Inspiring Others to a Greater Love

I’ve been swept up in a lot of memories this past week, because February 7 is my father’s death anniversary, February 8 is my parent’s wedding anniversary, and February 10 is the Feast of St. Scholastica, patroness of my community at Mount St. Scholastica. It is appropriate to reflect on their lives as Valentine’s Day approaches, because their legacy of love continues to guide me.

My dad’s love of God and his family was the guiding light of his life, and I was fortunate to have parents who modeled mutual devotion, respect, and companionship in their marriage. As for St. Scholastica, she famously challenged her brother, St. Benedict, to put love above the letter of the law when she asked him to prolong their last visit together instead of returning to his monastery for the night. When he refused, she prayed and God granted her request by sending a fierce thunderstorm that prevented Benedict from leaving. As St. Gregory remarked in his Dialogues, “Surely it is no more than right that her influence was greater than his, since hers was the greater love.”

We know that Jesus valued love above all else, because he observed that the greatest commandment is to love God with all our mind, heart, and soul and to love others as ourselves. Thus the finest use of our lives is to inspire others to a greater love, even after we die.

I’m reminded of the story of a woman who said to her husband, who was dying, “Moe, how am I supposed to live without you?” He responded, “Take the love you have for me and spread it around.” That is what the disciples of Jesus did after his death, and that is the best way to honor our own deceased loved ones, so that the unfolding of time and space will continue to be impregnated with their love, and ours.