Importance of the given word

A famous political scientist stated that the remedy for unpredictability, the chaotic uncertainty of the future, is the ability to make and keep promises. Remarkable, isn't it?

Which is then a renewed and adapted edition of the Roman quote "Pacta Sunt Servanda", the agreements must be respected.

Agreements, in a healthy society as well as legally advanced, must always be respected. It is a simple principle that is universally understood, as all prescriptions should be. And, we could say, of a natural force. In an era characterized by the escape from responsibility, in which the slightest foothold is pursued to take back one's word, where any contract takes the form of a vague declaration of intent, the call to honor appears truly revolutionary.

Relativism - which also has its merits - has won over everything. Which means that the attitude to keep one's word as long as it is convenient wins. When this falls the disposition to fulfill also falls.

But this is exactly what kills cohesion, trust and ultimately society.

Agreements are made precisely to reduce the area of uncertainty and be able to count on a certain stability in the relationship.

What kind of agreement would be the one that allows the performance to be fulfilled or not according to the convenience to do so? You know, it is true that I was committed to doing this but now I no longer have the advantage and therefore everything we have said is no longer valid.

Repugnant, isn't it? Yet experience teaches that this attitude is becoming (if it has not already become) the norm. The word has lost its meaning and we talk a lot to say nothing. Everything can be interpreted freely, there is nothing sure to hold onto.

No wonder that every thought, every action, has a shorter horizon every day. Everything must be consumed as soon as possible, before it vanishes. The ephemeral is the key to light times. Tomorrow is another day and pacts are meant to be broken.

If there is a way not to weaken the fabric of relationships - with the consequences we can imagine - it is to keep the point. Do not give up. Be found in positions. Building the conditions for trusting each other.

It applies to people, it applies to organizations of all kinds, it applies to states.

The given word, or rather, keeping one's word was the backbone of our society, until a few decades ago, before it was overwhelmed by cards and then also by digital telematic innovations. Life, business, commercial relations, one's work, everything was based on words, often without any need to sign anything, without contracts or digital signatures: a verbal promise was enough!!

“I give you my word” was a phrase that approached and consolidated us: it was enough by itself.

The word given created trust and framed future action in ethical certainty, transforming the symbolic gesture of a handshake into a solidarity pact of mutual trust.

But it's easy to turn a friend into an enemy if one don't keep your promises. Because the broken promise is a betrayal that generates disappointment with the prevalence of the lie that stifles expectations.

Being true to one's word demonstrates greatness of spirit in a person. It is a sign of nobility and goodness. There are those, for example, who, in order to be faithful to their word, have been able to face periods of great economic difficulties with force, and just to keep a commitment.

Keeping our word, what stands out in a contract of this type is the moral stature of those who respect it. Thus prestige is forged, and one becomes an authority worthy of being respected.

Maintaining the culture of one's word means giving tranquility and security to others, fostering trust, forging bonds of friendship and spreading the idea that man is not a wolf for his neighbor.

We must not forget that the law can strike the dishonest, but it cannot teach sincerity, loyalty or good faith and respect for one's word. Even modernity, with its pervading technology, has generated, it is true, a facilitation of relationships, but it has undermined the foundations by imprisoning the word in cold and often ungrammatical sms.