Seyyed Hossein Nasr Quotes

I can love a person in this life only insofar as he tries to advance in the praise and service of God our Lord; for the man who loves anything for itself and not for the sake of God, does not love God with his whole heart.

It is not difficult for us to understand the love of God. When the love of our Lord is in a man's heart, this man acts totally different.

How wonderful it would be if the love of God was our priority and the love of neighbour flowed from that.

He [Jesus] has no need of our works but only of our love.

Love is proved by deeds; the more they cost us, the greater the proof of our love.

Henri Nouwen says, "When we come to realize that ... only God saves, then we are free to serve, then we can live truly humble lives." Nouwen changed his approach from "selling pearls," or peddling the good news, to "hunting for the treasure" already present in those he was called to love - a shift from dispensing religion to dispensing grace. It makes all the difference in the world whether I view my neighbor as a potential convert or as someone whom God already loves.

Those virtues which cost us dear prove that we love God; those which are easy to us prove that He loves us.

In the last resort, a love of God without love of humanity is no love at all.

Moral judgment is not life-giving; love that transcends the boundaries of judgment as Jesus' love did, is.

Through selfless work, love of God grows in heart.

I doubt God keeps track of how many arguments we win; God may indeed keep track of how well we love.

Creation cost Him nothing; salvation cost Him everything.

If we want other people to give us something that only God can give, we become a demon. We say, "Love me!" and before you know it we become violent and demanding and manipulative. It's so important that we keep forgiving one another - not once in a while, but every moment of life.

Love loves unto purity. Love has ever in view the absolute loveliness of that which it beholds. Therefore all that is not beautiful in the beloved, all that comes between and is not of love's kind, must be destroyed. And our God is a consuming fire.

And what kind of habitation pleases God? What must our natures be like before he can feel at home within us? He asks nothing but a pure heart and a single mind. He asks no rich paneling, no rugs from the Orient, no art treasures from afar. He desires but sincerity, transparency, humility, and love. He will see to the rest.

There may come a time when it will be possible for you to humiliate your worst enemy or even to defeat him, but in order to love the enemy you must not do it... The Greek language has another word [for love]. It calls it agape. Agape is more than romantic love. Agape is more than friendship. Agape is understanding, redemptive goodwill for all men. Agape is an overflowing love, a spontaneous love, which seeks nothing in return. And theologians would say that it is the love of God operating in the human heart. When you rise to love on this level you love all men, not because you like them, not because their ways appeal to you, not because they are worthful to you, but you love all men because God loves them. And you rise to the noble heights of loving the person who does the evil deed while hating the deed that the person does. And I think this is what Jesus means when he says, “Love your enemies.”

On the eve of the cross, Jesus made his decision. He would rather go to hell for you than go to heaven without you.

Religion has nothing to do with compassion; it is our love for God that is the main thing because we have all been created for the sole purpose to love and be loved.

We complicate prayer as we complicate many things. It is to love Jesus with undivided love-for you, for me, for all of us. And that undivided love is put into action when we do as Jesus said, love as I have loved you

TO worship God even for the sake of salvation or any other reward is equally degenerate. Love knows no reward. Give your love unto to God, but do not ask anything in return even from Him through pray.

I think the way we show love for God is by loving each other, by extending the love that we are.

Sacrifice is the essence of love, which is the essence of God.

Never forget what Jesus did for you. Never take lightly what it cost Him. And never assume that if it cost Him His very life, that it won't also cost you yours.