This book review was written by Patricia Lisson, Interim Director of United Church Studies, and is featured in this month’s Dio E-Newsletter, a monthly update shared with the wider community. Patricia offers a reflection on All About Love – New Visions by bell hooks, exploring its insights into the transformative power of love and its role in our lives.

Patricia offers a reflection on All About Love – New Visions by bell hooks, exploring its insights into the transformative power of love in our lives.

In All About Love – New Visions the author, bell hooks, offers a profound examination of love and its multifaceted nature. She carefully dissects the complexities of love, from childhood through adulthood, and its manifestations in our lives. Central to her argument is the idea that love is not just a passive emotion, but a demanding journey, requiring vigilance and discipline—a view that challenges more conventional understandings of love.

“To begin by always thinking of love as an action rather than a feeling is one way in which anyone using the word in this manner automatically assumes accountability and responsibility….”  When we are loving, we openly and honestly express care, affection, responsibility, respect, commitment, and trust.

The interpretations of love by hooks and St. Paul, as presented in St. Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians, share a universal theme: love!  Particularly the love foundational to healthy relationships, which is a challenging endeavor that demands long-term dedication despite the uncertainty of the future. Both hooks and St. Paul emphasize that love is the cornerstone of thriving relationships, and wholeness in relationships is only achieved when they are seen as integral to our existence in the world.

Patricia Lisson