Fun Fact #1
Love is an act of the will.
I first read this as a high schooler in Eric Fromm’s The Art of Loving. It’s come in mighty handy ever since.
Songs, movies, and novels can diminish our view of love to just feelings. Which is pretty shaky ground for any friendship, especially a life-long commitment in marriage.
Real love is loving God above all things and to love others for God’s sake. In other words, if we make up our mind to love them as God loves them, we can love people we don’t like—or can’t stand the sight of at the moment!
Which leads us to fun fact #2.
Fun Fact #2
Loving our enemies is the best.
Although it’s more fun to love those whom we like, love for someone who has betrayed us is—wait for it— purer. That’s because we have the privilege of loving them with the love with which God has loved us when we betrayed him. We love them with the unconditional love we long to receive, and deep down know we were born for, even though we haven’t earned it.
And what does it look like to love our enemies? It doesn’t mean we have to put ourselves in the line of fire. In fact, it’s okay to avoid them if we can. It means that we wish them the same blessings we wish for ourselves and treat them with courtesy and help that’s called for when we come in contact with them.
Praying for them is a great way to dissolve the resentment that can be hard to let go of any other way.
Fun Fact #3
Love is the Holy Spirit acting in us.
Love is called Charity when love for others grows out of our friendship with God. This kind of love isn’t something we can come up with ourselves. It’s a gift. Charity is the actual love of the Father and the Son active in our mind, heart, and will.
St. Jane de Chantal wrote, “Once the love of God takes possession of your heart, all the rest will be easy.” That is, the more we prepare ourselves to receive the love of God and to enjoy the happiness of it, the more intensely the Holy Spirit fills our hearts with himself, who is Love.
It can be hard to give up focusing on our preferences and the hurts others have caused. But those things are passing away. Focusing instead on the eternal God who is love is a better plan for the future and a way to bring real joy to the present moment.
Lord, make me always more open to love with your love, especially those I find hard to love at all. Love them through me, now, at this moment. Amen.
Love always,
Rose
Elizabeth Nealey
I really needed to hear this and be reminded of it right now Rose. Thank you so much!
Rose Folsom
Elizabeth,
So glad it resonated!
Rose
P.S. I love your email address :)
Christine Drinkwine
Thank you for putting into words so simply that which is taught in the catechism
Diane Upham
Beautiful message that I will save and read over and over!!
You are precious Jennie Rose!!
Thank you.
Liz Tomaszeski
Rose,
These are truly wonderful Fun Facts about Love. It is the Holy Spirit working each day within us until we are complete in Christ Jesus ?
Tom Roberts
When I think about love it takes me straight to Fun Fact #2. That brings me to Duke Ellington’s declaration: “Love IS unconditional. It’s not ‘Where have you been?’ it’s ‘How are you?’” It’s not easy, but it’s simple. That carries me to Fun Fact #1. Looking at it that way love is a job with a paycheck.
Barbara Ballard Kreutzer
All so true!
Eileen Rains
Thank you Rose, (“that is a beautiful name, ROSE“…Tom Hanks from ‘You’ve Got Mail’, and I’ve always agreed ?), I learned from my mom when I was young that true love is NOT an emotion but a choice, some times she would say, “ I love you but I don’t like you right now!” ?? But even though my head knows it, some things like that and FORGIVENESS, PATIENCE etc etc are not always easy to wrap my heart around! I really enjoyed reading your THREE FUN FACTS ABOUT LOVE❣️❣️❣️???
Pat Friedhoff
Loving our enemies is always the hardest thing…you explained it in a way that makes sense to me. Hopefully with prayer, I can end the grudges I hold – they only hurt me in the long run.