-Geoff- > Great post! According to the prophets, then it appears that there > are actually two types of love: > 1. Divine love > 2. Unconditional love > They are not one and the same. However, it is true that our > Heavenly Father has and exercises both, and that we are > commanded to do likewise. Would you agree?
Not quite, I don't think. While it is true that "God is love", it is not true that "Love is God". That is, "love" is not an overriding or ultimate principle wherein everything and everyone is loved. I believe that "unconditional love" is nothing more than a linguistic construct. I think it's false as a concept, nonexistent, nonsensical, without meaning, just like "sinful God" or "miserable exaltation" are nonsensical and meaningless. All love, even God's love, is conditioned or predicated upon the laws set forth (by God) that govern it. Parents may think the love for their child is boundless and unconditional; but let that child turn against the parents and everything they have stood for and tried to build, and actively seek their destruction, the destruction of their other children, and the desecration of all that the parents consider holy, and the parents, while mourning their child's loss and hoping for his return, are likely to find that their love is conditional after all. In this vein, I don't think we're commanded to exercise "unconditional love", which wouldn't even make any sense anyway if that term is an oxymoron. I think we're commanded to love as God loves, but as Elder Nelson pointed out, divine love is not "unconditional". We are commanded to forgive all men, and to show forth the love of Christ; but I don't think this means any sort of "unconditional love". Admittedly, like all philosophical discussions, this becomes a matter of defition and semantics. Stephen ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// /// ZION LIST CHARTER: Please read it at /// /// http://www.zionsbest.com/charter.html /// ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: archive@jab.org EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?aaP9AU.bWix1n.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^================================================================
