Is there any value in being respectful to your enemies?

Question

Have you ever tried it?

Answer 1

Yes, the Lord will bless you and yes, it works.

Proverbs 25:21-22

21If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink: 22For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD shall reward thee.

Answer 2

Respectful?  Are you KIDDING?

I LOVE my enemies!

After all, who else is gonna tell me the complete truth about myself?

My friends? - don't make me laugh, honey. I don't pick my friends on the basis of how honest they are on that particular subject.  ;-)

Answer 3

I would say their is.

Answer 4

yeah. There was this girl who cussed me out, was mean behind my back, and I still loved her. I always invited her to come hang out with me and my friends. On a field trip I took a couple of pictures of her, and commented on her dress she wore to a ceremony. A couple of months later, she comes up to me and says, "Hannah, I'm sorry." ...If we act like Jesus, or if we love as Jesus loves us, we will get the best out of people :)

answer mine?http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;...

Answer 5

Yes

If you do it for long enough you will have no enemies (or at least less of them)

Answer 6

Love conquers all.  

Answer 7

Yes, there is great value.

It is very easy to kill someone that you have first dehumanised in your mind, but it is much more difficult to kill someone that you respect.

This is probably one of the reasons why christian fanatics work so hard to demonise atheists; So when God sends them against us, they will have no trouble killing us.

Answer 8

The only respect I show to an enemy is to have nothing to do with them, and I expect the same in return. It's a tedious thing to do, but ideally the best thing (respect) you can do with an enemy is to turn them into a friend.

Answer 9

Yes, there is not an immediate response I also pray for ame and them, and as time passes, it is worked out.  I have come to realize the sometimes God only lightens burdens, not take them away.

Answer 10

Yeah, you should try it. Being respectful makes you the better person, and besides I get a kick out of it. Why? Your enemies won't like it, when what they say doesn't seem to bother you. Eventually, they'll just give up.

Answer 11

Yes. It gets them to let their guard down.

Answer 12

Yes, I"ve tried it and there is value.  It helps take the control of your feelings out of someone's hands.

Your enemies 'expect' you to be filled with hate or annoyance because of them.  Instead, smother then with kindness.  It throws everyone off balance.

Pretty soon, you won't have any enemies!

Answer 13

It depends.

Certainly, turning the other cheek or loving your enemies is absolute stupidity. Some enemies are enemies based on misfortune or misunderstanding. In such circumstances, it may be possible to heal the divide.

On the other hand, some enemies are irreconsilable. For example, Islamists are simply people who believe that they have a duty to fight non-muslims you until Islam rules the world. So theres no real co-existance, merely states or layover before the next Jihadist surge.

Answer 14

Of course! It gets you close enough to try to stab them in the chest.

Haven't you ever seen those Christians who claim "I used to be an atheist!" "I used to be a sinner!"

Answer 15

Of course there is.

The greatest value there is.

The knowledge that you have not lowered yourself to their disrespectful level.