Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not
irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all
things, endures all things. (1 Cor. 13:4-7)
Today is a perfect day to think about love. Are you aware of how many different kinds of love there are? In English, there is only one word for love, but in Greek there are several. Valentine’s Day most often, though not exclusively, seems to exemplify the romantic kind of love. But there is also a fraternal kind of love we have for close friends and family, often referred to as brotherly love. Agape love is that which we feel for all of God’s creatures everywhere.
And of course, there’s self-love, which all of us need, but which easily becomes complicated. We need to love ourselves, but not in an egotistical way, and that is often difficult for many of us. Right after birth, we see ourselves as the center of the universe, but we soon begin to learn that there are many others sharing the universe with us.
As you progress through life, your ability to give and receive love changes. As a small child, my love was almost entirely conditional—I loved those who cared for me and provided for me. As I grew into my teens, I found myself starting to deal with the “sexual attraction” kind of love—exciting, frustrating at times, complicated, and at times frightening in its intensity.
Maternal/paternal love is something else again, and can feel verwhelming until you get past the fear of doing something wrong and harming your child. For many of us, it may be the first time we have truly loved someone more than ourselves. Today, think about all the kinds of love you experience. Reach out to someone with love. Show love in an unexpected way. And remember that nothing can separate you from the love of God.
Taken from “Talks with our Creator” for February 14th
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