Homily 7 November 2004

Twenty Third Sunday after Pentecost
On Love is Not Jealous

St. Paul writes, “Love envies not,” (I Cor. 13:4) which St. Alphonsus explains, “The soul that loves Jesus Christ does not envy the great ones of the world, but only those who are greater lovers of Jesus Christ.” (The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ.)

With St. Gregory the Great, St. Alphonsus says love envies not because loves finds no reason to envy worldly people for divine love despises earthly glory more than desiring it.

St. Alphonsus identifies two types of emulation (or envious rivalry):one wicked and one holy. Wicked emulation envies, and is saddened by, the worldly goods owned by others; holy emulation does not envy but pities the great ones of the earth, who live among pleasures and honors. Holy emulation strives to love only God; strives to desire nothing but God in this life. St. Alphonsus says, this holy rivalry bears within itself, “a holy envy of those who love God more than it does.” Such a soul desires to surpass even the seraphim in loving God.

The soul that loves God can not be jealous of anything but love. “You have ravished my heart, my sister, my bride, you have ravished my heart with one glance of your eyes.” (Song 4:9) “One glance” refers to all thoughts and exertions which service the pleasure of God.

Worldly people have many distractions: riches, pleasures, honors, concerns for health and beauty... such souls are taken up with “many glances.” St. Alphonsus says we love God purely when, with “one glance,” all our movements seek to please Him.

Therefore, St. Alphonsus encourages us to labor for the sole purpose of pleasing God. Many deeds otherwise praiseworthy are tarnished because in them is found a certain self-seeking. St. Mary Magdalen says, “God rewards our actions according to the weight of their purity.”

Oh, but how difficult to labor simply to please God! St. Alphonsus says, “How accursed is self-love, which costs all of the greater part of the fruit of our good actions. How many even in the most sacred occupations - preachers, confessors, missionaries - labor and struggle, but gain little or nothing, because they did not focus enough on God alone, but on worldly glory, on self interests, or on some vanity for the spotlight, or simply for their own inclination.”

Labors for God gain merit; otherwise they do not: “You that earn wages earn wages to put them in a bag with holes” (Hg1:6) The bags stand for our labors; the holes are caused by self-seeking.

Do we seek ourselves in our labors?

Becoming greatly disturbed that we could not achieve the purpose of our work is a sign that we sought more our will in that endeavor than the purpose of God. St. Alphonsus tells us that those who do something simply for God’s glory are not troubled by failure because “they have already achieved their purpose of pleasing God, by acting with a pure intention.”

<>St. Alphonsus lists some indicators whether or not we are striving to serve only God:

<>if we are not bothered by the failure because seeing that God does not wish it, neither do we;
if we rejoice at the good done by others, as if we ourselves had done it;
if we do not desire one assignment more than another, but gladly accept whatever obedience to superiors entails;
if after our labors we seek neither thanks nor approval from others;
AND SO, if others ever complain or disapprove, we will not become upset, but remain satisfied that we have pleased God.
Finally, if the world should applaud us, we do not become conceited, but respond to the temptation to vanity by repeating with Venerable John of Avila, “Go away, you have come too late. The work has already been given completely to God.”

<>
Moreover, Jesus Christ expects His friends to labor for Him. “Set me as a seal upon your heart; as a seal upon your arm.” (Song 8:6) We place Jesus Christ as a seal on our heart and arms when we intend to please Him and labor to please Him; God must be the aim of our thoughts and actions. <>

There once lived a holy hermit who, before he began any project, would lift up his eyes to heaven and give the labor to God before touching any tool for the purpose. When asked why, he would respond, “I am trying to make sure that I hit the target.”

St. Alphonsus says just as an archer aims before shooting, so we should aim first to please God in our labors before having any other motive. Even in continuing a work already begun, he tells us we should, from time to time, renew our intention of doing the work to please God.

<>A pure intention to please God turns even the most trivial tasks, “working, eating meals, recreating or resting,” into the gold of heavenly love. St. Mary Magdalen Pazzi believed that those who do everything with a pure intention, go straight to heaven.

St. Alphonsus laments that many, however, are unwilling to serve God this way. They want this or that assignment; they want to do that project in this or that place, with these persons not those, else they will quit their task or do it begrudgingly. These are slaves of self-love; these will profit little from their endeavors. They are restless and they perceive the yoke of Jesus to be too heavy because their love is stained.

<>St. Alphonsus says the true lovers of Jesus Christ love with a pure love. They desire to do what pleases Jesus because it pleases Jesus - when He wills, where He wills, and as He wills, whether surrounded with worldly honors or shrouded in obscurity and neglect. (Home school mothers.)

What is important is loving Jesus with a pure heart. This is true even in spiritual works.

One day, Fr. Alvarez was rushing his work because he wished to go and say his prayers... thinking God was not then minding Him. But the Blessed Savior stopped him, “Though I may not have you with me, I am making use of you - that should be enough.”

<>St. Alphonsus says this is a good lessen for those who become upset when they have to take themselves away from their devotions to service obedience or charity (phone call, crying baby, knock at the door). He tells us this type of worry comes not from God but the devil or self-love.

Finally, St. Alphonsus ends his explanation of “Love envies not” by giving us the first maxim of the saints who strive to serve God with a pure love, “Please God, and then go ahead and die.”

<>After “love envies not” St. Paul writes, “Love deals not perversely” which St. Alphonsus explains, “Those who love Jesus Christ avoid lukewarmness and love perfection.” This will be out topic next time.