http://davefagg.com.au/2009/08/talking-about-love/ Sat, 03 Jul 2010 02:27:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 http://davefagg.com.au/2009/08/talking-about-love/comment-page-1/#comment-8 Rob Culhane Thu, 06 Aug 2009 23:00:02 +0000 http://davefagg.com.au/?p=367#comment-8 Good topic Dave. Leo Tolstoy wrote: "All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love." Here Tolstoy is echoing the view of the classic mystics such as Teresia of Avila, Bernard of Clairvaux and Julian of Norwich, that we can only know God and others in a relationship of love. The hard headed, analytical approach is ultimately agnositc: God is beyond knowing (cognitively). The way of church dogma and proposiitons are errected to keep the faithful in and those who are slighly different out. This is not the way of love but judgment that issues from a heart of fear and suspicion. Suppose I described a woman as a bundle of atoms, cells, etc and then said this is my wife. I know her not as a collection of atoms or chemicals, but as someone I love and am in a relationship with. So Paul has got it right, the man who spent considerable ink on the heavy doctrines like justification also spent considerable time teaching us that love is more important than spectacular spiritual gifts, religious experience or adherence to some religious group's idea of what constitutes God's will and standards. (1 Cor 13) 'Love does no harm to their neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment of the law' (Rom 13:10) Love is one of the qualities that indicates whether we have the marks of a disciple of Christ (Jn 13:34). The others are in Jn 8:31: we hold to the teaching of Jesus and Jn 15:8: "we bear much fruit". Regards, Rob Good topic Dave. Leo Tolstoy wrote: “All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.” Here Tolstoy is echoing the view of the classic mystics such as Teresia of Avila, Bernard of Clairvaux and Julian of Norwich, that we can only know God and others in a relationship of love. The hard headed, analytical approach is ultimately agnositc: God is beyond knowing (cognitively). The way of church dogma and proposiitons are errected to keep the faithful in and those who are slighly different out. This is not the way of love but judgment that issues from a heart of fear and suspicion. Suppose I described a woman as a bundle of atoms, cells, etc and then said this is my wife. I know her not as a collection of atoms or chemicals, but as someone I love and am in a relationship with. So Paul has got it right, the man who spent considerable ink on the heavy doctrines like justification also spent considerable time teaching us that love is more important than spectacular spiritual gifts, religious experience or adherence to some religious group’s idea of what constitutes God’s will and standards. (1 Cor 13) ‘Love does no harm to their neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment of the law’ (Rom 13:10) Love is one of the qualities that indicates whether we have the marks of a disciple of Christ (Jn 13:34). The others are in Jn 8:31: we hold to the teaching of Jesus and Jn 15:8: “we bear much fruit”. Regards, Rob

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