epic Mahābhārata 13.113.8 preserves the following exhortation, “One should never do that to another which one regards as injurious to one’s own  self. This, in brief, is the rule of dharma. Other behavior is due to selfish desires.” 

In Islam, there are similar examples of the Golden Rule.  Kitab al-Kafi, vol. 2, p. 146 says: 

A Bedouin came to the prophet, grabbed the stirrup of his camel and said: ‘O the messenger of God! Teach me something to go to heaven with it.’ Prophet said: ‘As you would have people do to you, do to them; and what you dislike to be done to you, don’t do to them. Now let the stirrup go! This is enough for you; now go and act in accordance with it!’ 

The Golden Rule appears several times Judaism. For example, Moses states in the book of Leviticus 19:34, “The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I the LORD am your God.” 

Jesus famously taught the Golden Rule in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus described the Golden Rule as the second greatest commandment. In Matthew 7:12, Jesus said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” 

Teaching your Children the Golden Rule

My brother and I learned the Golden Rule at a very young age. Growing up, my mom always did a great job of  reminding us when we were being ugly or grumpy, “There are two things that you have complete control of: your attitude and the way you choose to treat other people.” 

Every evening at our family dinner, my dad would always ask us to share what we did for God and our community that day. He knew that Jesus said in his Sermon on the Mount that the two most important moral rules for Christians to follow are: love God with all your heart, soul, and mind and love others as yourself. My dad taught my brother and I to take responsibility for following these simple rules. In this way, my dad taught my brother and I to Be Golden.  

I eventually learned that when I gave God focused time in prayer and reading His word, I came to understand the character of the God of goodness and love. I learned that when I connect with love, loving others comes more naturally. 

While loving God makes following the Golden Rule come more naturally, you don’t even have to be religious to Be Golden. All you need to do is take responsibility for honoring others. That means you treat others like you want to be treated, even if you disagree with them, and even if you are angry with them. To Be Golden means to take responsibility for treating others with respect, no matter what.  

My grandfather, James Alan Hughes, who was Daddy Jim to me, was a fine gentleman. He taught my family how to honor others by simply being polite and using good manners.  Daddy Jim would make us take our hats off at the dinner table give thanks for our meals. He unwaveringly reminded us to honor others with the way we respond to one another, “yes sir and no sir,” or “yes ma’am and no ma’am,” and “please and thank you.” He taught us to serve others by opening the door for the person we walk into a room with, even if it is a stranger, or even if it is someone we don’t agree with. 

I am forever grateful for the life lessons Daddy Jim taught me and my family. We have done our best to follow Daddy Jim’s example, and it has brought great benefit to my life. My entire life I have done my best to treat other people with honor and respect. Those small acts of love for others created powerful relationships that blessed me many years later. I discovered this blessing when my friends and family came together to coordinate events to raise money to pay for my experimental cancer treatments. 

The Power of Be Golden

When I got sick, many people showed up for me when I needed them most. They all genuinely wanted to help me from the bottom of their hearts. In the fall of 2021, one of my best friends, Kip Cunningham, put together a golf tournament fundraiser for my family and invited all our friends. This event took place just before a big live music fundraiser that my aunt, Patti Hughes Prescott, had coordinated. The Bulverde Lion’s Club helped generate large donations and raise money for my cause. My friend Katie Chain rallied together our work community from H-E-B. H-E-B treated me very well throughout the battle. They donated all the food and water for the event. These efforts paid for a very expensive experimental cancer treatment, and they continue to help my family.  

About a year later, I had another cancer recurrence. My spiritual community at CrossBridge Community Church rallied around my family and raised money to cover expenses related to traveling the country to see doctors as we tried to establish a prescriptive path for my unclassified cancer diagnosis. Around that same time, my aunt, along with a family friend, Larry Pyle, coordinated a skeet shooting tournament and celebration to raise money for my continued battle. 

When I ran out of conventional treatment options in the summer of 2023, I began a cutting-edge new cancer treatment called Immunocine, which was not covered by insurance. I needed about $100,000 to pay for treatment, travel, food, and hotel expenses. My aunt opened a GoFundMe page to ask for donations. We were about $60,000 short of the goal right before I started the treatment, then an anonymous person from CrossBridge donated $30,000.  

The United Creed exists because my friends, family, and church followed the Golden Rule: they all treated me the way that they would want to be treated in my situation. There is no way my wife and I would have been able to get the Creed Party’s mission off the ground on our own.  

My life experiences are a great example of the power of the Golden Rule. I was diagnosed with advanced stage cancer at the start of the COVID Pandemic, a very strained social and political climate, in the midst of it all, I witnessed the Golden Rule unite a very  diverse community. The people that supported me in the cancer battle come from different cultures, races, political views, sexuality, gender, and age. People from different walks of life committed to Be Golden, and that made unity possible.  

My story is proof that Be Golden is a path to restoring unity in communities across our extremely politically divided country. Be Golden reminds Americans of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23, which is, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self 

control.” 

In the Gospel of John, Jesus illustrates a beautiful spiritual truth. He likens himself to the vine of a grape plant, and He says His followers are like the branches that spring out from the vine. He tells us when His followers remain with Him, they will produce fruit, but apart from Him, they can produce nothing. 

The United Creed intends to encourage Americans to be engaged with the God of goodness so that the fruit of the Spirit can heal our country. Be Golden is the path for us to bring the fruit of the Spirit to the forefront of American culture. It has the power to heal American culture from the inside out, one person at a time.

Share our message on your socials, tell your friends about us. Help us reach our goal of 100,000 members. Be a part of helping the Creed Party organization breath morality and virtue back into American culture, one person at a time.