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When Kara had first landed on the Earth, she’d been amazed at the sheer number of religions and cultural traditions that covered the planet. On Krypton, someone would either be a follower of Rao, or not. Kara’s parents had bemoaned the lack of true believers, there. When she had learned of the multitude of options available on Earth, Kara had wondered what her parents would think.
There were many, many “true believers” -- they simply believed in different things. As on Krypton, this disagreement had led to war, strife, and death over many years, and in many regions. There weren’t more ways to disagree -- disagreement was pretty straightforward, and basically boiled down to “I’m right and you’re wrong” -- but there were far more parties involved in the disagreements.
For a time, Kara had believed that the people of Earth simply hadn’t yet heard the truth of Rao, and of the lesser gods, and that once they did, they’d put all their fighting aside. It was the first time she said it out loud that Eliza smiled, and sat down with her at the kitchen table.
She had explained to Kara that most believers felt exactly the way Kara did: they were right, and if only everyone else believed what they believed, everything would be wonderful. She explained that all believers felt that they were the ones in the right, and why shouldn’t they? They had put their faith in something wholeheartedly, and the best of them simply wanted to share the peace and comfort that their religions had granted them.
Kara had sat back, and stared, and finally asked, “Then which is correct?”
Eliza had smiled again and put her hand on Kara’s head. “Kara,” Eliza said softly, “does it matter? You believe in something deeply, just as others believe in their own religions. Maybe they’re all correct, or maybe none of them are. Even if you knew, beyond any doubt, which religion governed all the universe’s beings, do you think you could convince them?”
After a moment of considering the vastness of just the Milky Way Galaxy, and its lifeforms, Kara replied, “No.”
“If you could never convince them, why should it matter what someone else believes?” Eliza asked.
Kara paused, then said, “Because we don’t agree. We should all agree, and search for the truth.”
Eliza shook her head. “In all the galaxy, have you ever found something everyone agrees on?”
“No,” Kara answered easily. “My mother said that if only everyone believed the same, there would be no more violence or hate. She would no longer need to dispense justice. Isn’t that right?”
“Perhaps,” Eliza answered, shrugging. “And perhaps not. Her belief relies on the idea that if everyone believed one thing the same, they’d then believe everything the same. If we can’t expect everyone to hold even one consistent belief, how could we ever expect them to hold them all that way?”
“I don’t know,” Kara said, her eyebrows furrowing. “You make it sound like people are always going to disagree, and violence and hate are inevitable.”
Eliza gave Kara a small smile. “If you can’t make everyone in the universe believe the same thing, do you think you can make them all believe separate things?”
“No?” Kara guessed, shrugging.
“Probably not,” Eliza agreed. “So if people won’t always agree, and they won’t always disagree, what’s the right answer?”
Kara paused, and stared at Eliza. “Good and bad are still the same, no matter what,” she said.
“Are they?” Eliza asked. “Have the same things been illegal everywhere you’ve been?”
“No,” Kara answered. “But that’s just because those justice systems weren’t as sophisticated.”
“Was it? In a culture where power is gained through war, is the winner always right?” Eliza asked.
“Legally, they are,” Kara said. “But power doesn’t equal justice.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Eliza agreed. “And neither does culture. A lot of humans consider it wrong to arrange marriages. Do Kryptonians?”
Kara frowned. “No. I would have had an arranged marriage.”
“So who’s wrong?”
“They’re different cultures,” Kara answered, shrugging.
“But there are cultures whose beliefs are wrong?” Eliza asked.
“Probably not to them,” Kara said.
Eliza sat back in her chair, smiling. “And who decides?”
Kara opened her mouth, then closed it again. She bit the inside of her cheek, then said, “I guess no one.”
“So if a religion, or a tradition, or a culture is different, but it isn’t infringing on your personal rights, why does it being different matter?” Eliza asked.
“I guess it doesn’t,” Kara said. She looked up at Eliza. “Is that the right answer?”
Eliza shrugged. “Who knows? What matters is that it’s the right answer for you, and that you aren’t going to take that answer and hurt anyone with it.”
Kara stared for a few moments, letting the conversation sink in. She nodded, then said, “Okay.” Kara smiled. “That makes it easier.”
“How so?” Eliza asked.
“To love everyone,” Kara answered.