Quotes of the Day for January 26, 2021 – Thoughts on the importance and holiness of friendship

“Christ has come according to the power given Him from the Almighty Father, and has summoned people to friendship, blessing, repentance, and dwelling together…we should regard our fellow Christians—as friends, since each of us has become a friend of Christ.  It is perhaps significant that the same Saint John who reported that Christ called the disciples His friends in John 15:15 also used the term to describe Christians [3 John 14]—it is because Christ has made us His friends that we have friendship and loyalty with one other.  And we have become Christ’s friends because He has revealed to us the mystery of His salvation and risen power. (St. Justin Martyr, Fr. Lawrence Farley)

“Man has no greater friend than God, and God Himself wants to be man’s friend. According to the scriptures, the very purpose of the coming of Christ was to dispel all enmity between God and man, and to establish the co-working of Creator and creature in the fellowship of friendship.” (Father Thomas Hopko)

“A true friendship needs depth and time to mature. Then much care must be taken to maintain and preserve it…True friendship is a form of love, founded on knowledge in depth, on affinities of taste and ideas, and the ability to listen and give help…friendships help to satisfy the neediness we have in common as finite creatures and social animals. If we were gods and entirely self-sufficient, we might be able to do without friends. But we are not gods and so we need friends in order to flourish and be happy. Ironically, this neediness, which is sometimes mistakenly thought of as weakness, is the soil in which the mutuality and reciprocity of friendship grows.” (Jean-Claude Larchet, Vigen Guroian)

“Hurt is so much a part of being in a relationship that it is difficult for many of us to open ourselves to others. We may even question whether it is worth all the trouble and effort. Friendship is a risk many of us don’t wish to take…being a true friend to someone can also be quite difficult. People normally have so many personal agendas, needs, and expectations that the friendship given or received is usually conditional. Consequently, the sensitivity needed for true friendship is frequently distorted by a sea of conditions, prejudices, demands, and personal insecurities.…friends are not only important for support, but are also necessary for psychological and spiritual growth—if you will, for holiness.” (Robert J. Wicks)

“…we begin to become heroes simply by being friends, by being loyal to each other through the trials that afflict us and holding tight to the things and people that are worthy of love.” (Philip Ryken)

#StJustinMartyr #FrLawrenceFarley #FatherThomasHopko #JeanClaudeLarchet #VigenGuroian #RobertJWicks #PhilipRyken