I believe that the world was created and approved by love, that it subsists, coheres, and endures by love, and that, insofar as it is redeemable, it can be redeemed only by love.

Wendell Berry

Only By Love

Theme: Love

I take literally the statement in the Gospel of John that God loves the world. I believe that the world was created and approved by love, that it subsists, coheres, and endures by love, and that, insofar as it is redeemable, it can be redeemed only by love. I believe that divine love, incarnate and indwelling in the world, summons the world always toward wholeness, which ultimately is reconciliation and atonement with God.

Wendell Berry

Wendell Berry was born in Henry County, Kentucky, on August 5, 1934. This region has not only been his lifelong home but also the inspiration for much of his writing. He grew up understanding the rhythms of the land, a knowledge that would deeply influence his roles as both a writer and a farmer.

He has produced a diverse range of works, spanning poetry, essays, and novels. A consistent theme across his writing is the connection between humans and nature, informed by his firsthand experience working on his Kentucky farm. As an academic, Berry taught English, further establishing his foothold in the literary community.

Beyond his personal achievements, Berry's family has played a significant role in his life. His close relationships, especially with those who share his ties to Kentucky, have further anchored his love for the land and community. While he has been a voice for sustainable farming and conservation, his writings also often touch upon the intricate dynamics of family and community life in rural America.

Humanism, Arts and Sciences
The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays

Berry, Wendell. The Art of the Commonplace: the Agrarian Essays of Wendell Berry. Edited by Norman Wirzba, ReadHowYouWant.com, Limited, 2010, [Wendell Berry, The Art of the Commonplace: The Agrarian Essays].

Wendell Berry

Theme: Love

About This Wendell Berry Quotation [Commentary]

Wendell Berry’s words express a deep belief that love is at the heart of creation, holding all things together and giving meaning to the world. When he says, “I believe that the world was created and approved by love,” he reveals a view of divine love as intentional, affirming the goodness of existence. This belief draws from the Gospel of John, where God’s love is not abstract but present in the world. For Berry, love shapes and sustains both the natural order and human experience.

Berry describes love as an active force that sustains life, saying the world “subsists, coheres, and endures by love.” This suggests love is not limited to fleeting emotions but is present in every part of existence, offering stability even in life’s difficulties. It holds together the relationships and experiences that give the world its coherence and meaning, providing a sense of continuity amid change.

Finally, Berry emphasizes that redemption is only possible through love. He writes, “insofar as it is redeemable, it can be redeemed only by love,” underscoring love’s power to restore and heal. Redemption, in this view, is not an escape but a process of reconciliation with the world and with the divine. For Berry, love calls humanity to renewal, inviting us to participate in a larger wholeness where healing and alignment with God’s love are always possible.

Love and the World We Live In by Wendell Berry

“I take literally the statement in the Gospel of John that God loves the world. I believe the world was created and approved by love, that it subsists, coheres, and endures by love, and that, insofar as it is redeemable, it can be redeemed only by love. I believe that divine love, incarnate and indwelling in the world, summons the world always toward wholeness, which ultimately is reconciliation and atonement with God.

This is also a fallen world. It involves error and disease, ignorance and partiality, sin and death. If this world is a place where we may learn of our involvement in immortal love, as I believe it is, still such learning is only possible here because that love involves us so inescapably in the limits, suffering and sorrow of mortality.”

—Wendell Berry [Citizenship Papers: Essays, 2004].

Additional Wendell Berry Poems and Quotes

“But love, sooner or later, forces us out of time… of all that we feel and do, all the virtues and all the sins, love alone crowds us at last over the edge of the world. For love is always more than a little strange here… It is in the world, but is not altogether of it. It is of eternity. It takes us there when it most holds us here.”

—Wendell Berry [Jayber Crow].

“I see that the life of this place is always emerging beyond expectation or prediction or typicality, that it is unique, given to the world minute by minute, only once, never to be repeated. And this is when I see that this life is a miracle, absolutely worth having, absolutely worth saving. We are alive within mystery, by miracle.”

—Wendell Berry [Life is a Miracle: An Essay Against Modern Superstition].

Only By Love

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