Love is . . .

I always think it is helpful, whenever possible, to define a thing in postive terms. Sometimes contrast is necessary or useful, but I would rather keep it positive when possible.

No, I am not some sissy-minded guilt-plagued soft-spined victim-oriented political correctness hound. It's just decent when it can be done.

So, how to define - or, describe - love? The famous chapter in the Scriptures is I Corinthians 13, which provides that love is:

patient
kind
does not envy
doest not boast
is not proud
is not rude
is not self-seeking
is not easily angered
keeps no record of wrongs
does not delight in evil
rejoices with the truth
always protects
always trusts
always hopes
always perseveres
never fails

Sixteen items in that list. Two of them are linked ("does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth") in a contrast picture.

Of the sixteen, half are positive and half are negative.

Can we move the negative definitions to positive? Should we?

I really like the last one as a negative. It is much stronger. Love never fails. especially after listing four "always" qualities.

But what about "does not envy"? What is the opposite of envy anyway?

Hang on, checking Merriam-Webster (M-W) ...

WOW ... I like the definition, especially in light of what I am reading in C S Lewis' The Problem of Pain ... envy (noun) is a painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage. Very cool.

Okay, the synonyms are the usual suspects, including covetousness and jealousy.

The antonyms are more interesting. They are labelled "near antonyms" by M-W and are listed as: benevolence, goodwill, kindness, sympathy.

Would contentment be a good antonym for envy in the context of love in I Corinthians?

Love does not envy.
Love is content.

M-W defines content as: to limit (oneself) in requirements, desires, or actions.

So, we can extend the idea of content to be the opposit of envy, right? Awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another (maybe painful awareness) but tempered or stayed by the limiting of one's self in requirements, desires or actions.

That works for me.

More on this another time.