Which is More Important? Love or Respect

A debate has been raging between the Eastern and Western societies for thousands of years. Is love or respect more important in a relationship? The Western countries would have you believe that love is most important while the Eastern countries believe that respect is much better. Both have their advantages but only one will turn into a long-lasting relationship.

Love is a beautiful concept that means the person has true feelings for the other person. The only problem is that love can fade if you lose respect. If, over the years, your husband refused to get a job or your wife is cheating on you, love is unlikely to maintain the relationship. You will fall out of love if you have been hurt enough.

You might even assume that if you love someone and they are bad for you then you can always leave them even though you still love them. This is very true. However love didn't keep your relationship together and all that the bad relationship did for you was bring you pain. The love you felt at the beginning of the relationships did you little good over the long run.

Relationships require a lot more than just love. People have to learn to deal with each other every day, help each other when they fall, and encourage each other when we are weak. Love is simply the act of having feelings for another person but doesn't, on its own, foster meaningful relationships. Love is fleeting.

Respect on the other hand doesn't sound as exciting as love as it is displayed in Romeo & Juliet or any other famous romance novel. As a matter of opinion respect appears to be down right boring. However respect is what relationships are built on. If you don't have respect for the other person you certainly can't look up to them or want to make them your partner.

When you respect someone you appreciate their good qualities. You like them because they have a nice personality, they love children, they keep a clean house, they are romantic, etc. You respect their values and who they are. You can trust them because you respect them.

With respect people can grow to love each other but with love it isn't always possible to respect each other. The dating world is littered with people who say they love each other but then are unfaithful, abuse and create hardship on one another. This isn't possible if two people have respect because of their good qualities. You certainly don't respect someone who treats you poorly.