Creating a more humane world begins by affirming the need
to make significant choices in our lives.
We
choose to treat each other as ends, not means.
To enable us to be whole in a
fragmented world, we choose to treat each other as unique
individuals. having intrinsic worth.
We
seek to act with integrity.
Treating one another as ends requires that we learn
to act with integrity. This includes keeping commitments,
and being more open, honest, caring, and responsive.
We
are committed to educate ourselves.
Personal progress is possible, both in wisdom and
in social life. Learning how to build ethical relationships
and cultivate a humane community is a life-long endeavor.
Self-reflection and
our social nature require us to shape a more humane
world.
Growth of the human spirit is rooted in self-reflection,
but can only come to full flower in community. This
is because people are social, needing both primary
relationships and larger supportive groups to become
fully human. Our social nature requires that we reach
beyond ourselves to decrease suffering and increase
creativity in the world.
Democratic
process is essential to our task.
The democratic process is essential to a humane
social order because respect for the worth of persons
requires democratic process which elicits and allows
a greater expression of human capacities.
Life
itself inspires religious response.
Although awareness of impending death intensifies
the human quest for meaning, the mystery of life
itself, and the need to belong, are the primary
factors motivating human religious response.
