Love, to be real, must cost. It must hurt. It must empty us of self.
St Mother Teresa: (1910 – 1997: Founded the Missionaries of Charity)
St Mother Teresa: (1910 – 1997: Founded the Missionaries of Charity)
Gospel Text: (1 JN 4:11-18)
Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also must love one another.
No one has ever seen God.
Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,
that he has given us of his Spirit.
Moreover, we have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world.
Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God remains in him and he in God.
We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us.
God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.
In this is love brought to perfection among us,
that we have confidence on the day of judgment
because as he is, so are we in this world.
There is no fear in love,
but perfect love drives out fear
because fear has to do with punishment,
and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.
we also must love one another.
No one has ever seen God.
Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.
This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,
that he has given us of his Spirit.
Moreover, we have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world.
Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God remains in him and he in God.
We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us.
God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.
In this is love brought to perfection among us,
that we have confidence on the day of judgment
because as he is, so are we in this world.
There is no fear in love,
but perfect love drives out fear
because fear has to do with punishment,
and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.
"What drives you?" This is a question posed in a TV advertisement of a fuel company. The ad shows people from various walks of life giving their best efforts in what they are doing -- in sports, in one's profession, while driving a sports car or while just playing with one's children.
The images shown, and the question posed strike us at our core: "What drives us?" The answer is simple: that one cannot totally commit himself to a task, a profession, unless one is driven by something pure, compelling and convincing, by something truly as important as one's life itself.
In today's reading from St. John, we are given the compelling answer to the question, "What drives us?" The real answer is "love." We do not have to study the many spiritual writers and practitioners who support John's reply. If we look back at our own life experiences, we notice that the moments and times we are so alive, bold and courageous and so fulfilled are when we are ignited and moved by love.
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