Although Todd Outcalt, in his collection of international wisdom quotes, never uses the word ‘agape,’ but in those places where he uses ‘love’ in a spiritual way that the meaning is ‘agape,’ the word was changed to ‘agape’ in the following quotes.
"Prayer is, at least in part, built on the foundation of agape, devotion, and humility that leads us closer to the divine.
"The Parable of the Good Samaritan is about practicing the very heart of God by demonstrating God’s agape through action, not lip service. Concern for others should cross boundaries. Take us out of our comfort zones. Make a new day possible.
"If we see God as merciful and benevolent, then the whole of our lives may be oriented around this divine gift. In the divine mercy, we ourselves may become merciful. As the Christian mystic Meister Eckhart once wrote, 'The seed of God is in us … and now the seed of a pear tree grows into a pear tree and a hazel seed grows into a hazel tree. A seed of God grows into God.'
"There may be moments in life when we may be called upon to extend agape in ways we never imagined. Sometimes sacrifices are required. Sometimes we must trade one priority for another. A heartfelt compassion can move a person to strange acts of kindness.
"When spiritual gifts go unused, they atrophy and become useless. And if we attempt to keep all the blessings of God for ourselves, they waste away and cannot be of use to others — which is their intended purpose.
"In the Sufi faith, Jesus holds a place of deep reverence and emulation, even devotion, and it was Jesus who demonstrated having agape for all of God’s creations. Empathy is often regarded as a purely human trait, but in a Sufi story about Jesus, we see agape extending to even a beast of burden.
"Although John Donne once said that “no man is an island,” we tend to live as if isolation and individualism are the greatest good — even the highest goal — in life. In this age of individualism and privacy we can become obsessed with our own happiness and security. But the more we focus on ourselves the more miserable, it seems, we become.
"Agape can be described, defined … even ignored. But agape experienced is a great power and a remarkable teacher. Agape moves us."
"One truth about agape which has withstood the test of time: Agape is the greatest power.
No comments:
Post a Comment