This I Believe

I firmly believe the opposite of Love is not Hate. It is Indifference. Consider common beliefs regarding the afterlife. If making it to Heaven is the sum of God’s love and to Hell His fury and wrath, would not indifference represent nothingness, or His non-existence? And would you not rather be in Hell, knowing ultimately there is a God and you merely failed to live well, than to experience a nothingness that means there was no God to begin with? I had this conversation not too long ago with someone who argued if he wound up in Hell he would not rejoice knowing there was in fact a God, he’d simply be mad he was there. But I’d rejoice. Because to hate someone represents a continued exertion of their energy, proof of their existence and their ability to still regard you – even if only with antipathy. Hate is just as powerful as Love and, in my opinion, only a mere extension. Ultimately, I rather God hold me in contempt than to not exist at all. That being said, I am not afraid of Hell – I am afraid of nothing.