Monday, December 27, 2010

What Love Demands

It is two days after Christmas. I have had a great time with my family, and now it is time to get back to work - and that means thinking! All during this holiday season a thought has been going through my mind. Or perhaps I should say, a question. Christmas reminds us that the central principle of Christianity is love - Love for God and for our fellow human. We all remember that Jesus told us that the first and greatest commandment is to love God completely, and our neighbor as ourselves. Doing that is difficult in just about every situation, but it is very problematic in the political arena. An example came on Christmas day when someone in my family asked me what I thought about a sticky political question (yes, we do talk politics, even at Christmas). As I tried to formulate an answer I found myself reflecting on what I would say based on my love for others. Should I say that a particular action should be forbidden because it is inherently harmful and sinful, and preventing people from sinning is a loving act, or should I say that we should give others freedom, even when that freedom leads to sin, because that is what God has done to us? I honestly do not have the answer right now. But I am thinking. What do you think?

Pastor Ken

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