• Can We Love Our Enemies and Kill Them?
    by Micael Grenholm
    There are some serious flaws with Augustine's argument that declaring and fighting a war can be an act of love, especially when those who are trained for combat are molded into hating and dehumanizing their enemy.
  • Changing Enemies Into Friends
    by Dennis Fisher
    Criticized for his benevolent view toward the Confederates, Abraham Lincoln responded: "I destroy my enemies when I make them my friends."
  • Collaborating with the Enemy
    by Adam Kahane
    How can we deal with the following conundrum? We must work with others, including people we don’t agree with or like or trust; while in order to avoid treachery, we must not work with them.
  • Gandhi's Teachings Are Alive
    by Rev. Jesse L. Jackson
    Jackson presents a radical portrait of the fierce nonviolent activist who secured independence for India and who called us to resist evil with non-cooperation, hate the sin but not the sinner; and in battle leave room for reconciliation and redemption.
  • Gandhi on the Law of Love
    edited by Anand T. Hingorani
    Here the path of nonviolence is assessed through the Hindu concept of ahimsa: literally non-killing, but Gandhi believed that we should not harbor uncharitable thoughts "even in connection with one who may consider himself to be your enemy."
  • How to Love Your Enemies
    by Rev. James Martin
    The Gospel doesn't imply that we have to love our enemies the same way that we speak about “falling in love” with someone or the way we love our family members; it calls us to open our hearts to them.
  • Living as One Human Family
    by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
    Religious and spiritual people can help reverse the trend of competitive individualism by being willing to reach out to people outside our clans and by affirming unity consciousness.
  • Love Your Enemies
    by John Dear
    For Dear, the commandment to love our enemies sums up Christianity, inviting people not to hate, punish or kill anyone, especially those targeted by our nation/state.
  • Love Your Enemies: Moral Absurdity or Genius
    by Audrey D. Thompson
    By recasting racial tensions as “a battle between the moral and the immoral” and positing that religious instruction gives oppressors distinct advantages, a blogger's argument compels Christians to reexamine whether it is foolish to demand love for enemies in situations of political upheaval.
  • Peace Prompts
    by John Dear
    From listening for God's words of peace to being part of a global peacemaking community, these 12 passages can be used to encourage the peacemaker in us all.
  • Ten Ways to Love Your Enemy
    by Kristin Ritzau
    These suggestions range from self-examaination to prayer to stopping toxic internal dialogues.
  • What I Would Say to Osama bin Laden
    an interview with Thich Nhat Hanh
    In an interview conducted right after 9/11, the revered Vietnamese Zen Buddhist teacher explains that if he were face-to-face with Osama Bin Laden, he would first listen and try to understand all of the suffering that led him to violence.

Sermons

  • Loving Your Enemies
    by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
    Far from being an impractical idealist, Jesus has become the practical realist when he tell us to love our enemies. His command is an absolute necessity for human survival.
  • Love Your Enemies
    by Michal Luke
    This sermon considers how we react when people make life difficult for us. Luke breaks down the Beatitudes to help us understand how to apply them.