Eastertide
April 29, 2021
Scripture Reading: 1 John 4:7-21
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. —1 John 4:7-12
The news reported this morning that a small town in Oklahoma with about 3,000 residents found nearly half the town papered with notices inviting participation in the KKK. A few other towns had similar experiences. The Southern Poverty Law Center has identified 12 hate groups in Oklahoma, from racist skinheads to Neo-Nazis. I find it ironic that some are also identified as being affiliated with various faith groups. Guess they had not read John 4.
What is hate?
- intense hostility toward an object (as an individual) that has frustrated the release of an inner tension (as of a biological nature)
- an habitual emotional attitude in which distaste is coupled with sustained ill will
- a strong dislike or antipathy*
What causes hate? What are the benefits of hating? Freud related depression resulting from anger turned inward, as a reaction to being hurt. Every human is unique, and no other human can know how some behavior or words might impact another. Bullied by a girl in grade school, I was reminded of her every time I meet someone who shares her name. I could have projected my hurt and fears caused by being bullied on those who shared her name, never knowing why. I hope I did not recoil from anyone because of my history with one person because they shared her name. As I look back on her, I now remember a large girl who had been held back a couple of years in school and was the source of teasing by older children on the playground.
Hating is a means of establishing self-worth when for whatever reason, a person never had or has lost the relationships that foster a love of oneself. Jesus commanded us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves**. That may involve loving our neighbors until they love themselves.
Prayer: Lord, you love us despite our sins and gave your life to free us from their bondage. Empower us to love like you love to help others understand what love is. Amen.
*https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/hate
**See Mark 12:31
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.