Love Your Neighbor as Yourself
Most people have probably heard this expression, even if they aren't “church” people. And most people would probably agree it sounds like a nice sentiment, without giving it much thought. But if we do give it some thought, what does it really mean? Well, it's talking about broad, universal love of our fellow man, with all that entails. You know, loving the people like us, but also loving people not like us, even bad people. Like that person who did you wrong and you don't ever want to speak to again. Whoa. Given that interpretation, this sounds really extreme. This doesn't sound doable.
But before we dismiss the expression, there is a second part. Loving yourself. That's clear enough, right? Well, not so fast. I'm going to shamelessly borrow from C. S. Lewis at this point, who was much wiser and more eloquent than I. The way we love ourselves means that sometimes we are really disappointed or angry with something we have done, but it is not enough to change our fondness for our core self. We use the generally positive view of ourselves as a course heading, and return to it fairly quickly after we screw up. [I am discussing this as a positive trait, but admit there are some who suffer from a negative view of themselves]. So, if this is the way we love ourselves, we can begin to establish some parallels with the way we love our neighbors.
It would seem that this expression is asking us to look past someone's actions, and to try to love him as a person. To look past what she did to you, or the irritating way he talks to people, or the fact that she come’z from the wrong side of town, and try to see the core person. To try to understand the factors that may be influencing their actions, and try to see that person's worth. Without loving some of the things they do, you can still try to love them. With all that said, it doesn't mean it will be easy. But it does mean, with some effort, that it just may be doable. I think the effort is worth it, don’t you?
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