Friars Corner: Qualities of Godly love
Fr. Bob Hilz, TOR
Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19; Psalm 71:1-6, 15, 17; 1 Corinthians 12:31 – 13:1-13; Luke 4:21-30
Let us begin as last week from the Eastern Liturgy by asking the Holy Spirit to guide and fill us. “Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of truth, who are everywhere present and fill all things, treasury of blessings and giver of life, come and increase your presence within us, cleanse us of all stain (sin) and save us, O gracious Lord.” Holy Spirit, please help us work together to build up and expand the unity in the Body of Christ we were incorporated into at our baptism.
In the first reading from one of the major prophets of the Old Testament, Jeremiah had been called and anointed him to bring God’s message to the Jewish people. In St. Luke’s gospel last week, we began to read about the early teaching of Jesus having been sent to bring God’s good news to the people.
The Corinthian church
God is raising up new prophets and evangelists today to speak his prophetic words. Everyone will not accept God’s good news today. Following in this vein, I started a few weeks ago to comment on St. Paul’s teaching to the Corinthian church. St. Paul gives a beautiful message. We can have all kinds of spiritual gifts yet if we do not use them in God’s love, we are a “noisy gong or a clanging symbol.”
Love is the third theological virtue that we were all given when we were baptized. St. Paul wants to put the ministry gifts in order. They are to be used in God’s love. Jesus is not present physically on earth. His ministry gifts are still here in us as we use those divine gifts to care for others.
The joy of the gospel
The joy of the gospel is being filled with the love of God, especially running into the heart of Jesus so full of love for us. As I gaze into the eyes of Jesus by Bette Myers’, www.truefaceofjesus.com, I feel great love and peace flowing from him to me. It fills me with an inner joy.
The more our communication (prayer) is connected to Jesus the more peace we have and thus we can share that love with others. This is the heart of our Catholic Christian faith, being filled and sharing Christ’s love. “Give me love in my heart, keep me loving.”
Dimensions of love
In the second reading this Sunday, St. Paul gives us 16 dimensions of the love of Jesus that comes to us and flows from us to others. Even if we didn’t get it from our parents, Jesus wants to provide that intimacy for us.
One of my “gifts” when at prayer is to want it to be personal, not the old “thee, thou” distant and stilted English. I get more blessed by a warm and intimate and clear prayer. Even the current translation bothered me for a long time. So I went to an English professor at St. Francis College back in the 1980s. I asked her to take the 14 negative words and give them to me in the positive. I can put my mind around those words and live them. Here is her positive list. I have given perhaps a thousand copies to others. Print this and put it on your refrigerator door, in your New Testament and a smaller copy in your wallet for quick reference. It is very helpful for loving.
16 Characteristics of Love
From St. Paul, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Love is:
- Patient
- Kind
- Respectful of others
- Humble
- Open to others or Sensitive
- Courteous
- Helpful
- Understanding
- Forgiving
- Merciful or compassionate
- Truthful
- Ready to make allowances
- Ready to trust
- Hopeful or Optimistic
- Persevering or Enduring and
- Lasts forever or is Faithful
The Fountain of living water
As we pray each day and if we can visit our parish church and sit a while before the tabernacle with Jesus, his fountain of “living water” (John 4:10, 14; Revelation 22:1-2), fills us with more of his love. We get Jesus’ radiation treatment of limitless love. As we are with others during that day that have less of his love, it flows out of us to bless them by osmosis. We feel inner joy and peace yet a little drained. That is God’s plan. We go back to the source of that “living water” to get filled up again. “Give me love in my heart, keep me loving.”
We can also add other words to this prayer, like praise, peace or joy. Another way of looking at this process is a sentence Fr. Michael Scanlan used to say often. “Stand under the spout where the glory comes out.”
We all want and need more love. Keep praying more Chaplets of Divine Mercy for God to pour out more of his love on our country.
Thank You, Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I love you. Have a God-filled week,
+ Fr. Bob Hilz
fbhilz@gmail.com
(© 2019 Fr. Bob Hilz, TOR)
