“As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. … This is my commandment: Love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (Gospel for May 9, Jn 15:9-10, 12-13)
Christ tells us we will remain in his love if we keep his commandments. Saying you love someone can be easy, but it is really our deeds that reveal our love — or lack of it. Christ showed us how to love by his example and by sacrificing his very life for us. To love as Christ commands us to love demands action. The Letter of James says, “Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves” (1:22). May each of us commit to keeping the commandments and offering our very selves in service and sacrifice for others.
Challenge by Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori:
This month, I challenge you to meditate on the meaning of the Ten Commandments in your life by picking one on 10 different days and praying about it for at least 10 minutes. Second, during this month devoted to our Blessed Mother, I challenge you to assist your council in implementing the Faith in Action Rosary program — showing your love of Christ by showing your love of Mary.
Questions for Reflection:
Are you willing to proclaim to others that you love Christ? Does your life show this love by your obedience to Christ and the teachings of the Church, or are there areas of your life where you seem not to heed the Gospel? Are there times when you find it hard to love as Christ commands, and if so, how can you seek to grow in love?