The Hate We Carry - The Rev. Philip DeVaul

Sermons from the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer

I need to say this, by the way, in this conversation, if I don't say this, I will be very remiss. Anger and hatred are not the same thing. And many of you were raised, especially women, were raised to believe that anger was bad and you should not have it or keep it to yourself. We were taught that you shouldn't be angry about anything. And you might be worried that what I'm saying right now is that you should never be angry because that's bad friends. Anger is not inherently bad. In fact, anger is a very natural part of our lives. Anger is a base emotion that we all must have sometimes. In fact , there is a problem if you see injustice, hatred, violence, murder, oppression, cruelty, and hatred, and anger does not arise in you. We're supposed to feel angry in the face of that which is deeply wrong. I'm not saying don't be angry, but as the epistle writer James says, your anger is not the thing that makes God righteous. We do not want to allow our anger to become self-righteous.