Reflection from one year ago:

It seems so breathtakingly easy for Jesus to show love that encompasses compassion, empathy, charity, and sacrifice. The agape love that is unique within a relationship between man and God.  This relationship can be individual but also encompass all of humanity, all at the same time.

So in our own little world of family, I wonder why it is sometimes difficult for us to show compassion or sympathy towards someone we love but seemingly easier to show to people we don’t love or sometimes we don’t even know?  Interestingly, it falls to our own expectations.

“A stranger, an acquaintance or even a work colleague isn’t part of that crucial circle that involves feeling good about yourself in relation to the other person, so you can be empathetic to them. They are separate from you and you don’t expect them to meet your needs without your having to explain what you need.  And here’s the key to the whole problem: We expect our loved ones to know what we need without our having to explain ourselves, and without our having to give them anything back. When this fails, we become frustrated and unemphatic towards them.” 1

Jesus’s love is for all, believers and enemies.  His love is for all who ask and those who don’t ask. He does not expect anything in return. His love is unmerited because His Being is only love.  If only we could love that unconditionally.

Kyrie Eleison,

Paula

Excerpt from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-couch/201502/why-its-easier-be-kind-strangers-our-partners  January 31 2017