Word to the Wise
Friday, May 11, 2007 - Friday in the Fifth Week of Easter
[Acts 15:22-31 and John 15:12-17]This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.
Jesus speaks these words and subsequently shows that greatest love by laying down his life for us. St. Paul also reflects on this when he writes in Romans 5:7: "Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us." For most of us ordinary folks, we would probably say that it would depend on the particular relationship. We wouldn't be inclined to die for just anyone or anything. Soldiers in combat risk their lives for a nation and their own beliefs that are part of that national identity. But the meaning of Jesus' expression shows up more convincingly in the stories of soldiers risking their lives for their comrades in arms. This kind of love can be found in what parents are willing to do for their children or spouses for one another, or best friends for each other There are other examples but the idea is about a love that is worth life itself - that IS life itself. The examples I just gave are fragments, but they can show the power of that love, The power of Christ's love is life itself. He cares that much for us and exhorts us to have that same care for one another. It's a very difficult challenge, but we must never give up on it. AMEN
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