“I love you.” “I love you, too.” This is probably one of the most frequently heard lines in American films. People communicate their love in this simple way to their spouses, children, or parents. People want to hear it and say it — they like to hear it and they need to hear it. A child who is surrounded by their parents’ love develops better not only emotionally but also physically. People who did not hear words of love, and above all, did not experience love from parents, sometimes have difficulty in loving others and expressing the simple words, “I love you.”
In the opening of this Sunday’s Gospel reading, we hear several times Jesus saying that He loves us. “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 love towards us is a natural reflection of the love relationship between the persons of the Triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This truth about God’s love towards us, His children, is the main motif of the entire Holy Scripture, starting from the moment of creation. Based on this, we could say that we are submerged in God’s love. How otherwise could we understand the famous passage from John’s Gospel, “For God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16)? This “so loved” expresses the ultimate love, the love that is never ending and is limitless, the love that is beyond our comprehension. Let’s remind ourselves of another passage from the same Gospel: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” (Jn 13:34)
Although we are imperfect, we are called by God to respond to Him. When He says, “I love you,” we are invited to say, “I love you, too.” However, Jesus reminds us that the words spoken and unspoken are not sufficient in our relationship with God, like in any relationship between people. We show that we love God when we fulfill His will. Remember Jesus asking, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to His disciples, He answered, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (Mt 12:48-50). And on another occasion, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven” (Mt 7:21).
This is a stern reminder to us as Christians of how to shape our lives. We are called to worship God during Sunday Mass, during prayer, meditation – every day — and at the same time we are called to persistently, energetically, and joyfully fulfill His will; that is, to live according to His commandments. In this way, and only in this way, our praises and our faith are authentic. It is an expression of much needed love for Him.
May this Sunday Mass celebration, and every Mass celebration, be a Church response and an individual response to Him, “Lord, My God, I love you, too.”
Fr. Mark Jurzyk