THE FINAL WORD

THE FINAL WORD with Debbie Staresinic

VOCATION TO LOVE

According to St. John Paul II

“Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it.” – Pope St. John Paul II

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the common vocation of Christians is to become holy and evangelize (CCC 1533). According to Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body,” the ultimate vocation of all Christians is to make a gift of ourselves to others. There is, of course, no conflict between the two – both point to a vocation to love. The universal vocation to holiness is, in fact, the universal vocation to love. It is to love Christ so much that we do whatever we can to become more holy, and then love others so much that we do whatever we can to bring the message of Christ to the world.

WHAT IS LOVE? The Bible tells us that God is love. If you’re Catholic, you’ve probably heard this phrase dozens of times. These words are so familiar that we may hear them without allowing the wonder of their meaning to register. How is it that God is love?

Our Christian faith informs us that God is a communion of three distinct persons in a relationship of love. The fact that there are three persons in one God is a mystery, one that we will only fully understand in heaven. Yet we can learn about love by looking at the Trinity. Created in God’s image, we are called to be in a loving relationship with God and one another.

The Second Vatican Council, under the influence of Karol Wojtyla, developed our understanding of love by linking the “willing of another’s good” to “self-gift.” To will another’s good requires that, among other goods we desire for them, we also desire to give them our very selves. In short, we love by willing the good of the other and by making a gift of ourselves to them.

Pope St. John Paul II repeats the theme of self-gift throughout his writings referring often to one of his favorite passages from Vatican II: “Man cannot find himself except through a sincere gift of self.” (Gaudium et Spes, 24)

Self-gift is how we fulfill the meaning of our existence. In his Letter on the Dignity and Vocation of Women, Pope St. John Paul II writes, “To say that man is created in the image and likeness of God means that man is called to exist ‘for’ others, to become a gift.” (Mulieris Dignitatem, 7)

GOD’S LOVE THROUGH OUR UNIQUE VOCATION As Christians, we received our primary vocation through the sacraments of initiation, but we are not all called to live out this vocation in the same manner. Each one of us is called to love and evangelize in a unique way. Whether one’s path is to be married, ordained as a priest or deacon, consecrated as a religious brother or sister, or whether one is single and still discerning, the purpose of the journey is the same. We are called to live a life of love and holiness through a sincere and fruitful gift of self to others.

Only when we view human love through the lens of divine love can the mystery of love begin to unfold in our lives. To the extent that our hearts reflect God’s love, we will experience the joy for which we have been created. Here in this life and for eternity in heaven.

DEBBIE STARESINIC

is the founder of On a Mission to Love and author of Theology of the Body Rosary Meditations and On a Mission to Love: Rosary Meditations for Children and Families. Debbie and her husband Dan live in Mason and are blessed by their four children and six grandchildren.

Can you help us preserve this magnificent and historical basilica?

If you’ve been to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains recently, you’ve almost certainly noticed the scaffolding that surrounds its exterior and the crew of workers embarking on more than $4,200,000 of $50,000,000 in deferred maintenance on the 175 year-oldchurch building.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains was built in 1845 as a tribute to the faith of immigrant Catholics. It was rescued from ruin in the 1950s and today is a shining symbol of that same Catholic faith.

But it needs your help if it is to remain that same impressive symbol and home to all Catholic people of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Become a “friend of the Cathedral Basilica” with your contribution to sustain and preserve St. Peter in Chains.

Should you wish to fully fund any particular portion of the need, please contact Fr. Jan Schmidt, Rector.

I would like to support our cathedral basilica.

Please specify how you would like to direct your donation.

Friends of the Cathedral Basilica

Archbishop Karl J. Alter Society (gifts of $1,000 or more) Name _________________________________

Address _______________________________

Phone _________________________________

Email _________________________________

Donate by credit card online at cathedralaoc.org Payment by personal check $________________ (preferred)

Mail this form, along with your check made payable to Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains: Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains, 325 W 8th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 Your donation is tax deductible. Save a copy of this document for your records!

100 E. 8th St. • Cincinnati, OH 45202