Love your enemies

 

President Ronald Reagan was once challenged by a college student who said it was impossible for Ronald Reagan’s generation to understand his.
“You grew up in a different world,” the student said. “Today we have television, jet planes, space travel, nuclear energy, computers. . .”
Taking advantage of a pause in the student’s litany, Ronald Reagan said, “You’re right. We didn’t have those things when we were young. We invented them.”
Nancy Reagan, My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan (Random House)
 
In the political world there can be so much that is challenging that we miss what are the real issues of the day. We are in the midst of the party conference season in the UK which gives the opportunity for politicians to make the headlines, but not always for the right reasons. Sadly we have had a senior politician in one party giving time to name calling those of the other party. The response has been for a senior politician of the other party suggesting that the name caller must have been drunk. Not sure that either of them come out smelling of roses from it all. The world looks out hoping for statements that will improve life yet all they hear is a conversation that comes from the lowest point of life.

Ronald Reagan has an interesting point. From a criticism about the lack of his generation he reveals how the same generation has grown from it all and made life better. That kind of reminds me of something. The bible  speaks about turning the other cheek, and the importance of love. The bible says "By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, that you have love one for another." But Jesus invented another strand to it all when he speaks about loving our enemies. Now, I wonder how that might fit in the political world?

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