What is Love?

[KingandPriest]

This topic is vitally important to those who accept and maintain a belief in Jesus Christ. As such, the topic of love must be understood before one can even attempt to understand or know God.

So in short, I ask:

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

[Tired of the Nonsense]

This topic is vitally important to those who accept and maintain a belief in Jesus Christ. As such, the topic of love must be understood before one can even attempt to understand or know God.

So in short, I ask:

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

Love is the depth of feeling that one has for another person.

I would suppose that the greatest expression of love is to genuinely care for another more than you care for yourself.

[JoeyKnothead]

From the OP:

What is Love?

Insert Hadaway / SNL clip.

This topic is vitally important to those who accept and maintain a belief in Jesus Christ.

Well don't that beat all, folks is all considered with a vitally important message of love, such that they'd forget all the hateful, violent, genocidal biblical rhetoric.

As such, the topic of love must be understood before one can even attempt to understand or know God.

I propose that until God can be shown to exist, folks're just as apt to accurately define love as they are to accurately define them the God of it.

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?

Love ain't it so much a definition, as it is a state of being.

Take that pretty thing there - she absolutely will not accept any notion that has me going out in public, if my clothes don't match. Not like, "shirt goes with britches, where them britches are assumed to be zipped up proper" match, but like "If color A is of such a color, and color B comes along, well we need to sit down and talk about how it is Joey, I can't be sure I love you no more". If there's a God above, surely he accepts that a shirt and britches matches just as close as britches and a shirt.

I've got me the proper precepts to think it is she loves me, it's just I fear she'd love me less if I ever showed up in colors that didn't match. How do ya sit down to the breakfast table already knowing if your shirt matches your boxers? Them's the conditions of love, thems the conditions that tell ya right there love ain't definable, it's just "acceptable".

If'n the pretty thing accepts me a-sittin' down to the table, she'll love me to do. But God himself forbid if I throw me on a Pink Floyd shirt with my Spongebob Squarepants underbritches, and she finds out I did, before I get me ary a forkful to my mouth.

Here then, love's accepting that some women have 'em goofy notions of colors matchin'. While men have 'em the notion to match any colors it is I hafta do, to get me a hen stripped down to her natural one's of 'em.

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

I saw the pretty thing get it on with her another pretty thing, more'n a couple times, with more'n a couple different's of 'em. And let me tell you right here and now, boy howdy.


Love ain't in the gods. Love's in humans. That a human might need to propose a god in order to find 'em love, well that tells me they prob'ly ain't got 'em none of it to begin with.


And for those that'd go with "Well Jesus sat him there dead for three days after all that, and here he is, he's a-fixin' to come along again right soon", that's fancy and all, but where's it been shown that three days of being dead is some great sacrifice to an eternal being?

[Divine Insight]

This topic is vitally important to those who accept and maintain a belief in Jesus Christ. As such, the topic of love must be understood before one can even attempt to understand or know God.

If there were any truth to this, then why wouldn't Jesus have defined love in precise terms without any room for ambiguity? In fact, why wouldn't the original God have defined this concept in the very beginning?

So in short, I ask:

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

As far as I can see the concept of love is a human concept. Therefore it's open to the subjective opinions of humans. Different humans will most likely have different definitions for what the concept means to them. In fact, this appears to be precisely the situation we observe.

For me personally, I only have one definition for love, it wouldn't matter whether a God exists or not. My definition of love is to simply care for someone's welfare. And that "someone" could even be an animal. Therefore it's necessarily possible to love animals.

Of course there can be different degrees of caring for the welfare of others, and for this reason there can be different degrees of love. Obviously the more we love someone, the more we care about their welfare.

I tend to love most humans. But I confess that there are humans I do not care for very much. Even in those cases I wish them the best "welfare". But I may not be inclined to go out of my way to help or insure that they obtain the best welfare. None the less, I do wish most everyone the best welfare. And I certainly wish no harm toward anyone. Although there are people that I would have a hard time feeling bad about if they were to suddenly drop over dead.

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

Well, since caring for the welfare of another person is my definition of love, then the greatest expression of love would be to place my welfare in peril to insure the welfare of another. I've actually done this on several occasions throughout my life, even to save entire strangers from eminent danger. So I can say that my ideals are more than just theory. It's clearly a principle I live by.

However, in the case of Christianity I don't buy into the claim that Jesus had to die to save us from being damned by his Father God. From my perspective this is an artificial expression of love because the same "God" is supposedly saving us from his own wrath. So it's an oxymoronic religion.

There's no way I'm going to buy into the idea that Jesus gave his life to save mine. That's absurd IMHO.

But I can see where this is the Christian view. I just don't buy into this religious dogma. I don't believe that any decent loving God would ever create a situation like that in the first place. So Jesus does not qualify as expressing the ultimate concept of love, IMHO, just the opposite. Christianity cheapens the concept of love by claiming that Jesus had to die to pay for our sins. That's not honorable IMHO.

