“God is Love” - this saying can be called the basis of both Christian dogma and Christian morality. The manifestations of Christian love are many and varied, and friendship is one of them.
Friendship at all times and in all cultures was considered and continues to be considered one of the main virtues, but Christianity brought a new meaning to this concept, which could not be in paganism.
Already in the Old Testament friendship appears as one of the greatest values. Ecclesiastes praises friendship, contrasting it with the sorrows of loneliness: "Two are better than one
.for if one falls, the other will raise his companion. But woe to one when he falls, and there is no other who would lift him."
A lot is said about friendship in the Book of the Solomon Parables: "A faithful friend is a strong defense; whoever finds it, finds a treasure." The wise king Solomon says that friendship implies sincerity. No one else sees man’s thoughts and intentions so clearly as a friend, and such relationships serve the spiritual growth of man, his moral improvement.
In the Old Testament stories you can find many examples of sincere, pure friendship. It is these relationships that bind David and Jonathan. "The soul of Jonathan cleaved to the soul, and Jonathan loved it as his soul" - in this description of friendly feelings you can see the prototype of the coming Christian moral principle: "Love your neighbor as yourself." This friendship stands all tests. It is noteworthy that Jonathan is the son of King Saul, and David, although he was destined to become king, was a simple shepherd by origin, and this did not interfere with the friendship of young people. In this regard, the Old Testament understanding of friendship differs from the ancient approach, according to which friendship is possible only between equals.
Nevertheless, on the whole, one can notice that the Old Testament understanding of friendship is in many ways close to that which is possible in paganism as well. In ancient Greek mythology and literature, there are also many examples of faithful friendship. It is enough to recall such heroes as Orestes and Pilad: helping a friend, Pilad goes into conflict with his own father, i.e. friendship is placed above kinship.
In the New Testament, i.e. in Christianity, in the concept of friendship, a new shade appears, which previously could not be. In a pagan world, friendship could only bind people. Neither Greek nor Roman could imagine the friendship of man with the gods, since man could not be equal to the gods. There is no motive for man’s friendship with God in the New Testament — man and God are too separated by the levels of Being to become friends.
A fundamentally different picture can be observed in the New Testament. The Savior directly declares to people: "You are my friends, if you do what I command you. I do not call you slaves
.I called you friends. "This approach seems logical, given that Jesus Christ combines the" inseparably non-fused "divine and human nature: people can be friends with God who has become a man.
The basis of such a person’s relationship with God is not fear of heavenly punishment, but love, fear of upsetting the Friend, not justifying His hopes. The most famous of the New Testament sayings about friendship acquires special meaning: "There is no longer that love, as if someone would lay down his soul for his friends." After all, this is exactly what the Savior does, sacrificing himself for the salvation of people in whom He sees his friends. Thus, the Savior’s sacrifice also becomes a call to build relationships with God and with others based on sincere friendship, while remaining faithful to it to the end.
