To the Editor:
(Re: “Why do we hate?”, October 6 Advance)
Why do we hate? It’s a good question. However, let’s not mistake hating evil for hating people. Though many don’t understand the difference, they aren’t the same thing. If we love people, we’ll want to help them recognize and avoid falsehood, because, yes, what we believe matters. Prejudice based on skin color is a good example of the effects of an error in belief. The consequences are negative, and they matter. Error is never harmless.
The same thing happens with religion, sexuality, and culture. There is both good and evil, both positive and negative. Everything is not good. What and who we believe will make a huge difference. There are immoral beliefs and behaviors which deceive and destroy people. We see it in the media every day. We see that beliefs matter...a lot. If we truly love people and want them to be healthy and happy we will promote good, true, and healthy things. However, we must be able to know the difference because many negative, destructive things are advertised in pretty packaging to make them appear as good and healthy.
RCMP officers don’t allow every behavior people may want to occur in their community. That’s not because they hate people, but because they care and want a safer and happier community for everyone. Parents who love their child will not encourage that child to touch a red-hot stove or get into a stranger’s vehicle, but, to stay away from them. That’s love, not hate. Love doesn’t accept that being silent and supportive of dangerous, avoidable, destructive beliefs and behaviors is ‘okay’. Even little kids know its true. They warn their puppy away from the swimming pool, the road traffic, and other unfriendly animals. We oppose our pets’ wishes when we know they would be hurt. That’s not hate.
So many real---and fake---hate problems would vanish if we loved people, but hated evil, simultaneously! These problems won’t vanish if we accept evils as ‘okay’, positive, even virtuous. Evil destroys health and happiness, sooner or later. We can’t play with that fire and not get burned -- and burn others, too.
Let’s not hate anybody. Let’s truly love people. And, where possible, let’s encourage them to not hurt themselves, or others, with false beliefs and unhealthy behavior. Not everything claiming to be good and true in religion, sexuality, and culture is actually so. And it does matter.
Ken Lemky
Creston, BC