,
How have you been?
It’s been a while and I hope this e-mail finds you full of love, hope and joy.
I hope you are enjoying this journey getting acquainted with the teachings of Theology of the Body.
I would like to ask, what is your definition of married love?
I pleasantly discovered while reading Pope Francis’ exhortation named Amoris Laetitia which means “the joy of love”, that “the grace of the sacrament of marriage is intended before all else to perfect the couple’s love."
He even mentioned that love coexists with imperfections.
According to him, it bears all things and can hold its peace before the limitations of the loved ones.
This reminded me that even if love is imperfect, it does not mean that it is untrue. We should learn to forgive each other’s imperfections in love and learn to let love triumph amidst our failings.
We are all called to discover the real meaning and value of love in our everyday experiences of joy and suffering, no matter what state we are in, single or married.
Chapter 4 which is entitled, “Love in Marriage” pleasantly discusses the different aspects of love. That it endures all things.
I was reminded that patience and humility involves letting other people be themselves even when they act differently from what we would like.
The statement in the book that says, “God’s patience is shown in His mercy towards sinners is a sign of His real power” is very moving.
We really have a long-suffering, patient and loving Father in Heaven.
I have always admired long-suffering and patient people because they are slow to anger and I know they are not offended easily. I just realized that these people exhibit much love even in their silence because they are not quick to judge people.
I tend to be impulsive in my actions and I realized this is not what true love is.
God calls us to be loving, to serve and benefit others, even more so our families. How can we best love and serve our family today? How can we be more patient towards our loved ones?
There is no ego nor pride in true love. It embraces the weak and speaks words of comfort, strength and encouragement. It especially calls for respect for the other’s freedom.
In our families, understanding of one another’s needs whether emotional, physical or spiritual is very important.
We should know when to give hope, love and joy to one another especially when it is lacking.
We should avoid saying words that demean, sadden or anger each other.
Lastly, I was reminded that love is free. It is freely given, it expects nothing in return, says no to violence, and takes no account of evil.
All of these ideas about true love got me thinking that as a single person, loving generously through a great spirit of sacrifice is good training ground to prepare for married life.
Wishing you love and joy,
Anne Cabrieto
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