“It [love] is tough because it means dependency on God for that which we cannot do by ourselves. It is tough because the objects of our love often act in unlovable ways or they reject our love when we give it. It is tough because we have to keep coming back with more love, even when it is rejected.” (Foundation Study Bible, 1 Corinthians 13:1-13)
“Love is to listen with pain to the worries of the other. Love is also a concerned, pained glance; and a word spoken with pain for - and to - the other, when he is facing hardships. Love is to participate in his sorrow, to comfort him in his trouble. Love is to bear the onerous thing another may say to you. All these things help far more than many words and any outward displays.” (Papa Demetri)
“Despite, or because of, all the incredible technology our society has at its fingertips, human beings are becoming more and more isolated. Suicide, drug abuse, and depression continue to increase. To make up for our inability to love one another in totality, society elevates social causes to ease our consciences. Human beings are losing the ability to actually love each other, even as they are heroically taking on huge social problems throughout the world. The words of St. Paul the Apostle come to mind: “And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing” (1 Cor. 13:3).” (Jonathan Jackson)
“…the people in your life are icons of God. With the Holy Spirit supplying internal grace and fortitude, we can pass through difficult circumstances with love rather than desperate self-interest.” (Father Barnabas Powell)
“God structures the world so that love for others is the true foundation of every flourishing human interaction.” (OCPM 3/29/2017)