Love dissolves intractable hate

Originally appeared on spirituality.com

I felt like I couldn’t take it anymore. I just couldn’t sit back and accept all the killing and fighting and hatred and anger in Iraq that I read about day after day after day. Then in a moment of heartfelt prayer, I was struck by a clear spiritual realization. Love—with a capital L, a Biblical name for God—is right there where entrenched conflict appears to be. I knew I could (and should) keep praying and accepting the fact that Love is the real power in Iraq.

I realize that may sound naive, but I’ve seen evidence of an all-good and loving power operating in the universe and in our lives, even though it isn’t always readily apparent to the physical senses. I’ve found that sincere prayer can help me feel this invisible power and see evidence of it operating.

For example, I once was in the middle of a work experience that mirrored, though in a much more subdued way, what is happening in Iraq today. I hated a co-worker. There were the attacks from one side and revengeful counterattacks from the other. There were even the “public bombings”—the humiliation and attacks in front of others. It appeared as if hatred, anger, self-justification, and self-righteousness were ruling the situation, and my life.

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