It Makes Sense to Me: Valentine’s Day is Overshadowed by Pride

February 13, 2016

Valentine’s Day is Overshadowed by Pride

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

By Larry Peterson

Valentine's Day is here. It is supposed to be all about Love. Yet beyond the heart covered Valentine cards, the flower bouquets and candy and all of that, we must, as unpleasant as it may be, recognize what we truly have going on this Valentine's Day of 2016. Yes, make no mistake, Love is under attack this Valentine's Day and hatred seems to overshadow the Love in the air.

Love is all about “Giving”, isn’t it? Christ loved us and GAVE His life for us. Now that is some serious “Giving”. Most followers of Christ do their feeble best to follow His message. But---enter the deadly sin of pride. There is the demon that can grab us in its powerful grip and oftentimes, never let go. The great sin of pride is characterized by all those who seize onto words such as, hurt, libel, disrespect, impolite, mocked, uncivil, rude and the list can go on and on and on.

How sad it is that pride can destroy so much, from family relationships, to friendships, to nations. Whenever our “personhood” is offended by someone else, all that Love can vanish like a puff of smoke in a windstorm. (Have you seen the “Love” extended by the candidates toward each other in the presidential debates?)

Oh well, it is part of God's gift of free-will allowing each and every one of us to make choices. Some of us can forgive and “turn the other cheek”. Others—no way.

Today it seems that Pride* has filled the hearts of many to a point where these people, so consumed, now HATE unconditionally. What many of them hate most is one word and what it means. That word is made up of only two letters. That word is NO. They want no-one dare telling them what to do or how to behave. They have embraced secularism (defined as: a system of political or social philosophy that rejects all forms of religious faith and worship).

Here is their problem: Judeo/Catholic/Christian has boundaries. Christianity tells us what God wants us to do and what NOT to do...why, the NERVE of Him! So, many Secularists (not all) take it to another level in their personal, selfish requests to abolish the influence of institutions that have the temerity to say NO to certain behaviors. They even reject "natural law" for their own personal agendas.

Catholic/Christians are the most persecuted people on earth. Why is that? Why is there such hatred by so many toward something that is all about goodness and love? All Christians (including 1.2 billion Catholics and 800 million Protestants of varied denominations) follow Jesus Christ. That is 2 billion people or two thousand million people who follow His teachings and His promise of Eternal Life. What is the crux of His teachings? Well now, the bottom line is this, LOVE your NEIGHBOR & FORGIVENESS. Yeah, yeah, I know that many who proclaim to follow Jesus do not even make an attempt to Love their Neighbor or Forgive anyone for anything. How powerful is the sin of pride?

The Prideful rant against Christmas which is all about "giving". They rail on about using the name of God in schools and at sports events. They want Crosses at cemeteries taken down from the graves of fallen soldiers. In many cases those who hate Christians kill them. Men, women and children die every day in different parts of the world simply because they are followers of Jesus. How can Love & Forgiveness be things to hate? How powerful is the sin of pride?

Well, nothing has changed since Jesus walked the earth two thousand years ago. He preached Love & Forgiveness so they beat Him, tortured Him and killed Him. The loving crowds who screamed "Hosanna" on Palm Sunday turned fickle and screamed "Crucify Him" the following Friday. The list of people murdered for following Jesus over the centuries (including his own apostles) is countless. Being a Catholic and Christian was never supposed to be easy. Jesus Christ did nothing but Love us, each and every one of us. Look what happened to Him. How powerful is the sin of pride?

So, on this Valentine's Day, the question to be considered might be this. What is Love? The answer can be found in the Bible in the First Letter of John; Ch 4: 16-17. "We have come to know and believe in the love God has for us. God IS Love, and whoever remains in Love remains in God and God in Him.

Sadly, on February 14, 2016, the war on Love increases in intensity.

*Pride: There are two kinds of pride; negative pride and positive pride. This column references negative pride aka ‘selfishness’ or ‘meism’. Positive pride is the good pride we take in working hard to do our best while loving our neighbor.

No comments:

Post a Comment

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Basically, I am a “blue-collar guy”. It is the world I come from, a world of hard working, hard drinking construction workers, cops, longshoremen, firemen, railroad workers, bus drivers, truckers, sanitation workers, etc. who were, for the most part, family men who loved their God, their families and their country---unconditionally. Consequently, if you would ask me to describe my work as a writer I would call it “blue-collar” meaning that I believe my work is simple fair, easily readable, no-nonsense, minimally superlative, and flows quickly. There is lots of dialogue and my tendency to be omniscient is obvious. I think that is because the characters and I are part of each other and I know what they are thinking

You can email Larry at petersonlarry6@gmail.com

Horizon Homeless

There are millions of people across this great land of ours that are pre-homeless. Please say hello to Bob and Tracey Slider and their son, Jake. They are a composite of so many American families that cover our land from ‘sea to shining sea’. They are among the millions of unnoticed, hardworking, Americans, locked into survival mode while trying their best to do the “right thing” every day. What happens when they are confronted with circumstances which place them on a road heading downward where the horizon up ahead turns homeless? Can they make the turn and begin heading uphill? What choices will they make? What will determine their success or failure?

The Priest and the Peaches

Historical fiction novel set in the Bronx in the mid-1960s

Yimey knew the secret to life. He made sure his family and friends did too. Even when his beloved wife, Elizabeth, died, he kept the faith. But the booze dulled the pain and he drank too much. Then he died and left his five children to fend for themselves. They did not understand why people were calling their dad a "great man". How could that be? Alcohol had killed him and he had left them alone. Who was this man they called "Pops" but everyone else called "Yimey".

Take a seven day journey with the five, newly orphaned Peach kids as they begin their struggle to remain a family while planning their dad's funeral.

Slippery Willie's Stupid, Ugly Shoes

illustrated by Lisa Klug

Willie Wiggles hates his slippery feet. He just slips, slides and spins all over the place. But what he hates even more are the special shoes that have been made for him that will help him to walk just like all the other kids. Willie thinks that they are the "stupidest, ugliest shoes in the whole world."

Discover how sometimes we worry about things about ourselves when actually there is nothing to worry about in the first place.

$2.99
24 pgs.
ebook
ISBN 9781310987854
2011

"Adorable work!" - Tampa Tribune