What Are Human Rights?
Human rights are about human dignity for all people, even enemies. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights was first published in 1948 after the cruelties and horrors of World War
II, including the Holocaust. It has become one of the most important documents of
humanity and has been referred to as the "Magna Carta of Humankind." The Universal Declaration is an international agreement to honor the human dignity of all people with rights that cannot be taken away. Human rights include the right to life, liberty and security of person, the right not to be a slave, the right not to be tortured, the right to choose
a religion freely, and so on. Altogether there are 30 basic rights outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and include civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights.
Human rights are rights each person is born with simply because they are human. Human rights cannot be bought, sold, given, or taken away - they are inalienable rights.
A Historical Concern for Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights dates back to the 1940s after the abuses that occurred through totalitarian regimes at that time. However, a concern for human rights finds expression historically in the Magna Carta in 1215, the English Bill of Rights in 1688, the
U.S. Declaration of Independence in 1776, and the French Revolution in 1789.
Early restoration members of the church in Missouri suffered human rights abuses.
The church's historical suffering and historical need for repentance should foster in
members a concern for human rights today. Members and friends share in a wider Christian tradition that tragically has in crusade, inquisition, sword, colonialism, and holocaust participated in abuses of human rights. The Community of Christ now has a presence in over fifty countries, many of which are in the poorer
two-thirds world. Concern for human rights for people of all races, faiths, and nations is an imperative for a world-wide church dedicated to the pursuit of peace,
reconciliation, and healing of the Spirit.
Our scriptures have strong, unambiguous support for the rights of all, based on the worth of all persons. What are the theological foundations for human rights that exist in revelation?
Scripture, Revelation and Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration, not a revelation. It is a declaration to all of the inalienable dignity of all humans whether Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Hindu,
humanist, believer, or non-believer. However, what support is there in our experience of Divine revelation for human rights?
The roots of the equal worth of all persons begins in Genesis, the first book of the Bible:
So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
Genesis 1:27 NRSV
All humans, male and female, are equally created in the image of God. God is in every person. To scorn, brutalize, murder, impoverish, silence, or cause another human to starve, is to insult, betray, and crucify God.
Again, in the Genesis account of creation, all humans are described as being the children and descendants of Adam and Eve. All humans, black, brown, white, and all shades in between, belong to the same family. We are all related. Thus the abuse of one member of the human family is the abuse of all.
The Jewish Torah has as a major theme the liberation from slavery of the Hebrew people in Egypt. It also develops a profound concern for the rights of others, widows, orphans, the alien, the aged, and the poor
(see Leviticus 19: 9-17, 32-33).
In the story of Jesus of Nazareth, the Creator God of the whole universe put on human personality and walked among
the people. We can see what God is really like through the life of Jesus. Jesus was born in a stable not a
palace; a Jew not a Roman; a brown child of an oppressed people. Jesus' passion for the poor, for the dignity of women, and for the worth of the foreigner are seen clearly in his life and teaching. Jesus taught that it was not righteous to retaliate against an enemy. Enemies also have rights.
He argued that it was the duty of all disciples to love their enemies and pray for them (Matthew
5:44 NRSV). When asked for his consent in stoning a woman to death for adultery, Jesus refused. Instead he forgave her (John 8:1-11
NRSV).
When the religious and political elite moved to silence Jesus, he was arrested
at night just after he had finished praying. Jesus refused to allow his
disciples to be violent in resisting his arrest. He went through a mock trial
and was sentenced to death. Pontius Pilate, as Roman governor, approved the
sentence. After torture by scourging, Jesus was brutally executed by
crucifixion. Jesus demonstrated that God loves personal enemies when Jesus
prayed from the cross, "Father forgive them; for they do not know what they
are doing" (Luke 23:34 NRSV). Jesus' life and death exposed the inhumanity of
those who oppressed his people and executed not only him but many others. In
Jesus teaching on the final judgment he said this:
I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,
I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
I was naked and your gave me clothing,
I was sick and you took care of me,
I was in prison and you visited me
Matthew 25:35-36 NRSV
For the first 300 years, Christians were persecuted and martyred. No Christian leader in this period advocated violence. Christians refused to make martyrs of others. Although persecuted, they met regularly for worship and spoke the truth as they saw it. They refused to be intimidated in caring for the poor. Respectful of government, they nevertheless were obedient to God first.
As
members of Community of Christ, we seek to "Hear Jesus!" and go back to the roots of Christianity, deeply ashamed of violence like the
Crusades, Inquisition, colonialism, and Holocaust that has marred subsequent Christian history.
Among the inspired words of Joseph Smith Jr., these words were given as revelation in June 1829:
Remember the worth of persons is great in the sight of God;
for I, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh;
wherefore I, God, suffered the pain of all,
that all might repent and come to me.
And I, God, have risen again from the dead,
that I might bring all to me on conditions of repentance.
And how great is my joy in the person that repents.
Therefore you are called to cry repentance to this people
Doctrine & Covenants 16: 3c-e, adapted
Incarnation and atonement, made visible in the birth and suffering of Jesus Christ, reveal how much people matter to God. Christ's resurrection gives hope that good will triumph and people will be made whole. The worth of persons is secured for us by means of divine revelation and thus is not subject to the vagaries of
culture or the self-interest of the rich and powerful. Neither can there be any exceptions to the worth of persons. All humans are of worth in the sight of God. God suffered the pain of all that all might repent.
As Christians we are committed to being on the forefront of recognizing the equal worth of all persons in all nations. We seek therefore to support comprehensive human rights for all persons and speak out repentance without fear or favor to all who abuse human rights. We gladly join with people from different faiths and races together to enable all children everywhere, to grow up whole and unafraid.
Speak out for those who cannot speak, for the rights of all the
destitute. Speak out, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. Proverbs 31:8-9
NRSV
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