Christians Aren't Part of the Perpetually Offended

How many times have you seen or heard Christians being ridiculed or lied about or something like that and then seen or heard Christians say something along the lines of "if they said the same things about _____________________ (Muslims, women, etc.) there would be outrage."  In other words, we ask why it is that people can get away with defaming Christians, but not others.

Aaron Earls at WorldMagBlog has about the best response for that I have ever read.  In reply to the now (in)famous acceptance speech of Kathy Griffin where she chose not only to not thank Jesus, but to mock him, Aaron says this:

Catholic League president Bill Donohue is calling for action and saying that like other celebrities who offend, Griffin should "pay a similar price." (Isn't being Kathy Griffin enough of a punishment?) Donohue said if the comment had referenced Muhammad "there would have been a very different reaction from the crowd and from the media who covered this event. To say nothing of the Muslim reaction.” But isn't that the point - that we aren't part of the perpetually offended (emphasis mine).

That's it - he expresses what I have intuitively known for years but have not been able to articulate.  We say that Christians are different, and we are, and one of the main ways we are different from the world is that we don't take offense at offensive behavior or treatment.  We are the people who love our enemies, who bless when cursed, who pray for our persecutors.  We follow the one who only wanted forgiveness to be shown to those who crucified Him.

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Tags: Religion, theology, Christianity, Christian, forgiveness, Kathy Griffin

Comments

[David Cho]

Good post by Aaron Earls, but I should not have followed the link. Many of the commenters completely missed the point, and ended up saying more of the "if they said the same things about _____________________," as you put it.

Reading comprehension and critical thinking are beautiful things.

[Caine]

One might add, by not being among the "perpetually offended" we become the easier, and therefore, preferred target. After all, who would you pick on? Someone who followed the guy who said turn the other cheek or the one who created jihad? The smart mouthed critics may be cowards, but they aren't stupid.

[DLE]

So it's a revelation that we shouldn't be offended when we're treated harshly by the world?

Hmm...

Here's a better revelation: perhaps we Christians should be less offended when we're insulted by fellow Christians.

Now THAT would go a long way toward changing the world!

[cavman]

We are to accept the insult and continue to love them.

That is supposed to be one of the ways we are different. We don't demand recompense everytime some person insults Jesus or us.

I recall something about the 'blood of the martyers being the seedbed of the church.' We've forgotten that, and we are impotent. We live by the flesh, and take offense, demand someone get fired.

Jesus bore the curse of God, and the scorn of man, that we might receive the blessing of God. We reveal we are His brothers when we endure the scorn of man and suffer unjustly (1 Peter 4).

[Ken]

Note that Islam goes kill-crazy whenever they think that someone somewhere might possibly be offending them.

Note that everybody goes out of their way to tiptoe on eggs around Islam.

Just like when the USSR was in full swing. I noticed the more brutal they were, the more vicious they were, the more cruel they were, the more bloodthirsty they were, the more everybody else sucked up to them, sang their praises, and generally offered to be their prison bitch.

Points noted.

[Rong]

Forgive me reverend for I have sinned and heartlessly desired to jack slap her across her blasphemous mouth.

When what I should have done was gasped in despair over her current condition and prayed fervently that the Holy Spirit would soften her heart.