Newest Priest in Brownsville

The Rev. Keith Pozzuto was ordained into the Sacred Order of Priests on Dec 12. A blessing for the church and the community! The Brownsville Telegraph covered the service and took photos.

The Telegraph Article

Meditations on Hate

I am perplexed, concerned and preoccupied by hate. It’s nothing personal, it just seems that if hate isn’t in the news it is making the news.

On the first thought, look toward the political season where folks on both sides of issues and candidates accuse the other of hate. On the latter, hate consistently makes the news… most recently in the terrorist acts in Mumbai.

There is True Hatred and Counterfeit Hatred.

Counterfeit Hatred is convenient, it is accusatory, it is a deflection, it is ignorance. It is an ad hominem argument. It takes the form “If you disagree with me, you must be filled with hate.”

True Hatred and Counterfeit Hatred are sometimes exchanged and are frequently found together but they are intensely different.

True Hatred is directed at someone or something. True Hatred cherishes animosity.

Perhaps you are familiar with the story of Joseph (Genesis 37-51)? The story begins and ends with True Hatred.

Joseph was one of 12 brothers. He had the love of his father, a robe, and dreams of grandeur. His brothers were jealous and hated him for this.

The brother’s feelings were dear to them; they cherished this animosity, nurtured it and fostered it in their hearts and with each other. Encouraging it and perhaps treating it with tenderness and affection just as a mother looks upon her child. But this child is vile and contemptuous; it is hideous to the eye and would be reviled by anyone not caught in its spell. Their delight in this evil would lead to active enmity and violence against their brother.

Joseph’s brothers conspired to kill him but then opted to strip him, throw him into a well and sell him into slavery. They hated him and rid themselves of his presence. Joseph lived in slavery, then imprisonment but in the end gained the favor of pharaoh and became the viceroy over all Egypt during a great famine. It was at this time where Joseph’s brothers, in search of wheat, were reunited with Joseph. They feared that Joseph would repay their evil with evil… that he hated them.

They lived in this fear and when their father died, it came to light one final time. "When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" … But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."

They believed that Joseph had cherished his animosity all these years and would now unleash this enmity at the death of his father. But Joseph had forgiven his brothers and not only saw the completeness of God’s plan but lived in and experienced its peace. Forgiveness triumphed over hatred.

These are my meditations on hate:

Hatred is a condition of the heart. It often ends in violence but it is born from pride, jealousy, envy, fear,… Jesus said "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.

Few people experience True Hatred in the first person… a concerted and direct animosity from cherished sin intended to destroy – be it emotional, spiritual or physical destruction. I can think of 2, maybe 3 times in my life where I can say that I was the recipient of True Hatred.

Hatred changes the countenance of man. In perhaps the first manifestation of recorded hatred, it is obvious that hatred changed the countenance of Cain. Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." (Genesis 5)

Hatred separates us from God. King David, also of the Old Testament, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalm 66)

Hatred is a choice. By the grace of God, it is within our ability to escape its grasp through repentance. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15)