We try to maintain a fair amount of tongue-in-cheek silliness here at Flannel Pilgrims on most days. However, sometimes a topic comes along that requires us to keep our tongue-in-check. This MIGHT be one of those times.
I was handed a picture, and a story a few days ago. The picture (above) is supposedly of Egyptian Christians during a Muslim prayer time in the midst of the protests happening in Egypt. The Christians (according to the story) protected the Muslims during their prayer. Popular opinion seems to be that this is a great illustration of unity and love, and that opinion seems to be shared by followers of Jesus and followers of "insert your god here" alike.
So the question I asked was: Is it possible to love a person and still hate some of their thoughts/beliefs/practices?
I have some thoughts of my own (That may surprise some of you!). But, I would REALLY like to see the general response to the first question before opining. Can you hate something ABOUT a person and still love them? How does that work? Does it work? What does Jesus have to say about love and hate? What examples have you seen that have exemplified Jesus' teachings in this area? What examples were NOT GOOD? Talk amongst yourselves... I'll respond in a few days. (Please review the rules to the right before posting a comment)
I think you can as long as that something that you hate about them is caused by their own sin. btw, I'm glad you found this on my facebook :D
ReplyDeleteoh, absolutely. is that really even a question? i'm not a parent yet, but i think a parent child example solves this question pretty quickly. once or twice in my life i've been engaged in "thoughts/practices" that my parents have hated. i don't doubt for a single second that they loved me any less at those times though, because they told me as much.
ReplyDeletemaybe i'm oversimplifying it, but then again, it doesn't seem overly complicated to me..
@ Vince - When you were a kiddo and you engaged in the stuff your parents "hated" - what would their disposition toward your brother been had he started aiding and abetting you in your practices? Keep in mind - he himself is NOT PARTICIPATING directly in your shenanigans, but he IS simply making a way for you to persist. What would YOUR parents have done?
ReplyDeleteI really don't think this is all too complicated. It actually kind of bothers me that Christians think that there is something wrong with protecting someone of a different faith.
ReplyDeleteThey are praying. They aren't hurting anyone except, possibly, themselves. They are peaceful. These are not the Muslims who are crashing planes into buildings.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If the situation were flipped, I sure would hope that they would protect Christians trying to pray.
We're not agreeing with them. We're not joining in and converting. We are showing them love and respect. I'm pretty sure that's what Jesus would do.
I think one of the best examples of Christianity is to show love to others even when they believe something other than what we believe.
In this instance, does it matter what they believe? They are people. They are people that are loved by God, and we should love them as well. Love protects.
Now, if after this they all started talking about their faith, then you can bring your arguments to the table. Then you can talk about what you believe and why you think what they believe is wrong.
Interesting post, and interesting comments. This is worth talking about. Laura, i totally agree that showing people of other faiths love and respect is right. Can you talk more about what you mean when you say these two phrases: "In this instance, does it matter what they believe?" and "Now, if after this they all started talking about their faith, then you can bring your arguments to the table." I think this will really help further the discussion, thanks!
ReplyDeleteSure. When I say 'in this instance' I am referring more to the circumstances. As far as I can tell, they weren't doing anything wrong, as in, harmful. They were quite peaceful, I believe. Since that is the case, I don't think it matters what their faith is- it doesn't change what the God of OUR faith has told us to do. It doesn't change the fact that we need to love our neighbors as ourselves. I don't think the appropriate response for the Christians over there would be to engage in a theological discussion as the Muslims were trying to pray in peace.
ReplyDeleteWhich brings me to my second point. If later a Muslim went up to one of the Christians there, perhaps to thank them, then that could be an opportunity to share with each other what they believe and why (in a loving, non-condemning way, hopefully).
Luke asked the question " Is it possible to love a person and still hate some of their thoughts/beliefs/practices?"- Well, I think the Bible makes that pretty clear. YES!
I think the question is if in this instance God would call us to action(LIVING the Gospel) or discussion(SHARING the Gospel). I think it's obvious that action would be the right choice. What they believe should not influence whether you help them. Good Samaritan, anyone?
Hopefully that clarifies things a bit. I'm rather passionate about this subject :)
Laura, I like your comment that "What they believe should not influence whether you help them." Totally agree. And i think i really like pretty much everything you've said.
ReplyDeleteBut your post reminds me of another question- How much do you have to hate someone to believe that there is a loving and personal God and a heaven and a hell and still allow them to believe in a faith system that denies them the privelege of knowing that God? Actually, this might be getting into part 2...
Well my flannel theologians, I've found you!
ReplyDeleteTo the question, "Can one hate something ABOUT someone and still love them?" my answer is, "Yes, but it seems harder to keep the love flowing because hate seems to come easier." I have thought a lot about this question in relation to non-Christians and having a loving, authentic relationship with them. My life experiences and observations tell me that Christians have an easier time expressing hate that is veiled as righteous indignation or robbing God of glory than expressing true love. It seems that as a sub-culture we are afraid of being weak and so we post-up on others in the name of Jesus.
Jesus has asked us to love. And, while there is mention of hating family and loving Jesus, there is also much teaching about not being too hot headed and going fire & brimstone on folks.
To answer your question: Yes. It is possible to love a person and hate their beliefs.
ReplyDeleteIf a person believes in something, and that something will lead them into hell, I would hate that something that leads that person into hell. I don't hate that person! I want them to go to heaven! But there's something between that person and the truth, and that something is false teaching.
Of course I would tell someone (tactfully and calmly) that their beliefs are wrong and false and evil if their beliefs were leading them into hell. What kind of a person would I be if I didn't warn them that they were being led into hell?