"Hammer your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Train even your weaklings to be warriors."
--Joel 3:10
Because Christians live under the teachings of Jesus Christ. We look to the Old Testament wisdom, revelation and knowledge, but the New Covenant supercedes the Old.
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Since Jesus' death and resurrection, we are under a covenant of Grace and are to share His Grace. (Part of the Lord's Prayer, Matt 6:12 " And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us .) In other words, if we don't forgive those who hurt and sin against us, God will not forgive us the sins we have done against others! Remember the parable of the merciless servant (Matthew 18:21-35). Even the Old Testament, Exodus 21:24-25 ("eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.") is designed to limit revenge that might be sought by an injured party.
I am not a Roman Catholic and have serious issues with some of the Roman Catholic beliefs and practices however, I have a lot of respect for Pope Francis. In washing the feet of an imprisoned Muslim juvenile, he is demonstrating humility, meekness and forgiveness, as was his reaching out to "Muslim brothers and sisters". At the same time, by canonizing the Otranto martyrs, he is reminding all, that the murdering by the Muslim invader was wrong.
Both meekness and forgiveness are decisions we CHOOSE to make. Feelings cannot have anything to do with such decisions. In the Bible, Jesus is described as 'meek'. As I have been taught, in the Greek of the Bible, the word 'meek' does not mean weakness instead, 'meek' means a strong person or animal CHOOSING to submit to someone, in Jesus' case, God the Father. After suffering humiliation, beatings, whipping and crucifixion, Jesus still asked God the Father, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. " This is what we are called to do and Francis' demonstrations of forgiveness are a good example.
When Francis was elected Pope, I prayed that he would bring his church back to a time of humility, to the 'original' church, as founded by the apostles. His humility is refreshing.