Deus Caritas Est “God is Love** . ; ....But what is love? “Love” is a word that can take on so many different meanings. We love our family, our country, our favorite foods, and our pets. But can we really grasp the full meaning of the good news that “God is love” (1 John 4:8), or the command “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 1 5: 1 2), based on the worldly definitions of that word? In this encyclical, Pope Benedict XVI takes on this very question, so basic to understanding who we are as disciples of Jesus and what that means for us in the world. What is love? What kind of life does God’s love call us to? True Love J ove is a natural, primordial element of Inhuman life. It brings man and woman together, binds parents to children, and friends through adversity. Pagan philosophers thought a great deal about love and carefully defined it. But there was more, and this “more” is revealed, first, in God’s relationship with Israel. God reveals that He is not — as the ancient Greeks believed — an impersonal force of creativity and wisdom. God is not — as were the idols that pagans worshipped — unpredictable and self-serving. God is One who relates to us in love: creating us, sustaining us, and calling us to relationship in Him. Photo by Comstock A V Pope Benedict explores the Greek concepts of eros and agape in depth in this encyclical, pointing out that they are dimensions of love that complete each other. Eros is that emotional, physically driven desire for union with another. Agape is a self-sacrificing love. Eros separated from agape results in exploita- tion and dehumanization, something we have seen in some ancient cultures and can see clearly today. Agape apart from Eros risks a drying up, a diminish- ment, for we cannot just give — we must receive love in order to give it. Immersed in the intimacy of God’s love, we are nourished, so that we can, indeed, love as He did. What is radical about the Old Testament witness is how it reveals that the passion and drive of eros are actually dimensions of God’s love. Marriage and pas- sionate love are used as metaphors for God’s love for us, and the creation of Adam and Eve for each other tells us that the love that brings man and woman together is from God. Mystically, it reflects the struc- ture of creation and the love of God. The people of Israel were surrounded by cultures that misunderstood and misused the physical and emotional drive called eros, the drive that seeks ecsta- sy through union with another. Nothing much has changed. God’s revelation to the world (including us), through Israel, is that this kind of love is not the enemy of true love, but one dimension of it. This dimension, properly focused and purified, can actu- ally, miraculously, be transformed into a selfless commitment. Molded and shaped by God, we can love as He does. Jesus: Love Itself | n Jesus, this divine love in all of its dimensions 1 takes flesh, dramatically and fully. There is no mystery any longer about what love is. Jesus seeks the lost and pours out His very life for them. As Pope Benedict writes, the place where this all joins, where our understanding of the real nature of love begins, is in “the pierced side of Christ.” This lov- ing, healing presence is not just an image from the past, however. It’s not just something to think about and hope for. Jesus is present now, in love. How can we find that true love and make it a part of our lives? Seek the face of love in Jesus, and make a personal relationship with Him the center of your faith. Meet Jesus in the Eucharist, where His love is poured out for you here and now—as it was on the Cross, as it was at the Last Supper. 1 Let the love of Jesus you embrace in the Eucharist adjust your vision so that you see others as He does: beloved brothers and sisters. > Let your daily choices be led by Jesus’ example of sacrificial love and nourished by His loving presence. “By contemplating the pierced side of Christ, we can understand the starting-point of this Encyclical Letter:“God is love” (I Jn 4:8), It is there that this truth can be contem- plated, It is from there that our defin- ition of love must begin. In this con- templation the Christian discovers the path along which his life and love must move.” Deus Caritas Est (12) > to o The Fruit of Love C hristian faith isn’t about subscribing to ideas or joining a club. As all of the great saints reveal in ;heir spiritual lives, faith is rooted in an encounter with a Person — the Word made Flesh. That encounter is one of love, in which we come to see now deeply loved we are by God who created and sustains us. That’s a new reality, one that’s very dif- ferent from a world in which love is defined in terms )f emotion, personal satisfaction, or even mere plea- sure. It’s a reality our deepest instincts tell us is true. A/e know that our deepest desire is for faithful, last- ng love. We know that a “love” centered on seeking Measure ultimately gives no life at all. We also know that, as God has poured out love )n us, we turn, nourished and energized, to share hat love with the world. It isn’t a burden; it’s some- hing that, nourished by prayer, we can’t hold back, ’his love, or caritas (“charity,” also described as “ser- vice”), is one of the three fundamental roles of the Church in the world, along with being a living wit- ness to Jesus and worshiping God. > 00 o Saintly Models of Love If we’re looking for examples of how to