Reflection
M. Scott Peck, author of The Road less Traveled, defines love as, “the will to extend oneself for the purpose of nurturing one’s own and another’s spiritual growth.” That’s a great definition about love. There are three elements in that definition that sheds light on what Jesus meant when he said in today’s gospel that the greatest commandment is to love God and love one’s neighbor.
First, love is an act of the “will.” Authentic and abiding love is not only a feeling, but also a decision, a choice one makes. It is not based on the calculations of the mind or the fleeting quality of feelings only, but it is an act of the will. Oftentimes, our lives are sabotaged by strong emotions. On the other hand, other people live their lives as if they’re in the South Pole because the only thing that guides them is cold reason. For Christian love to be powerful, both emotion and reason must color the way we love. Only our emotions can move and inspire us to do great things for love. And only human reason can help us penetrate the meaning of the great mystery of God’s love for us and understand the need to love others. Loving, as an act of the will, is something we need to learn. It requires a constant practice of looking after the interests of others as we look after our own.
A second element in that definition of love is the need “to extend one’s self.” To extend oneself is to give one’s self to another. St. Paul said that of the three great virtues of faith, hope and love, the greatest is love, which, we also call charity. And charity is no other than orienting ourselves in a direction towards others. The act of self-extension as an act of love is best typified by Jesus when he extended his arms on the cross and was crucified on it. In Palestine, there are two seas. The river Jordan connects them. One is called the Sea of Galilee. It is fresh water and is teeming with fish and other sea life. The other sea is the Dead Sea. As its name suggests, its waters are oily and dark and not much life can be found there. What’s the difference between them? Bible scholars have pointed out that the Sea of Galilee extends itself by emptying its water into the river Jordan. Every water that the Sea of Galilee receives, it gives out to the river. The Dead Sea does not do that. That is an important image of love as extending oneself through generous self-giving.
Third, the act of self-extension is for the “purpose of nurturing one’s own and another’s spiritual growth.” Here we find the first part of the greatest commandment Jesus spoke about: love of God. The first reading from Exodus is a reflection on how God saves his people. Part of loving is to move beyond the monotony of everyday life and let it be engulfed by a spiritual quality through our worship of God. Concretely, it means to gather around the table of Jesus often, especially on Sundays, to listen to his word and receive him in the Eucharist. This also means a greater desire to spend more time for personal prayer, which nourishes our capacity to love in a self-extending and expansive manner. Our spiritual and religious observance inspires us again to a more meaningful relationship of love.
Response
Jesus invites us to let our lives be guided by love: love for God and others.