We are in debt to Christ for the lavish love he has poured out on us. He wants us to love others in turn. Because Christ’s love is infinitely greater than ours, we will always have the obligation to love others. Recently, my mother left this earth to spend eternity with the Lord. Her life here in simple words would be selfless. She went beyond her capacity to help people. That was how she demonstrated the love of Christ. Many of us have got the idea that self-love is wrong. But if this were the case, it would be pointless to love our neighbors as ourselves. St. Paul explains what he means by self-love. We do not willingly let ourselves go hungry. We take care of our bodies. We try not to let ourselves be cheated or injured. This is the kind of love we need to have for our neighbors. Do we see that others are fed, clothed, and provided for as well as they can be? Are we concerned about issues of social justice? Loving others as ourselves means actively working to see that their needs are met.

Prayer: Abba Father, empower us to love ourselves and others. Amen.