Love in Advent and Beyond
(A Reflection)
(Erico Joseph T. Cañete)
THE NATIONAL CATHOLIC REGISTER explained that advent is the season that brings to mind the two comings of Christ, i.e. as a season to prepare for Christmas when Christ’s first coming to us is remembered and, as a season when that remembrance directs the mind and heart to await Christ’s Second coming at the end of time.
Advent season, on top of being a period for devout and joyful expectation, entails a spiritual cleansing and meditation on the essence of love where Christ’s salvific mission is rooted.
What then is the comprehension or extent of love in this season of advent? In particular, what is the extent of giving love in the Season of Advent?
Let’s reflect on love.
It is surprising to know that the antithesis of love is not apathy or hatred. It is the self. Where there is the self, where there exists the self, there would be no authentic love. Exaggeration of the self begets self centeredness or selfishness which eventually destroys love which is rooted in selflessness.
However, this does not suggest to cease loving one self for how could one give love if one doesn’t have love for the self in the first place? The dictum ‘Nemo dat quod non habet – No one can give what he doesn’t have’ proves this. Love oneself, enrich oneself by the essence of love but don’t be confined with it. Move out from it otherwise one would be enslaved by the bondage of self centeredness or egoism. Reach out to others.
Having this comprehension of love, brings us to love imperatives:
(i) We must love others selflessly.
What is love after all but a contemplation of the YOU and not enriching the ego. When one says, “I Love You”, one declares that from this moment onward, I stop loving myself for what I love now is your ‘self’, i.e. the ‘You’ of the beloved. If the beloved reciprocates, he/she takes care of yourself likewise. Hence true love is not a clash of the ‘I’ but a union of the ‘You.’.
It’s like saying, I don’t like white but since you love it, I would teach myself to love it in the same manner that the beloved loves my black.
(ii) We must love others in words, thoughts and deeds.
Never underestimate the power of words for it can make or unmake the person. Mean what you say and say what you mean. But above all, make words into flesh and praxis.
(iii) We must love the unlovable.
Extend love to the infirmed, the poor, the needy, and the disagreeable.
(iv) We must love our enemies.
Easy or difficult? Easy! Remember that it was Christ who commanded this. He would not have had commanded us to love our enemies had this been difficult then. What is difficult is making friends with our enemies. Praying for our enemies is a way of loving our enemies.
(v) We must love God on top everyone and everything.
This is the kind of love the Season of Advent brings.
Merry Christmas everyone!