In conversations about Love and God and unconditional love, I have been told that “love is no more than a chemical cocktail”. That we have no choice in love. No way to combat the chemical release that is love. So “loving God” becomes even more of a curiosity –

“Love is the basis of animal attachment, distinct from lust or sex drive.  But forget about the myth of love at first sight, Machin says.  “There is lust at first sight.  When someone experiences lust, their amygdala – the ancient, central part of the brain responsible for emotion – is releasing the neurochemicals dopamine and oxytocin.  Dopamine is a general reward chemical, which makes you feel euphoric, warm and motivated to form a relationship with someone.  Oxytocin works to lower your inhibitions to forming a relationship.””

Mel added a picture to his last post:

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I get lots of moments of looking out and “knowing connection” with something bigger than me.  Moments of “knowing” what a tiny speck I am in all of this.

So the bible was easy to latch on to.

Where I was born it was the accepted explanation for “knowing connection”.  And came with an explanation that made sense of it all – because the whole country – AND the first-world-West – ALL accepted the explanation.

Christmas Day, Easter, Lent, Sunday, our national anthem, lessons in school, morning assembly and prayers … all of that was all of this knowing in action.

Knowing is easy.

It’s what those who believe as you do believe.

And if I had my time over again I would accept the offer of connection all over again with one small change.

Knowing.

Because this theology I am told is simply “talking about God – so nothing is off-limits – all are welcome” is not.  There are “off-limits” – just wrapped up in intolerant tolerances.

The intolerant tolerances that define which club I belong to.  The intolerant tolerances that hijack my relationship and connection.  The intolerant tolerances I accept – or am not accepted.

Because my experience is captured in this:

“The opposite of love is therefore not hatred but indifference, Jeanrond says. “I think people see that wrongly. Hatred is a warped love, but it is still interested and obsessed with the other. Indifference is the opposite of love because they don’t even see the other.”  As Jeanrond points out, love is relative, diverse and not always conspicuous.  It has countless definitions, depending on who you ask.  But perhaps the real mystery is how these definitions fit together.”

These intolerant tolerances are not of love.  They are of us.  We create them.  We nurture them.  We  make them what they are: intolerant tolerances.  We break connection in order to be right about connection!

How “loving” and connecting is that?

And even “knowing” all of that … Doing it over again … ?

Yes.

Just embracing this

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Rather than this

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Wrapped up in this

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Which make this

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This

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And isn’t this at all

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((hugs))

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