I have been pondering the meaning lately of church and community and I stumbled across a social work PhD student who is writing a dissertation on the work of bell hooks. bell hooks highlights the feminine voice in philosophy that is so vital.
Her book, “All About Love”, examines what it means to love and be loved. My favorite summation of hooks’ definition of love is nurturing one’s own or another’s truest and more sincere version of themselves. hooks says, “the idea that there is an animating principle in the self- a life force (some call it a soul) that when nurtured enhances our capacity to be more fully self-actualized and able to engage in communion with the world around us.”
This is just the first in a trilogy of books that also contains “Salvation: Black People and Love”, and “Communion: The Female Search for Love”. These are not romantic books. They are a search for spiritual love for one’s self and others.
All About Love is a quick and meaningful read that I’m sure I will find myself coming back to again as I struggle with the concept of self-love, and spiritual communion with others.
-Kayla Jarvis (New Hanover member)