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Jesus
said, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Stop
judging
and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not
be
condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give
and gifts
will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and
overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure
with
which you measure will in return be measured out in you."
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“Right now he's probably
slow
dancing with a bleach blond tramp, and she's probably
getting frisky. He don't know that I
dug my key into the side of his pretty little souped up four-wheel
drive, carved my
name into his leather seats. I took a
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Carrie Underwood's song "Before He Cheats"
is a song of revenge. The lady in the song knows that
her boyfriend has cheated on her, and she is out to get him as he is
choosing
to be with another girl.
Revenge is a hotly contested ethical issue in philosophy. Some people feel that, at the very least, the threat of revenge is necessary to maintain a just society. In some societies, it is believed that the injury inflicted in revenge should be greater than the original one as a punitive measure. The Old Testament philosophy of "an eye for an eye" tried to limit the allowed damage, in order to avoid a vendetta or series of violent acts that could spiral out of control: instead of a 'ten-fold' vengeance, there would be a simple 'equality of suffering'. Every major religious system contains some method for the mediation of disputes and for the limitation of vengeance by imputing a sense of cosmic justice to replace the often faulty justice systems of our world. Jesus Christ in the New Testament goes a step further. His doctrine is very clear: there is to be no revenge; instead, he says simply, "Forgive." Do not retaliate; do not get back at anyone. Just because someone does something wrong to you gives you no cause to do something wrong to that person in return. Of course, our human natures do not want to follow such altruistic thinking. We would much rather follow the path of Carrie Underwood in her song, and teach someone a lesson in as explicit a way as we can. We silently applaud what the person in the song did, silently smiling in recognition that he "got what was coming to him." Likewise, so many movies and television shows revolve around "seeking revenge" for a past wrong. We want people to "get what they deserve" if they deserve punishment. But, as difficult as it may seem, the follower of Jesus Christ will seek no revenge. Such a follower will speak and think and finally act in terms of "forgiving." |
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THOUGHT
What is the most
difficult part about forgiving another?
PRAYER Good
and gracious God, we want to hurt others who have hurt us. It is
the way we think. But we hear your Son speak clearly your
doctrine against revenge and in favor of forgiveness of another.
Help us direct our human natures to follow what your Son has
taught. Be with us, we pray.
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©2007
Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America |