Love in the Twenty-First Century

There is a refrain that appears and reappears throughout today’s readings: the call to love one another. We are to love each other in the same way that Jesus loves us. Love makes us one with Jesus and the Father, and keeping the commandment of love brings us joy and peace.

 

In each generation, however, we have to figure out what this command to love means concretely, both individually and as a community. One such effort is the statement that Pope Francis sent to an international Arabic channel at the end of the Muslim sacred time of Ramadan (similar to our Lent). Here is part of the Holy Father’s message:

 

“Brothers and sisters, our father Abraham raised his eyes to heaven to gaze at the stars. The light of life, which shines all around us and embraces us from on high, calls us to leave behind the dark night of hatred, so that, in accordance with the Creator’s will, stars may shine brightly upon our world, rather than the glare of missiles lighting up the heavens and raining down fire to devastate the earth!

 

“God is peace and he desires peace. Those who believe in him cannot fail to repudiate war, which does not resolve but only increases hostilities. War, as I never tire of saying, is always and only a failure: it is a road leading nowhere; it does not open new vistas but stifles all hope….

 

“I think constantly of the families, the young people, the workers, the elderly and the children. I am certain that in their hearts, in the hearts of ordinary people, there is a great desire for peace. And that, amid the spread of violence, tears flow from their eyes and a single word issues from their lips: Enough! Enough! – I myself repeat that word to those who bear the grave responsibility of governing nations. Enough! Stop! Please, put an end to the clash of arms and think of the children, all the children, as you do your own children. Let us all look to the future with the eyes of children. They do not ask who is the enemy to be destroyed, but who are the friends with whom they can play. They need homes, parks and schools, not tombs and mass graves.

 

“Friends, I believe that deserts can flower: as in nature, so too in the hearts of individuals and in the lives of peoples. Yet the deserts of hatred can bring forth shoots of hope only if we learn how to grow together, one alongside the other; only if we learn to respect the beliefs of others; only if we recognize the right to existence of every people and the right of every people to have their own State; only if we learn to live in peace without demonizing anyone. That is my belief and my hope …”

 

This weekend, we are celebrating First Communion. Each year, when we do so, I am uplifted and renewed by the excitement, the joy and the innocence of our children. Here, in our own community, we have the opportunity to reflect on what kind of world we want them to have. As Pope Francis says, they want “homes, parks and schools,” and a loving and nurturing environment in which to grow and prosper. They are just like children in every part of the world.

 

In today’s gospel Jesus offers love, joy and peace—all in such a way that the world cannot give. Let us open our hearts to such a love, and to friendship with Jesus. He says, “You are my friends if you do what I command you….This I command you: love one another.” On this First Communion weekend, let us join the children of the world, and all the people of the world in echoing the word spoken by the Holy Father: Enough! Enough! to war and hatred, division and fear, violence and cruelty! Enough!

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