LOVING FRIENDSHIP
I
am amazed at people who have remained friends for a long time. A common
custom here in the Philippines is to keep in touch with childhood
friends. Friends are like members of the family. This friendship is a
rare treasure indeed.
The story of Maximilian Kolbe is an inspiring story of sacrificial love
and friendship. A prisoner had escaped from the notorious concentration
camps in Auschwitz. As an act of punishment, men were chosen at random
to take the place of the escaped criminal in the gas chambers. When one
man was chosen by the soldiers, he begged for his release because he had
wife and family at home. At this point, Fr. Kolbe, a Polish Franciscan
priest, moved forward and took the place of the young father. Fr. Kolbe
was driven to the gas chambers, thus saving the life of the other man.
Jesus says in the Gospel: “No man can have greater love than to lay down
his life for his friends.”
Friendship is a gift from the Lord. The wise sage in Proverbs advises
that to gain a friend is a treasure indeed. Friends who will stand by
you in tough times are hard to come by, but they do exist. It is a
matter of begging the Lord in His wisdom and love to seek out these
friends that will persevere in relationships.
The basis of our catechesis is to love, serve and honor God and to be
with Him forever in heaven. How can we love God whom we cannot see?
The answer lies in the command of Jesus: Love one another. St. John
teaches that when we love our neighbor, we are showing our love for God.
This sounds very simple, yet perhaps the most difficult at times. Jesus
asks us to love, to the point of death, in imitation of Him who has
loved us and gave Himself for us. Fr. Brian Steele, MGL
REFLECTION QUESTION: Are you a loving friend to your friends?
Lord, help us to love one another as You have loved us — to the end. Amen.
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