Love Until It Hurts | January 6, 2016

January 6, 2016

Mother Teresa says, “Love until it hurts.” The only way that I know how to do that is to go “all in”. The thing about going “all in” is that you will either win it all or lose it all. Jesus did both; he won salvation for all of us AND he lost all his life for all of us. I’m not really a big gambler like in Las Vegas because I’d rather spend my money on other things, but I am someone who loves until it hurts, in other words, I go “all in”. I’d like to report that I go “all in” because I am an obviously enlightened soul on my own road to Sainthood, but unfortunately, I am nowhere near that advanced a spiritual being and my going “all in” mostly means that I am pretty naïve and don’t really understand the concept like I should.

Today’s first reading from 1 John continues the PhD level theology equating God and Love. He begins with, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is brought to perfection in us.” God’s love is made complete in us? (Insert scene from Jerry Maguire, “You complete me.”) How can this be? Isn’t God’s love already complete, already perfect? God’s love is incomplete unless I love? That seems like a lot of pressure doesn’t it? But think about it, Love needs two for it to become Trinity. Since love is a verb it must be able to move from point A to point B or else it will be stagnate, lifeless, and limited. God does need us to complete his love so that it constantly flows. The tricky part is that we are to love one another and that is where the hurt enters in. God’s love IS perfect and our love is not, or at least we have convinced ourselves that it is not because of all the times when we have gone “all in” and lost. Every loss introduces us to fear because we don’t like hurting and so our love slowly but surely becomes more and more guarded as we go through life. But in verse 18, John, PhD, tells us, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.” There’s that perfect love thing again. The only way to experience perfect love is from God, through God, with God, in God, and back to God. If our lives are anchored in that kind of perfect love, then we can and will go “all in” without worry or fear and when we lose all, we will simply rest a while in God’s perfect love for us and try again. Even though it seems simple, we know that the standards of the world directly oppose this kind of love and getting others on this same page is an endless struggle. Does your brain hurt? Mine sure does!!!

Today’s gospel is one of those fun ones to imagine because Jesus freaks out his friends by walking on water in the middle of the night like a ghost. I mean come on…best prank ever right!!!!!! Let’s face it, that’s why I am not the Messiah because I would spend more time doing magic tricks like bi-locating, walking on water, and changing all the water to wine, than on you know preaching! I digress. Jesus needed some alone time after the miracle of feeding the 5,000. I know that my Mondays after a weekend retreat are a stay in your pajamas all day kind of day so I totally get it. He needed to process. He is sitting on the shore watching the apostles from afar like the Keystone Cops on their bobbing boat in a squall of some sort, rowing like crazy but going nowhere. Raise your hand if you have ever felt like this in your spiritual life. He must have chuckled to himself at the sight. So he decided to go help them out by you know, walking on the water in the middle of the night in a white flowing garment. I can’t help but to picture the dining room scene at Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion or at the end of the ride when a funny looking ghost joins your car and sits between you and your companion. Yes, I know my mind is a weird place. Why did he do it? Well I think he wanted them to pay attention and they were so focused on themselves and the storm that they were missing something deeper. It says that, “They had not understood the incident of the loaves. On the contrary, their hearts were hardened.” Meanwhile Jesus took the “incident” to prayer, pondering it in his heart and he wanted them to do the same, so he stilled the water to give them rest and in their rest they could focus on the meaning of the story.

Jesus wants us to pay attention and sometimes he does dramatic things to pull our focus away from the chaos and back to what is truly important. I pray that our hearts do not become hardened especially when we love until it hurts, or go “all in” and lose, and that we keep our eyes fixed on that which will teach us about the perfect love that God is remembering that His love only becomes complete when we love as well.

Reading 1 1 JN 4:11-18

Beloved, if God so loved us,
we also must love one another.
No one has ever seen God.
Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,
and his love is brought to perfection in us.

This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,
that he has given us of his Spirit.
Moreover, we have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son as savior of the world.
Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God remains in him and he in God.
We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us.

God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.
In this is love brought to perfection among us,
that we have confidence on the day of judgment
because as he is, so are we in this world.
There is no fear in love,
but perfect love drives out fear
because fear has to do with punishment,
and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.

Responsorial Psalm PS 72:1-2, 10, 12-13

R. (see 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Alleluia SEE 1 TM 3:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Glory to you, O Christ, proclaimed to the Gentiles.
Glory to you, O Christ, believed in throughout the world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel MK 6:45-52

After the five thousand had eaten and were satisfied,
Jesus made his disciples get into the boat
and precede him to the other side toward Bethsaida,
while he dismissed the crowd.
And when he had taken leave of them,
he went off to the mountain to pray.
When it was evening,
the boat was far out on the sea and he was alone on shore.
Then he saw that they were tossed about while rowing,
for the wind was against them.
About the fourth watch of the night,
he came toward them walking on the sea.
He meant to pass by them.
But when they saw him walking on the sea,
they thought it was a ghost and cried out.
They had all seen him and were terrified.
But at once he spoke with them,
“Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!”
He got into the boat with them and the wind died down.
They were completely astounded.
They had not understood the incident of the loaves.
On the contrary, their hearts were hardened.