MEDITATION TIPS for the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time,
February 23, 2025

“Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” (Luke 6:27).

　Who are our enemies? Generally speaking, they are people who evoke feelings of anger and hatred when we think of them. When we feel hatred toward our enemies, we are actually allowing ourselves to be controlled by them. This control is very powerful and can affect our sleep, appetite, and health, as anger and hatred consume more energy than anything else. Just as we dispose of household garbage daily, we should also quickly dispose of the mental garbage of anger and hatred. And when such feelings arise, if we can rationally understand that these feelings are not the result of someone else’s actions but are actually the result of our own choices, we will find ways to deal with them.

　When we dislike someone, it's not the entire person we dislike but rather their personality, way of speaking, or behavior. Why do we dislike them so much? The answer is that we possess the same essence as they do. The essence we despise and hide in ourselves is what they display in front of us, and that’s why we don’t like it. So when we feel we dislike someone, we should realize that we have the same traits within ourselves. We should accept the essence we dislike and hide, and come to like ourselves. Then we should reconcile with ourselves for having harbored negative feelings and ill will. Otherwise, we will be the ones suffering. If we feel malice towards others, we also feel malice towards ourselves, and if we view others favorably, we will actually be viewing ourselves favorably. “Life is like a boomerang. What you give to others comes back to you” (Dale Carnegie).

　By the way, isn’t there another emotion lurking within our anger and hatred? That emotion is anxiety. All hatred and anger come from anxiety. Anxiety is not only the enemy of the individual, it is actually the enemy of humanity as a whole. Anxiety is born when the cause is vague and its true nature is unclear. Therefore, it is a good idea to ask ourselves, “Why am I feeling anxious now? When you ask why, it is as if you have already found the answer, and in the end, it is often something trivial and insignificant.

　“Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.” However, trying too hard to love them can easily lead to self-destructive results, bringing about outcomes opposite to our intentions. This is because the anxiety of trying to overcome the situation controls our minds. The will of God struggles to work in an anxious mind. If we can maintain stillness in our hearts like a calligrapher with a brush and honestly accept our weaknesses, and realize that just as we are full of faults, people are full of faults and fall into mistakes because of their weaknesses, we can at least accept our enemies, even if we cannot love them. It is also true that people are respected for their strengths and loved for their flaws.

 　　　　　(A Contribution by Father Yutaka Akabae)