There was a story in LIFE magazine several years ago about a series of attacks on an Amish community near Pennsylvania. Most Americans see the Amish as oddities because of the way they live out their faith. This faith dictates that they dress and speak like their forefathers did in the 1800s. They refrain from watching TV or using cars. They keep themselves separate from those unlike them. But when the reporter asked one Amish farmer what he would do to the arsonist if ever he was caught, the farmer replied, “I would invite him for dinner, and then ask him why he did this.
Can we imagine inviting one of our enemies to dinner? Jesus did even more. He forgave his executioners as they sat at his feet, gambling for his few possessions. He forgave those who watched him die with satisfaction.
“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” This is the perfection God asks us to achieve: the simplicity of a friendly act toward a hostile antagonist; the greatness of heart required to forgive those intent on our destruction,
