The Love Commandments

There are 2 Love Commandments.
1. Love God totally.
2. Love other people as you love yourself.

These commandments were first stated in the Old Testament:
1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all
your being and with all your strength.  (Deuteronomy 6:5)
2. You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  (Leviticus 19:18)

These commandments were repeated by Jesus:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your
being and with all your mind and with all your strength [and]
love your neighbor as yourself.  (Matthew 22:37-9, Mark 12:
30-1, Luke 10:27)

Here love means self-giving or selfless love, which seeks the
other person’s welfare.

How do you love God?  Jesus (who was God in human
form) gave the answer as If you love me, you will keep my
commandments (John 14:15; compare 14:21 & 15:10).

Jesus said that on the commandments to love God and your
neighbor depend (or hang) the whole Old Testament Law
and the Prophets (Matthew 22:40).  Paul later adds that the
person who loves his or her neighbor has fulfilled (or carried
out) the Old Testament law (Romans 13:8 & Galatians 5:14).  
Therefore loving your neighbor as yourself can result in you
keeping the entire Old Testament law.

And how do you love (act for the welfare of) your
neighbor as yourself?  By not harming your neighbor
(Romans 13:10).  In practice you would only do to other
people what you would want them to do to you.  This would
include both you and the other person fully consenting to
what is done or proposed, and treating each other fairly.  It
would also avoid deception, force and injury.

As Joe Orton (a gay British author) said, You must do
whatever you like, as long as you enjoy it and don’t hurt
anyone else, that’s all that matters.

In legal terms, you must take reasonable care to avoid acts
or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be
likely to injure your neighbor. (Lord Atkin, Donoghue v
Stevenson).

And who is your neighbor?  Any person you come into
contact with (See the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:
29-37).  In a sexual relations context, your neighbor means
the person you are having sex with and any third party, e.g.
the partner of that person.


The Golden Rule

You follow the Golden Rule for living by doing to others what
you would want them to do to you.  Jesus expressed this as
Treat people the same way you want them to treat you
(Matthew 7:12 and Luke 6:31).  This would include treating
other people with kindness and honor.  Similar expressions
were stated by Confucius, Aristotle, Socrates, the Jewish
Talmud (Shabbat 31a) and J S Mill.  The Golden Rule sums
up the Old Testament Law and Prophets (Matthew 7:12).

Following this Rule helps to ensure that no harm is done to
other people.