These heroes of human goodness simply do not inflict wounds on others — and very often, indeed day in and day out, they heal the deepest of human sufferings.
If there’s any one goal I hadn’t set before that I would like to set this Lent, this would be it: to not ever wound any other soul.
What is the gospel message about interpersonal relationships in marriage, religious life, priesthood, yes, even in shops and offices, hospitals and nursing homes? It is a revolution, a divinely instigated revolution (Eph 4:23).
This made me smile, and think about the youth I get the chance to talk to, share ideas with every once in a while — including my own children. They are indeed part of a revolution that’s happening right now. They are vibrant, alive, and very much in tune with what’s going on in the world. They are eager to make a difference. And they need our prayers.
Since we are to love one another as the Lord loves us (Jn 13:34-35), we conclude that other people are to be our beloved — in the most genuine sense of the word!
LOVE — that’s what it’s all about. That’s what Lent is about. And this being Laetare Sunday, we are reminded of the JOY that will be ours at Easter. Love is about JOY. Though we may find ourselves in the midst of suffering, we are challenged to look beyond all this, because there IS a light at the end of the tunnel. What’s so amazing about our lives despite our being steeped in pain and sorrow at times, is that THIS IS NOT THE END. The pain and sorrow are all just stepping stones to the glory that’s waiting for us, if we but embrace His will and His cross. The past few days I’ve found myself crying a bit more than usual, but today I looked at the Crucifix at Mass and was reminded that Jesus’ death was certainly not the end, but only the beginning. Jesus — LOVE — has opened the Gates of Heaven for us, and these tears that life brings us — they too will pass. Love triumphs in the end.
“nobody [is to] think of his own interests first but everybody is to think of other people’s interests instead” (Phil 2:4 JB).
Selflessness.
Saint Paul tells his Philippians how he prays for them with joy, how they have a permanent place in his heart, how he misses every one of them, “loving you as Christ Jesus loves you” (Phil 1:3-8).
This is the love we are called to share with others. I am reminded of the pro-lifers I work with, and the hundreds of homeschooling moms I’ve met online through the years, and all the times we’ve prayed for each other. How beautiful to be united in prayer, even as we find ourselves in different time zones on opposite sides of the globe. In reaching out across the miles we also reach out to God.
the Master and the Church he founded which keeps and proclaims that message without dilution.
I am struck by that phrase “without dilution”. Indeed no other kind of love will do: not the “love” of government which proposes to “take care of the people”, not the love that judges others. Only unconditional love will suffice. Sigh… so easy to say, so difficult to put into practice.
Lord, help!! Only by Your Grace are we able to love like this.
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