Agape in Marianne Williamson's "The Gift of Change"

Because of how important spiritual love (which I changed to 'agape' in accordance with biblical tradition) is to the writings of Marianne Williamson, I divided the quotes from her book, The Gift of Change, into 2 postings:

      "Agape is the only absolute reality, which never changes and never dies. Dwelling in that which does not change, while things around us are changing all the time, is our key to inner peace.
      "Many of us believe in a powerful agape, an awesome agape so aligned with God that it will change all things.

“Every encounter is a holy encounter if we use it to demonstrate agape.

“God’s agape is everywhere, but if our eyes aren’t open to see it, we miss out. Our problem is rarely a lack of agape so much as a mental block to our awareness of its presence.

“A new movement of agape is rumbling underneath the surface today. Martin Luther King said we have a “glorious opportunity to inject a new dimension of agape into the veins of our civilization.” And all of us can participate in this process. Every single moment, with the nature of our thoughts, we can add to agape’s storehouse in a way that blesses the world.

“Martin Luther King did not stand for sentimental love or popular love or convenient love. God’s agape is often none of these things. And if we are to truly honor Dr. King’s memory, we must strive our best to do as he did — to take a stand for agape even in the face of hate and ridicule.

“The notion that a great wave of agape will be the salvation of the human race is an idea whose time has come. And our willingness to be part of that wave gives a transcendent purpose to our lives.

“A new world awaits all of us, as our minds are healed by agape.

“In any situation there is a focus to our perception. God would have us extend our perception beyond what the physical senses perceive, to the agape that lies beyond. For when we see that agape, we can call it forth.

“We either have faith in agape that is eternally true or faith in the illusions of the ego.

“Agape is not just a feeling; it is a force. And it is a force that is ultimately more powerful than violence of any kind.

“Our barriers to agape represent a cosmic force, ensconced within the human psyche in a dark and insidious way — holding dominion — temporary though wicked — over the mental functioning of the child of God.

“Through God’s Holy Spirit, God will outwit our self-hatred and return our hearts to agape.

“Once we find the agape within ourselves, calling it forth in our relationships comes much more easily. 

“To God, we are all loved ones. And when we learn to have agape for each other as God’s agape for us all, we will prepare the table for the what we most want.

NEW MIND = “God can dismantle our thought system based on fear and replace it with a thought system based on agape.

“Our holiness — God’s agape within us — is the only way humankind has ever transcended darkness, and it is the only way we ever will. If we can rise above fear in our life and live the agape within us — if that drama is reenacted enough times by enough of the world’s people — then we will pierce the cosmic darkness and tip the world in the direction of light. The movement of the universe is always in the direction of ultimate agape.

“And together, you will change the world.”