SHOULD CHRISTIAN HATE?

​In light of the seemingly endless violence in our society, which manifests itself not only in far away wars but also closer to home in “hate crimes,” gunshots, insulting and vicious social media posts, and casual use of language that bludgeons the ears, it is appropriate to look at a Christian attitude toward the subject of hatred. There appears to be a feeling among Christians that we ought not to hate at all; tolerance is the word of the day and we are to be tolerant of absolutely everything, from those things that mock and repudiate God to those the merely intrude upon our personal space. We rationalize criminal behavior on the grounds that the perpetrators had “poor role models,” suffer from parental inattention, have been abused, or are mentally ill. They are victims who cannot help themselves, therefore we must tolerate their invasions, overlook their bad manners, and minimize their crimes. But on the inside, most of us are far from understanding. We experience a feeling we would not want to name as “hatred” even as our resentment builds to monumental proportions. We have taken the passage in 1 John 2 “Anyone who hates his brother is still in darkness” to mean that hate is wrong, and only love is acceptable. This love we have termed “tolerance,” and when we feel intolerant, we feel guilty.
But the Bible tells us that there is a time to love, and a time to hate.  We are to hate what is evil, and cling to what is good; to hate robbery and iniquity and bribes, wickedness and bloodshed. As God hates sin, so are we to “hate every wrong path” and everything that aligns itself against the truth of God. This is not to be an idle, unproductive feeling, but an active, initiative-taking hatred that must be focused toward the correction of situations for the betterment of the Kingdom of God.  Christians may – indeed, must! – hate, but with caution and purpose. As author Olive Moore puts it, “Be careful with hatred. Handle hatred with respect. Hatred is too noble an emotion to be frittered away in little personal animosities. Whereas love is of itself a reward and an object worth striving for, personal hatred has no triumphs that are not trivial, secondary, and human. Therefore love as foolishly as you may, but hate only after long and ardent deliberation.  Hatred is a passion requiring one hyndred times the energy of love. Keep it for a cause, not an individual. Keep it for intolerance, injustice, stupidity. For hatred is the strength of the sensitive. Its power and its greatness depend on the selflessness of its use.”  --- Olive Moore, Collected Writings
How might a Christian use hatred for a cause, in a constructive manner?
Remind yourself of the ultimate source of the behavior. – Ephesians 6 tells us that we do not fight with flesh and blood, but with “powers and principalities and rulers of darkness in heavenly places.”  While it may seem that we are facing people who are worthy of hatred because of their cruel actions, the Bible tells us that there is first a spiritual problem going on. This is not saying “the devil made them do it,” and therefore overlooking personal choices, but it identifying the ultimate source of temptation and sin which is the presence of evil in the world. Being reminded of this fact will prevent us from hating any of the people whom God has commanded us to love, and keep us from acting in hateful ways toward them or taking God’s justice into our own hands. Christians should hate the enemy of God: this is healthy hatred. Identify the behavior.  --  This should be self-evident; in fact, it’s the place where m any of us stop.  We see or experience an evil action and want to end it, so we take steps to curb the behavior.  This is analogous to taking a stone away from a protester. It may stop the behavior until another weapon is found, then it may begin again. The behavior cannot be isolated from the root problem. Christians may hate hurtful behavior; this is healthy. Identify the root problem that is underlying the behavior. --  In the broadest sense, the root behavior is always a lack of respect for God’s authority and commandments.  People who seek to follow after and honor God will also honor human life, have a desire to help others, and show consideration for another’s personhood. However, there are generally unmet needs in the life of one who hurts another; needs for significance, love, acceptance, forgiveness, autonomy.  Many violent people suffer from a lack of love, and in their pain, strike out at others. Christians may hate the injustices that bring about such pain and consequent hurtful behavior, and take a stand against them. Take a stand against evil. – We are first to take a spiritual stand; hating evil and fighting against it in the dimensions of prayer. We do not tolerate evil, or even poor behavior, but we attack it first with the best weapons available to us; the weapons of intercession and supplication.  We pray against selfishness that results in neglect of a child’s well-being, and against fear that results in greedy acquisition and furthers the poverty of others.  Then we get involved in meeting the needs that come about because of the spiritual problems.  For example, the blaring, booming music that you hate is caused by lack of consideration on the part of the owner. Most likely, he was not taught to ask if his actions were intruding on anyone’s private space, and his feelings were not treated with consideration by parents and others in power. The rudeness and crudeness of political opponents can be caused by fear of loss and the resulting anger and frustration that comes from not trusting God’s providence or seeking His wisdom.  Take a stand by rebuking your own spirit of selfishness, fear, anger, or resentment. Treat everyone you meet with consideration, look for ways to inject your faith into the situation,  really get to know people so that you can understand their lives and needs, and be the change you want to see. Is it appropriate for Christians to hate?  Yes!  Hate evil, injustice, ignorance, and other causes of pain. Hate those things that demean God and God’s creation. Let your hatred for these things be the impetus that moves you to address the violence and hurt you see with the love of Jesus.  Happy hating!