“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy’ (Lev. 19:18, Deut. 21:3-6) But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you” (Matthew 5:43)
Our Lord Jesus is quoting from memory what all good Jews knew—neighbors were basically other Jews; all others were in the category of gentiles. He had the courage to advance His native religion from tribalism to a universal attitude to all humankind. And He paid the ultimate price for His bold insight regarding the Father’s love for all.
Christianity is tragically divided into hundreds of sects and from the Orthodox Church point of view, heresies. The fullness of Christ’s gospel is carved up and expounded in partial ways throughout the world; but whatever form Christianity takes, one essential element remains—none can advocate terrorism in the name of Jesus Christ. No sectarian leaders or self-proclaimed preacher is able to base the horrors we witness today in the name of Allah on the gospel of our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Regardless of whatever points regarding the message of the Lord are omitted, no honest reader of the New Testament can fail to recognize love as the basis of our faith.
Our Lord Jesus raised His native religion from tribalism to universalism. Islam reduced the message of the Lord to a faith that replaced or ignored love as the ultimate virtue. Of course we ought not to include all Muslims in the category of the extremists who are again using acute means to promote their cause. Terrorists are minimal and marginal among the millions of Muslims; but the fact that they can base their assassinations on their beliefs and claim they are doing Allah’s will is more than reprehensible to Christian thinking—it is impossible. To get an idea of how difficult it is to convert them to the manner of thinking in the way Christians do, here’s a quote from the Koran, their “Bible:”
“Believers, do not seek the friendship of the infidels and those who were given the Book before you, who have made of your religion a jest and a pastime. Have fear of Allah if you are true believers—. Say, ‘People of the Book [Christians and Jews], do you hate us for any reason other than that we believe in Allah…and that most of you are evil-doers?’”
Christians have a different worldview from Jews and Muslims. If we believe that “with God all things are possible,” (Matthew 19:26), then we cannot hunker down with a fortress mentality and leave evangelism to Protestant sects. With the Lord we must find ways not to return hatred with hatred, but to struggle with ways to bring Jews and Muslims to Christ. The previous century anticipated a revolution in communication, ushering in the concept of the global village. This millennium is bearing out some of the less positive implications of what it means to integrate the world in a cross-cultural manner. Americans and other westerners are already in the Middle East, and we are paying a price for what the inhabitants consider an intrusion. We too are feeling the effects of terrorism, the invasion of our land and murdering of our citizens by those who are intent on creating a new world order. And they do so in the name of religion.
Our faith in the Holy Trinity, our values, morals and principles are being put to the test in ways that had not happened to us before as Americans. Our Orthodox Christian ancestors knew better than western Christians the wrath of Islam, and now we as Americans and Europeans are forced to deal with the extreme manifestations of a religion that has not love as its highest value.