Civility creates not merely a negative duty not to do harm, but an affirmative duty to do good. Civility requires a commitment to live a common moral life, so we should try to follow the community norms if they are not actually immoral. We must come into the presence of our fellow human beings with a sense of awe and gratitude. Civility assumes we will disagree, it requires us not to mask our differences, but to resolve them respectfully. We must express ourselves in ways that demonstrate our respect for others.
Civility requires resistance to the dominance of social life by the values of the marketplace.
Civility allows criticism of others, sometimes even requires it, but the criticism should always be civil. Civility discourages use of legislation rather than conversation to settle disputes, except as a last resort. Teaching civility is an obligation of the family. The state must not interfere with its effort to create a coherent moral universe for its children. Religions do their greatest service to civility when they preach not only love of neighbor but resistance to wrong.