Don’t Cancel People…Love Them!

Let me say this right up front, I have “cancelled” people in my life before — so I completely get it!

I get the frustration, the anger the absolutely mystifying behavior that makes you want to “cancel” somebody — to write them off, to give up hope and try to forget they exist — I get it!

But here is the thing:  WE DON’T CANCEL PEOPLE.  WE LOVE THEM!  At least, we try to love them, the best we can.

If you claim to be a Christian or anybody of good will in this world, you have to see that cancelling somebody is wrong. 

We cancel THINGS:  like subscriptions or streaming services, unethical businesses, or things that aren’t helping us to become better people.  In that case, cancelling something can be a very virtuous act.

But it is not virtuous or broad-minded or generous or right to cancel people:  EVER!

That isn’t to say that we don’t set up healthy boundaries with people who might not have good intentions toward us — honestly, setting up boundaries in abusive situations is not only good for us, it’s good for them.

But to cancel people, to give up hope that they might change, to refuse to dialogue and rather try to dehumanize, objectify, and hate them:  is absolutely wrong — like straight out of the pit of Hell, WRONG!

More than that, if you continue down the path of dehumanizing, vilifying and hating people who think differently than you (right or wrong) than you will soon become THE VERY THING YOU HATE!

So don’t do it!

Don’t cancel people…love them!  Pray for them.  Fast for them.  Find a time for a face to face and have the difficult conversation when the time is right — but don’t ever give up hope on anybody while there is still breath in their lungs.

We are an Easter People and we believe in redemption!  Just look at our Saints.  Some of the greatest sinners became the greatest Saints — and that can still happen today.

We must try to live our lives based on that reality — not only for ourselves but also for our kids! Sometimes I look at my kids and wonder, what kind of world are we leaving them?  You and I? 

How are we making this a civilization of love, as St. John Paul II called it — because in recent months when I have seen beautiful, awesome people fall of the DEEP END into hatred and division  — I’m not thinking we’re doing so well!

That has to change and we change it by allowing God to change us.

We can not play the game the way the world is playing the game. We will not win by hatred, violence, division and discouragement.

We win with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, truth and forgiveness. These are the rules God has given to us to live by — and so we must live by them!

So, in this little space of the internet, you are welcome NO MATTER WHO YOU VOTED FOR! You are welcome no matter where we disagree!

As long as you are trying to be decent and respectful, I’m happy to have conversations about where we differ — but honestly, those conversations need to be happening in REAL LIFE, way more than they are happening here.

In this space, I rarely talk politics — not because it is unimportant (we all have a duty to stay involved!) — but because I think it tends to divide people unnecessarily. It tends to distract us from loving the people around us.

Frederich Nietzsche once wrote, “A politician divides man into two classes:  tools and enemies”.  Sorry to say, I think he was on to something.

If he was living in our days, I’m pretty sure he would have added “mainstream media” to the list of offenders.

Don’t get me wrong, there are awesome politicians and journalists out there, but the awesome ones see themselves as public servants — serving the needs of their constituents and readers — not the other way around.

It seems we have few true public servants left.

I refuse to become a pawn in the vicious, selfish games of careerists and narcissists who call themselves “politicians” and “journalists”.

I refuse to cancel you because you voted differently, and I hope you will do the same.  I refuse to think that you voted for somebody for their absolute worst trait, and instead will try to give you the benefit of the doubt in why you voted a certain way.

I also refuse to listen to the media telling me that I NEED TO HATE YOU if you voted for a certain person. 

No offense, but most of them aren’t exactly models of unbiased journalistic integrity — so I figure I’m way better off turning them off and listening to the voice of truth God is speaking to our hearts.

I will listen to the only wisdom that’s going to lead me to freedom, peace and happiness in this life: and it’s contained within scripture and within the teachings of the Church.

The Bible makes it clear…

“If anyone says, “I love God,” and yet hates his brother or sister, he is a liar. For the person who does not love his brother or sister whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”

~I John 4:20~

So from this day forward, make a change.  Don’t cancel anybody!  Love them!

Deep down, everybody was CREATED GOOD by a LOVING GOD, and He wants us to be patient with people, and love them where they are at and NEVER, EVER GIVE UP HOPE that they can change.

And so that is what I am going to try to do, moving forward, and I hope you will resolve to do the same.

Love the people around you and in these spaces, no matter how they voted or what they believe! Love your neighbor and your family and don’t let the powers that be divide you.

Stand up and do the Courageous thing: LOVE!

Have a beautiful weekend!