After reading two pieces about love by Mary and Koty, which should be linked soon, I was reminded of a basic characteristic of love and it was so shocking to me, and more shocking to remember how I used to view it earlier in my life, and this is:
Love can’t be bought.
It also can’t be sold. Even if you try to sell your love, you can’t.
Therefore, it can’t be negotiated. There is no economy and there is no measure of love. Like St. Augustine used to say: “the only measure of love is to love without measure.”
It is also not a gift. A gift of love is pity. Charity is not love in my dictionary which is not the case for some Catholics.
It is almost forced on the lover. It is the neon light photons that a fly can’t help but be attracted to to meet its end in their source.
Does this mean love has an element of blindness to it? Must it have an element of blindness?
It is the connection between the lovers. And the blindness is perhaps the imperfection of communication? Or perhaps the effect of the lovers being always inside their love, and never observing it from the outside?
Can anyone observe their love from the outside? I think not.
Love is an enclosure. It’s also a liberation.
Love is an exile. Love is freedom.
A liberation from what? From which prison? And freedom to where? I would love to hear what everyone who reads this thinks love liberates or frees them from and where it leads them.
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February 18, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Mary
Observing love???? Is that even possible??? Interesting concept … maybe like the black holes which trap all light inside … it cannot see itself.
But inside, there’s massive freedom .. all particles can roam whichever way they like.
Is it better to be outside or inside? that is the question I throw back to you!
February 18, 2009 at 7:29 pm
Youssef
I think better inside love and outside the black hole. At least this is better in summertime.
February 19, 2009 at 12:47 am
Pajama Girl
“And the blindness is perhaps the imperfection of communication? ”
please explain.
February 24, 2009 at 3:05 pm
Youssef
The element of blindness is perhaps the fact that not even lovers can see (let alone understand) each other perfectly, hence imperfection of communication.
April 6, 2009 at 1:45 am
Peter Gadalla, nSJ
I enjoyed reading your piece as you called it. I want though to clearify two points on the object discussed: first, you praised the Catholic principle of describing Love by St Augustine (a Doctor of the Church), and few words later refused the Catholic teachings which expresses Love as a “gift”. The description given by St Augustine is an elucidation of what love is as a gift means.
Second, you said love is not charity, for charity “love as a gift” is pity. St. Paul (1 Corinthians 13:13), usually called charity the third and greatest of the Divine virtues, defined: a divinely infused habit, inclining the human will to cherish God for his own sake above all things, and man for the sake of God.
May 17, 2009 at 12:04 am
Youssef
“The description given by St Augustine is an elucidation of what love is as a gift means.”
It is not. It’s the exact opposite. A gift is always measured; St Augustine says love shouldn’t be measured.
Did Paul talk about the relation between love and pity?