The Four Loves

The Four Loves is a book by C. S. Lewis which explores the nature of love from a Christian perspective through thought-experiments and examples from literature. The content of the examination is prefaced by Lewis' admission that he initially mistook John the Apostle's words "God is Love" (1 John 4:7-9, 1 John 4:15-17) for a simple inroads to his topic. By distinguishing need-love (such as the love of a child for its mother) from gift-love (epitomized by God's love for humanity), Lewis happens upon the contemplative that the natures of even these basic categorizations of love are more complicated than they, at first, seem. As a result, he formulates the foundation of his topic ("the highest does not stand without the lowest") by exploring the nature of pleasure, and then divides love into four categories, based in part on the four Greek words for love: affection, friendship, eros, and charity. It must be noted, states Lewis, that just as Lucifer — a former archangel—perverted himself by pride and fell into depravity, so too can love— commonly held to be the arch-emotion—become corrupt by presuming itself to be what it is not ("love begins to be a demon the moment he begins to be a god").

As with other languages, it has been historically difficult to separate the meanings of these words for love. Nonetheless, the senses in which these words were generally used are given below.

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Agapē

Christ taken down from the cross.
Divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing,
active, volitional, and thoughtful love
of Christ

Agapē (ἀγάπη — affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love) is one of several Greek words translated into English as "love." The word has been used in different ways by a variety of contemporary and ancient sources, including Biblical authors such as Matthew, John and Paul. Many have thought that this word represents divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, and thoughtful love. Greek philosophers at the time of Plato and other ancient authors have used forms of the word to denote love of a spouse or family, or affection for a particular activity, in contrast to philia—an affection that could denote either brotherhood or generally non-sexual affection, and eros, an affection of a sexual nature. The term 'agape' is rarely used in ancient manuscripts, but was used by the early Christians to refer to the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity (cf. John 3:16), which they were committed to reciprocating and practicing towards God and among one another (also see kenosis, john 3:16).

Within the context of Matt 22:37 (ἀγαπάω agapaō) where Jesus quotes Deut. 6:5 (Authorship attributed to the Moses), the Hebrew word in Deuteronomy is אהב 'ahab Strong's H157 means (human love for another, human love for or to God, God's love toward man, etc.)

Strong's Lexicon, G25 defines agapaō as such:

1. of persons
   
   
   
   • to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly
   • to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing

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The Four Loves

The Four Loves is a book by C. S. Lewis which explores the nature of love from a Christian perspective through thought-experiments and examples from literature. The content of the examination is prefaced by Lewis' admission that he initially mistook John the Apostle's words "God is Love" (1 John 4:7-9, 1 John 4:15-17) for a simple inroads to his topic. By distinguishing need-love (such as the love of a child for its mother) from gift-love (epitomized by God's love for humanity), Lewis happens upon the contemplative that the natures of even these basic categorizations of love are more complicated than they, at first, seem. As a result, he formulates the foundation of his topic ("the highest does not stand without the lowest") by exploring the nature of pleasure, and then divides love into four categories, based in part on the four Greek words for love: affection, friendship, eros, and charity. It must be noted, states Lewis, that just as Lucifer—a former archangel—perverted himself by pride and fell into depravity, so too can love— commonly held to be the arch-emotion—become corrupt by presuming itself to be what it is not ("love begins to be a demon the moment he begins to be a god").

As with other languages, it has been historically difficult to separate the meanings of these words for love. Nonetheless, the senses in which these words were generally used are given below.

More...

Agapē

Agapē (Αγάπη - affection, good will, love, benevolence, brotherly love) is one of several Greek words translated into English as "love." The word has been used in different ways by a variety of contemporary and ancient sources, including Biblical authors such as Matthew, John and Paul. Many have thought that this word represents divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, and thoughtful love. Greek philosophers at the time of Plato and other ancient authors have used forms of the word to denote love of a spouse or family, or affection for a particular activity, in contrast to philia-an affection that could denote either brotherhood or generally non-sexual affection, and eros, an affection of a sexual nature. The term 'agape' is rarely used in ancient manuscripts, but was used by the early Christians to refer to the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity (cf. John 3:16), which they were committed to reciprocating and practicing towards God and among one another.

Strong's Lexicon, G25 defines agapaō as such:

1. of persons
   • to welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly
2. of things
   • to be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing

More...