The world today, more than ever, likes to speaks of love. We all know the old cliché “It’s love that makes the world go round”. But it doesn’t take much watching for one to come to the conclusion that by “love,” the modern world really means “sex” and all the short-lived, superficial passions that accompany it in contemporary relationships.
What can we say of human love? Broadly, three things. First. that human love loves only what is lovable. Today, it is striking just how often lovability is reserved for the young, good-looking or wealthy. We humans all seem to find these things particularly attractive. Pity the poor, ugly, elderly person! And yet, are people in the “unlovable” categories any the less in need of love, or any less deserving of it, for that matter, than the rest of the world? Second, human love loves in order to possess. Having fixed our desire upon something or someone, we go all out to possess the object of our desire and to share it with no-one. Human beings can be driven frantic with the jealous fear that the object of their affections might be sharing that affection with someone else. There is very little that human beings will not stoop to in their desire to possess the object of their desire. We love in order to enslave. Third, and most important, human love is a highly perishable commodity. Have enslaved the object of desire, human beings tend to drain the life out of it, and quite often to cast it aside in favour of another, fresh object of passion. Worst of all, our love does not readily forgive slights, hurts or infidelities. Intense passions burn to cold cinders, or at the very worst they turn into their opposites, as can be seen in the vengeful and messy end to which countless human relationships have come. Great literature and folklore is full of people who have killed for love.
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| St Francis of Assisi Embracing the Crucified Christ Murillo |
All said and done, human love is a pretty poor, feeble and sorry emotion. How different is the Love of God from the love of man! First, the love of God does not only love what is loveable. It simply loves. In fact, the love of God does the exact opposite of human love in this regard; where we take what is loveable and drain it dry, God can take what is ugly, empty, even hateful, and pour his love into it, so that it becomes loveable. Secondly, the Love of God does not set out to enslave; it is the love of God above all else that sets us free. God knows that the only love worth having is that which is freely given. God, therefore, sets us free of all obligation, taking the risk that we may love someone or something other than Him. Lastly, the love of God does not come to an end. Despite the wickedness, insults, treachery, scorn and even hatred heaped upon him, God continues to love us. When God’s Son hung dying on a cross, the people for whom he was dying stood at the foot of his cross, ridiculing him, mocking him, despising him. Yet he continued to the death, overflowing with love for them. That was the love that ultimately has changed the hard hearts of millions, and continues to change them still.
If you ever wondered what was wrong with the world, think of that figure on the cross, selfless, dying to set us free, giving us a love that rescues us from our ugliness and hatefulness – yes, rescues even the young, the beautiful and the rich – and makes us truly beautiful and lovable. Is even a choice as to which kind of love the world needs? Let us bring to our lives the everlasting hope and salvation offered only by the Love of God. In a word, let us submit our lives, our hope our all, to the God of Love.
Fr Phillip.
