Understanding the Relationship Between Love and Hate in Faith
I recently had the opportunity to be interviewed on a Podcast called, Radio Free Mormon – you can listen to it if you’re inclined – and I talked about the response of some Evangelicals to me over the years growing in hate. I explained that the animus I have received (mostly from the self-appointed police officers of the faith, who are typically Five Point Calvinists, and I made the statement that the saddest thing that I have discovered is the more I grow personally in the faith, overcoming my flesh and allowing principles of faith and love to reign in and over me as a person, the more these types have tried to ruin me and my reputation and have rejected my faith as a man.
I got to thinking about this after the interview was over, dissecting in my why this should be? A week or so ago we talked about words and how mean and unkind words are in effect our spoken wishes that someone would die, and I think that this is true of these men and women – the ultimate intent of their words about me are that I would end up dead. We would think that the more a man or woman overcame themselves that their Christian brothers and sisters would love them more – but I have found the opposite to be true: He more loving a Christian is in person, word, doctrine and deed, the more hated they are by some in the faith.
Progression in Faith and Love
Looking this illustration over we can see that the more doctrines I came to understand as truth, the more the truth set me free. From from what? Free from prejudices and biases and hatreds for those who did not think like me, free from the false notions that God hates certain segments of world, and free from the idea that “doctrinal might” makes right, and ultimately free to love. Herein is the relationship between true doctrine and true love – if your doctrine is correct, you will love; if it is incorrect, you will wind up failing in love.
When I came to see that all religious organizations have issues, I pulled back from the Mormons exclusively and sought to liberate all people from religious manipulation – which was a loving thing. When I came to see the human error in assigning God’s make up in only certain ways, this broke my heart open to love those who might have a misguided interpretation of him – which means more love. And when I saw the total victory Christ have over the world reconciling all to the Father, it brought forth more love for all people all the time.
The Paradox of Love in Christianity
At the same time the reception from my brothers and sisters in the faith was folding because for many Christians, ironically, the more a person loves, the more they and their views are despised! This was the case with our Lord and King. He loved the sinners, the unclean, and received them all – and he was hated more and more by the religious. Right? The more he freely lived – allowing his disciples to pluck wheat on the Sabbath, forgiving sins of adulterers, ate with sinners.
The Challenge of Christian Love
Forgave sin – the more he loved, the more HIS OWN hated him! And so it is today. The more you, as a Christian, will love all people everywhere, the MORE your religious brothers and sisters – the more your OWN – will distance themselves from you, reject you, even hate you.
A Reflection on Rejection
Write your comments below and we will discuss them tomorrow night – here, on Heart of the Matter.
