“But I Say To You, Love Your Enemies” by Rev. Paul Berghout (@FatherPB)

“But I Say To You, Love Your Enemies” by Rev. Paul Berghout (@FatherPB)

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Piety

“You shall not bear hatred for your brother or sister in your heart. Though you

may have to reprove your fellow citizen, do not incur sin because of him. Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against any of your people. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.”  Leviticus 19:17-18

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.  1 Corinthians 3:16-17

But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. Matthew 5:44-45

Study

There is a sign in the Princeton University Store basement, which cleverly suggests: “Love your enemies—it will drive them crazy.”

Jesus’ ethical teaching is higher than this example because the love of enemies is not a consequentialist ethic, hoping that the other person will change.

Love of enemies is instead an expression of the divine character and not based on any hoped-for results. God makes his sun rise, and the rain falls on both the just and unjust.

Jesus to St. Faustina

“My daughter, in this meditation, consider the love of neighbor. Is your love for your neighbor guided by My love? Do you pray for your enemies? Do you wish well to those who have, in one way or another, caused you sorrow or offended you?  Know that whatever good you do to any soul, I accept it as if you had done it to Me.” (Diary, 1768)

Perhaps an illustration on our topic would be best: In the book, “What Would You Do?” John Howard Yoder includes a story that symbolizes a difference between Western and Buddhist thinking. A young American schooled in the martial arts is riding a bus one day in Japan.

A drunken, cursing, knife-wielding man who has hopped on the bus threatens Yoder and the other passengers. The American trained in martial arts is ready to neutralize the man. But as he positions himself to strike, an old Japanese man pushes past him. The old man smiles warmly at the man with the knife and softly asks what is causing so much hurt in the man’s life. Disarmed by the old man’s compassion, the other drops his knife and begins to sob. Between his sobs, he tells of how his wife has died, and the loss has left him feeling unstable. As the American leaves the bus at the next stop, he sees his potential opponent gently listening to the old Japanese man who is telling him of how he has also recently lost his wife and how bad he also feels.

The Japanese man was operating out of a Buddhist perspective. The American had instantly objectified the knife-wielder as an enemy who threatened his self-security. In contrast, the elderly Japanese man saw the threatening person as hurting and as a part of himself since both were mourning the loss of a loved one.

In Buddhism, the goal is to see one’s self as connected to the rest of creation. The karma of wishing evil on another will only bring harm to one’s self.

Likewise, for Christians, one crucial motivation to love enemies is that loving our enemies is the only way to prevent taking on the very characteristics we hate about them. You become what you hate.

And Scripture teaches that if God had not loved us while we were his enemies, we could never have become his children.

Loving means wanting good for them. You don’t have to like them or trust them.

The enemy may be:

• the person who got your child into drugs
• the spouse who left you
• the coworker who lied to have you fired
• the country that will not give you sanctuary after you’ve been a contributing law-abiding citizen for decades, although you are still undocumented.

Romans, Chapter 12, teaches the same thing: “Do not repay anyone evil for

evil... Beloved, never avenge yourselves. If your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink. Do not overcome evil by evil [means] but overcome evil with good.”

St. Paul also commands us to feed a hungry enemy and to give water to a thirsty one. Luke 6:27-36 echoes this teaching.

Action

Notice that when Jesus gives some examples of how to love our enemies, forgiveness isn’t one of them. He says to do good to them, bless them, pray for them, offer the other cheek, give food and water to them, let them take from you, do not ask for restitution. But he doesn’t say “forgive.” Why not? The answer may be because the mistreatment and violence are still going on.

Consequently, you can also love your enemy while assertively standing up for personal rights, including protecting yourself and others, and expressing thoughts, feelings, and beliefs in direct, honest, and appropriate ways.

Part of our testimony should be: I’m grateful for my fans, friends, and my enemies, for they are all a part of my testimony.

Al-Anon meetings mention this line as part of the closing words: “Though you may not like all of us, you’ll love us in a very special way, the same way we already love you.”

Amen.