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Eros: Advantages

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Eros love (Proverbs 5:19) is about sexual intimacy in marriage and it is a very important ingredient to the success of a marriage. It is an art that must be learned and developed because an atmosphere of a loving relationship must be created before the sexual act else it becomes an abuse of the partner.

The romantic feeling common in "eros love" is natural, and an important part of a relationship between a man and a woman. Romance also plays a role in strengthening the bonds, especially at the start of a relationship. This is part of God's plan.

Eros is passionate love. The deep feelings that accompany eros are often exclusively associated with sexuality, but eros is not limited to it. Passion extends beyond genital gratification. One can have a passion for gardening, reading, knitting, airplanes, and more. People find these actions deeply fulfilling (and many others), and thus, engage in such activities with self-interested passion.

Eros, when rightly ordered with the other loves, is a deeply spiritual expression of love.

God desires that we love God. Even more, God wants us to love God, others, and creation with divine passion. "We have all been with lifeless, emotionally 'dead' people.

Eros has been built into the order of creation by God.

The first and last human words in the Bible speak of our union with God, as a bride to her bridegroom. This is the language of passion, of eros. This metaphor carries throughout the entirety of sacred scripture. Israel is pictured as God's bride in the Old Testament (Isaiah 54:5-6; 62:1-5; Jeremiah 2:2; Ezekiel 16:8-14; Hosea 2:16-20). The church is Christ's bride in the New Testament (2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:23-25; Revelation 19:7-9; 21:9). Jesus is the bridegroom who is coming for his bride (Matthew 9:15; 25:1; John 3:29). God's people are called to fidelity to their beloved spouse. When they go astray, they have committed spiritual adultery (Ezekiel 16, 23; Hosea 1-3; Matthew 12:39; James 4:4; Revelation 2:22).

The advantage of erotic love is the sentimentality of it. It is very relaxing to the person doing it.

Eros love can succeed in the long-term if it progresses into a higher form of love.

The advantage of erotic love is the sentimentality of it. It is very relaxing for the person doing it.

Eros: Difficulties

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This love is based more on physical traits. It is based on strong feelings toward another.

It haunts us throughout our lives and can lead to our destruction or transformation.

It is based more on "self-benefit", of what can benefit you rather than the other person. This is "I love you because it feels good, and makes ME happy loving you."

Two people feel this strong emotional attraction towards one another, though they barely really know about each other's personalities, you see only each other's strengths/good side, everything is rosy, mushy feeling of happiness, etc..

It is love that is untested by hardships, and therefore may or may not last in the long-term.

A person usually puts her/his best foot forward, showing only her/his good side.

Be careful of being in love with the "concept of love" itself, rather than for who the person is. TV. movies, media has "romanticized" so much, it is often hard to see reality from fiction.

Eros is certainly dangerous when it stands alone. When everything exclusively revolves around our self-interests - when we solely live for our passions - we objectify others and fail to love them as we should.

Over-relying on pure emotion without the balance of logic is a recipe for failure.

Eros is passionate love that yearns to find fulfilment in object of its longing.

First, in order to exist eros is dependent upon the situation and circumstances. As long as a couple is enjoying a romantic situation, eros can thrive. But, as soon as hurtful words or actions appear, eros simply evaporates.

Second, eros is also held captive to each person's perception. For example, if someone perceives a particular quiet evening dinner with candles to be romantic, eros will thrive. However, passion becomes squashed for someone whenever he or she interprets the current situation to be undesirable. Eros thus grows strong and then wastes away based upon our perceptions.

Although eros at times might make us feel like we are on cloud nine, it can not provide a reliable basis for building a deep and meaningful relationship since it is so fickle and dependent upon perception and circumstances. Because of such things as accidents, diseases, and the fact that someone can choose to doubt or despise you regardless of your actions, it is clear that we can not determine how others will perceive us nor are we masters of our own circumstances.

An erotic lover can be perceived as a hopeless romantic. The disadvantage is the inevitable decay in attraction, and the danger of living in a fantasy world. In its extreme, eros can resemble naïve

The erotic lover often see marriage as a lasting honeymoon, and see sex as the ultimate aesthetic experience.

The erotic lover also has a idealized image of beauty that cannot be attainable in reality.

Consequently, the erotic lover often feels empty, and they are also sensitive to imperfections of their partner or the ones they love.