via David Baggett:

This letter is a response from Henri to Fred having written and sent along an article that had been written about Fred. Although I’m unsure of which article it was, it evidently was quite critical of Fred’s work, and Fred seems to have been deeply bothered by it. Here’s the bulk of Henri’s reply:

“I read the article you sent me and can very well understand how much that must have hurt you. It must be really painful to be confronted with a total misunderstanding of your mission and your spiritual intentions. It is these little persecutions within the church that hurt the most. I simply hope that you are not too surprised by them. They come and will keep coming precisely when you do something significant for the Kingdom.

“It has always struck me that the real pain comes often from the people from whom we expected real support. It was Jesus’ experience and the experience of all the great visionaries in the Church, and it continues to be the experience of many who are committed to Jesus.

“I don’t think it makes much sense to argue with the writer of this article. He speaks from a very different plane and will not be open to your explanations. Some of the criticisms we simply have to suffer and see as invitations to enter deeper into the heart of Jesus. I won’t send you some of the reviews I get of my books, but some are not very different from the tone of this piece. So I certainly feel a unique solidarity with you. Let us pray for each other, that we remain faithful and not become bitter and that we continue to return to the center where we can find the joy and peace that is not of this world.”

When someone who should have been a friend chooses to be an adversary rather than an advocate, opting to disparage and impugn rather than edify and encourage, a particular kind of pain ensues, something cutting deeper than the garden variety. There’s good reason scripture tells us not to grow weary in well-doing, likely because we’re often sorely tempted to do so. An ally accusing us rather than defending us is one of those times, blindsiding us, and disappointing and dispiriting us in a profound way, inflicting tremendous hurt in the process.

To bless those who curse you, to pray for those who despitefully use you, is no easy task. Apart from God’s enabling grace it’s likely well-nigh impossible. Yet it’s what we’re called as Christians to do, and part of learning to love our neighbor as ourselves….

We all of us are made in God’s image, but each of us is unique, and there’s also something of the sacred and eternal in each of us. For Fred, bowing was a physical manifestation of this recognition. He believed that when we look for what’s best in the person we happen to be with at the moment—our neighbor—we are somehow participating in something holy.

Even, perhaps especially, when our neighbor doesn’t return the honor.