Love is a transient feeling

[The Transcended Omniverse]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's a choice. I disagree with this, based upon my own personal experience. If you google "Love is not a feeling," then you'll come across all sorts of articles that claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's everlasting. I personally think love can only be a transient feeling. I'd, for example, know if I was sad or not. If I wasn't feeling sad, then it would be quite obvious to me that I'm not sad. The same idea applies to love. When I can't feel love, it's quite obvious to me that I'm unable to love anybody or anything.

This leads me to the conclusion that love can only be a feeling. To say that love isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of doing kind, helpful deeds for your soul mate, would be no different than saying that sadness isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of going to your soul mate's funeral. Also, there are people who'd say that love is a mindset. For example, if a serial killer performed loving acts to deceive and lure in unsuspecting victims, then people would say that's not love because the serial killer's mindset wasn't a loving one. But, love comes down to either being: 1.) A mindset, or 2.) A feeling. I think it can only be a feeling.

A loving mindset alone can't allow a person to love anybody or anything, just as how a sad or angry mindset alone can't allow a person to be sad or angry. A loving mindset needs to take on an emotional form (i.e. it needs to make a person feel love), so that the person can love. It would be like how a sad or angry mindset needs to make a person feel sad or angry in order for the person to be sad or angry. Unfortunately, there are factors that prevent a loving mindset from making us feel love, such as having a mental illness, having brain damage, or just having stress in your life. An example of a mental illness that prevents us from feeling love would be clinical depression.

That means clinically depressed soul mates can't love one another, no matter what they think, and no matter what kind deeds they do for each other. Of course, there will be moments where these clinically depressed soul mates can love one another, since there are moments where clinically depressed people are able to feel positive emotions, such as love, pride, and joy. But, there wouldn't be that many moments, which means it would hardly be a loving relationship. Lastly, not only do we require positive emotions to love and experience joy, but we also require them to see goodness, beauty, magnificence, and awesomeness in moments, things, situations, works of art, and life itself. That's been my personal experience.

 

[Thief]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling,

nothing plutonic?

stripping your feelings from what you have come to know
would be difficult

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you
is a rational
a code of behavior

and you can love it

but when you deliver that item unto your fellowman
you might not feel that way as you do so

 

[Neuropteron]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's a choice. I disagree with this, based upon my own personal experience.

It is true that feelings such as personal attachment, fondness and affection is an important part of love. We should keep in mind that these attributes applie to the Bible definition of (in Greek) Phileo and Storges, (also Eros that is not used in the Bible) not to Agape love.
Agape is the type of love mostly mentioned in the Bible it is Agape love that is guided by and based on principle.
These principle do not necessarily involve warm feeling of affection, although it can lead to feelings of fondness in some cases.
This explains why it is possible to follow God's expectation that we love our ennemies since we can love them "agapeon" without feeling warm affection for them.

 

[Guitar's Cry]

I think love is a word used to describe a particular relationship involving intense emotional attachment (that isn't always pleasant) and personal sacrifices.

For instance, I love my wife. But those pleasant lovey-dovey feelings aren't always there. Still, even when we are mad or feeling distant, we are still bonded. I can't imagine a permanent separation.

I feel the same for my parents, and even my pets.

I hear the same is true for a person's children.

 

[bobhikes]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's a choice. I disagree with this, based upon my own personal experience. If you google "Love is not a feeling," then you'll come across all sorts of articles that claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's everlasting. I personally think love can only be a transient feeling. I'd, for example, know if I was sad or not. If I wasn't feeling sad, then it would be quite obvious to me that I'm not sad. The same idea applies to love. When I can't feel love, it's quite obvious to me that I'm unable to love anybody or anything.

Unlike you other feeling love requires, emotion, empathy and logical thought. Love is not one emotion but a combination. First of all it requires an object that needs to be loved. Loss of emotion of that object alone won't stop love. Loss of logic won't stop love. Distance and time won't stop love. All you other emotions will fail as your emotion changes. All your emotions can be compromised by logic alone. Distance and time will weaken all your emotions.

For love to fail you need the combination to fail emotion, logic and empathy for the object of affection.

 

[MikeDwight]

Maybe Christians have brain damage. I can't argue with the three emotional feeling definitions on love. There's at least 10 places the New Testament commands a feeling then, love. Can people feel sad on command? Really? example;
2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
I was looking up the scotch appalachian "Skip to My Lou" which is a corruption of love and Fred Rogers' "Many Ways to Say I Love You", recently.

 

[ChristineM]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's a choice. I disagree with this, based upon my own personal experience. If you google "Love is not a feeling," then you'll come across all sorts of articles that claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's everlasting. I personally think love can only be a transient feeling. I'd, for example, know if I was sad or not. If I wasn't feeling sad, then it would be quite obvious to me that I'm not sad. The same idea applies to love. When I can't feel love, it's quite obvious to me that I'm unable to love anybody or anything.

