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8.04.2005

Love Your Enemies

What would "war" look like if we followed the words of Jesus? Here's the text of a speech given by , a chaplain at the time of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings:
So the world is watching today. Ethical hairsplitting over the morality of various types of instruments and structures of mass slaughter is not what the world needs from the church, although it is what the world has come to expect from the followers of Christ. What the world needs is a grouping of Christians that will stand up and pay up with Jesus Christ. What the world needs is Christians who, in language that the simplest soul could understand, will proclaim: the follower of Christ cannot participate in mass slaughter. He or she must love as Christ loved, live as Christ lived and, if necessary, die as Christ died, loving ones enemies.
I've often wondered what it would mean to "love your enemies" in situations of war (), to remember that love casts out fear (), to see how terror might be better confronted with the grace and mercy of Jesus in some creative and redemptive way. I know countries fight wars, and soldiers live and die for the cause - but is there another way, perhaps no less dangerous, but ultimately right in really changing hearts and lives?

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

wow...tough one.

The problem is, there is such a thing as tough love. Love that is harsh, needs to be harsh in the short term, in order to show greater love in the long term.

Hiroshima & Nagasaki, I believe, was one of those instances. The war was shortened & hundreds of thousands of lives were saved.

It's easy to look at a particular event and say it's bad without putting it into context.

Does that justify what is going on today? I don't know.

Does that mean christians should participate? I don't know the answer to that either.

Something to think about.

Thanks for the thought provoking post.

4/8/05 11:40 AM  
Blogger Rick said...

thanks - like i said, what does "love" look like on an international scale? hmmm.

4/8/05 2:17 PM  
Blogger Arun said...

Hey Rick,

Just dont we realise that Our Savior just gave only 2 commandments and both said to Love i.e Love God and Love people.

but the world says Christianity is abt prosperity for some, poverty n suffering for some, religion and way of thinking for some, for some its deep psychology etc...

But if Christians go back to the basic building foundation, It is about LOVE and asks us to Love irrespective of friends r enemies.

Our God is Love,

If we Christians, Live by saying Whats the use of having faith to move mountains n all gifts, prosperity etc.. if i have not Love, I have nothing

The World will stand in awe n take notice!

5/8/05 7:47 AM  

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