Agape
In Christianity, agape (/ɑːˈɡɑːpeɪ,
In the New Testament, it refers to the covenant love of God for humans, as well as the human reciprocal love for God; the term necessarily extends to the love of one's fellow human beings.[6] Some contemporary writers have sought to extend the use of agape into non-religious contexts.[7][8]
The concept of agape has been widely examined within its Christian context.[9] It has also been considered in the contexts of other religions,[10] religious ethics,[11] and science.[12]
Early uses[edit]
There are few instances of the word agape in polytheistic Greek literature. Bauer's Lexicon mentions a sepulchral inscription, most likely to honor a polytheistic army officer held in "high esteem" by his country.[13]
Christianity[edit]
The word agape received a broader usage under later Christian writers as the word that specifically denoted Christian love or charity (1 Corinthians 13:1–8), or even God himself. The expression "God is love" (ὁ θεὸς ἀγάπη ἐστίν) occurs twice in the New Testament: 1 John 4:8,16. Agape was also used by the early Christians to refer to the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity, which they were committed to reciprocating and practicing towards God and among one another (see kenosis). This understanding is built upon the foundational Hebrew concept of Chesed, or the loving kindness of God, which is taught throughout the Old Testament.
Agape has been expounded on by many Christian writers in a specifically Christian context. C. S. Lewis uses agape in The Four Loves to describe what he believes is the highest level of love known to humanity: a selfless love that is passionately committed to the well-being of others.[14]
The Christian use of the term comes directly from the canonical Gospels' accounts of the teachings of Jesus. When asked what was the great commandment, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (Matthew 22:37-40) In Judaism, the first "love the LORD thy God" is part of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:5), while the second "love thy neighbour as thyself" is a commandment from Leviticus 19:18.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:
You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love (agapēseis) your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love (agapāte) your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?
— Matthew 5:43-46, RSV
Tertullian remarks in his 2nd century defense of Christians that Christian love attracted pagan notice: "What marks us in the eyes of our enemies is our loving kindness. 'Only look,' they say, 'look how they love one another' " (Apology 39).
Anglican theologian O. C. Quick writes that this agape within human experience is "a very partial and rudimentary realization," and that "in its pure form it is essentially divine."
If we could imagine the love of one who loves men purely for their own sake, and not because of any need or desire of his own, purely desires their good, and yet loves them wholly, not for what at this moment they are, but for what he knows he can make of them because he made them, then we should have in our minds some true image of the love of the Father and Creator of mankind.[15]
In the New Testament, the word agape is often used to describe God's love. However, other forms of the word are used in a negative context, such as the various forms of the verb agapaō. Examples include:
- 2 Timothy 4:10— "for Demas hath forsaken me, having loved [agapēsas] this present world...".
- John 12:43— "For they loved [ēgapēsan] the praise of men more than the praise of God."
- John 3:19— "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved [ēgapēsan] darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
Karl Barth distinguishes agape from eros on the basis of its origin and depth of devotion without want. In agape, humanity does not merely express its nature, but transcends it. Agape identifies with the interests of the neighbor "in utter independence of the question of his attractiveness" and with no expectation of reciprocity.[16]
Meal[edit]
The word agape is used in its plural form (agapai) in the New Testament to describe a meal or feast eaten by early Christians, as in Jude 1:12 and 2nd Peter 2:13. The agape love feast is still observed by many Christian denominations today, especially among Brethren and other Plain, Anabaptist churches. For example, among the Old Order River Brethren and Old Brethren, a weekend is still set aside twice a year for special meetings, self examination and a communal Love Feast as part of their three-part Communion observance.
As law[edit]
According to 1 Timothy, agape that "comes out of a pure heart, and of good conscience and of faith unfeigned" is the "end of the commandment" (Greek: τέλος τῆς παραγγελίας). The contrast with the law (Greek: νόμος) is only that "law is good, if a man use it lawfully". Only, the biblical author cautions: "Some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling. Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm".[17] This is because "the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient".[18]
Romans 13 teaches then that "love is the fulfillment of the law" referencing the "armor of light" (see Armor of God), which becomes the foundation for the Miles Christianus: "let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light".[19]
See also[edit]
- Agape, Philia, Philautia, Storge, Eros: Greek terms for love
- Agape feast
- Agapism
- Brotherly love (philosophy)
- Charity (virtue) (Latin: caritas)
- Compassionate love
- Love styles
- Metta
- The Four Loves
- Theological virtues
- Virtue
Judaism[edit]
- Jewish views on love
- Chesed, Hebrew word, given the association of kindness and love
- Sephirot of Kabbalah
- Dveikut
Other religions[edit]
- Mettā, Pali word (Sanskrit: Maitrī), "loving-kindness" or "friendliness"
- Ishq, Arabic word, "divine love" or "lustless love"
- Ren, the sense of "humaneness" in Confucianism
References[edit]
- ↑ "agape". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. n.d.
- ↑ "agape". Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House.
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- ↑ "Agape", Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online, 2011. Web. September 17, 2011.
- ↑ Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1.
- ↑ Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1. Search this book on
- ↑ Nygren, Anders ([1938–39] 1953). Eros and Agape, Part I: A Study of the Christian Idea of Love; Part II The History of the Christian Idea of Love, trans. P. S. Watson. Harper & Row.
- ↑ Templeton, John (1999). Agape Love: Tradition In Eight World Religions, Templeton Foundation Press. Description.
- ↑ Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1.
- ↑ From Post, Stephen G. et al.(2002). Altruism and Altruistic Love: Science, Philosophy, and Religion in Dialogue, Oxford: Contents.:
• Post, Stephen G. "The Tradition of Agape," ch.4, pp. 51–68.
• Browning, Don S. "Science and Religion on the Nature of Love," pp. 335–45. - ↑ Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1. Search this book on
- ↑ Kreeft, Peter. "Love". Retrieved May 22, 2009.
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- ↑ Quick, O. C. Doctrines of the Creed, Scribners, 1938, p. 55.
- ↑ Church Dogmatics IV.2, as translated by G. W. Bromiley (1958), p. 745.
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Further reading[edit]
- Drummond, Henry (1884). "The Greatest Thing in the World". Address first delivered in Northfield, England.
- Hein, David. "Christianity and Honor." The Living Church, August 18, 2013, pp. 8–10.
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- Outka, Gene H. (1972). Agape: An Ethical Analysis. Description & Contents. Yale University Press. Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1.Lua error: Internal error: The interpreter exited with status 1. Search this book on .
External links[edit]
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- "Agape" at Balashon—Hebrew Language Detective
- Deus Caritas Est—Former Pope Benedict XVI's 2005 encyclical letter contrasts agape and eros
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