Does the phrase "god is love" belittle the love between two human beings?

Nope. What an incredibly narrow view to have of “love”.
“Love” as a concept covers so much ground, and so many types of relationships, that it just doesn’t work as a single definition against which other love definitions can be compared. I love my dogs, but that doesn’t diminish the love I have for my children..

Nope. In a more cosmically connected, non religious view, Love allows us to express the Divinity within, to realize the possibility of unitive consciousness.

In Christianity, the highest form of love is between God the Father and His Son, Jesus. Mere mortals can only hope to share this perfect love with others though they can never fully achieve it.

Not at all. Is anyone surprised to find human traits, both gifts and flaws assigned to an omnipotent being. Try to find a a religion cooked up by mankind yet free of such self centered narcissim. They do exist, but are rare indeed.

The concept of love, in this context, is limited more by the English language than anything else. The word “love” can be a translation for no less than thirteen words in Homeric Greek, which was the dialect in many of the New Testament books were originally written.

One of the attributes of God in the Catholic catechism is “All-Loving”. Since God is The Supreme Being (according to the catechism), all things attributed to God are also supreme. This means the Love of God is supreme.

Biblical literalism screws up everything (except tithing income and conformity and ability for priests/ministers to control the flock), so this too.

Which is why life and spirituality do a lot better if you go with its origins, not it’s Middle-East-religious-war versions.

“God is love” in Biblical literalism can come across as part of the awful “God has all this holy stuff, basically everything good, but humans are doomed shits until they accept Christian dogma and grovel to our lovely loving God who will otherwise send them to eternal inescapable torment.”

“God is love” even in the actual historical Jesus version was probably meant more like a way to help people tune into their loving Buddha nature. God is the universe and everything, and there’s love at everyone and everything’s core. In that perspective, love between two human beings is part of everything (and so part of God, since God is just a metaphor for everything), so in that view it doesn’t belittle it except inasmuch as it points out that the universe is a lot bigger than a couple, and includes unimaginable amounts of love, too. You might also start to notice what of the love between two people is love, and what is actually attachment or projection or programming or attraction or whatever, but that’s not a contest, it’s a perspective that can help develop the relationship.

No. It’s only a figurative assessment, IMO.

What? No. the word “love” is so ridiculously overused and tossed around that it has basically lost its meaning. people love their shoes, television shows, eggs florentine. People say “I love you” to each other, and 3 months later they’re trying to kill each other.What that is referring to is “Agape”, and it completely transcends the love that we are talking about when we say we love.

Depends on the god. If it’s Priapus, “Love Hurts” might be more appropriate, but hard- ly be- little -ing. ::snort::

@Jak I just love that answer ;)

^^And yet you didn’t GA me ;-P ~

@Jak But I did! GA=Generous Agape!~

^^Oh. My ribs!~

Sorry @Jak, I’ve given you Great Answer now ;)

The word love IMO is belittled when anyone in a relationship chooses to employ that term to express appreciation for other people and deities than the very living ones you actually articulate the word love to. Love is indeed subjective but if my S/O said I love my God with all my heart, I would feel a like a second fiddle to this God as when I love a person it has a meaning to me that was given to me by this God to feel something for a real person that transcends any and all prior definitions God or Hallmark Cards may want to us to believe is the real feeling and meaning of love especially when God condemns me for my flaws and makes me repent while my wife loves and supports me even when my flaws get in the way of perfection.