Photo illustrated by Darrel Birkett
A guest post written by Keith Wommack, media and legislative liaison for Christian Science in Texas.
Everyone seems to have a chip on his or her shoulder. From the Occupy Wall Street protesters to the Obama-haters, aggression is in the air. Hate appears to be the flavor of the day.
This hate is causing an accelerated polarization of society. But it is causing something more. Are we hearing the warnings that hostile hearts can jeopardize health? Besides straining relationships, hate is a mental poison that causes bodily harm.
Deborah Smith, staff writer for Monitor on Psychology (a publication for the American Psychological Association), in her post Angry thoughts, at-risk hearts, writes “Research findings indicate a clear pattern — being an angry or hostile person is bad for your heart.” She goes on to cite several studies that prove the point.
It’s my experience as a Christian healer that hateful thoughts can be harmful not only to the heart but to every part of the body. Therefore, if hate is a poison, what is the antidote?
The antidote would need to be a remedy that reaches thought and radically transforms it. Could the antidote be prayer? Can certain forms of prayer steer and mold thought which in turn heals the body?
I recently heard an example of this type of transformation. Pat shared with me how she and her son were helped. She said, “At the time, I was a Registered Nurse and a new mother. Unfortunately, my newborn son was paralyzed on his right side. He also had a large tumor on his neck. Doctors told me he would not live very long. In order to care for him while he was still with us, I brought him home.”
“During my pregnancy I had hated a family member who had spread lies about me regarding drug allegations. The accusations could have had immediate consequences on my nursing career. Every time this woman would call, if I answered, I would quickly pass the phone to someone else. I couldn’t stand talking with this woman. I couldn’t forgive her.”
“Then my in-laws asked me if I would like them to pray for me. Not knowing what that really meant because they were Christian Scientists, but wanting to be polite, I accepted their offer. The next morning, I answered another call from the woman I couldn’t stop hating.”
“This time, however, rather than passing the phone off to someone else, I was led to talk with her. The other woman was a new mother too. Not only had I hated her, I had also been jealous because the woman had given birth to a girl. During my pregnancy, I had yearned for a girl, not a boy, so I was genuinely surprised to be asking about this woman’s baby.”
“After hanging up from the shockingly pleasant phone conversation, I started walking toward my baby’s room. As I walked, the thought came, ‘Go ahead, try. Try and hate her.’ I tried, but suddenly I couldn’t. The hate was gone. Then I opened the door and looked at my baby. He was wiggling all his arms and legs. The paralysis was gone. I looked at his neck. The tumor was gone, as well. My son was healthy.”
Would hate continue to increase if it was understood that hostile hearts carry health risks? Would society continue its destructive polarized path if prayer was found to be an effective remedy for the mental poison that causes so much harm?
Is hate an natural quality of thought? I believe not. I am also convinced that we can normally reject it because our true nature is spiritual. Therefore, if we wish to administer an antidote for hate, perhaps we can do so with a prayer strengthened by a double–dose of tenderness. How significant it would be if we could improve our own health by loving more and had the opportunity to help others, as well.
Whether it is one political party versus another, one faith group versus another, or one ethnic group versus another, tempers are reaching the boiling point faster than ever. Some believe that polarization supports a conviction of beliefs. They consider this a good thing.
I admit that strong convictions are needed to weather storms. Yet, it is harmful for a conviction to be based on arrogance or bigotry. This type of unyielding stance allows hate to inflict damage.
Hate is a danger to us all. What is its antidote? Possibly, tenderness and compassion expressed in our lives is the most effective remedy. Brotherly love should be our flavor of the day.
– Keith Wommack is a Syndicated Health Blogger, Christian Science practitioner and teacher, husband, and step-dad. He has been described as a spiritual spur (since every horse needs a little nudge now and then). Here is a link to Wommack’s blog.
About the author
One of the most significant blogs that should be shared in the headlines of all our newspapers. Thank you for a clear example of the benefits of NOT hating. Also appreciate the follow-up from Pam Scott.
Thank you for sharing this account of a supremely natural result of prayer healing the false claim, in all its forms, of hatred.
Thanks for a great blog. If only we could all learn not to hate.
This article inspires me to redouble my efforts to pray about any situations that I come across in my own experience as well as hear about in the media or from other sources –especially those focused on hate, intolerance and destructive behaviors. Christ Jesus gave us many examples of unconditional love– love healing physical situations, relationship problems, misunderstandings and the threats & hatred directed at him in his ministry. The healing related in this article shows how prayer does bring change and healing. Yes, as another response has said,this article should be widely shared and practiced as a real antidote to hate, fear, hostility etc. We need to discover even more about the power of love, friendship & patience and how these powerful ideas applied to life’s challenges change any situation for the better– to heal all mankind!
I appreciated the important points that were presented in this blog. In learning to love more, sometimes we can get warm glimpses from children, who naturally have tender hearts and express what it means to love in simple and endearing ways. I came acoss some precious and thoughtful remarks made by the four to eight-year-old set. They were asked what love means to them. Here are a few of their answers:
“If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend you hate.” (Six-year-old)
“When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.” (Seven-year-old)
“Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.” (Four years)
“You really shouldn’t say I love you unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.” (Eight years)
“Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.” (Six years)
A four-year-old had an elderly next door neighbor, who recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the older gentleman’s yard, climbed onto his lap and sat there quietly. When his mother asked what he had said to the man, the youngster replied, “Nothing. I just helped him cry.”
We can all agree that love is about giving and meeting the needs of our fellow man. Children prove it everyday.
What a wonderful article to remind us to truly love everyone whether we want to or not. And to let our light shine by example for our children to see as well as everyone we come in contact with.
Thank you for making it so easy to share these articles with family and friends.