Sunday Reflections

With five words in today’s gospel, Jesus has ‘raised the bar’ in relation to what love looks like.  Jesus tells us that we are to love “as I have loved you”.  His love is unconditional, merciful, generous, and is a free gift.  In comparison, in our human condition, our love may not always reflect these divine qualities.  In the resurrection of Jesus we believe, as reflected in the Book of Revelation today, that God is “making the whole of creation new”.  God’s love is always capable of forming, reforming, and transforming.  Through our life in Christ we are transformed to embrace His love and truth, and to share it with the world.  In His grace our love more faithfully reflects His love, but only to the extent that we allow ourselves to be transformed through our conversion.  This season of grace in which we continue to celebrate the new life that comes from the resurrection of Jesus, provides us with an opportunity to continue this ongoing conversion to a deeper sharing in the life of God, and to bear witness to God in the world.