The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 5 : 44
The sign of a true Christian is to love your enemies. If you love only those who love you, then you are no better than the Mafia whose love for one another is to be partners in crime.
True love is hard to find. According to St. John, it consists in this: “that God loved us first and sent His Son to redeem us” (1 John 4:10). By sending His son into our world, Jesus not only redeemed us, He gave Himself as a model of true love in the flesh.
This love is unconditional. It shows no partiality for Our Heavenly Father “makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust” (Matthew 5:4). We cannot say we love God, if we hate our brother or sister. Christ died on the cross for everyone, even our enemies. “Love your enemies” is not just a high bar that Jesus sets for His followers. It demonstrates that you are truly a child of the Father and acknowledges that only God is the one to judge.
If we could put this Christlike love into practice, our world would be different, a lot different.
The real test of our love is how we treat our enemies, those we don’t like, and those who are opposed to us or who persecute us. Do you treat them impartially? Can you rise above your feelings of resentment or anger and do the right thing in spite of having been wronged? Can you forgive your enemies? You don’t have to like them, you don’t have to accept their behavior or approve of any of their wrongdoing. You don’t have to be part of their company but you do have to love them, in spite of what they did wrong. You must forgive and pray for them for they too are children of God.
Loving your enemies is the way to go if you are to create a better world. Abraham Lincoln understood this well. He conquered his enemies, not by hating them or by getting even but by making them his friends. That is the mark of a great man. It is the sign of a true Christian.
St. Paul was once an enemy of the followers of Christ, and he hunted them down like animals so he could destroy them. Then, one day he saw the light. Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus as he was going about his awful mission of terrorizing and apprehending Christians. This erstwhile enemy of Christ was converted, and became a true friend of those whom he once persecuted. He learnt how to love his enemies.
There is a lesson here. God, in His mercy, can change the heart of anyone.
Pray that you become an instrument of God’s healing spirit, sowing love wherever there is hatred, faith where there is doubt, and hope where there is despair.
Always remember, Christ died on the cross, not just for you, but also for your enemies.
—Fr. Hugh Duffy
4 Comments
Stephen Batalden (nephew of Doris H.)
Dear Father Duffy: Thank you for continuing to send your wonderful short homilies. On this one, I have to say that I always find the biblical injunction to love our enemies to be a challenge when set alongside the parallel call to “hate the devil and all his works.” Sometimes in our world there is genuine evil that should not be loved. The challenge–how to differentiate enemy from devil? Thanks.
Hugh Duffy
Great to hear from you, Stephen. I believe it’s possible to reconcile : “hate the devil and all his works” with “love your enemies.” You can love the person ( your enemy ) while hating the evil he or she does.
Hope you are well and doing well.
Claire Pemberton
When talking to someone about the destructive force of hate I try to help them see that if hate fills our heart we have no room for love. If we love, we have no room for hate. They are diametrically different and can’t exists together. There is freedom and joy in giving up the hate. Thank you for your words.
Hugh Duffy
You’re right, Claire, love and hate cannot coexist together. When Nixon left the White House, he spoke of the destructive nature of hate which destroys the self. A pity he didn’t discover that earlier in his career.