Abiding in Love

The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened our appreciation of age-old wisdom that we tend to neglect in busier times. The pandemic has certainly been a time of darkness, but it also has provided moments of enlightenment, like a ray of light that hits a facet of a prism and makes it sparkle.

One example is the observation by Mother Teresa that “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” Generally, we don’t give a thought to the myriad of small things that make up our days, judging them to be of small consequence. However, unlike us, God doesn’t distinguish between great and small acts of love. To God, baking a German chocolate cake for a friend’s birthday because you know it’s her favorite is just as consequential as finding a cure for a deadly disease or negotiating a ceasefire in a war zone.

If our goal is to participate in God’s life during our time on earth, that means we will try to respond in a loving manner in every occasion that arises—and those occasions are usually quite ordinary. Generally, they involve taking time for such things as writing a condolence card, watering a patch of thirsty flowers, doing household chores without grumbling, or listening to someone who is lonely.

Sr. Joan Chittister says, “What humans do on this earth either continues creation or obstructs it.” Our small acts done with love help creation unfold in peace and abundance. I see that in the monastery in the bread that is lovingly baked by Sr. Loretta McGuire, in the plants that are tenderly nurtured by Sr. Delores Dolezal, in the bees that are diligently cared for by Sisters Elaine Fischer and Patricia Seipel, in the liturgical piano pieces that are practiced by Sisters Susan Barber and Cecilia Olson. It all matters, even when others don’t see us doing it or fail to acknowledge it. What you do matters, and I am grateful for all the ways you further the unfolding of creation in love, as God hoped and intended.