Fighting For or Fighting Against

“That’s how we’re gonna win. Not fighting what we hate; saving what we love.” —Rose in The Last Jedi

We may start with good motivations. But, even in the midst of a noble cause, they can be all too easy to lose.

At first, we have a desire to fight for something we love. But somewhere along the way it devolves into only fighting against the opposition. The ends become more important than the means; getting even, or showing them who’s right, becomes the primary goal; hatred and fear supplant love as our primary motivation. And most scary of all, we may even start embodying vices we once loathed, being blind to both how we’ve been corrupted in the process, and how our actions may even jeopardize the cause we say we love.

Being motivated by love does not imply passivity. Although both love and hatred may lead to action, love doesn’t stoop down to act out of revenge or spite. It may move us to stand up, or even fight back, to protect what we love. But it refuses to allow fear or hatred to take the reins. It realizes that although trying to fight darkness with darkness may seem more “effective” at times, doing so comes at too great a cost.