Agape as a kind of love is based on devotion and surrender.
Ágape is a term that comes from the Latin agăpe , although its more distant etymological origin takes us to a Greek word that can be translated as “love” or “ affection .” Specifically, we can determine that it emanates from agápē , which was used to refer to universal love or love of humanity , as opposed to personal love.
Thus, for example, in Antiquity many Greek philosophers used that word to refer to the love that is professed both to one's partner and to one's parents or children. Among those was Plato .
It should also be noted that agápē was presented in contrast to another important term: eros , which referred to a love with more sexual conditioning.
The term agape today
The current term is used to name the fraternal meal , of a religious nature, that the first Christians carried out to strengthen their ties .
By extension, today agape is understood as that banquet that is organized with the intention of celebrating an event or entertaining a guest. For example: “We are pleased to invite you and your family to participate in the agape in honor of the His Excellency Ambassador of the Republic, Mr. Roberto López Cahito” , “The ceremony was simple and consisted of a small agape that brought together the attendees ” , “I appreciate your proposal, but I prefer not to participate in the agape” , “We all enjoyed the agape and danced until dawn” .
Agape can be understood as a path to God.
Your organization
Organizing an agape is not an easy task. It requires taking care of a significant number of details in order to ensure that it is optimal and that attendees feel comfortable:
- When it comes to the menu, it must be taken into account that the most delicate dishes have to be in first place and before the strongest ones.
- The garnish or sauce should never be repeated in several dishes.
- It is necessary to take careful care of the choice of both the decoration of the place and the table or tables.
The objective of an agape of this type is usually a celebration or a tribute . The purpose is for both the hosts and the guests to share a good time . In addition to everything that has to do with food, it is common to consider entertainment or artistic proposals, such as the presentation of live musicians.
Agapes in religion
In the historical and religious sense of the concept, as we already indicated, agape sought to promote unity among Christians and promote the brotherhood that destroyed social inequality.
It should be noted that the first Christians lived in community and considered themselves as brothers: as the group grew, agapes acquired greater relevance to maintain that union.
That agape can be understood as a meal of charity . The idea was to strengthen ties between community members, leaving aside differences.
In these Christian agapes, benevolence, generosity , compassion and altruism were promoted, among other virtues. It is not clear whether the communion of the Eucharist took place before the meal or once it concluded. It is estimated that, just as it is believed that Jesus Christ did with his disciples, he took communion after eating.
In Christianity, agapes emerged as part of the apostolic tradition.
Other uses of the concept
In the same way, we cannot forget that in El Salvador there is an association that responds to the name of AGAPE . It is an entity with a religious essence, created in 1978 by a Franciscan priest with the aim of helping, through various resources and programs, all those people who have economic needs.
It was Brother Flavian Mucci ( 1935 – 2021 ) who founded this association. From the beginning of the institution, this religious understood the importance of the media to spread the word of God and the Bible. This is how, after various projects and efforts, Ágape TV emerged in 2021 , an open television channel that broadcasts to the entire Salvadoran surface.
Agape , likewise, is a genus of moths native to the Pacific Islands and belonging to the noctuid family. Among the species in this group is Agape chloropyga , which lives in Papua New Guinea, Borneo , the insular part of Malaysia and other islands that are located to the east of the Australian territory.
Agape as a denomination
There are also commercial enterprises that carry this term as a name. Agápē Home , for example, is a commercial premises located in the city of El Palomar , in the province of Buenos Aires ( Argentina ). It offers home, decoration and textile products, such as glasses, mugs, vases, tablecloths and pillows.
Ágape Delicatessen , meanwhile, is an Argentine company that produces cakes, cakes, cookies, desserts and other bakery and pastry preparations. It is headquartered in the province of Santa Fe , with branches in Reconquista and Avellaneda .