The Evil Shift
When Paul says to hate what is evil, is he talking about people?
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. - Romans 12:9-16
There is a lot of hatred of evil going on these days. You would think that this stems from religious beliefs, as evidenced by what Paul is saying. But religious people tend to believe evil exists in the world and people are victims of it either unwillingly or willingly.
The growth in the perception of people being evil or good comes from politics more than religion.
Paul said we should hate what is evil, not who is evil, but if you take a stroll through social media sites, you may get a different impression of what is going on.
We have shifted our view of evil from a force or presence in the world that influences us, or tries to, to people, and that could be dangerous.
Sure, there have been barbarians, tyrants and dictators who seem to embody evil, and we reference them all the time when we want to point to someone and say there is an evil person, but these people tend to have an agenda, a rationale that they use to justify their actions.
People who disagree with this rationale tend to see the person as evil and people who agree or understand the rationale become the evil ones.
It's simple, easy. God and Evil are two clean buckets to put people in, like Jesus' parable about the sheep and the goats. But Jesus didn't call the ones who didn't believe evil and we shouldn't either.
Yes, I know that is such a controversial thing to say, but despite the fact that Christians practically invented the Good vs. Evil designation, coined the term "Infidel," and went around killing people who wouldn't convert, modern Christians have relaxed that barbaric nature a bit.
Well, maybe except for our politics. There we retain our Crusade for purity in the world, or at least in the country.
So, maybe we can get past the first line of Paul's reading and get to the part where we bless those who persecute us, and maybe we can't.
It wouldn't be the first time.
More to come...