A Jesuit Catholic University
in Omaha, Nebraska, since 1878

[72] Jer 1:4-5, 17-19 Ps 71:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15+17 1 Cor 12:31-13:13

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer The Daily Reflections

At risk of being cliché, I want to focus on the second reading today, Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. It carries the famous lines, “Love is patient, Love is kind….” Ironically, I recently gave a speech on Love and I found it quite difficult to summarize such an incredible feeling and action into one small little blurb.

I think Paul does a remarkable job in this reading describing Love, with my favorite description being that it “Bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, Love never fails….” This reminds me that throughout the difficult times in my life, I know that I have the Love of family in friends, but most importantly, I have the Love of God. I believe that Paul is witnessing the greater and never-failing Love of God. It is a beautiful reminder that his Love is there to lift us up when we are down and that he is patient in waiting for us to love him back. How freely does our modern society use the phrase, “I love you” or “I love that toy, computer, or another other object?” I am challenged to be mindful of my use of the word and to use the powerful description when thinking of my Love for God or my friends and family.

I want to conclude with one of my other favorite sequences about Love that I read in The Word for you Today. It says, “Love is slow to suspect but quick to trust; slow to condemn but quick to justify; slow to offend but quick to defend; slow to expose but quick to shield; slow to reprimand but quick to empathize; slow to belittle but quick to appreciate; slow to demand but quick to give; slow to provoke but quick to help; slow to resent but quick to forgive.” I truly believe that if I live my life in God’s Love and try to remember these characteristics of Love and the ones found in First Corinthians, I am living out my calling from God to “Love thy self and neighbor.”