Proper respect for God, all life and creation is essential to holiness

The late comedian Rodney Dangerfield started his monologues with the catchphrase, “I don’t get no respect,” and then proceeded to tell a factious, witty incident to make his audience laugh.

Dangerfield is not the only one who doesn’t get any respect these days. Many individuals, groups of people and institutions do not get the respect they formerly received.

One group is teachers. When I was growing up, if I got in trouble in school, I was punished again when I got home. Today, many parents go to school and defend the behavior of their children. Often, the child learns that they can get away with anything since their parents will always defend them whether they are right or wrong.

We have also seen a decline regarding respect for authority. Whether a person agreed or disagreed with a U.S. president, in the past a person would never have shouted, “You lied,” during a nationally televised speech.

Respect for sacred persons and things have also declined. Even God has “taken a beating” in some circles. People are too busy with other things to “keep holy the Sabbath.” In the last 40 years, weekly worshipers have decline from 65 percent to 30 percent.

For the most part, the 10 Commandments deal with respect. The directives we receive from them were originally given to a group of runaway slaves. When we look behind the “thou shall not’s,” we see that most of the commandments deal with respect.

For example, “taking the Lord’s name in vain” is a lack of respect for God. The name stands for the deity. When we abuse a sacred name, we show lack of respect for God.

When we “honor our father and our mother,” we show them the proper respect due to them as parents. As adults, we still show them the proper respect, although we do not have to obey them as we did as children.

Respecting the sanctity of marriage is behind the commandment “you shall not commit adultery.” Respecting all life is included in “you shall not kill.”

Respecting other peoples’ property is contained in the commandment “you shall not steal.” Respect is an important aspect of the Christian life.

At a recent priest retreat, the retreat master gave us some supporting words for each letter in the word respect. I have added my own thought to his.

Reverence. We must recognize that God’s Spirit is in each person and also in us. The Bible tells us that we are made after the image and likeness of God.

Evaluation. We must learn to treasure everything that is good and wholesome and to shun anything that would enslave us. The quick fixes that the world offers often look good at first but they do not satisfy the deeper longing of our hearts.

Support. Find others with the same value system that we have so we can uphold the ideals and principles of the gospels. We also want to remember that diversity is at the heart of unity.

Presence. We are standing on holy ground. God created the world and all that is in it. Then God sent his Son into the world. The ordinary is holy because God made it holy.

Enhance. Many people do not realize their dignity and value. We must help others recognize their own giftedness and worth.

Communal. God has made us social beings. We need to live within a given structure to reach our full potential. We need the church and the state to help us become aware of our potential.

Transformation. We have to be willing to change ourselves and be willing to be an agent of change to make this world and better place.