Today’s post is simple and I would hope self-explanatory, but if not, I am happy to provide a commentary on the obvious.
There have been actions, positions, policies, and conflicts throughout the whole of human history based on hate, mistrust, and anger. Witness any of the countless wars, religious persecutions, tribal conflicts, genocides (Jewish, Native American, Armenian, Tutsi, and more), that have occurred and recognize that not one single good thing ever came of those exercises in hatred.
But when the world comes together in the interests of love and peace we can accomplish amazing and wonderful things, although it is sadly rare that we do this. We have our moments though with the grand intentions that resulted in the creation of first The League of Nations and later The United Nations. We could debate the effectiveness or relevance, or even the true value, of either of those institutions, but I am focused on the INTENT, which was to create and promote a more loving and peaceful world for all.
Perhaps it is silly of me, but I have been reading a compilation of the earliest editions of the Wonder Woman comics from the early 1940s.
Unlike the other super-heroes of the time, Wonder Woman’s primary power was the power of love. Sure, she was incredible strong, she could deflect bullets, she flew an invisible plane, and she could force anyone to tell the truth or do as she instructed with her lasso, but through everything she did in the early days of her comic book appearances, she always tried to change the world to be a more loving place, to reduce the influence of Ares, or Mars, the God of War
and to increase the influences of Aphrodite, or Venus, the Goddess of Love.
Instead of incarceration or execution of villains, Wonder Woman tried to reform them through love and kindness. Perhaps it would benefit us all to revisit the early editions of Wonder Woman, not the later more violent and vindictive versions of today, but the original intent.
And doesn’t it tell you something that the ancients so recognized the awesome power of love that they had a divine being to represent it?
Hate serves only to destroy, to sow discord, and to drive us apart as people.
And hate without doubt is a powerful force that drives men and women to extremes that they otherwise could never conceive of themselves engaging in. Hate drives cars into innocent people who happen to disagree with you politically. Hate flies planes into buildings. Hate is never constructive but only destructive.
Love, on the other hand, is probably the only force that can overcome the power of hatred.
One can’t fight hate with more hate and violence for that only engenders more of the same. As hard as it can be at times to meet those with whom we vehemently disagree with a loving mind and actions, it is, in the end, the only way to make the world a better, kinder, gentler, safer, and more livable place for all of us.