Love is Deathless

"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:13)."

Love truly is deathless. Love is the most potent force in the universe, one that transcends time and distance and, yes, even death. It has moved mountains and carved out nations, it has motivated and demonstrated. It has been a great, raging firestorm and it has also been a lone candle flickering in the uttermost dark. It has always been and it always will be.

But what does love have to do with a plane of existence as dark and foul as the Atrocissimus? Quite a lot, actually. 

There can be no horror without love because these two things are diametrically opposed. Horror is based upon torture, torment, killing, it is predicated on all nature of evil, depraved things. None of these things would be horrifying, though, if there weren't someone whose love of another was being challenged, and it is love that will allow a person to sacrifice themselves for the good of the other. When we don't love others, none of these evil things bother us.

This also gives us a good model for how to live our own lives. Horror has always been used as a cautionary tale, whether historically as a warning where not to go or what spirits to not offend, and in the modern era as a guide on how to not become a monster ourselves. Love is the greatest weapon we have against the Atrocissimus, and it always will be.

The demons and other perverted creatures that slither about the world want to twist you as they themselves have been. They want to turn you into an evil version of yourself, one in which you go mad with self-serving lust for power, wealth, and acquisition with no concern how this affects others. Your love of others -- indeed, your agape love for the entire world, of the unnamed other -- is the only thing that will prevent you from becoming a shadowy lesser version of the demons themselves.

Every time you listen to love and choose not to pursue a selfish path, you take a stand against the Atrocissimus. When you allow love to overcome your anger, you fight against the demons. Whenever you choose love rather than wrath, envy, and revenge, you weaken the hold of evil in the world and in your own soul. 

So in this month, which is given over to the celebration of love, and in all the months of the year, choose to love rather than hate. Choose compassion rather than the disregard of those who need your help. Choose to give of yourself rather than being a miser with what you have. 

If love is all you leave in this world after you're gone, then you have bequeathed a treasure to the future.

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