Today is the first day of December, the month in which our thoughts turn naturally turn to the Winter Solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Hanukkah. As important as these holy days are to many of us, December is also the month in which the United Nations ratified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a document of great and grave importance to all of us.
Few Americans have ever heard of this document, let alone read it. It is only 1700 words, yet it sets forth a value system on which to build the just and compassionate civilization all religions say they desire.
This December 10th is the 60th anniversary of the document, and I would encourage you to read the Declaration as part of your holy preparations and maybe even celebrations. If you want a yardstick against which to measure the progress of humanity in achieving its own goals this is it.
You can find a copy of the Declaration on the website of the United Nations. I encourage you to visit the following url:
http://www.un.org/events/humanrights/2007/hrphotos/declaration%20_eng.pdf
and take a few minutes to read this amazing statement. It is a glorious affirmation of what we humans can envision regardless of the things that divide us. After you have read it, please send the link to your friends and family. And then start a conversation with one another about what we can do as persons, as a people, and as a nation to help bring the vision articulated in this sacred text to fruition.
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2 comments:
What timing; the anniversary falls on the day after the Rabbis for Human Rights (North America) conference ends. Thanks for pointing to this.
it would be nice to be able to read this and think our country upheld it in fact.
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