Civility

The latest in the news is civility or the lack of it. Celebrities, politicians, sports figures and average citizens are being reported in the news – behaving badly. Have we forgotten good sportsmanship? Why must we disagree by insulting people and calling them the enemy? Why do we even think others are our enemy? Are we that paranoid?

I just saw an old episode of “Happy Days”. Richie and his Dad find themselves on opposite sides of the presidential election. His Dad says that “… He (Richie) has gone over to the enemy.” Wow – even Howard Cunningham.

Do we who call ourselves Christian forget that Jesus said to “love your enemies”? Hollering at people, insulting people, or worse getting violent - it is hard to think that Jesus meant any of those behaviors. I think it comes from insisting on our own way. Remember that St. Paul said something about that when he defined love in first Corinthians 13.

4Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 1 Cor 13:4-7 (NSRV)

I invite you, as I am, to spend some time with these thoughts and meditate on them. …“[Love] does not insist on its own way, it is not irritable or resentful”… And let’s not worry about someone else’s behavior that we can’t control and control our own.

This summer I read that “The best answer Christianity can offer for the problem of evil is the Church itself.” When the church doesn’t live up to the standard of Love placed before us, it doubles the evil.

Peace

Steve