If God is Love...

I was thinking about the concept of love and about the concept of grace. And it occurred to me that the two are inseparable. Actually, it may not be possible to love without grace. Grace is the infusing of God's love into our lives and our actions, and it is culminated in our acceptance and application of that love. Love is grafted and woven into our nature as human beings. We were created in the Love of God and for the Love of God. It is one of the things that distinguishes us from all other living things.

It could be said that we must love because it is in our nature to love - much like squirrels climb trees because it is in a squirrel’s nature to climb trees - we love because that's what we are designed to do, barring any disorders or other psychological factors that would hinder that natural drive. All Love is the Love of God, working through us. Consequently, every instance of love in our lives is a cooperation with grace, and a cooperation with God.

I've heard love defined as the extension of the self to others, and I think that is a beautiful definition. While that definition could be argued, and it certainly is more than that, it is a great starting point. Love is an action; not an emotion. Therefore, if love is an action, then love is a choice; we can always choose the path of love, regardless of how we feel! We could also choose the opposite path, but the opposite of love is not hate - it’s apathy or indifference. But we don't love well much of the time. Sometimes we don't love at all. Sometimes we miss our opportunity.

So if we choose to love, what exactly are we choosing? As St. John tells us in Scripture, “God is love”. To choose love, then, is to choose God, no matter what our concept of God may be. The ‘atheist mother’ who loves her children is responding to the natural tendency toward God. She is, in a sense, saying yes to God, and by her love of her children, affirms herself as a child of God despite her lack of belief – that is a hopeful thought.

If we love, it is only through grace that we love, and by no other way can love exist in the world. If God is Love, then Love is God. So all love is the Love of God, working through us. It is also to take your place in the great chain of being (as the Greek philosophers might say), because you are then doing what you are designed to do. And, to take our rightful place in the world is to step into the river of grace, because we become who we truly are. This means, then, that a person who loves has a direct encounter with Grace. And in that way, they are essentially inseparable.

So, remember to love well today, to show love to others, with actions. With kindness. God loves everyone, and when we love others, we are accepting His invitation to participate in His Love for us all.