Mind Over Matter
Registered Senior Member
How would you define it?
Do you reject the reality of love?
- Thread starter Mind Over Matter
- Start date
What does this have to do with religion? What does it say about humanity that they can love and feel love for a disembodied entity?
I'm not convinced that people can feel love for disembodied entities, whether those be gods or daemons or earth-spirits. People often profess love for all kinds of things, from ice cream to abusive parents (and abusive deities), but that doesn't mean they're actually feeling what you or i would define as love - or even, what they themselves would honestly and seriously define as love.
Ice cream doesn't demand love, but abusive parents generally do; the victim learns to fawn upon the abuser, and to call the dread, awe, terror, anxiety or whatever emotion the abuser inspires, by whatever name the abuser likes. And convince even hemslef that that is love. And suffer the consequence: being unable to express - perhaps even to feel - real love for anyone, including hemself. Gods often have a similar effect.
How i would define love: the complex of emotions that produces a state of contentment and joy in the company of another creature; desire, to the point of extreme effort, risk or sacrifice, for that creature's safety, well-being and happiness; anxiety lest we lose that companion; grief when that other creature is removed from our life.
Ice cream doesn't demand love, but abusive parents generally do; the victim learns to fawn upon the abuser, and to call the dread, awe, terror, anxiety or whatever emotion the abuser inspires, by whatever name the abuser likes. And convince even hemslef that that is love. And suffer the consequence: being unable to express - perhaps even to feel - real love for anyone, including hemself. Gods often have a similar effect.
How i would define love: the complex of emotions that produces a state of contentment and joy in the company of another creature; desire, to the point of extreme effort, risk or sacrifice, for that creature's safety, well-being and happiness; anxiety lest we lose that companion; grief when that other creature is removed from our life.
My definition of love:
Love is handing someone the power to destroy a part of you, or all of you, with the hope they won't, and the expectation they will. So yes, love involves terror.
Would it be possible to love the OT Jehovah?
He can and may destroy you...on a whim. You don't have to hand him this power, he can do it anyway.
You can be terrified of him, in fact the bible encourages you to.
I do not think Jehovah would inspire the trust that my definintion requires. I do not think he would inspire the contentment Jeeves' definition requires.
I guess you cannot love OT Jehovah.
Love is handing someone the power to destroy a part of you, or all of you, with the hope they won't, and the expectation they will. So yes, love involves terror.
Would it be possible to love the OT Jehovah?
He can and may destroy you...on a whim. You don't have to hand him this power, he can do it anyway.
You can be terrified of him, in fact the bible encourages you to.
I do not think Jehovah would inspire the trust that my definintion requires. I do not think he would inspire the contentment Jeeves' definition requires.
I guess you cannot love OT Jehovah.
The reality of love is, it is merely a chemical reaction, with visual and other sensory data thrown in.
However one could love an oppressive disembodied entity, Stockholm syndrome proves that, hence why would there be so many people be religious, just like the abused pet dog will attack anyone who try to harm it's owner, so will the religious defend there god, a sort of abusive love affair.
However one could love an oppressive disembodied entity, Stockholm syndrome proves that, hence why would there be so many people be religious, just like the abused pet dog will attack anyone who try to harm it's owner, so will the religious defend there god, a sort of abusive love affair.