Comments on: Love

By: Josh Graves

Josh Graves — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:29:37 +0000

Emily, The example from your life strikes me in a powerful way. Thanks for sharing that. How is Uganda? WOW. We miss you.

By: emilyjean

emilyjean — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:35:31 +0000

I think that love and hate are too closely linked to really be opposites. To love or hate something, one must have a strong emotional connection to it. Apathy is just the opposite; it is saying that you have no feelings whatsoever about it.

My dad, for example. I am pretty sure that I hate him. But I think that is closer to loving him than not caring about him at all. Hate implies that there is something I wish could be different, in which case, there is a chance that I could, under other circumstances, love him.
...so hate is too close to love to be its opposite.

Am I making any sense?

By: kingdomseeking

kingdomseeking — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:29:06 +0000

It does seem to require a certain degree of apathy to not love.

-K. Rex Butts

By: Lance

Lance — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:13:43 +0000

I think Pride definitely goes hand-in-hand with it. The way I'm thinking of it, indifference and hate do, as well. If I'm so focused on myself, I take no interest in anything that doesn't relate to my own concerns/passions/desires (indifference). If anything stands in the way of fulfilling those, that's a threat that must be overcome. Any person who I perceive to keep me from those things or has the things I want becomes the an enemy (in extreme, hate). My own achievement and work toward those selfish goals drives pride.

By: Josh Graves

Josh Graves — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:04:56 +0000

fumbling: Good thoughts and examples. I'll give this some thought today and respond later.

Lance: Self-absorbed . . . could we also use the word "pride"? . . . Early Christians thought that pride was the root of the seven deadly sins.

JG

By: Lance

Lance — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 23:49:15 +0000

I don't know that there is a true antithesis to love. I can see your point with indifference. If I had to nail it down, I might go with being absolutely self-absorbed (i.e. not indifferent, but more a constant state of self-seeking/self-pleasing/self-promoting). That's my take…

By: fumblingtowardseternity

fumblingtowardseternity — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 21:08:02 +0000

Honestly? I'm chewing on it, but I think no.

I think the opposite of love (intentional gracious self-sacrifice as a life orientation) IS hate.

Indifference is the opposite of passion, but indifference is, well, indifferent.

I'm talking about the difference between just driving by a stranded member of another race, and swerving close to shoot at them. Apartheid and the Holocaust might have been abetted by indifference, but I think they were DRIVEN by hate.

One is indifference. The other is hate. Sometimes they look alike, but it isn't an indifferent father that puts out cigarettes on his son's chest.