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1 Corinthians 12:31 – 13:13
Brothers and sisters:
Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts.
But I shall show you a still more excellent way.
If I speak in human and angelic tongues
but do not have love,
I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal.
And if I have the gift of prophecy
and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge;
if I have all faith so as to move mountains,
but do not have love, I am nothing.
If I give away everything I own,
and if I hand my body over so that I may boast
but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind.
It is not jealous, love is not pompous,
it is not inflated, it is not rude,
it does not seek its own interests,
it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,
it does not rejoice over wrongdoing
but rejoices with the truth.
It bears all things, believes all things,
hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails.
If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing;
if tongues, they will cease;
if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing.
For we know partially and we prophesy partially,
but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.
When I was a child, I used to talk as a child,
think as a child, reason as a child;
when I became a man, I put aside childish things.
At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror,
but then face to face.
At present I know partially;
then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.
So faith, hope, love remain, these three;
but the greatest of these is love.
The Word of the Lord.
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We just heard some of the most famous words ever written in the New Testament: Saint Paul’s words on love. They’re often read at weddings, as couples promise to treat each other accordingly.
As a matter of fact, a couple stood before this very altar on Saturday as the bride’s mother read Paul’s words during Mass on their behalf.
I’ve even celebrated funerals in which a person’s family looks back gratefully over their loved one’s life, saying, “That was her. We experienced such love firsthand.”
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But who was Paul thinking about while writing this Letter to the Corinthians? Was he being a lofty dreamer? A hopeless romantic?
Or was there someone Paul knew who embodied all of these traits?
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Paul must’ve been thinking about his Savior, Jesus Christ, who hung on the cross for him… and us.
While nailed to that tree, hanging in between two thieves, Jesus fulfilled every word Paul says about love.
(Those at Mass this morning can) gaze upon the crucifix suspended behind me – a life-size, almost precise depiction of our Lord’s sacrifice. As I re-read Paul’s words on love, see how Jesus fulfills them during those final moments of his life.
“Love is patient. Love is kind. It is not jealous, it is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth..
…It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”
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May Christ’s love, which has been poured into our hearts at baptism, make us more and more like him, “who first loved us and gave himself for us.”
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Image credits: (1) Facebook (2) Medium (3) Christ Crucified, Velazquez