Love Your Enemies

This weekend at my university is Parent's Weekend, and if you've read some of my prior blog posts, you probably surmised that it wasn't going to be the most exciting weekend of my year. Update: so far, it's not. However, I must say that it got of to a rather fortuitous start last night, mostly because of some quick thinking on the part of a couple of friends, and the grace of God. My parents and I attended a performance of some of the highlights of Rodgers and Hammerstein's compositions at the Kennedy Center. As singers, we've all had to sing some of that vast body of music, and like so many others, we genuinely like it a lot. As the conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra remarked, Richard Rodgers had a rare gift of melody, and Oscar Hammerstein II could seamlessly weave lyrics that were witty and touching. Together they revolutionized musical theater in America, and they are one of the best known musical duos in our history.

One of the peculiar talents of Rodgers and Hammerstein was the ability to write songs that were cheery or amusing in shows that dealt with serious topics, such as racism, sexism, abuse, the Nazis, and so on. "Soliloquy" is a song about how the man singing it, Bill Bigelow, is going to train up his son to be a real man, before he panics and realizes that since "he" isn't even born yet, he could very easily be "she", and would need a whole new life plan. The show it's from, Carousel, deals with sexism and abuse among other things. "Whistle a Happy Tune" is a description of how the character singing it, Anna Leon-Owens, simply whistles a happy tune whenever she's afraid to fool people into thinking she isn't, and the result of this deception is that she's fooled out of her fear. The show it's from, The King and I, deals with interracial love and the clash of cultures, as well as the clash of tradition with modernity.

As I mentioned, my parents and I enjoyed the performance immensely. We only went because on this Parents' Weekend, the keynote performance is being given by Bill Maher, and political commentator and sometimes comedian whom I dislike. My mother had texted me a week or two ago to say that she hadn't been able to get tickets for his show, and that was a-OK with me, but then she called again on Monday to let me know that she had gotten them, so we could still go. I panicked, mostly because Bill Maher and his show had become a bone of contention over the summer, and I had no desire to sit through his performance hearing him bash religious folk (as he often does) as my parents laughed. My friends immediately suggested I look at what performances were happening on the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center, because there is a performance every night, and it just so happened that Messrs Rodgers and Hammerstein were on the bill for last night and tonight.

You may wonder why it is that I went to such pains to try to avoid seeing Bill Maher perform, and it boils down to his hatred of religion and religious people. He's one of the "new atheists", who is not content to say that he doesn't believe that God exists, but actually attacks religious people frequently. Among his many comments are that people of faith have "neurological disorders", Pope Benedict is a Nazi, and the Qur'an is a "hate-filled" book. A group at the school has raised its concerns with having Mr. Maher represent our campus at a family event, and word is going around that not even one show could be sold out this year, where in the past few years extra shows have had to be added, and often both performances were sold out. The student body is showing its displeasure with the university's choice this year, and I'm pleased for that. We're all for free speech, but that doesn't mean we have to listen if we don't like it.

However, last night's performance at the Kennedy Center forced me to see things in a new light. I sat there enjoying myself thoroughly, singing along with "Do Re Mi", and swaying to the Waltz from Cinderella, and afterwards I realized that Bill Maher probably couldn't do that. I'm not talking about his musical abilities, but about his ability to simply sit back and enjoy something for its own sake. I could enjoy the music last night simply because it was good music, Bill Maher puts on the appearance of only enjoying things for a reason. His pot? Sticking it to an uptight government. His reputation as a libertine? It gives all those uptight, sex-hating conservative folks the willies. Saying the inflammatory things he says? It pisses people off. Honestly, I wonder if he knows what happiness feels like.

I've come to realize that the only thing I should be feeling for Bill Maher as a person of faith is pity. Why should I be angry at him? He's not convincing anyone who isn't already convinced. Why should I hate him? He's another child of God in this very broken world. I feel sorry for Bill Maher because he has millions of dollars, widespread popularity, a TV show, a degree from an Ivy League university, and a hedonistic lifestyle that I'm sure many people envy, but he's not happy (or he does a really good job of hiding it).

In the Gospels, Jesus says, "But to you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you." (Lk 6:27-28) What does it matter to us or to God if we love people who love us, or do good to those who will return the favor? Everyone does that, because it's easy. But perhaps in refusing to love our enemies, we overlook those who actually need our love the most. I say we let Bill Maher and the "new atheists" rant and rave about how Christians hate love and love killing, and how alarming it is that Mohammed is a popular name in the UK, etc, and instead of retaliating, we just pray that he may know peace and happiness. After all, Jesus also said, "Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours." (Mk 11:24)