live this love, the saints are here to show the way.As Pope Benedict mentions, Martin of Tours, Anthony the Abbot, Francis of Assisi,Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac, John Bosco, and — in our own time — Teresa of Calcutta show us that this life of love is not only possible, but is joyful and fruitful. From the selection of the seven deacons in the Acts of the Apostles to the loving care the early Jerusalem Christians gave each other, this service of love has been at the center of Christian life. It recog- nizes the mandate that Jesus gives in Matthew 25: “Whatever you do to the least of these, you do unto Personal piety, no matter how fervent or devout, is not the end of Christian faith. The Gospels and the witness of the early Christians are very clear about this; As we open ourselves up to Jesus, we’re moved to open ourselves up to others as well, to see them in their need and to love as Jesus did. Charity, however, is not the only way to help oth- ers. Since many problems that lead to poverty and suffering find their roots in unjust social and econom- ic structures, action to remedy these structures, so that they reflect the principles of justice, is a fruit of love. However, the actual work for change in these structures, while important, is work that belongs in the political realm. The Church offers its wisdom and insight on this work, and individual Christians are certainly called to bring their own witness into the political sphere to effect change. But the Church itself, as the Body of Christ, is charged by Jesus in the Gospel to attend most closely to those in need through immediate, direct, compassionate, and per- sonal loving acts of charity. by SW Productions Keeping a Balance W e live out Jesus’ love as we perform the corpo-ral and spiritual acts of mercy. On one level, they are simple: feeding the hungry, visiting the sick and imprisoned, clothing the naked, teaching the ignorant. But because human beings aren’t perfect, and human life is complex, there’s always a risk of confusing our own flawed motivations with authentic love. How can we stay centered in Christ? what we can and can’t do. We can’t the world’s problems, but we can share the 5 with this person here and now. be our guide, not politics or ideologies. Remember that Jesus is present in those moments of service, and is working in the hearts of those in need, in His own time. Sometimes we might speak of faith in Jesus directly; some- times we might just let our actions and presence do the speaking. imitate Jesus’ humility. As he humbled himself and joined His life with ours without judgment, so do we with those Jesus calls us to love. Make prayer the starting point of all we do. Profes- sionalism and competence are important, but what makes Christian charity different is our awareness of the loving presence of Jesus and guidance of the Spirit. Every act that helps another is a good act, but Jesus’ call to His disciples is about more than just improving people’s lives. It is about encountering oth- ers in love and compassion just as He did. That’s what makes Christian charity unique and always nec- essary, in every age and every political and economic system. A donation can pay a medical bill; only lov- ing presence can ease the pain of a suffering soul. Love is... s Pope Benedict writes at the beginning of this .encyclical, faith is an encounter with a Person — Jesus Christ. In union with Him through the Church, through the Eucharist, we see reality in a new way. We see it as He sees it, which means we see all peo- ple through the eyes of Jesus: ...in God and with God, I love even the person whom I do not like or even know. . .1 learn to look on this other person not simply with my eyes and myfeelings, hutfrom the perspective of Jesus Christ. Hisfriend is myfriend. (18) This gives us the answer to our earlier question, “What is love?” Love sees others with the eyes of the loving God. It opens us up to love as Jesus did, fear- lessly and hopefully. In that, as she always does, the Blessed Virgin Mary leads the way: Holy Mary, Mother of God, you have given the world its true light, the Son of God.Jesus, your Son You abandoned yourself completely to God’s call and thus became a wellspring of the goodness which flows forth from him Show us Jesus. Lead us to him. Teach us to know and love him, so that we too can become capable of true love and be fountains of living water in the midst of a thirsting world. Deus Caritas Est (42) Photo by The Crosiers Where to Go for More Information: : For the full text of the encyclical: www.vatican.va For more on Pope Benedict XVI: We Have a Pope! Benedict XVI, Matthew Bunson, Our Sunday Visitor. For the spirituality of Christian charity: When Did We See You Lord?, Bishop Robert J. Baker and Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R., Our Sunday Visitor. For saintly models of love: Mother Teresa’s Lessons of Love and Secrets of Sanctity, Susan Conroy, Our Sunday Visitor. Ordinary Suffering of Extraordinary Saints, Fr. Vincent O’Malley, Our Sunday Visitor. For more details online: www.osv.com/godislove For additional Catholic resources or to order bulk copies of this pamphlet contact: OurSundayVisitor 200 Noll Plaza • Huntington, IN 46750 -800-348-2440 • Fax: I -800-498-6709 • www.osv.com e 1 Inventory Number: P283E • Product Number: I60P08 By Amy Welborn Copyright © 2006 by Our Sunday Visitor, Inc. Photo by L'Osservatore Romano