The
documentary, “The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others...” was screened at the
Indonesian Parliament House in Jakarta on March 12th, 2024. This film focuses
on the commonality of every faith when addressing peaceful coexistence and
civil behavior. The Golden Rule, which is also known as the Ethic of
Reciprocity, is a universal value that instructs each individual to, “Do unto
others as you would want to have done to yourself” as well as the converse, “Do
not do to another what you would not want to have done to yourself.”
We are
living in a time when so much of the world is immersed in violence,
discrimination, intolerance, corruption and abuse. It is essential for us to be
reminded to embrace this behavioral value that is crucial to civility and
tolerance and is a priority within every religion.
This special
Parliament House screening was attended by a diverse representation of
religious clergy as well as faith based organizational leaders, government
officials and several busloads of high school students. The screening was
followed by an interfaith roundtable discussion that included Mr. Kakan
Sukandin and Mr. K.H. Ucup Saputra from the Muslim faith, Mr. Cosmas Maurema
from the Catholic faith, Pastor P.H Happy Munthe from the Christian faith, and
Mr. Wayan Wira Saputra from the Hindu faith.
Together
they affirmed the significance of the Golden Rule and the importance of
including it in the educational curriculum for all ages.
As an
acknowledgement of the timely importance of this film, the Visions of Peace
Initiative together with the documentary received the “Organization and Film of
Peace Award, 2024” collectively from the Muslim, Majelis Ulama Indonesia, from
the Christian, Victory Foundation, and from the Hindu, Girinatha Foundation.
The award recognizes the documentary as “an important film that brings light
and peace to the world.”
Mr. Kakan
Sukandin, representing the Indonesian Ulama Council stated, "This film is
on a humanitarian mission to achieve world peace, by teaching tolerance and how
to love other people as we love ourselves. I have the greatest appreciation for
this documentary. I hope that after seeing this film that each of us can behave
more peacefully towards one another both in our communities and in our country
and help achieve a more global peaceful coexistence."
Following
the screening at the Parliament House, the documentary continued what is being
described as its” peace and tolerance film tour” and included screenings at the
Russian Cultural Embassy, the Cibubur Junction Cinepolis Cinema for media,
diplomats, and students and at several schools including the MAN 4 Bogor,
Sagamulya High School, and SMAN 1 Cigombong. During these multiple screenings,
several thousand students and young adults were in attendance and participated
in the Question and Answer sessions that followed afterwards.
The Sudanese
Ambassador to Indonesia, Dr. Yassir Mohamed Ali, who attended the Cinepolis
Cinema screening commented, "This film is very good and this film has many
messages to convey. Not only to just one religion but to all religions in the
world because the Golden Rule exists in all religions. To achieve world peace
we, as Muslims, must apply this Golden Rule to our religion as part of civility
for all humanity and it is very important for this Golden Rule to be taught in
schools. The more we teach open-mindedness, tolerance, and the Golden Rule to
the younger generation the hope for a better world will be more likely come
true. It's important for the younger generation to be taught what the Golden
Rule is. They need to understand that the meaning of religion is love."
Princess
Cheryl Halpern, a founder of the Visions of Peace Initiative and also a
co-producer, explained the decision to commission this documentary saying,
“Tolerance, the willingness to accept behavior and beliefs that are different
from your own is essential in order to achieve civility and respect for
diversity. Unfortunately, tolerance is not included in the human genome.
Tolerance must be taught to our children. We need to provide the education and
support to enable our children to reject the intolerance, disunity and
extremism to which they are exposed. This is the mission of the Visions of
Peace Initiative.”
Princess
Natasha Dematra, a co-founder of the Visions of Peace Initiative and
co-producer of the documentary noted, “Through the Visions of Peace
Initiative’s programs, Indonesian youth have learned to embrace the Golden Rule
as the universal value of social civility. This documentary presents this core
behavioral goal that is central to every faith. It is a value that must
be embraced in our world where violence, prejudice and injustice is growing
unabated."
Since its
founding, the not-for-profit Visions of Peace Initiative has been committed to
motivating young Indonesians, ages 5 to 18, to use their artistic talents to
spread ideas and share perspectives on tolerance, peace and respect for
humanity.
Schools,
orphanages and religious organizations, representing all faiths and ethnic
denominations, have participated in the more than 100 Visions of Peace
Initiative events and programs. By encouraging the youth to express their
visions for peaceful coexistence through the arts, the Visions of Peace
Initiative has helped identify areas of alienation and distrust between the
young and has nurtured an attitude of greater openness, candor and tolerance
from the participants. Recognition for the success of the Visions of Peace
Initiative programs has been forthcoming through multiple nominations for the
Nobel Peace Prize that have been made.
In January,
“The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others…” made its world premiere screening at the
Cinepolis Cinema, in Denpasar, Bali. This film was produced as a collaboration
between the American award-winning HQ Creative production team, Indonesia’s
award winning Angel Pictures and the Visions of Peace Initiative. Together,
these production partners are committed to screening the important message of
“The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others…” globally in a dedicated effort to foster a
more peaceful and tolerant world.
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