Jesus loves us to the end, to giving up his body and shedding his blood for us.  He wants us to love one another as he loves us, which means we are to cherish one another.

At bottom, love is Jesus as he lays down his life for us (1 Jn 3, 16; 4, 9-10).  Which goes to show that Jesus and God cherish us; we are dear to them.

And so, it is due to them that we are true, solid, firm, and stay safe and sound.  For we are sure that evil will not beat us, since we are all in God’s hands.  No doubt, his love in Christ makes winners of us weak folks.

Besides, such love spurs us on to love also.  And for us to love, cherish, caress one another, as Jesus loves us, is to show that we are his.

But then, of course, to love is easier said than done.  For sure, we speak with God and with others about love.  Yet what we say do not translate time and again into the practice of effective love (SV.EN XI:32-33).

No, it is not easy to love as Jesus.  For one thing, his love starts to be in its splendor and glory as Judas leaves to betray him.  So, for our love to shine like his love, we are to love to the end also; we should lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.  Such charity shows how much we cherish, hold dear our brothers and sisters.

Yet there is the warning that charity has to do not just with things that count most.  We are, in fact, to look for it “chiefly in the ordinary circumstances of life” (GS 38).  In other words, we are to show it day in and day out in the mysteries of joys, lights, troubles and successes we go through.  So that we may be true and help bring about a new order and make all things new.

Lord Jesus, make our life, hidden in you, shine before the world and foreshadow a new heaven and a new earth.  Help us to carry out our task to live in mutual love and esteem, to cherish one another.

18 May 2025
Fifth Sunday of Easter (C)
Acts 14, 21-27; Rev 21, 1-5a; Jn 13, 31-33a. 34-35