The Washington herald., 1918-08-11
CHRISTIAN LOVE AND
HATRED OF ENEMIES
by MBrSs st.r.stt Al Souls Memorial Church.

Mattbsw-chap. S. verse. n: Love your enc
mics"
Matthew-Chap 2. verse &c: ''Ye serpents;
ye generation Of vipers; how can ye escape the
damnstion Of hell!'
Love your enemies" How can we
do that today when we are cursing
the Germans in our hearts and send
ing our boys over to kill as many of
them as possible? To help our diff
Guilty. I have taken the words of the
Masters fierca denunciation OF the
Scribes and the Pharisees But note
first the context of the precept: Love
your enemies" Christ was criticizing
the current Jewish code that granted
the right to take an eye lone eye) for
an eye. a tooth for a tooth. That was
great ethical advance upon the
ofder law which granted a surplus Of
retaliation. II a man takes one Of
your eyes, take both Of his. II a man
knock out one Of your teeth, knock
out all his teeth. That was the nat
ural instinct for revenge. Do your
enemy all the injury possible.
But the Mosaic law said: mo. take
only one eye for an eye and stop
there" Now comes Christ to destroy
Dy law. ne Is HtIc
ferring to personal enmities. the re-
sentiment of personal insults and in
juries and to the fearful feelings OF re-
venge and hatred they awaken. No
retaliation-no feeling Of hatred and
revenge. Love your enemies The
Buddha had preached that in his way
centuries before. Don't damn your
own soul by injuring an enemy. 1T
fo haitian 70 cuffar fni than to
do one" That was the teaching of
Plato centuries before.
In a fuller way the Master urges
the high and better way of treating
personal enemies. Love them
Love them not with sentimental af-
lection; love them not as they are
evil. That would be wrong. But love
their better self. Love them with
ethical good will. Good will is really
the ethical form of love-a will that
wills the highest, the real good of all
not that wills the pleasure and tenn
poral happiness and prosperity Of the
wicked, bit that desires the good of
the soul for all neighbors and per-
sonal enemies. God is love. God loves
has good -will-for all men. Good
will to men, was the angels message
at Christ's advent. Gods love is a
consuming fire that burns to purge
out the evil, goodwill for the de-
struction of bad-will in men Love
have good-will-for even those who
insult or injure your merely private
oftener conceited-little self.
Who but a devil, or a man with a
devilish disposition, could curse a
mans soul or seek to destroy that?
For our bitterest enemies we must
wish and pray for their souls saliva
tion. That Is love. That is Christian
goodwill that, like God, wills the real
good Of even the wicked. Pity the
man whose breast Is filled with hatred
and the feeling of revenge. He car
ries hell around with him in his
breast. He Is tanning a flame that
crushes his true self. Hatred expends
itself not so much upon the victim as
upon the soul Of the man who hates.
For our own physical and temporal,
as well as for our eternal welfare. we
should pray to be delivered from this
suicidal passion-a passion that dis
torts both the countenance and the
soul: and gives wrong twist to even
ones better emotions-a passion that
makes prayer impossible. Try to pray
when you are in this mood! Love your
enemy for your own sake, for your
own peace and health of mind and
body. Love him-have goodwill for
him-for his real soul good, that ye
may be the children of your Father in
Heaven and may help Him in making
your enemies his children also. That
Is the real content Of this precept:
Love your enemies."
Let US now turn to the other side of
the Masters attitude to wrongdoers
"Jesus-meek and gentle!' Yesi but
also Jesus intensely angry and indig-
nanti The monotone of meekness to-
ward his personal enemies, the tone
of adherence and indignation toward
those fnJuring others. The Lamb of
God and the wrath Of the Lamb-both
figures are needed to express the conn
pass Of his feelings.
1t has been said Of one Of the great
est preachers Of England: "I have
seen him grind his teeth and clench
his fists when passing a man he knew
was bent on destroying an innocent
girl" Who would call such wrath,
such abhorrece, such hatred, wfcked7
Who. would have the Masters looks
and words Of righteous Indignation
blotted out of the Gospels? Thus
when the Pharisees watched Jesus 70
see n ha would yinIafa fbo Safhotk