[OnceConvinced]

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

My view of love is exactly the same now as it was when I was a Christian. As best as I can describe it is feelings that one has for another person. Deep feelings which involve such things as adoration, concern, affection, wanting the best for etc etc.

Love can exist without actions, as there are times where we may love someone but be in no situation to be able to perform any loving actions. However apart from that exception... where there is love, that love should spur forth loving actions.

Loving actions alone are not love though. We can hate someone and still perform loving actions. Just because we perform loving actions does not necessarily mean we love that person.

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

It's caring for someone when they are a burden which would be the greatest form of love. Ie an elderly family member who takes up all your time, is demanding and unreasonable. But you care for them anyway. Or a child. An adopted child maybe. A disabled or mentally ill person. One that prevents you from doing what you want to do because you have to spend all your time and money on them.

I would like to say that one of the greatest expressions of love is giving up your life for someone, but giving up your life for someone else is not necessarily love. It can be out of a sense of duty or doing what is right. For instance men have gone to war and died for entire countries. That doesn't mean they loved all the people in that country. Likewise a man could risk his life to save a stranger and end up dead. That doesn't mean that the man loved the person he died for.

We can't even say that Jesus loved the whole world just because he died on the cross for everyone's sins. It may have been more out of a sense of duty. In fact I think I would see it as more loving of Jesus to remain alive on the earth and continue to do his works he was doing. But no, he's rubbing shoulders with the father in Heaven right now!

[Bust Nak]

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?

Strong emotional attachment of one person to another.

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

When the well being of another is evaluated to be equal or above that of your own.

[Blastcat]

[Replying to post 1 by KingandPriest]

!

[center]God is love[/center]

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?[

A lot of theists tell me that "God is love".. all different KINDS of gods.. not just the Christian versions.

The many usages of the word love is rather quite staggering and very ambiguous.

Love can be a feeling or an action.
I can say that I love chocolate ice cream or reserve the word for just the most special people in my life. Depends on the context.

Millions of books and songs and poems have love as their subject. Its a very popular subject. I could write a book or two myself about love.

Hard to describe love in a short way.
Maybe that's why some people use a shortcut like "God" to describe it.

But as explanations go, as an outsider to any faith, I have to ask "What is GOD, then, a metaphor?"

As to your third question, I suggest that one ASKS the person ... and offer them THAT.

[theStudent]

This topic is vitally important to those who accept and maintain a belief in Jesus Christ. As such, the topic of love must be understood before one can even attempt to understand or know God.

So in short, I ask:

I. Non-theistic definition of what is love?
or
Theistic definition of what is love?

II. What is the greatest expression of love one can have for another?

1.
I love this Biblical definition - 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous. It does not brag, does not get puffed up, does not behave indecently, does not look for its own interests, does not become provoked. It does not keep account of the injury. It does not rejoice over unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
(There is a need to understand what these expressions mean.)

2.
The greatest expression of love to me is, the one Jehovah ans Jesus demonstrated.
Willingness to give up something of high value - in this case, life - in order to save others. (John 15:13) ...No one has love greater than this, that someone should surrender his life in behalf of his friends.

I believe that love is being demonstrated by those who use their time, energy, resources - and in some cases at the risk of their life - to help people they don't even know, or who may be their enemies, get to have a knowledge that has a positive impact on their lives, and gives them a bright hope for the future.

This is a fine example Jesus himself set, and Jehovah's Witnesses throughout the world are trying to imitate his example - with positive results.

To me, love is a quality that is expressed or demonstrated.

[JLB32168]

Im not sure what deep feeling means. Its sounds nice and lovely, but it doesnt really explain things.

Love is not a thing. It describes an action that is or actions that are done w/the purpose of securing another persons happiness over ones own. If it is done w/expectation of reciprocity then it isnt selfless and that strikes me as a lower form of love. Loving someone " seeing to his/her own happiness above your own " is its own reward.

[OnceConvinced]

Im not sure what deep feeling means. Its sounds nice and lovely, but it doesnt really explain things.

Really? You don't understand deep feeling? Most of us do. It's what brings things like empathy and compassion. It's what we feel when we see our new born baby, or what we feel when we look into the eyes of our partner.

Love is not a thing. p

No, I would not call it a thing either. I would call it a state of being.

It describes an action that is or actions that are done w/the purpose of securing another persons happiness over ones own.

A person can do this without loving someone. People do it all the time. People can hate a person and still perform an action that is done with the purpose of securing another person's happiness over one's own.

If it is done w/expectation of reciprocity then it isnt selfless and that strikes me as a lower form of love. Loving someone " seeing to his/her own happiness above your own " is its own reward.

It's not love if the emotion is not there. It's just an action.