What he has taught us

A few weeks ago, I was invited to read a story to a group of children.  It’s been a few years since I’ve sat with such young children, held a book in my hands and read it aloud to them, but even as I opened the cover of the book, memories began to flood into my mind.  I remembered occasions when I had done the same thing with other children, I remembered times when other adults had read aloud to me and to other children who sat with me.  I remembered how my imagination would soar as I listened attentively to every word that was spoken.  Even the simplest of stories read aloud has the power to illustrate the deepest and most sincere of lessons; stories told aloud can provide examples of excitement, anguish, forgiveness, joy, even love.

In the gospel passage we have heard today, Jesus spoke to his disciples about love.  He said: As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love (Jn 15:9).  When all is said and done, the bible is a story of love.  God our Father has always loved us – each one of us – from the day when we were conceived.  Because he has always loved us, he invites us to come close to him every day and to speak with him.  Like a loving parent, God wants to hear us speak about the adventures we encounter each day.   Some of us lead truly exciting lives, and some of us have a knack for telling stories, but even if we are shy and reserved, we can still speak with God about our day-to-day adventures and mis-adventures.  If we are bored, we can tell him that we are bored; if we are disappointed, we can tell him that our hopes have been dashed; if we are excited, he wants to hear all about it, like a grandmother who gathers a child on her knee and listens attentively to every word that is spoken.

Jesus knew deep in his heart that God our Father loved him.  Because he had learned how to love, he in turn was able to love the disciples.  That’s how it works.  We learn how to love based on the experiences of love that we have had, but love cannot be kept hidden in our hearts; it must be shared with others.  This is the reason why Jesus told the disciples: abide in my love.  It was because the disciples had experienced the love that Jesus had for them that they in turn were able to go out to others and to share with them the wonderful evidence of love that they had discovered.

Peter shared the joyous news of God’s love with Cornelius and all the others who were listening.  Because they heard these stories of love, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word (Acts 10:44).  God works through each one of us.  As we share the good news of our faith with others, God continues to work in the hearts of those who hear our words.  We may not be aware of how our spoken words resound in the hearts of those who hear them, but we must always trust that God uses our words to reach the hearts of others, and that he is the one who knows what his beloved children need.

Saint John, one of the youngest disciples, experienced God’s love at work in his own heart.  In time, he was able to tell others about the power of God’s love, and so we have heard his words in the second reading today: we have discovered love, not because we have loved God, but because he has loved us and sent his Son to save us and to help us learn about His love (cf 1 Jn 4:10).