But I say to you: love not only your own countrymen, but also the people of other nations.

The following is a short passage from chapter four of Leo Tolstoy’s “Gospel in Brief: The Life of Jesus” (translated by Dustin Condren, Harper Perennial Modern Thought). I reproduce it here on hearing the news that the US and Israel have begun to attack Iran, and that Iran has begun to retaliate . . .

The fifth commandment. In the previous law it was said: do good to your own people and do harm to the foreigner. But I say to you: love not only your own countrymen, but also the people of other nations. Let others hate you, let them attack you and insult you; but you must praise them and do good to them. If you are only good to your own countrymen, then you are like everyone else who is good to their own countrymen; and it is because of this that wars occur. But you should treat all nations equally, and if you do, you will be the sons [and daughters] of the father. All people are his children, consequently all people should be your brothers [and sisters]. And so, this is the fifth commandment: Keep the same law in regard to other nations that I have asked you to keep amongst yourselves. For the father of all people there is no such thing as different nations, there are no different kingdoms either: all are brothers [and sisters], all are sons [and daughters] of the one father. Don’t create differences between people based on nations and kingdoms.