Hate has to be learned. All who are committed to stopping the hate in our midst must know answers to these crucial questions. Hatred pervades the rationale and rides the sound waves of a mean-spirited pedagogy employed by countless numbers of teachers in classrooms of every shape, size, and location. Jealousy, too, contributes to hate. A youngster starving for a morsel of bread daily watches a television family flippantly peck at a feast, senses an injustice at the heart of her world and harbors an explosive jealously that breeds resentment, then hatred, and perhaps violence.
Fear can cause hatred, especially fear haunted by insecurity and fed by paranoia.
A person insecure in his or her own faith, sexual identity, or profession, frequently lashes out at the threatening presence of people with different faiths, sexual identities, and professions. Ignorance is a player in the prevalence of hate. An individual unaware of the beauty and worth of diversity may develop a bitter hatred aimed at anything unlike the familiar and, with a preference for nothing over something different, actually work to bring sameness to an environment regardless of the physical and emotional expense involved. Surely religion is exempt from this discussion of sources and purveyors of hate, we surmise. Study the sacred texts of innumerable traditions of holiness.