Agape love
“(Agape) Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, 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.”–Bible 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV
Dr. King spoke of “The Beloved Community” as the end goal of nonviolent boycotts during civil rights movement. As he said in a speech at a victory rally following the announcement of a favorable U.S. Supreme Court Decision desegregating the seats on Montgomery’s busses, “the end is the creation of the Beloved Community. It is this type of spirit and this type of love that can transform opponents into friends. It is this love which will bring about miracles...I do not think of political power as an end. Neither do I think of economic power as an end. They are ingredients in the objective that we seek in life. And I think that end of that objective is a truly brotherly society, the creation of the beloved community”
Dr. King believed that the age-old tradition of hating one’s opponents was not only immoral, but bad strategy which perpetuated the cycle of revenge and retaliation. Hate and anger feel more powerful than depression but in the end they can they create “Beloved community”?
The core value of the quest for Dr. King’s Beloved Community was agape love. Dr. King distinguished between three kinds of love:
Eros, “a sort of aesthetic or romantic love”
Philia, “affection between friends” and
Agape, which he described as “understanding, redeeming goodwill for all,” an “overflowing love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless and creative”…”the love of God operating in the human heart.”
MLK also said that “Agape does not begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people…It begins by loving others for their sakes” and “makes no distinction between a friend and enemy; it is directed toward both…Agape is love seeking to preserve and create community.” Gandhi used to say that Nonviolence which is necessarily based on Agape love is not for weak. A trauma-informed way to speak of Agape love would be that it is without shame or blame for ourselves or others, it comes from someone who is not afraid of darkness within their own hearts and that of others. Someone who is in touch with inner luminosity, warmth and kindness without trying to appear sorted, strong and wise.
May all beings have access to Agape Love.