Agapé

From Free Encyclopedia of Thelema

Agapē (in Greek written αγάπη; pronounced "ah-GAH-peh" or "AH-gah-peh") is the Greek word for divine, unconditional, self-sacrificing, active, volitional, thoughtful love. Greek philosophers at the time of Plato used it in a way that suggested a universal, as opposed to a personal, love; this could mean love of truth, or love of humanity. The term was used by the early Christians to refer to the special love for God and God's love for man, as well as the self-sacrificing love they believed all should have for each other. It is a prominent term in the works of C.S. Lewis.

Early Christians referred to their rite of common worship as an Agape feast, which appears to have been characterized by group sexual activity as well as the sharing of the eucharist.

1 Christian love
2 Descriptions of Love in the New Testament
3 Agape and Thelema
4 See also
5 References

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Christian love

Agape is Christian love, "charity" (1 Corinthians 13:1–8). Tertullian, in his 2nd century defense of Christians remarks how Christian love attracted pagan notice: "What marks us in the eyes of our enemies is our lovingkindness. 'Only look' they say, 'look how they love one another.'" (Apology 39). Saint Ignatius of Antioch and Saint Hippolytus of Tome (second century) use Eucharist and Agape as synonyms (cf.1 Corinthians 11); in Jude 12, the "love feasts" are most naturally understood to be the combined Agape–Eucharists. The Agape (in Didache, 70–110) is a Jewish meal (Chaburah) Christianized as in the "new meal" of Christ’s Kingdom and Love. Today the term Agape refers to the Easter Sunday’s Vespers (held either in the morning or the afternoon) which is also called the Second Resurrection Service. During this Service the Gospel reading relating to the first appearance of the Resurrected Christ to His disciples is read in many languages besides Greek.

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Descriptions of Love in the New Testament

The New Testament provides a number of definitions and examples of love.

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The greatest Commandment

Jesus said, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (Gospel of John 13:34-35) He went on to say, " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Gospel of Matthew 22:37-41)

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Love for enemies

Jesus also said:

"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth. But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

Thus, agape, as a form of love, is both unconditional and volitional, i.e., it is non-discriminating with no pre-conditions and is something that one decides to do.

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The example of Paul and Silas

One of the best examples of Love comes from the Book of Acts, Chapter 16, verses 19-34:

The owners of a slave girl realized that their hope of making money was gone. They seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, "These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice."

The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!"

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household." Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house.

At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole family.

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Paul's definition of Love

Paul described Love as follows: "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (First Epistle to the Corinthians Chapter 13, verses 4-8a). It is very interesting to note that in the original Greek language text that these descriptions of agape are all in verbs, a matter of action, although most languages, such as English, will need to translate this using adjectives. To gain a better understanding of Paul's definition read all of 1 Corinthians 13.

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John's definition of God

John equated God with Love in his first letter: "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."

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Agape and Thelema

The word Agape is important to Thelema for numerological reasons. The Book of the Law, Chapter I, verse 39 states that "The word of the Law is Θελημα" (Thelema), which means "Will" in classic Greek. Using the most common form of Greek gematria, Thelema adds up to 93, which is therefore an extremely significant number to Thelemites.

Verse 57 of the same chapter contains the sentence "Love is the law, love under will." This seems to indicate that love and will are to be balanced or equilibrated. As it turns out, though the word does not appear in the book, Agape also enumerates to 93, so it is commonly used as an equivalent Greek term for "love" in the sense appearing in this verse, balancing Thelema.

Aleister Crowley suggested that Thelemites use "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law" as a greeting, and "Love is the law, love under will" as a farewell. Using the numerology above, it is common to abbreviate both of these to "93", especially in verbal communication. In informal written communication between Thelemites, it is common to see the greeting rendered as "93", and the farewell as "93 93/93", which is shorthand for "Love (the left 93) is the law, love (the denominator) under will (the numerator)".

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