How does a passionate person guard against crossing over to zealotry?

Highlights from our meeting on 03/26/03

1. Is zealotry necessarily bad?
2. Zealotry tends to be seen as a negative thing.
3. Zealotry implies closed-mindedness.
4. Is zealotry, then, the enemy of truth?
5. Truth is difficult to define.
6. Some say there is no absolute truth, only relative truth.
7. Isn't it a contradiction to state as an absolute truth that there is no absolute truth?
8. Being closed-minded does not necessarily mean you are wrong.
9. Can you be a zealot for a good cause, such as preserving the environment?
10. An important characteristic of a zealot is the distinction between self and others.
11. The zealot insists that self is right and others are wrong.
12. Does zealotry then mean defining others as the enemy?
13. Were Japanese Kamikaze pilots zealots?
14. Doesn't zealotry imply fanatical pursuit of a cause greater than the self?
15. Is zealotry, then, a social or cultural phenomenon?
16. Is passion, by contrast, more of an individual phenomenon?
17. An artist can passionate about his art or a teacher passionate about his subject without being zealots.
18. Is brainwashing involved with becoming a zealot?
19. Isn't all socialization, just brainwashing by another name?
20. It seems brainwashing differs from socialization in that brainwashing implies malicious intent.
21. Perhaps intent is a useful distinction between zealotry and passion?
22. Perhaps to guard against zealotry one must examine one's intent toward the other.
23. If one's intent comes from a position of compassion for the other, then passion can be a positive force.
24. A teacher who cares about his students and is passionate about his subject can use the power of passion to inspire his students.
25. One might cross the line if one becomes willing to sacrifice the well-being of the other for the sake of one's cause.
26. If the zealot sees the other as an enemy or threat, then fear might be part of the motivation.
27. So to check one's motives, one might ask, am I acting out of love and compassion or out of fear and defensiveness.
28. But how can you distinguish between compassion and self-serving behavior masquerading as compassion?
29. What if zealot missionaries "brainwash" native people into adopting a happy but unquestioned way of life? Is that compassion?
30. Is happiness the best measure of compassionate action?
31. Compassionate action ought to enhance life.
32. What does it mean to be truly alive?
33. True compassion seems to have associated with it a kind of humility.
34. There but for the grace of God (or circumstance) go I.
35. Scott Peck said that we will never have the luxury of knowing, in the moment, whether we are making the right decision.
36. However, if our will is steadfastly to the good, he said, in the long run, we will do more good than harm.
37. Furthermore, he points out that some of the greatest evil that has been inflicted on the world has been committed by individuals who were absolutely certain that their cause was good.
38. To guard against becoming a zealot then, perhaps one needs to beware of absolute certainty.
39. Being absolutely certain can be a red flag, a kind of alarm, that it may be time for some serious self-examination.