Enemy Who?
[Keeping the Darkness at Bay, Part Four]
For this week’s Musings Monday, we’re back on the topic of “Keeping the Darkness at Bay”! If you’re interested in reading the other posts in the series, click on one, two, and three.
So far in this series I’ve talked about protecting the Shire and fighting for those you love and even loving your enemies. I want to return to this love-your-enemies business because there is a crucial aspect to this discussion that can’t be missed, a question so important that if you answer it wrongly, you will be aiding the darkness when you think you’re fighting it. The question:
Who is not your enemy?
Some of you may be confused. “What’s he talking about? Is this a typo? Didn’t he mean to say ‘Who IS your enemy?’” Well no, this is not a typo. We can and should discuss who our enemy is, and indeed we have several enemies. Most people can answer that question semi-correctly. My focus is on who’s not your enemy because many of us treat people who aren’t the enemy like they are.
As usual, books and movies provide us great examples. Katniss Everdeen learns this lesson in Catching Fire, the second book and movie in the Hunger Games series. Right before entering the 75th Hunger Games to compete against all previous victors, her mentor Haymitch gives her some unexpected advice: “Don’t forget who your enemy is.”
That’s weird advice on the surface. How’s she supposed to win if she doesn’t kill the other competitors? Only one can survive. Only one can win. Obviously the other tributes are her enemy, right?
If you’ve read the books or seen the movies, you know the answer is a resounding no. Her enemy is President Snow. Her enemy is the Capitol. Her enemy is anyone who misuses power and manipulates people to gain more power.
The Capitol pits the districts against each other in a death-match for teenagers so their energy is on fighting each other and knowing their place as the oppressed caste. But at the end of Catching Fire, things change. The tributes make an escape. There isn’t a winner of the Hunger Games. The tributes aren’t able to become heroes until they work together to fight their true enemy.
We also see this at work in classic superhero team-up movies like The Avengers and Captain America: Civil War.
If the Avengers could get along and work well together, a lot of the problems they faced in that first movie could be avoided. Loki turned the Hulk against them, engineered his escape, and almost won—until they finally worked together to contain the damage, close the portal, and kick his butt in the process.
In Civil War, the villain admits to this strategy explicitly. He knows he can’t beat the Avengers, so he orchestrated the movie’s events behind the scenes to pit them against each other. Because they focussed on stopping each other and treating each other like enemies, the Avengers were broken.
The consequence of such disunity is clear in Avengers: Infinity War. The Avengers were apart, and ultimately couldn’t stop Thanos.
But those are fictional characters. Does any of this have bearing on our everyday lives? Yes it does, and here’s why:
One—Your Enemy Isn’t Who You Think It Is
It’s okay to disagree with people. It’s even okay to get angry at people. It’s NOT okay to treat them like your enemy.
I encourage you to embrace the possibility that you may be wrong. Listen to those who disagree with you. Be compassionate. Work together to find a solution. Don’t be stubborn; be humble. Often times your true enemy is trying to distract you and point you to fight someone who’s really on your side, like Zemo does in Captain America, or like President Snow and the Capitol does in the Hunger Games series.
If you listen to each other, you’re more likely to find a solution than if you simply point your finger and accuse and fight them. Which leads me to the next point…
Two—“Us Versus Them” Doesn’t Exist
There are few things more destructive, deadly, and fruitless than an “Us-Vs.-Them” mentality. It’s a feud with no end in sight, an infection that clouds our eyes and clogs our hearts. “Us-Vs.-Them” dehumanizes your so-called enemy, and leads you to treat those people as less than human.
“Us-Vs.-Them” is a trap, but it’s also a lie. When I say it doesn’t exist, I’m saying in truth that it’s impossible. The reason? There can’t be both “Us” and “Them.” “Us” is plural. Us is all of humanity. Us is unity. Us is you, me, your neighbor, your president, your barista, everyone. I say there’s no such thing as Us Versus Them because They are us. “Them” is a part of us, a part of you.
If you take part in Us-Vs.-Them" feuding, you’re fighting against yourself and all humanity.
The Solution
Treat people with dignity and humility. It’s still okay to completely disagree with them, but DON’T DEHUMANIZE THEM. Though I’m trying to keep this blog relatively apolitical, there are some applications in how we approach politics.
The first step is obvious: Don’t assume stereotypes to be true. This can be applied a several ways. Here are some examples. If you identify as liberal, don’t assume all conservatives are stupid, intolerant, racist, xenophobic, bigoted, hate-filled, et cetera. If you identify as conservative, don’t assume all liberals are stupid, evil, murderous, immoral, perverted, hate-filled, et cetera.
Respect each other’s brain, even if it comes to a different conclusion than yours does.
The last, probably most important, part of the solution should be obvious because I’ve talked about it before: LOVE.
Care for others. Have compassion. Respect, dignify, and edify everyone you have meaningful relationships with. And if all your friends agree with you about everything, start branching our and loving others different than you. Practice love. Stretch your capacity of love, and I guarantee your capacity will strengthen and grow.
Because I am a Christian, and my beliefs very strongly influence my ideas and ideals, I wanted to leave you with a few quotes from scripture:
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12 HCSB)
“…Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37 HCSB)
“If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For the person who does not love his brother he has seen cannot love the God he has not seen. And we have this command from Him: The one who loves God must also love his brother.” (1 John 4:20-21 HCSB)
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PS: This post is being shared on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, 2019. My thoughts in this #MusingsMonday echo his sentiment, his message, and his legacy. We need to love each other, but also we need to empower each other. Dr. King’s legacy is one of change in the face of injustice. Let us always be willing to stand up against injustice, and let us always be willing to work together, across ideological, religious, and partisan-political lines, to fight any and all injustice that can be confronted. Working together starts with building bridges with those different from us, even if they’re perceived as an “enemy”.
I pray that we won’t allow fear to hold us back from right actions, because, as the Word says, “perfect love casts out fear.” As I reflect on Dr. King’s impact and the Civil Rights movement, I want to be a man brave enough to say I’ll stand up for what’s right, even if it’s socially unacceptable or uncomfortable.
