Destroying the Enemy

Occasionally, I am reminded of why I am here and what is really important. This week, those of us who are Christians were embarrassed, once again, by another foolish attempt to predict the end of the world. The Revelations of Saint John the Divine contains all sorts of spectacular and frightening images of the Antichrist, the Beast, the mystery harlot, and the fate of the wicked who worship evil and persecute the Saints. Determining the exact timing and the details of the Apocalypse seems a source of never ending fascination for American Christians, even though our Savior specifically advices against such speculation. For those of us who walk the narrow way the judgments detailed in the book of Revelations are the ultimate opportunity to see our enemies get their comeuppance.

In researching for this blog I am constantly reminded the financial world is filled with enemies both real and imagined. Crooked bankers and corporate executives, predatory credit card companies, corrupt politicians who desire to tax my savings, the Central Bank that is destroying the value of our currency, and even the dishonest automobile mechanic populate my imagination. Of course I have real enemies, men who have caused me harm. Some of them I have never met, but have enriched themselves while doing great damage this nation’s economy. Others have looked me in the eye while stabbing me in the back.

In either case, we are instructed to, “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.” I quote from Everywhere Present, a book written by an old friend who is now an Orthodox priest. “I remember being startled the first time I read the saying of St. Silouan the Athonite (twentieth century): “The criterion for the presence of the Holy Spirit, the criterion of the truth is the love for one’s enemies.” I have elsewhere seen the thought (or simplified it in my own mind) in this form: “You only know God to the extent that you love your enemies.”

The poet Santideva asked the question, “How many enemies-boundless as the sky-might I destroy? I guess he had probably been reading too many political rants and financial blogs. Then he had an interesting insight, “Yet when the thought of hatred is abolished all enemies are destroyed.”

As is often the case, important things are simple and simple things are hard. May God help and bless us every one.