“Love thy neighbor, no exceptions.” That’s the message in front of a church on Pittsburgh’s Mt. Washington neighborhood overlooking the downtown area. Last Saturday, in the Pittsburgh Squirrel Hill neighborhood, just a handful of miles from downtown, a man full of hate (whose name does not deserve mentioning) showed the ultimate disregard for that advice by shooting down thirteen people, eleven fatally, while they were attending services among three congregations at the Tree of Life synagogue there.

Hundreds of reports, perhaps thousands, have been filed in papers across the country and around the world and with the power of the Internet available to anyone who is reading this. I don’t need to expound on the actions of a madman. You can read all about it at your favorite news outlet. But I do want to expound on the actions of the neighbors.

Although I’ve never publicized it, you may have guessed from some posts that I am a Pittsburgher.  My torturous bend on some basic grammatical constructs might have given you a clue even though I try to be cognizant of my natural tends toward Pittsburghese. From the home of Mr. Rogers Neighborhood to “Love thy neighbors, no exceptions,” to every neighborhood in Pittsburgh being commonly referred to as a “neighborhood” (the Squirrel Hill Neighborhood, the Point Breeze Neighborhood, The Brighton Heights Neighborhood, and the other dozen or so geographic areas where clumps of people clump about their daily routines), neighborliness is second nature…no, first nature to the city, the county, in fact to the entire Greater Pittsburgh area.

Although out of town reporters referred to the shooting having taken place in the “predominantly Jewish community of Squirrel Hill,” the Squirrel Hill neighborhood is home to families of many backgrounds and many religions. Squirrel Hill is home to Jews, Catholics, Methodists, Muslims, Irish, Indian, African, Italian, Arab, rich, poor, comfortable, and just getting by. To the outside world. To themselves they are Pittsburghers. They celebrate their family holidays, they worship with their own congregations, the cook from their own heritage, but few if any take the time or use the energy to differentiate themselves from their streetmates or fellow city residents, except perhaps during high school football playoff time. The Squirrel Hill neighborhood, in fact most all local city and county and area neighborhoods are microcosms of what America wants to be. Not just the proverbial “melting pot,” but a pot where the ingredients have been stirred together and allowed their flavors to meld, like a hearty stew. That’s not local pride. That’s the truth.

A vigil was held Sunday night to remember the eleven victims of this crime of hate. A recurring theme was heard from all the speakers. Hate won’t win. But only one speaker took it an extra step. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers said, “My cup overflows with love. That’s how you defeat hate.” He told the assembled crowd and the television and radio audiences, you cannot let hate fester and grow, you must actively live love in order to defeat hate. He challenged everyone, singling out the politicians in attendance to lead the way, to avoid hateful rhetoric. “If you can’t say something nice, zip it!”

Last year after the shooting in Charlottesville, “Don’t let hate win” was the battle cry. Apparently we didn’t get it then that Rabbi Myers had to remind us now that you have to work to defeat hate. It doesn’t just happen, you have to actively love. After the Charlottesville shooting I posted:

Facebook profile pictures are sporting “We will not let hate win” banners above posts that call those who don’t agree with them “bat shit crazy.”

Unfortunately, we don’t seem to be expressing any love lately. You can’t say hate won’t win if you’re doing some of the hating.

“Let The Better Love Win” August 21, 2017

Unfortunately hate is nothing new. It goes back to Cain and Abel, mankind’s most extreme sibling rivalry. The 19th century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer said, “If a man sets out to hate all the miserable creatures he meets he will not have much energy left for anything else; whereas he can despise them one and all, with the greatest of ease.” Gee. That starts out seemingly positive. If you hate everyone you meet you’ll never get around to doing anything else. But then it takes a dark turn, just go ahead and hate everybody, it’s easier that way. Maybe it’s easiest to stick with the twentieth century philosophy of “all you need is love.”

Facebook profile pictures now sport frames spouting “Stronger Than Hate.” Maybe this time we can spout a little love to go with that. Just remember – no exceptions.