How Self-Love Shapes Our Love for Others—for Good or Evil | Jonathan Edwards

Deep Dive into The Nature of True Virtue by Jonathan Edwards - Of Self-Love, and Its Various Influence, to Cause Love to Others, or the ContraryIn his exploration of whether all love stems from self-love, Jonathan Edwards distinguishes between two definitions of the term. The first definition suggests self-love is simply a person's general capacity to love whatever pleases them, whether that is their own happiness or the happiness of others. Edwards dismisses this as an absurd explanation for the cause of love, because it merely states that people have a faculty of will but does not explain why specific things bring them pleasure.The second and more common definition of self-love is a person's regard for their own private and personal interest. Using this definition, Edwards agrees that our love for those who love us, as well as our hatred for those who hate us, is a natural consequence of self-love, operating much like the established laws of nature.He challenges the argument that gratitude and anger arise from a virtuous moral sense or a natural love for the public good. If these emotions were rooted in public benevolence, people would feel gratitude toward inanimate objects that help the public, like refreshing rain, and anger toward destructive storms. Furthermore, he uses examples of pirates seeking revenge against a traitor and robbers feeling grateful to an informant to demonstrate that anger and gratitude frequently exist independently of any concern for the public good.Finally, Edwards explains that self-love accounts for our general approval of virtues like charity and justice, and our disapproval of malice. Through experience and the association of ideas, people recognize that certain virtues benefit society and align with their own interests, while vices invite contempt. Education further strengthens these associations, showing that many moral approvals arise purely from self-love.Reformed Theologian GPT: https://chat.openai.com/g/g-XXwzX1gnv-reformed-theologianYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@ReformedExplainerSpotify Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1t5dz4vEgvHqUknYQfwpRI?si=e-tDRFR2Qf6By1sAcMdkdwhttps://buymeacoffee.com/edi2730