A Reflection for Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Find today’s readings here.
“Jesus said to his disciples:
"If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.
If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own;
but because you do not belong to the world,
and I have chosen you out of the world,
the world hates you.”
We get so hung up on what it means to be hated.
Hate also has varying degrees of severity—yes, overt hate such as racism or anti-semitism must certainly be combatted upfront, but the kind of “everyday hate” we think we may experience is not worth paying much mind to.
As a recent college graduate, I feel like many people my age often obsess over trying to deduce who “hates” them: “Does that girl in my English class hate me because I like to participate often?” “Does that guy hate me because I didn’t invite his friend to the party?”
As social creatures, we can often spend too much time trying to rationalize exactly how people feel about us, but in today’s Gospel readings, Jesus tells us to let that go.
In reality, if we aren’t intentionally stepping on people’s toes, there isn’t anything we can do about how people respond to how we live our lives. If we know that we are living in a positive way that feels fulfilling to us, why should we care what others think?
But for people who like to be in control, letting go of people’s perceptions can be easier said than done. But one only has to look at a reading like this to think about how insignificant the hate we feel like most people experience is compared to Christ.
Comparative suffering is a sticky subject, but it’s hard to imagine being able to shoulder the hate that Jesus experienced during his ministry: he was scorned by the leaders of the religion that he belonged to, was sentenced to death while denying being a king and had nails driven through his hands and feet on a cross.
But Jesus doesn’t tell us “I suffered greatly, so you shouldn’t feel the way you do.” He’s more compassionate than that and understands the natural feelings that we may have.
Instead, Jesus reminds his disciples that his choosing of them should fill them with the courage to go out into the world and live as he would, regardless of how people may hate them for doing so.
Jesus may have not spoken to us directly as he did to his disciples, but the message remains the same: His love for us is stronger than any hate we may encounter, which allows us to leave the haters behind.
