May 17, 2010 issue
Looking in the other’s eyes
By Matthew SchmittPage:
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Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. — Luke 6:27-29
Schmitt
This verse has always irked me. Is it at all based in reality?
In middle school, a kid who had been taunting me attacked me at my locker. I thought, “Don’t fight back. Turn the other cheek.” That ended miserably, as he continued to pummel me to the ground.
“If this is what you mean, God,” I thought, “no thank you.”
Shane Claiborne, in Jesus for President, brings a different perspective — that turning the other cheek forces the perpetrator to look you in the eye and recognize that you are a human being, sacred and made by God.
One night, I arrive home late after volunteering with an afternoon neighborhood tutoring program with our DOOR Hollywood Dwell participants. As I pull into the shared driveway of our townhome complex, I see a young couple with a stroller screaming at one another and at neighbors. I walk to where I can see them, feeling an urge to show love.
The man notices me and runs toward me, fast, shouting. He pulls something out of his coat, something that catches the light and shines. I panic and run to my still-open garage, but he is inside with me, raging.
“I should (mess) you up!” he yells.
“Look,” I plead, “I just wanted to see if you two were OK. I meant you no harm.”
Looking me straight in the eyes, he takes a breath and walks away. “I’m going to come back. I know where you live. You shouldn’t have messed with me.”
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