What is Tolerance?
In today's society
tolerance can be a hot topic.
Everyone has their opinions and everyone feels they have a "right to be
right" with those opinions; which they do. Yet, so do other people. To hold fast onto the "right to be right" mentality usually means
something or someone else has to be
wrong. If this is the case and we
all have this right, then where do our rights end and other people's rights
begin...??? This is where tolerance comes on the scene.
According to the
dictionary tolerance relates to the acceptance and fairness toward people
holding differing views, practices, or beliefs than your own. Tolerance allows
our freedom to be right to be approached by someone else's freedom to be right,
without dishonoring that person or having to give in to indifference. John F. Kennedy said it this way,
"Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to
one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others."
It is interesting to
note another definition of tolerance is "the ability to endure", thus making
the definition of intolerance "the
inability to thrive in a particular environment." What this says is that intolerance in and of itself can
cause a lack of growth or success.
It is here that we apply this concept to the personal level, at the
level of character development. One can see that intolerance of others, whether in personal affairs or
in opinions, could cause one to stagnate or decline in one's own life.
This is where our own
character regarding tolerance comes into play. Tolerance, according to the definition of Character First, is
"Realizing that everyone is at
varying levels of character development." This definition permits us all room to grow, whether we are too
opinionated or perhaps lacking in good character. It doesn't excuse us, rather it should provoke us. In the same way that we acknowledge and
value someone else's opinion, even if we disagree with it, we can show
tolerance to someone else's character. This is true even when they do not display the level of character we
feel they should have.
Our motivation for this
level of tolerance stems from the golden rule. Treat others as we would have
them treat us. This
understanding of tolerance teaches us to extend grace, to be merciful, to be
respectful towards other's opinions, to understand our own limitations, and to
learn from our mistakes. Without
mistakes or failures, how can one define success? Without provocation, how can
one progress? Without
tolerance, how can we be tolerated?
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