Let your life be free from love of money but be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never forsake you. …" Hebrews 13:5

St. Augustine says we are made for love.  But made for love does not mean we know how to love. Learning to love tells the story of our lives. As in any classroom, we often fail. In whatever absorbs us — work, meetings, sports, cooking, prayer — the call to love can be heard. We seek what we don't fully grasp, even when it is present. And in some ways, love is always present.

St. Paul dispels the myths. To love is not comfortable or easy. Not a surge of feeling, love is a great thirst.  We are called into struggle to find rest. Paul tells us to open our lives to strangers and to treat outsiders as angels in our midst. Prisoners must be shown care as if we were locked up together. Celebrate the promises made before God and the community. Do not fall under the spell of money. Because wealth is already present, our gifts can flow freely.

God, free us from the illusions of love.

Jeanne Schuler