First Reading • Acts 14:21-27
Psalm • Psalm 145:8-9, 10-11, 12-13
Second Reading • Revelation 21:1-5a
Gospel • John 13:31-33a, 34-35
Eating is something that comes naturally to us. No one has to explain to us that eating is good. From the moment we are born, we are crying out for food. Every time we feel hungry, we have our eye out for something to put in our mouths.
There are times when we lose our appetite such as when we’ve lost a loved one or are not feeling well. When we are upset or in a bad mood, we can lose our desire to eat. That is when our loved ones have to step in and tell us to eat to build our strength back.
We also need to be taught how to eat. Not all food is healthy for us.
We need to be taught which foods will nourish our bodies and keep us strong.
The same is true with love. Love is something that comes naturally to us. When babies are born, they have a natural love of their mothers and fathers. And, without question, parents have a natural love for their children.
Parents don’t need to be persuaded to love their children – it’s a love that flows naturally from the heart. In the same way, children instinctively love their parents, drawn by the deep bond that unites them.
Still, there are times when we need to be reminded to love.
Teenagers sometimes need to be reminded how much their parents love them.
Parents also need to be reminded how much their adult children still need love from them. Even though love for our family comes naturally, it’s still important to express it with our words and demonstrate it through our actions.
We also need to be taught how to love. That is because, even when we have the most loving of intentions, our actions can be taken the wrong way.
For instance, husbands often try to show their love for their wives by trying to fix things.
That works great when the dishwasher stops working or when the car has broken down.
But it doesn’t work as well with relationships. When wives talk to their husbands about a problem they’re having, they usually don’t want their husbands to do anything about it. They just want them to listen. That is when men have to be taught not to jump in with solutions but to stay quiet and just listen.
That is where Jesus steps in with His commandment that we love each other.
No one would argue with Jesus about this commandment. It is clear to all of us that love is good.
Without exception, we all want to love and we all want to be loved. Still, it is good that Jesus reminds us of the need to love, and why love is so important for anyone who wishes to be His disciple.
Because it is so easy for us to forget to love. As people of faith, we can often forget that love is at the center of discipleship.
Sometimes we can get so bogged down in the rules and the practices of our faith, that we can forget the simple command to love. In today’s world, it is so common for us to bump into people who question God’s existence, who think religion is unnecessary, and who reject basic rules of morality.
If we are clever, we might be able to win the argument.
But if we are not treating them with love, then we will lose the person. Logical discussions can often help people open their minds to the truth.
But, it is love that softens the heart and leads people to seek out a relationship with God.
We need to be taught how to love. The reason that we need to be taught how to love is that the love that Jesus commands from us is very different from the love that comes naturally to us.
We tend to love conditionally. I will love you if you will love me. We tend to do good things for those who do good things for us. However, the love that Jesus commands us to give is unconditional.
We give love even when people are mean to us. We love even our enemies and do good to them. The love we are commanded to show is the love of Jesus which doesn’t distinguish between sinners or saints, good or bad, worthy or unworthy.
It is a love that is willing to sacrifice. It is a love that is willing to give its life for others. It is a love that only Jesus can teach us.
We see such love on the cross. We see it in the lives of the saints who preached the good news even at the cost of their lives and who went to dangerous places to serve the poor.
If we are going to truly transform this world it won’t be with new rules, it won’t be with more solid arguments, it won’t be with government programs, it will be with love.
Inspired by God’s word, nourished by Jesus’ Body and Blood, let us go from this place determined to love without counting the cost.
