“God is love.
But when love becomes God, it becomes the devil.”

C.
S. Lewis's practical apologetics of love!
Many books have been written about the true nature of love, but C.
Few people have argued the nature of love as concisely and clearly as S. Lewis.
The author divides the seemingly outdated topic of 'love' into affection, friendship, eros, and charity, clearly showing how all love can become distorted and even dangerous.
The author's brilliance and clarity shine through in the statements and examples that argue for the four aspects of love.

'Affection' encompasses both 'love of need' and 'love of gift', and is the most humble of the four loves, and the most widespread, even applying between animals and humans.
'Friendship' is not often considered love these days, but there was a time when friendship was considered the most important.
Friendship has the least biological component, and because it leads to small groups of independent people, friendships that hold power are considered dangerous.
'Eros' refers to the 'state of being in love', and because of its sublimity of sacrifice and self-abandonment, it always seeks to ascend to the position of a god.
Eros is distinguished from sex, which is called 'Venus'.
Venus focuses on sex itself, while Eros focuses on its object, the lover.
Affection, friendship, eros, mercy.
In addition to these four categories of love, the author also addresses the topic of "love and affection for things less than human," and it is interesting to see how he analyzes love for animals, nature, and the motherland as a single chapter.
The author emphasizes that all four types of love are gifts from God and that undistorted love reflects the nature of God and heaven.

It would probably be difficult to find a point of view that could justifiably condemn this kind of love.
Just as family love serves as the first step toward overcoming personal selfishness, this love becomes the first step toward overcoming familial egoism.
Of course, this love is not pure charity.
This is not love for one's neighbor in the sense that Christ spoke of, but merely love for one's neighbor in a local sense.
However, for someone who cannot even love the people in his neighborhood he has seen so far, it seems quite far from him to love 'humanity' that he has never even seen.
_Page 49, ‘Love and affection for things less than human’

Animals have enough personality to warrant the word "together."
Although for now it is mostly just a bunch of unconscious, biological impulses.
The animal has three legs in nature and one leg in the human world.
They are a kind of link, an ambassador.
...
People who live with dogs have somewhat reduced the gap between themselves and the natural world.
But of course, there are many instances where animals are exploited in even worse ways. _Page 95, 'Affection'

To love is to expose oneself to the risk of being hurt.
Love anything.
Your heart will surely hurt, and perhaps even break.
If you want to keep your heart intact, you must not give it to anyone, not even an animal.
Wrap it carefully with hobbies and small luxuries.
Also avoid all entanglements.
Keep your mind locked away safely in the little box of your own selfishness.
But even inside that little box (where it's safe, dark, motionless, and airless) things will change.
It won't break.
It will be unbreakable and impenetrable.
But you will end up in a state where you cannot be saved.
_Page 207, from 'Mercy'

--- From the text