Love

Matthew 24:37 – “For as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Humanity.”

In the days of Noah, people were apparently going about their business without loving God or their neighbors. They were probably loving themselves a little too much. Otherwise, God would have spoken to more people than just Noah. In fact, they mocked Noah while he was building the ark. That certainly didn’t help their relationship with God any. 

Whether or not this really happened, there are a few points I want to highlight. First, their lack of love for God. If they were worshiping, they were going through the motions. Their hearts weren’t in it. We could compare them to cultural Christians or to the “C&E” crowd. (Christmas and Easter) No, their hearts were set on making themselves comfortable no matter the cost to themselves or others. That’s something we see all the time.

The second point flows from this point; Noah’s neighbors mock him. Of course, that’s not in Matthew, but Jesus’ audience would have known the story. There is a lot of mocking in the US today. From snarky sit-coms to Donald’s tweets, it seems to be an epidemic. Mocking others is devaluing them in our opinion. It is declaring that we believe that some people have more value than others; that not all of us are made in the image of God. That, in turn, leads to blaming to persecuting to torturing to caging or killing. Mocking others is not a consequence-free activity.

Racism, misogyny, sexism, genderism, heteronormativity, ableism, white supremacy, Christian nationalism, and homophobia all have roots in the belief that some people are worth more than others. Racism is inscribed in our constitution in the 3/5 compromise. The US has never made any serious attempt to even admit the reality of systemic racism, much less eradicate it. The consequences are that Black people are killed by police with impunity, that families following the legal process to apply for asylum are separated and caged in inhumane conditions, that women are abused and murdered by their partners, and white men commit mass shootings.

Jesus has the prescription for dealing with such people – pray for them while not neglecting to resist their harmful actions at every turn. It’s not easy to pray for people who are causing harm, but in the 2 ½ years that I’ve been praying for Donald’s administration, I’ve discovered something valuable. When we pray for a person like Donald to be happy, we’re not praying that they magically become happy. We’re praying that they’ll do the hard work of self-reflection and making amends that are necessary for them to become happy. I know from personal experience it takes a lot of work to go from hate and anger to happiness. There’s no magic pill to get us there. The only way out is through the muck of our minds. That epiphany makes it easier to pray for “enemies.” It’s a way of loving them by wishing on them the reward of self-reflection.

Of course, thoughts and prayers aren’t enough. They’re only a beginning. Action must follow or those thoughts and prayers are hollow. We must continue to resist hatred and evil however and whenever we can. Continue to spread love by fighting with those who are oppressed in the US and around the world. I’m not a fan of Marianne Williamson’s campaign to be president, but she is right about love. Love is the answer. Love of God. Love of our neighbors. Love of ourselves. Spread the love.

B