How to Do Good & Avoid Evil: A Global Ethic from the Sources of Judaism

Explore how the principles of a global ethic can be found in Judaism and how they can provide the ethical norms for all religions to work together toward a more peaceful humankind. In 1993, the Parliament of the World's Religions endorsed the "Declaration toward a Global Ethic" composed by Hans Küng. In it, representatives from all the world's religions agreed on principles for a global ethic and committed themselves to directives of nonviolence, respect for life, solidarity, a just economic order, tolerance, and equal rights and partnership between men and women. But the declaration was just the first step. In this impressive volume, Hans Küng, probably the most famous living Roman Catholic theologian, and Rabbi Walter Homolka, head of Germany’s Abraham Geiger rabbinical seminary and distinguished professor, draw on the Jewish tradition to show the riches that Judaism can offer people of all faiths and nonbelievers in achieving these directives. Presenting key sacred texts and theological writings, the authors make the case for binding values and basic moral attitudes that can be found in Judaism’s universal message of a better world. Exploring Judaism’s focus on ethical conduct over declarations of faith, the authors show that making ethical decisions is indispensable in an ever-changing world.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments INTRODUCTION Walter Homolka JUDAISM AND A GLOBAL ETHIC Hans Küng JUDAISM'S UNIVERSAL GIFT: AN ETHIC FOR HUMANKIND Walter Homolka CORE ETHIC 1 THE VALUE OF THE HUMAN: EVERY HUMAN BEING MUST BE TREATED HUMANELY. Sacred Image of Man Abraham J. Heschel Primary Sources CORE ETHIC 2 THE GOLDEN RULE: DO NOT DO TO ANOTHER WHAT YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO BE DONE TO YOU. Love of Neighbor Samson Hochfeld Primary Sources CORE ETHIC 3 PEACE: COMMITMENT TO A CULTURE OF NONVIOLENCE AND REVERENCE FOR ALL LIFE. The Tent of Peace Hermann Cohen Primary Sources CORE ETHIC 4 JUSTICE: COMMITMENT TO A CULTURE OF JUSTICE AND A JUST ECONOMIC ORDER. Public Prosperity Salomo Samuel Primary Sources CORE ETHIC 5 TRUTH AND TOLERANCE: COMMITMENT TO A CULTURE OF TOLERANCE AND A LIFE IN TRUTHFULNESS. Truthfulness Leo Baeck Primary Sources CORE ETHIC 6 EQUAL RIGHTS: COMMITMENT TO A CULTURE OF EQUAL RIGHTS AND A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN. Standing Again at Sinai Judith Plaskow Primary Sources AFTERWORD: A VISION OF HOPE Religious Peace and a Global Ethic Hans Küng Declaration toward a Global Ethic Council of the Parliament of the World’s Religions, Chicago, September 1993 Glossary Sources Notes Credits

About the Author :
Rabbi Walter Homolka, PhD, DHL, is rector of the Abraham Geiger College for the training of rabbis, executive director of the Zacharias Frankel College, and a professor of Jewish studies at University of Potsdam in Germany. He is author of many books, including The Gate to Perfection: The Idea of Peace in Jewish Thought, coauthor of How to Do Good & Avoid Evil: A Global Ethic from the Sources of Judaism (SkyLight Paths), and a contributor to May God Remember: Memory and Memorializing in Judaism—Yizkor and We Have Sinned: Sin and Confession in Judaism—Ashamnu and Al Chet (both Jewish Lights). Hans Küng, a leading Roman Catholic theologian and priest, is president of the Global Ethic Foundation and emeritus professor of ecumenical theology at Tübingen University in Germany. He is author of many books, including Global Responsibility: In Search of a New World Ethic and Yes to a Global Ethic, and coauthor of How to Do Good & Avoid Evil: A Global Ethic from the Sources of Judaism.

Review :
"Enlightening and inspiring…. Convincingly shows … all religions of the world can endorse a global ethic and each has a distinctive contribution to it. This book offers Judaism as a 'case study' for a global project." —Paul F. Knitter, Paul Tillich Professor of Theology, World Religions, and Culture, Union Theological Seminary “At a time when people around the globe experience great division but also the unifying power of technology, this new framework offers hope for interfaith dialogue and understanding.” —Rabbi Ellen Weinberg Dreyfus, president, Central Conference of American Rabbis “Demonstrates the rich contribution Judaism can make to the development of an ethical framework for today’s global society. [Gives] the Jewish tradition its rightful place at the center of the ongoing discussion of a global ethic.” —John T. Pawlikowski, OSM, PhD, professor of social ethics; director, Catholic-Jewish Studies Program, Catholic Theological Union “Proclaims the equality and worth of all persons in the eyes of God—irrespective of their faiths…. A vital and significant addition to the library of ecumenical discourse and interfaith dialogue.” —Rabbi David Ellenson, president, Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion