I. Respect for Persons

It is a foundational Quaker belief that all persons have available to them an inner spirit of Truth, often known as the "Inner Light" or "God's Voice Within."

From this belief follows an assumption of equality of all persons and grounds for respecting all persons. We aspire to be a community whose members act with regard for the intellectual, physical, and emotional well-being of everyone. We seek to find mutual respect, trust, and happiness in our relationships with persons of every race, ethnicity, class, religious preference, gender identity, physical ability, sexual orientation, or age, even seeking to respect persons removed by time and place.

Practicing Respect for Persons

We strive to be respectful of others in our daily interactions. A small but meaningful mark of our attempt to meet one another as equals is our practice of addressing one another by first names rather than by titles and honorifics.

In all of our activities, we seek to affirm and reinforce mutual respect, responsibility, and caring. In all interpersonal relationships we seek to be helpful, trustworthy, and considerate. As a community, we reject all coercive and destructive behavior in interpersonal relationships.

Queries

• Do I examine myself for evidence of prejudice, and then work to overcome it?
• Am I careful of the reputation and feelings of others by avoiding gossip and checking the truthfulness of rumors?
• When I express my disagreement, do I do so explicitly and respectfully?
• Do I contribute to creating a trusting community that fosters the intellectual, physical, emotional, and spiritual good of everyone?
• Am I physically and emotionally responsible in all my sexual and other interpersonal relationships?
• Do I find loving and considerate ways to encourage others to engage with Earlham's principles?