Life devoid of love could be useless and boring. The two co-exist, for love pushed the Supreme Creator to give life to the created. Hence love is a fundamental aspect for the existence of life.
In his Theology of the Body, the late Karol Wojtola, now Blessed John Paul II, based on an in-depth reflection on the Scriptures, answered two most important universal questions that keep disturbing humanity to this day. What does it mean to be human? And, how, in my life, can I bring true happiness and fulfillment?
The late Pontiff, in his theology of the body, which is a compilation of his 129 Wednesday audiences given between 1979 and 1984, is fundamentally directed in the new discovery of the meaning of the whole of the existence, in short, the meaning of life.
The concept, love, has brought in the lives of a multitude, different reactions, mostly confusions, deep personal wounds, health problems like cancer, enslavement, and many more, even the loss of life an entity brought into existence by love itself.
The Scriptures and the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us that we, human beings, are created in the image and likeness of God. God, who is Love, creates us out of love in His own image. Therefore, created in the image of God, we, human beings, participate in His eternal love.
This divine gift is the truth of self-giving love, which is purely manifested in the second person of the Trinity, He who out of love saved us by His passion and resurrection to give us eternal life.
Love is an act of salvation and creation.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, goes the often famous misquoted Plato’s aphorism. Allow me to borrow this idea and manipulate it this way, love is in the actions of the beholder!
Love is a four-lettered word which meaninglessly always slips our tongue easily without getting assumed or transformed by our hands and legs, making out an action from it, in other words, making life out of it.
Let’s quote the action of the Samaritan traveler in the parabole of the Good Samaritan’s Act. (I consciously added ‘act’ in the title of this episode to give the reader my orientation in understanding the text).
“… He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he lifted him up on his own animal, took him to an inn and cared for him.” Luke 10: 34.
The Samaritan’s love was transformed in his actions towards the unknown victim by the roadside. The desire to assist out of love, made the Samaritan traveler participate in the act of creation, whereby, love yields life, for he understood, by this love, the meaning to be human, and acted upon it.
Our actions of love not only proclaim the mercy of God, but also resuscitate the weak life. These actions of love not only help us understand the meaning of being humans but also how we can bring happiness and fulfillment in life as a vocation from God.
When love is empty of actions, life becomes legalistic and too rational, and at times we forget the divine call to enjoy responsibly our Christian life, both in body and soul. At the end, what will we say? That life is boring and useless! Have a lovely December holidays and a new year full of love and life, will you.
(this article was published in the 5th issue of the Echos of Mercy, a Consolata magazine of the Allamano theologicum, Nairobi Kenya)
(this article was published in the 5th issue of the Echos of Mercy, a Consolata magazine of the Allamano theologicum, Nairobi Kenya)
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