“By doing no harm, by avoiding evil of every kind,
especially that which is most generally practiced.”
So goes the first of the Three Simple Rules of John Wesley. It is a good place to start. I think we all know what it means to do no harm. (harm: hurt, injure, damage) Do no harm means we are not to hurt each other. We know this already. The key to this rule is the phrase which is most generally practiced. Unfortunately this is the harm we do often without even realizing it. It is the habit we fall into when we are not paying attention. We get tired. We have our own problems. We lose our patience. Our own pain lashes out and hurts anyone who happens to be there. This leads to more hurt and on and on it goes. In fact we need to be intentional about doing no harm. We need to take stock of our relationships and practice kindness rather than just hope it happens naturally. And we also need to go back when we hurt each other and seek to make it right, even to seek forgiveness.
If we follow this rule we will learn how to disagree without causing harm which is crucial for us as we go forward together. This step can provide a safe place to stand while the hard and faithful work of discernment is done. Only then are we free to discover the right path for us to go. This practice begins in the scripture where Paul writes: Love does not insist on its own way. It is not resentful or rude. In fact love is open to what will come but also and most importantly, to each other and all that we are going through as individuals and as a community. Someone once said: Be kind; everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. Can we take the time to pay attention to each other, to look with the heart, to be compassionate? Can we care for each other and what they need with the same passion we care about ourselves and what we want?
This is our challenge as we live out the Three Simple Rules in community. It is not magic but when we treat each other with compassion and with mutual respect for the struggle we are each one undergoing as human beings in the world we will be transformed. We may even become the body of Christ in the world. Thanks be to God.
