Real love is demanding. I would be lying if I did not tell you so

"You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working, and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves." --St. Francis de Sales

Gospel Text: (MK 12:28-34)
One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
“Which is the first of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, “The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”
The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
“You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Clearly, in loving us, our Father has set a very high bar for himself—as high as the heavens! Yet today’s Gospel reading reminds us that the bar for our human love is set pretty high, too. Love your neighbor. Period. No qualifications. Just love. Will our love be perfect? Probably not. Fulfilling the call to love is—and always will be—an ongoing challenge. But never give up and with each day try again..and again…and again!