I Love Love

by Molly Baskette | published on Feb 14, 2025

Love one another with [sibling] affection. – Romans 12:10a (ESV) 

I’ve always loved love. It may be why I chose ordained ministry. I get to be a professional lover! (Yes, I hear it).  

I am an Olympic cuddler and an incorrigible hugger. I never miss a chance to tell people I love them, even if they’re just going to the store for bread. I regularly sign emails “love, Molly” to functional strangers, or if I’m being formal and a little shy, “Christlove, Molly.”  

I love friend-love, romantic love, and especially the all-inclusive “friends-to-lovers” trope. I may or may not have single-handedly driven Season 3 Episode 2 of Bridgerton to the top of the charts last summer with how many times I watched the Penelope/Colin first kiss.  

So I was thrilled when we took as a theme for our all-church retreat, “All You Need is Love.” For a teambuilding exercise, we split into 4 groups to create skits representing each of the 4 loves in the Bible: eros, agape, philios, and storge.  

Storge was a new one for me. If it sounds like a piece of disassembled furniture designed to spark divorce, you’re not wrong. In fact, the storge group revealed what it meant by pretending to put together a piece of IKEA furniture—without fighting about it. Because storge is the love specific to families, chosen or blood. It appears in Romans 12:10 as a compound word, philostorge. Two kinds of love in one. Love squared. 

Storge is a complex, fraught, loyal, enduring, maturing love. The kind of love that tilts its head and says, “You drive me bonkers but if anyone threatens you, they will find out.” The kind of love that can build complex things, that might fight but also knows how to fix. The kind of love we need more of, everywhere. 

Prayer
It’s Valentine’s Day, God. A day for friends and lovers. For all the complexities and frailties and wonders of love. For daring declarations and reaffirmations. Open my heart and let more than a few I Love You’s fall out. Amen.

Molly BasketteAbout the Author
Rev. Molly Baskette is the lead pastor of First Church Berkeley UCC and the author of books about church renewal, parenting, spiritual growth and more. Sign up for her author newsletter or get information about her newest book at mollybaskette.com.