“Such is the human being; when he is afraid, he sees enemies
everywhere and thinks the only chance to stay alive is to exterminate them.”
Beatrice – Rwandan Hutu Refugee reflecting on life in the camps in DRC.
I would struggle to find a more succinct way of explaining
what fear does in our lives, it lies to our hearts, pulling on the survival instinct in all of us, the
desire for self preservation at the cost of all else. I am fortunate enough to live in a time and place where I have borne and continue to bear witness to the result of lies that fear has set up in people's hearts, while also witnessing the miracle that can happen when someone understands that it is fear that drives hatred, and stands up to put fearful hearts at rest.
Fear seems to have managed to creep in to society, so that it is so prevalent that there is no corner of our lives
and cultures that are not affected by it in some way. It has become a way of life for us in so many ways. We have become a people who are more easily defined and directed
by our fears than our freedoms.
If perfect love drives out all fear, then could it be
possible that the true opposite of love is not hate but fear, and it is the
fear that plays on any number of other aspects of our lives (even positive things like self preservation) that eventually causes us to hate, as it drives us to preserve our lives, lifestyles,
ideas and ideals and pull further and further away from anything that can cause
those things to be removed. I am yet to see hate ever make any lasting, positive change in the world, but love...I have seen love conquer the conqueror. Because "...In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well
enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him..." (Orson Scott Card: Ender's Game)
If we could be brave enough to love unabashedly, we could
be the people who in turn release those whom we fear from their own prisons. And
who knows – perhaps we can also be known as people who turn the world upside
down.
What would a world without fear look like? Can you imagine
it? A world without fear of death, judgement, failure, pain or things that go bump
in the night. How would it feel to know that people love what you do not
because it is the best, but because it comes from you, and they love you?
Personally, there is nothing that tears at my soul more
deeply than when I see fear in someone’s eyes, or watch as people respond to
situations and circumstances out of fear (often without even knowing it). I
have not completely won the battle over fear in my own life. Not by any means.
But I live to fight the battle. For me, it is a worthwhile endeavor to
spend my life in pursuit of how to love completely, and in so doing release
those around me from fear.
