There’s a catholic philosopher and author I very much enjoy named Dr. Peter Kreeft. And Dr. Kreeft tells the story about a time he was invited to give a talk at a small monastery up in Connecticut. And at the end of his visit, the monastery’s holy abbot approached Dr. Kreeft and said, “I’d like to ask you a question, Doctor. And it’s the same question we ask every visitor to our monastery when they are about to leave. And the question is, “If God asked you, what gift would you give to these monks if you could, what gift would you ask for these monks?”
Dr. Kreeft, thought about it for a moment, and said, “I would ask God to make every single one of you fall totally in love with Jesus Christ for the rest of your life. That is the gift for which I would ask.” At his answer, the abbot smiled and some of the monks began to chuckle. Not thinking it was a terrible answer, Dr. Kreeft asked the abbot why the monks were laughing at him. And the abbot said, we are not laughing at you or your response, it’s just that last month, Mother Theresa visited us, and she gave the exact same answer: that you may fall totally in love with Jesus Christ.
Why would Dr. Kreeft consider this the greatest gift you could wish for someone? Why do Mother Theresa and the Saints consider falling totally in love with Jesus Christ the greatest of all gifts? Why would they say if you could give one gift to a spouse or child or family member, one gift to you neighbor, one gift to a stranger, to the sick, imprisoned, or orphan, you’d want them more than anything to love Jesus Christ? What’s behind this answer? I promise it’s not false piety. They are serious, dead serious.
Love of Jesus Christ is the pearl of great price that is worth abandoning everything else in the world in order to obtain. To pursue It is to pursue eternal life. “If you wish to enter life,” Jesus tells the rich young man, “keep the commandments, love God with your whole heart, mind, soul and strength.” Love of God, love of Jesus Christ true God and true man, sets us upon the road to eternal life. It keeps us on the road, when the road becomes difficult. It draws us back to the road when we foolishly go astray.
When we deeply love Jesus Christ we begin to value all that supports, nurtures, and sustains that love. We come to value prayer as the most important of our daily activities, prayer which brings us in contact with Our Lord; prayer which opens our ears to his voice, his teachings, his guidance and or hearts to follow his example of selfless oblation. We come to value fasting, confessing, forgiving, turning the other cheek, generous giving, self-forgetting.
And, when we love Jesus Christ, we begin to disdain all that hinders that love, all that keeps us from loving him whole-heartedly. We begin to scorn those forays into selfishness so prevalent in our modern culture. We disdain begin to disdain self-indulging, dishonesty, bearing resentment, impurity, impulsiveness, and self-aggrandizing.
As we increase in our love of God, our love of Jesus Christ, our capacity to love others increases. Christian author C.S. Lewis, speaking about how to rightly order his love of God and love of his wife said “only when I have learned to love God more than my wife, shall I begin to love my wife as I should.”
Love of Jesus impels us to serve him in the poor and needy. It’s what impelled St. Francis to embrace the leper, St. Vincent de Paul to embrace the plague victims, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini to leave her native land to serve the immigrants, St. Junipero Sera and St. Rose Philippine Duchesne to educate and serve the Native Americans, St. Mother Theresa to serve the poorest of the poor, St. Maximilian Kolbe to take the place of the concentration camp prisoner about to be executed.
Love of Jesus Christ transformed the lives of these ordinary people to do extraordinary things, and it can for us as well, if we let it, if we make it our greatest pursuit, as did they.
Love of God is the key to following all of the commandments. If you love me, Jesus tells the apostles in the Gospel today, keep my commands. The apostles’ personal love for Jesus leads them to obey his commandments, his teachings, and his example. All of them, save Judas the betrayer, would go on to suffer greatly for the spread of the Gospel.
Love of God enables us to suffer wrongdoing patiently, to be kind to those who slander or mock us. Love enables us to overcome jealousy, pride, rudeness, and every earthly attachment. It enables us to bear all things, believe all that the Church teaches, hope in the promises of Christ, and endure every trial. Love never fails.
May you fall totally in love with Jesus Christ today and all days, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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