By Brian Scott Archibald Originally Published June 30, 2015 Service, in its deepest sense, is an act of love. By serving others, I am sharing myself. I am giving something very personal to those I serve. I am expressing my love of humanity through my personal acts of service. I am showing those I serve that I accept them and wish to help them move forward. Being in service is to embrace our mutual humanity and to express our acceptance and understanding of what we all share. As well, what I do in service is always a unique act, because it comes from me. While the actual service I provide may be the same service that someone else might provide, because my service comes from me—because I am the one who is giving of myself—my service is unique. My service has unique meaning to me; and as well, can have unique meaning to those I serve. But those I serve must appreciate my service, else the bond of love is broken. If I give of myself through service, but those whom I serve take my service for granted—if they ignore or marginalize, or worse, demean, or belittle my efforts—the virtuous […]

Being of service is empowering to each and every one of us. The more we are of service; the better we become at being of service; the better we feel about ourselves; the better we feel about others; the better our outlook on life, on society, and on our collective futures; the more we become morally and economically viable; the more we value ourselves. Service is a self-perpetuating cycle of emotional, economic, and social power. Through my acts of service, I thereby demonstrate my extrinsic value to others, as well as build intrinsic value within myself. I feel my personal value swell as I act in service to others. Experiencing their gratitude, I am, myself, validated, buoyed, and empowered. I become more than I was before. By focusing on the needs of others, I actualize myself through service. When I know I can do something to help someone—when I have learned to be an expert at providing a service, or even have simply improved my existing abilities to serve—I thereby feel welcomed and valued by society. I feel I am of value to others; and I feel I have value within myself. I know I can make a difference. I […]

We did not ask to be here. Our existence is a brute fact, over which we had no control and about which no deciding voice. We were literally dragged kicking and screaming into this world. Those who brought us here without our consent, therefore, owe us a debt of service to raise us, clothe us, feed us, protect us, educate us, love and nurture us, and help us to become our better selves. Such is the moral contract that our parents made when they made us. But not only do our parents owe us that debt of service, society in general owes us that same debt as the logical and necessary extension of our immediate family. Society exists because of, and in support of, all of us together. That’s what societies are: collections of individuals and families coming together in mutual support. Society relies on our collective interest and action; therefore it owes us its support, its service. The only way whereby anyone divests himself of his natural liberty, and puts on the bonds of civil society, is by agreeing with other men to join and unite into a community, for their comfortable, safe, and peaceable living one amongst another, […]

Our world is full of competing and conflicting ideas about what to believe and how to behave. We argue about what is right and what is wrong, about what is best for ourselves and for each other, and about how we are supposed to live our lives. Our wide range of religious beliefs—Christian, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, Taoist, Wiccan, Mormon, Atheist, Agnostic, Cherokee, and Crow—assures a steady debate over the moral imperatives we each hold as sacred, whether we believe them from God, from Nature, or from ourselves. As well, we tussle and fight about political and economic issues, taking polar opposite positions on nearly every social, economic, or political question that arises. We humans do seem to bicker, don’t we? It is no secret that we disagree more than we agree when it comes to religious faith or the lack thereof. Certainly, religious conflict has resulted in countless deaths historically; but the true driver of human warfare is not religion. Only about 7% of all historical wars have been caused by religious conflict. Wars over resources and political conflicts vastly outweigh those based on religious differences. But undoubtedly, these two sets of motivators—religion and politics—are the root causes […]

Morality, as it turns out, is an effective survival strategy, not simply the right thing to do. Morality is, at its core, essentially practical. While also being a spiritually fulfilling aspect of human life, morality ensures that we both endure and thrive, not simply survive. Morality is good because survival is good; but more than just ensuring basic survival, morality ensures a quality of survival worth enduring at all. Moral actions seek to improve our quality of life. Morality makes our lives better by making us better people. Better people make better societies. Better societies thrive and prosper. Those who share in those societies benefit from the rich and abundant shared resources, products, and services of that society. Through mutual service, we can build a better society, grow a sustainable and thriving economy, and develop and nurture happier, more fulfilled people. Actively employing the essential criteria of “being in service” guides our actions toward a better situation both for ourselves and for others. My intent to serve is the foundation of my moral character. My acts of service are my moral deeds that deliver good into the world. The consummation of my debt of service is my gaining of your […]

“America is the wealthiest nation on Earth, but its people are mainly poor, and poor Americans are urged to hate themselves…. It is in fact a crime for an American to be poor, even though America is a nation of poor. Every other nation has folk traditions of men who were poor but extremely wise and virtuous, and therefore more estimable than anyone with power and gold. No such tales are told by American poor. They mock themselves and glorify their betters.” ― Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five.  Our self-delusional blind spot for massive wealth accumulation by the very few—ironically through our own labor, productivity, and industry—has diverted us from a golden path that could otherwise lead to a better life for us all, including those already enjoying the spoils of our toils. Not coincidentally, it is the same social and economic engine that drives this incredibly efficient and effective wealth production system that can provide each and everyone of us with a better, more stable, more satisfying, and more fulfilled life. We just need to use that engine to drive ourselves and our society in a different direction. The primary change required to harness this amazing socioeconomic force, and to redirect it such […]

The only truly moral life is a life of service. The Rule of Service is a binding moral contract we all share that has but one dogmatic assertion—one self-evident truth we cannot defy, dismiss, devalue, demean, or discard: We are all in service to one another.   The Rule of Service is an inherently human call to action. More than the classic “Golden Rule,” the Rule of Service engages our innate drive to actively support one another, not to simply treat each other well or kindly or civilly or nicely. The Rule of Service demands that we act intentionally in order to generate better outcomes for each other, and, by extension, ourselves. Our essential moral grounding arises from the Rule of Service. Morality isn’t some magical power that somehow imbues us with “The Good.” Morality isn’t some mysterious, ineffable force within us that we can only blindly follow, but never comprehend. Morality is a knowable, tangible, mensurate quality of human existence that we can all understand and that we all share. Morality is an intentional practice that arises from our actions in relation to one another. We can only be moral in relation to another living being. That special relationship between and among us emerges through our […]

The Rule of Service The often diametrically opposed provinces of moral action and economic endeavor in our normal, day-to-day lives are nevertheless entwined in countless ways: the most important of which, their relation to and impact on social status. We struggle each day to do what is good and right, as we simultaneously work to develop our social and economic positions. These perennial human endeavors—doing what is right vs. doing what is best for me—need not be at odds, however; and when performed in concert and with due attention to both, will actually sustain and empower one another to even greater effect than we might currently imagine. Our daily challenge of simultaneously engaging in practical morality, together with proletarian economic struggles, can be met by one simple word, one simple act: service. Service is the bedrock foundation of the moral and economic aspects of human action. The root of all human moral and economic action is the success or failure of our acts of service to one another. My moral contract with you is one of service to your needs, and yours to mine, within the relationship we share. My business contract with you is one of mutual service, as well, based […]