"Sin has many tools, but a lie
is the handle which fits them all." -Edmond Burke
There are two aspects of Christian
thought when considering forgiveness, and it has caused much consternation
throughout history. The first is what is written in the Bible, and the second
is the reality of a human mind.
First in Matthew 5:44,
-"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do
good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and
persecute you;"
And then the unforgivable sin....
“I promise you that any of the
sinful things you say or do can be forgiven, no matter how terrible those
things are. But if you speak against the Holy Spirit, you can never be
forgiven. That sin will be held against you forever.” — Mark 3:28-29 (CEV) Beyond forgiveness forever, and ever...
Now, I'm not here to define or
interpret these ideas, just to point them out. These thoughts are indeed
Christian, and not of the Talmud, the Koran, or the Old Testament, and yet I
struggle to understand them in my own mind and heart. Only the New Testament
speaks of Love in a selfless way, and yet we have a threat from God.
After years of reading all of these
works can one conclude that there is a difference between revenge and justice,
and the difference is as profound as war and
peace. A God of wrath and vengeance, and a God of Love, do not seem compatible.
A Christian, for instance, who exclaims their Love of God in one breath, and
fear in another, seems very confused indeed, even in the midst of slavery of
their own spirit. They will quote the Old Testament to justify their
intentions, as if they were spoken by Jesus.
It can't be denied that war has been
a constant companion to every one of these religions, and yet few question why.
If we all pray to the same God, why is there such a difference in perception?
Why is there so much hate, and so little Love?
So the question is this...
How can you create an unforgiving
enemy in the mind of men? Seems, according to the teachings of Christ, that
anything we do to each other can be forgiven. Love one another, forgive one
another, is at the very heart of Christianity, but is that possible in every
situation? Are some things beyond forgiveness, as found in the heart of God in
Mark?
When we compare the atrocities of a
far-away war, with mayhem close to home, is seems the latter will take
precedence. If something has the potential to affect your family personally,
you will take much more of a notice. So easy to judge others without empathy,
when you are safe and sound.
And yes, there is one unforgivable
sin in the mind of man, and it is so horrendous, so profound, that we would
actually rearrange both our mind and life, with a reality undeniably and
forever altered. It could never be forgotten, nor could it be forgiven: It is
the intentional death of a child by the hand of another. I'm not talking about
an accident, but a planned, premeditated, calculated murder. Revenge killing,
without a thought for innocence, killing for effect, to achieve an agenda, or
to promote and instill shock, awe, and fear, and justifying the act as a
casualty of war...
Of everything we could face on this
beautiful earth, no matter what religion, race, or country of origin, if
someone kills your child out of hate and malice, forgiveness is impossible. So
profound is the thought of this, the mere suggestion is unthinkable, even the
consideration of a veiled threat is virtually intolerable, and a parent will
attempt to bend even eternity to prevent it. And yet, at this very moment in
time, whole nations, whole religions, whole races think that everything they
are is coming to an end. What is the greatest motivation in the face of fear?
Protect their children.
Heaven forbid the reality of it, but
in the dark of night, while you thought safe in your beds, your home is bombed
and your children are killed... What then? Well, your book of life would close,
and another would open, and from that moment on your existence would have a new
direction, a singular purpose, to bring those who did this deed to task. Is a
Christian beyond the scope of this scenario? No, because he too is only human.
What happens if, in your anguish and
grief, in the very epicenter of that horror, you cannot find the person who did
such a thing? Who pulled the lever, pushed the button, or squeezed the trigger?
What if you could not find the person who made the decision to bomb you?
What toggle triggered you to scream
in horror, trying to get them to breathe again? What element of sanity can save
you and your future as you run and stumble sobbing without direction, holding
their lifeless bodies in your arms? What solace could you ever find, what
justification could you ever exact as you looked into that black void of sky
with blinding tears, and a broken heart? What happens to your soul, you mind,
your character, as their blood coagulates down your night clothes, and their
bodies grow cold and stiff? What happens to your spirit as your wife finds you
there, unable to let go? What happens when you look into your child's face
together? What do you do, what do you think, as the dirt is piled over their
graves, and you walk home to the rubble of your home, and your dreams?
You would look to exact revenge on
the group who supported it, the race, the religion, or even a philosophy, and
hatred would be your guiding force, tit for tat. You would become, for all
intent and purpose, totally insane, and you could never be put whole again. You
no longer, and could never again consider or define what is right and wrong,
good and bad, and would relive that moment for the rest your life, like an
endless loop. And this is why Christians, Muslims, and Jews have persecuted
each other for thousands of years.
Sam Keen, the author of Fire in the
Belly and Faces of the Enemy, is what I consider the most important philosopher
of our time. Only in a poem could such a profound idea be expressed, as we are
again dehumanizing enemies for the power elite, war for the sake of a war
machine that must be fed. Truth is so very hard to swallow, in a world
screaming in fear.
How to Create an Enemy by Sam Keen
Start
with an empty canvas
Sketch
in broad outline the forms of
men,
women, and children.
Dip
into the unconsciousness well of your own
disowned
darkness
with
a wide brush and
strain
the strangers with the sinister hue
of
the shadow.
Trace
onto the face of the enemy the greed,
hatred,
carelessness you dare not claim as
your
own.
Obscure
the sweet individuality of each face.
Erase
all hints of the myriad loves, hopes,
fears
that play through the kaleidoscope of
every
infinite heart.
Twist
the smile until it forms the downward
arc
of cruelty.
Strip
flesh from bone until only the
abstract
skeleton of death remains.
Exaggerate
each feature until man is
metamorphasized
into beast, vermin, insect.
Fill
in the background with malignant
figures
from ancient nightmares – devils,
demons,
myrmidons of evil.
When
your icon of the enemy is complete
you
will be able to kill without guilt,
slaughter
without shame.
The
thing you destroy will have become
merely
an enemy of God, an impediment
to
the sacred dialectic of history.
----------------------------------------------------------
"Forgive your enemies, but
never forget their names."
-John F. Kennedy
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