Question on loving your enemies

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SonOfNoah

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Hello,

I was wondering what the Catholic perspective is on loving your enemies. Does this apply to enemies of your nation, or just to people on an everyday individual level? I can understand if someone cuts you off in traffic then you should respond with love. What about terrorists that a predominantly Christian nation is fighting? Should a Catholic be able to say “I love Osama Bin Laden?” If an Al Qaeda member asks a Catholic doctor for medical attention should the Catholic doctor respond “Absolutely, and you can also hide in my basement until you recover?” Thanks.
 
SonOfNoah said:
Hello,

I was wondering what the Catholic perspective is on loving your enemies. Does this apply to enemies of your nation, or just to people on an everyday individual level? I can understand if someone cuts you off in traffic then you should respond with love. What about terrorists that a predominantly Christian nation is fighting? Should a Catholic be able to say “I love Osama Bin Laden?” If an Al Qaeda member asks a Catholic doctor for medical attention should the Catholic doctor respond “Absolutely, and you can also hide in my basement until you recover?” Thanks.
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Yes…loving your enemies includes all enemies.

One wills their good…which includes repentance of evil.

Hiding in the basement is not what is meant per se…for one is also NOT to protect evil doers from the law etc…

but one still would treat him medically while calling the authorities…

We follow Jesus Christ and this is his teaching…

love our enemies and do good to those who persecute you.

Of course this does not mean that the nation can not seek to protect her people by just measures…which can include war etc. but as Christians we are to still love our enemies.
 
We have to remember… Jesus Himself loved the men that drove the nails into His hands. We must follow His example and love everyone. This can be rather difficult at times, but the Holy Spirit works through love.

PAX
 
Yes you must love all people including the impure. You must love the sinner but hate the sin. We must even love people like hitler and stalin. It sounds crazy but it is true.
 
SonOfNoah said:
Hello,

I was wondering what the Catholic perspective is on loving your enemies. Does this apply to enemies of your nation, or just to people on an everyday individual level? I can understand if someone cuts you off in traffic then you should respond with love. What about terrorists that a predominantly Christian nation is fighting? Should a Catholic be able to say “I love Osama Bin Laden?” If an Al Qaeda member asks a Catholic doctor for medical attention should the Catholic doctor respond “Absolutely, and you can also hide in my basement until you recover?” Thanks.
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“The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because generally they are the same people.”
G. K. Chesterton
 
Loving your enemies doesn’t mean helping them do evil things or hoping they succede with something evil. Goodness, I think that would be silly. 🙂 You can love your enemies while doing everything you can to stop them from what their trying to do. I love Al Qeada by praying they convert or are killed before they can do more evil. The more evil they do, the worse their punishement!
 
Brenda4God said:
Loving your enemies doesn’t mean helping them do evil things or hoping they succede with something evil. Goodness, I think that would be silly. 🙂 You can love your enemies while doing everything you can to stop them from what their trying to do. I love Al Qeada by praying they convert or are killed before they can do more evil. The more evil they do, the worse their punishement!
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Loving your enemy is an act of intellect and will, not emotion. Because God loves your enemy, we love our enemy. That God loves them is manifest in that they exist for if He did not love them they would not exist.

Your point on literally loving them to death is a good one, I think. Love means to will the person goodness. It is better that one suffer, even suffer death, than to continue sinning against God. Phyiscal pain is a lesser evil than spiritual fault.
 
Many years back the chaplain at the AF station where I worked was a WWII vet who had been at the D-Day invasion. Every anniversary he would include a prayer for those on both sides who died that day.
 
IMHO loving your enemies does not necessarily mean pacifism or being a doormat or otherwise suffering abuse.
 
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