English Español Mary Immaculate
Catholic Church / Pacoima, CA

What is Love

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

“May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.”Ps. 128

Love is dying to yourself, because only by doing so can you truly become love. Love is not selfish, and if you do not renounce yourself, you cannot love, not even yourself. If you do not give up your own ego, you will be dominated by it, with all its tendencies towards the seven deadly sins, which lead us away from the path of life. This selfish disorder aligns with the devil and the world, enemies of the soul and of your eternal life.

The best thing you can do for yourself is to renounce the tyranny of the ego and submit to the will of God, which leads us to green pastures and still waters, where you can experience and bear good fruit—the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Loving yourself and others means following the Good Shepherd. Following the world or your own ego makes you a slave to sin, while only following Jesus makes you free and fulfilled. Life is given to us to follow Christ and thus reach eternal salvation. Only on this path do we learn to truly love ourselves.

Being love means seeking the good of the one we love. Only then do we truly love, being a blessing and gift from God to them. This requires the renunciation of ego, of one’s own whims and interests, in order to seek the good of others. In this love, we paradoxically find the highest happiness and fulfillment, becoming a gift from God to others, a self-giving. This is only possible through the action of the Holy Spirit, which is the love of God poured into our hearts, making possible the fruits of love, joy, peace, and so on.

If you do not submit to Christ, you will be subjected to evil, for only Christ frees you from evil if you decide to open your heart to Him and follow Him.

True love, then, is doing good, being edifying, being a gift and blessing from God, light and salt, yeast that lifts, a word of encouragement and wisdom, a firm support, which we can only give if we are united to Jesus, for He alone is the solid rock, the way to God. Only united with Him can we bear the fruit that lasts, and only then do we glorify the Father and live out our vocation and mission as children of God (cf. John 15:5-11).

Feelings are part of our fallen nature, of our vulnerable and limited ego. Everything affects our feelings-hormones, whether it is day or night, what we have or do not have, what pleases or displeases us, whether we are alone or with someone, knowledge and ignorance, desires and whims. That is why we should not be led by feelings, for we would be like a dry leaf blown by the wind, wanting one thing today and another tomorrow. There is no firmness or stability in them.

The steering wheel of our lives belongs to the will, enlightened by faith and the knowledge of God. Only then can we be love, as God is love. The love that God asks of us depends on our will, never on our feelings; that is why it is a commandment. He can ask it of us, and it is up to us to decide to obey and love, for it is a free and voluntary act, not just a feeling. You can do good even to those you dislike.

Prayer to Respect Life

Dear Lord,
What a gift You have given in every human life.
Inspire us to respect Your handiwork in every human we encounter.
Embolden us to protect the dignity of the most vulnerable members of society.

Weekly Readings

Sunday: Gn 2:18-24/Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 (see 5)/Heb 2:9-11/Mk 10:2-16 or 10:2-12
Monday: Gal 1:6-12/Ps 111:1b-2, 7-8, 9 and 10c/Lk 10:25-37
Tuesday: Gal 1:13-24/Ps 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 14c-15/Lk 10:38-42
Wednesday: Gal 2:1-2, 7-14/Ps 117:1bc, 2/Lk 11:1-4
Thursday: Gal 3:1-5/Lk 1:69-70, 71-72, 73-75/Lk 11:5-13
Friday: Gal 3:7-14/Ps 111:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6/Lk 11:15-26
Saturday: Gal 3:22-29/Ps 105:2-3, 4-5, 6-7/Lk 11:27-28
Next Sunday: Wis 7:7-11/Ps 90:12-13, 14-15, 16-17 (14)/Heb 4:12-13/Mk 10:17-30 or 10:17-27

Observances for the Week

Sunday: 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time; Respect Life Sunday
Monday: Our Lady of the Rosary
Wednesday: St. Denis, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs; St. John Leonardi, Priest
Friday: St. John XXIII, Pope
Next Sunday: 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time