Self-sacrificing Love

Homily for Friday of the Fifth Week in Eastertide

Jesus asks all of his disciples to be selfless and sacrificial in our love for one another. To be sure, it is a “big ask.” Selflessness and sacrifice are not the way of the world. Laying down one’s life for a friend is the kind of love that Jesus asks of all his disciples. This kind of love is extraordinary.

How are we going to live up to this expectation? One possible way to is to place the needs of others before our own needs. This is the kind of love exhibited by the good Samaritan in the Gospel of Saint Luke. Even though the injured man on the road to Jerusalem was not himself a Samaritan, he is cared for by someone who he might consider to be an enemy.

To help us to live up to this expectation, God gives us the gifts of the Holy Spirit to guide us in our thoughts and actions. The Holy Spirit empowers us to show others the kind of love that Jesus displays through his passion and death. He desires that we grow in holiness; he wants us to be a light in the darkness for those who have strayed from the path of righteousness.

Whenever we celebrate the Eucharist, we remember the depth of love that Jesus has for us as he willingly lays down his life for us.