God is love

For the last eighteen months or so something Bishop John Inge has said a few times has been rumbling around in the back of my mind:

'The opposite of love isn't hate. It's fear.'

This came to mind again yesterday as I was walking the dog, and it set me wondering. If the opposite of love isn't hate, but fear...what is the opposite of hate?

One of my first thoughts was 'forgiveness', but that didn't seem quite enough. Hate is a strong word. Maybe the opposite needs to be deeper than something like 'forgiveness'. How about 'reconciliation'?
That seems to add an extra dimension of understanding another, and walking forward together.
I'm not sure I've finally decided yet, but that's where I am at the moment.
Perhaps another word comes to mind for you?


As well as considering that, I thought I'd suggest a way of 'walking alongside' verses of the Bible, in an ancient way of letting words sit in our mind and for deeper meaning to be found from them.
Here's a guide to the practice of Lectio Divina
(And if you'd like a starting place for what verses to begin with, why not the Psalm set for morning prayer today? It's Psalm 77)


♫ and for music today, what about this song that the local schoolchildren sung recently for part of their Eisteddfod celebrations? It seems to sum up a lot of people's approach to life at the moment, I think: Count on me