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I'm angry

Anger is not always sin. It can be the right response to injustice, and it can also become a fire that burns the people around you. The Gospels show Jesus angry — at a temple turned into a market and at hearts that refused to see — and the same Jesus praying for the men who nailed him to the cross.

But I say to you that hear: Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you. Bless them that curse you, and pray for them that calumniate you.

Luke 6:27–28 · Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

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Awaiting theological review

What Jesus teaches

  • Direct

    Summary of Luke 6:27–28

    He asked something no one can do by willpower alone: “Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you.”
  • Direct

    Summary of Matthew 5:21–24

    He taught that anger against a brother is already on the road to murder, and told his hearers to be reconciled before bringing their gift to the altar.
  • Direct

    Summary of Matthew 18:21–22

    When Peter asked how often he must forgive, he answered: “till seventy times seven times.”

What Christian tradition learns from this

Scripture

Paul writes that anger need not be sin, but it must not be nursed: do not let the sun go down on it.Ephesians 4:26

What Jesus did

  1. The temple cleansed

    John 2:13–17
    Direct
    What Jesus experienced
    His Father's house turned into a market, with sellers and money-changers in the Temple courts.
    What Jesus did
    He made a scourge of little cords, drove them out and overturned the money-changers' tables.
  2. Anger at hardened hearts

    Mark 3:1–5
    Direct
    What Jesus experienced
    A man with a withered hand, and people watching to see whether he would heal on the sabbath so that they could accuse him.
    What Jesus did
    He looked round at them with anger, grieved at the blindness of their hearts — and healed the man.
  3. On the cross

    Luke 23:33–34
    Direct
    What Jesus experienced
    Being crucified, mocked and stripped by the very people he had come to save.
    What Jesus did
    He prayed for them.
    What Jesus said

    “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

    Luke 23:34 · Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition

What Scripture doesn’t tell us

Anger that turns into violence, threats or abuse — towards others or towards yourself — needs help now: if someone is in danger, contact the emergency services. Anger that never leaves can also be a sign of depression or of an old wound that deserves care from a professional.

Someone who walked this road

  • JamesScripture

    Jesus called James and his brother John sons of thunder; when a Samaritan village refused them, they wanted fire from heaven, and Jesus rebuked them (Luke 9:54–55).

    Explore connections →
  • PeterScripture

    In Gethsemane Peter drew his sword and cut off a servant's ear; Jesus touched the ear and healed him (Luke 22:50–51; John 18:10).

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Pray

Lord Jesus, you were angry at what dishonoured your Father, and you forgave those who crucified you. Look at my anger. Keep what is just in it, heal what is wounded, and do not let me hurt anyone with it. Amen.

Written for cento53 as a simple personal prayer — not a liturgical text.

One thing to do today

Before you speak or write in anger today, wait, and pray one Our Father. Then say only what you would still be willing to say tomorrow.

  • What lies under your anger: hurt, fear, a real injustice?
  • What in your anger is about justice, and what is about your pride?

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