Let us love one another

“Let us love one another. For this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning, in which you should walk.”

Sometimes we forget that the commandments are not to forbid us or to take something from us, but are for love. “Love one another” is the shortest summary of The Old and New Testament.

St. John Paul II reminds us that in Jesus Christ, God the Father loves us humanly. We prayed in the Collect: “clothe us, Lord God, with the virtues of the Heart of your Son and set us aflame with his love.” This is the only reason Our Lord was sent to us, to assure us that we are loved. Whoever experiences rejection, violence, lack of tenderness and loneliness should come to His Heart. And whoever has done anything wrong, has hurt anybody or has done something that they still feel ashamed of should come to His Heart. Bl. Pope Paul VI again reminds us: “for when He came, not to judge, but to save the world, was He not bitterly severe toward sin, but patient and abounding in mercy toward sinners? Husbands and wives, therefore, when deeply distressed by reason of the difficulties of their life, must find stamped in the heart and voice of their priest the likeness of the voice and the love of our Redeemer.” (HV, 29) Our Lord will never leave us alone in our need: He will send us consolation; maybe we will receive a phone call from a friend, or the daily reading will bring us comfort.

“Thus says the Lord: Let whoever is thirsty come to me and drink. Streams of living water will flow from within the one who believes in me.” (Communion Antiphon)