The Lord instructs us that we are to “love the Lord (our) God with all (our) heart, with all (our) soul, with all (our) mind, and with all (our) strength.” We are also called upon to “love our neighbor as (ourself).”
This passage puts a lot of emphasis on love. Love is something which we so easily take for granted. When preparing a young couple for marriage I ask why do you want to enter into marriage with one another. The answer that I expect to hear is because we love one another, but what does love really mean?
Therefore, we must come to believe that Jesus is love incarnate. When we reflect upon Sacred Scripture we will clearly come to see that every word which He spoke was that of love. For example when Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman it was love which He spoke to her. So too in this day and age the Lord continues to speak love to us and invites us to enter more fully into it.
If we look to the cross we will see the message of love proclaimed to us. It was from Calvary that we came to be redeemed and from this reality of sacrifice we are shown what it means to love. Most beautifully in the Marriage Exhortation from the Extraordinary Form we are told: “Henceforth you will belong entirely to each other; you will be one in mind, one in heart, and one in affections. And whatever sacrifices you may hereafter be required to make to preserve this mutual life, always make them generously. Sacrifice is usually difficult and irksome. Only love can make it easy, and perfect love can make it a joy. We are willing to give in proportion as we love. And when love is perfect, the sacrifice is complete.”
This statement brings us back to the cross and reminds that it is a place of love which we are to enter more fully into. The more that we are willing to enter into the cross the more that we will be able to give of ourself out of love. The Lord witheld nothing upon the cross, but gave of Himself entirely out of love. This is the same love that we should have for those around us.
Sadly, sacrifice is something which is foreign to our ears. Therefore, it is easy for everything to be about us and our desires. It is love which is constantly calling us towards something greater. When we are able to love we look upon another and no longer see them as a means to obtain something, but an opportunity through which we can share what God has given to us. Let us come to more fully love God in order that we may love our neighbor.
