The question set for this essay is what happens when a man loses control of his passion. Two other questions must be addressed before that one can be answered. First, what is passion? Is it not, in many ways, an expression of love? Second, what does it mean to lose control? Perhaps the simplest definition is this: a man is no longer guided primarily by reason, but instead by the object of his deepest affection.
Throughout history, some of mankind's greatest acts of heroism have been born out of passion. Yet some of the world's darkest and most immoral deeds have likewise been committed in its name. How can the same force produce such vastly different results?
The answer lies not in passion itself, but in the heart that directs it.
In 1775, Patrick Henry was consumed with a passion for liberty. Standing before his fellow Virginians, he looked beyond the overwhelming military superiority of Great Britain and declared the now-famous words, "Give me liberty, or give me death!" Reason alone might have suggested surrender. Passion for freedom compelled him to challenge what appeared impossible.
History also provides examples of passion turned toward evil. Adolf Hitler, blinded by pride, ambition, and self-love, lost all regard for human life as his regime carried out the murder of six million Jews and millions of others. Cleopatra's consuming desire for power led her to sacrifice both dignity and morality in pursuit of political influence. In each case passion was not absent. It was directed toward selfish and destructive ends.
Yet the greatest demonstration of passion the world has ever witnessed was displayed by Jesus Christ. Motivated not by selfish ambition but by sacrificial love, He willingly surrendered His own life at the hands of an angry crowd so that others might receive eternal life. No act of passion has ever been greater than the voluntary sacrifice of the Son of God for the redemption of mankind.
Passion, therefore, is neither inherently good nor inherently evil. It is a powerful force whose direction is determined by the character of the heart from which it proceeds. The question is not whether we possess passion, but what governs it.
What happens when a man loses control of his passion depends, in the end, upon the object of that passion. A noble heart may accomplish extraordinary good. A corrupt heart may unleash unimaginable evil. Passion magnifies whatever already resides within us.
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