Some scientific studies suggest that human beings are innately selfish and that virtues such as self-sacrifice are a delusion. In this intriguing volume, esteemed theologian Thomas Jay Oord interprets the scientific research and responds from a theological and philosophical standpoint, providing a state-of-the-art overview of love and altruism studies.

The emerging field of scholarship that relates issues in love, science, and theology has the potential to assist humanity in understanding itself in light of the most powerful forces in civilization. Defining Love introduces this field of work and offers a definition of love that is scientifically, theologically, and philosophically adequate. Oord reviews major research results and hypotheses related to love in the social, biological, and cosmological sciences. He then provides a theological vision that accounts for the definition, forms, and recipients of love while being consonant with research on love emerging in various scientific fields. Positing love relationally as that which "entails acting intentionally, in sympathetic response to others, to promote overall well-being," Oord mounts a case for Christian agape and ultimately for an open, relational, and loving God. The book will appeal to professors, students, and scholars in theology, ethics, and the sciences as well as those engaged in the science-and-religion dialogue.