It has been said that compassionate people are those that feel very deeply about something. They have a deep love for whatever it is that they are doing and put the time and effort into it is not a burden for them. Compassionate people do not do things out of obligation. They actually want to do what they are doing.
Compassionate people could be considered to have good will because what they are doing they actually want to do. For example, someone that seeks out to help others with their school work because they want too and do not become a tutor to claim a pay check for their service are acting out of good will.
Now a question that I pose is what about the people that are passionate about acting on things they are obligated to do? Are they still considered compassionate and possessing good will? For example, they realize they have to do something, but they want to do it because they know that they have no other choice but to act.
Excellent question; I'll restrain myself. The rest of you have at it!
ReplyDeleteI think it is perfectly acceptable to be passionate about something you are obligated to do - it's a superb state of affairs, really. The truth is that you can always duck out of obligations, but it's harder to dodge things you are passionate about.
ReplyDeleteI also want to examine the example you gave of the tutor. Please let me know if I am being unfair, but I interpreted it as a criticism of those who accept cash rewards in exchange for helping others with schoolwork. While it is surely noble to help others without rewards, I don't think we should scoff at the tutor. I think it is unlikely that a tutor would take on this job for solely financial reasons - a paycheck comes every two weeks, but work is every day. The tutor likely arrived at his or her position by being highly attuned to the needs of other students. Also, by taking on a paid position, the tutor may also be making a statement that learning is valuable (because our society tends to measure the value of things in money.