This leads me to the conclusion that love can only be a feeling. To say that love isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of doing kind, helpful deeds for your soul mate, would be no different than saying that sadness isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of going to your soul mate's funeral. Also, there are people who'd say that love is a mindset. For example, if a serial killer performed loving acts to deceive and lure in unsuspecting victims, then people would say that's not love because the serial killer's mindset wasn't a loving one. But, love comes down to either being: 1.) A mindset, or 2.) A feeling. I think it can only be a feeling.

A loving mindset alone can't allow a person to love anybody or anything, just as how a sad or angry mindset alone can't allow a person to be sad or angry. A loving mindset needs to take on an emotional form (i.e. it needs to make a person feel love), so that the person can love. It would be like how a sad or angry mindset needs to make a person feel sad or angry in order for the person to be sad or angry. Unfortunately, there are factors that prevent a loving mindset from making us feel love, such as having a mental illness, having brain damage, or just having stress in your life. An example of a mental illness that prevents us from feeling love would be clinical depression.

That means clinically depressed soul mates can't love one another, no matter what they think, and no matter what kind deeds they do for each other. Of course, there will be moments where these clinically depressed soul mates can love one another, since there are moments where clinically depressed people are able to feel positive emotions, such as love, pride, and joy. But, there wouldn't be that many moments, which means it would hardly be a loving relationship. Lastly, not only do we require positive emotions to love and experience joy, but we also require them to see goodness, beauty, magnificence, and awesomeness in moments, things, situations, works of art, and life itself. That's been my personal experience.

Love is an emotion (i guess feeling is close enough) it can be observed using mri technology.

 

[ZenMonkey]

There are people out there who claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's a choice. I disagree with this, based upon my own personal experience. If you google "Love is not a feeling," then you'll come across all sorts of articles that claim love isn't a feeling, and that it's everlasting. I personally think love can only be a transient feeling. I'd, for example, know if I was sad or not. If I wasn't feeling sad, then it would be quite obvious to me that I'm not sad. The same idea applies to love. When I can't feel love, it's quite obvious to me that I'm unable to love anybody or anything.

This leads me to the conclusion that love can only be a feeling. To say that love isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of doing kind, helpful deeds for your soul mate, would be no different than saying that sadness isn't a feeling, and that it's the choice of going to your soul mate's funeral. Also, there are people who'd say that love is a mindset. For example, if a serial killer performed loving acts to deceive and lure in unsuspecting victims, then people would say that's not love because the serial killer's mindset wasn't a loving one. But, love comes down to either being: 1.) A mindset, or 2.) A feeling. I think it can only be a feeling.

A loving mindset alone can't allow a person to love anybody or anything, just as how a sad or angry mindset alone can't allow a person to be sad or angry. A loving mindset needs to take on an emotional form (i.e. it needs to make a person feel love), so that the person can love. It would be like how a sad or angry mindset needs to make a person feel sad or angry in order for the person to be sad or angry. Unfortunately, there are factors that prevent a loving mindset from making us feel love, such as having a mental illness, having brain damage, or just having stress in your life. An example of a mental illness that prevents us from feeling love would be clinical depression.

That means clinically depressed soul mates can't love one another, no matter what they think, and no matter what kind deeds they do for each other. Of course, there will be moments where these clinically depressed soul mates can love one another, since there are moments where clinically depressed people are able to feel positive emotions, such as love, pride, and joy. But, there wouldn't be that many moments, which means it would hardly be a loving relationship. Lastly, not only do we require positive emotions to love and experience joy, but we also require them to see goodness, beauty, magnificence, and awesomeness in moments, things, situations, works of art, and life itself. That's been my personal experience.

Incredible post ... It's both in my opinion, but which comes first ... like the chicken or egg analogy? Seriously, do we love because we know and have experienced it based on the feeling gained from being loved, or do we love because we want to help others in need? It's more of a give/take or an exchange. Mutual benefits and what not. As for the clinically depressed ... that can be a very difficult thing to over come. It's not as simple as showing or making someone feel loved. That can often times have an adverse affect to be honest. Think heartbreak, disappointment, abuse, and chronic brokeness by those who have shown love, then imagine how scary or frightening love can be for those who have experienced a life like that. It's less about clinical depression sometimes, and more about fear of being hurt, so some run run run as fast as they can from any type of kindness. They/ we can sometimes get so jaded they want nothing more than to find comfort, pleasure, and security minus the whole I care mindset ya know?

 

[Cooky]

Some people say love is something you make in the bedroom, or in the backseat of a 1969 Buick Skylark if you're from the old school.

 

[ZenMonkey]

Some people say love is something you make in the bedroom, or in the backseat of a 1969 Buick Skylark if you're from the old school.

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It is but then that's not all it is ... Seriously, how many definitions of love exist? Which one or two or twenty do you subscribe to if any? Screw it ... it's all love ... it's all hate ... it's all indifference. Live your life, be happy, let others do the same and I imagine we'd all benefit from it.