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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 ...
As for love between marital partners, this is deemed an essential ingredient to life: "See life with the wife you love" (Ecclesiastes 9:9). The Biblical book Song of Songs is considered a romantically phrased metaphor of love between God and his people, but in its plain reading reads like a love song.
Love is a key attribute of God in Christianity. 1 John 4:8 and 16 state that "God is love; and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him." [13] [14] John 3:16 states: "God so loved the world..." [15] In the New Testament, God's love for humanity or the world is expressed in Greek as agape (ἀγάπη).
Love of God can mean either love for God or love by God. Love for God (philotheia) is associated with the concepts of worship, and devotions towards God.[1]The Greek term theophilia means the love or favour of God, [2] and theophilos means friend of God, originally in the sense of being loved by God or loved by the gods; [3] [4] but is today sometimes understood in the sense of showing love ...
The verb form of the word "agape" goes as far back as Homer. In a Christian context, agape means "love: esp. unconditional love, charity; the love of God for person and of person for God". [3] Agape is also used to refer to a love feast. [4] The christian priest and philosopher Thomas Aquinas describe agape as "to will the good of another". [5]
Christians believe that to love God with all your heart, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself are the two most important things in life (the greatest commandment of the Jewish Torah, according to Jesus; cf. Gospel of Mark 12:28–34). Saint Augustine summarized this when he wrote "Love God, and do as thou wilt." [51]
Many theologians see mystery as God's primary attribute because he only reveals certain knowledge to the human race. Karl Barth said "God is ultimate mystery." [40] Karl Rahner views "God" as "mystery" and theology as "the 'science' of mystery." [41] Nikolai Berdyaev deems "inexplicable Mystery" as God's "most profound definition."
However, the Bible has been treated and appreciated as literature; the King James Version in particular has long been considered a masterpiece of English prose, whatever may be thought of its religious significance. Several retellings of the Bible, or parts of the Bible, have also been made with the aim of emphasising its literary qualities.