Unconditional Respect

I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me. All I ask is that you respect me as a human being. Jackie Robinson

respect Do you believe everyone deserves respect?

I do. I sincerely desire to treat every person I encounter with dignity and respect. And I frequently fail miserably.

I’m pretty good at spotting this deficiency in others, not so proficient at catching it in my own attitudes. I’m trying to figure out why such a basic personal approach to others is so difficult to attain consistently.

I think we confuse respect with approval or agreement. Of course it’s much easier to respect those with whom I agree, but easy isn’t always the goal. Respect isn’t earned, it’s the unconditional right of every individual.
I don’t have to like someone to regard them with respect. I like some folks more than others—nothing wrong with that. But I get caught occasionally in the trap of gossiping or otherwise disparaging someone simply because we aren’t buddies. That’s disrespectful, and it’s not acceptable.
I also think we confuse respect and trust. Trust is most certainly conditional. It’s earned, and once violated is difficult to regain. Only a fool trusts someone who’s demonstrated a lack of trustworthiness. It’s difficult, but I believe I can respect even someone I don’t trust.

To me, respect involves my belief that every person is a child of God. Jesus specifically tells me to love everyone, even (and especially) those I don’t like very much.

I don’t think respect for everyone comes naturally to most people—it certainly isn’t part of my natural instincts. Respect requires a conscious choice; it’s part of living life on-purpose.