TGIMMifit

	LOVE, THAT'S ENOUGH FOR ME

The Gospel

JOHN 17:24-26

[Jesus said:] "Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them."

The Media -- "If It's Love" (Train)

"I confess you are the best thing in my life, but I’m afraid when I hear stories about a husband and wife, there’s no happy endings, but you are the greatest thing about me. If it’s love, and we decide that it’s forever, no one else could do it better. If it’s love, and we’re two birds of a feather, then the rest is just 'whenever.' And if I'm addicted to loving you, and you're addicted to my love too, we can be two birds of a feather that flock together. Got to have something to keep us together. Love, that’s enough for me."

When Jesus was praying for his followers at the Last Supper, he prayed that they would have love. He wanted such a love to be as perfect as a human being's love could be, comparing it to his own love for his Father and his Father's love for him. He knew that that love was present "before the foundation of the world." Such a love will be forever. Such a love will lead his followers to the happiness of Jesus' glory. Such a love will make Jesus present with his followers forever.

When human beings work with the thought of love, they will often think of it as the media presents love. It will be love in a romantic setting, love which begins with infatuation, progresses through the early love feelings of high school and college, culminating in the love of husband and wife. It seems that Jesus may not have been speaking of such a love in his prayer at the Last Supper, but in fact he was because he was speaking of any love that he wanted for his followers.

Thinking of romantic love within the setting of Jesus' love means that such a love will have certain characteristics. The group Train's song "If It's Love" worries about the romantic love because the person in the song hears "stories about a husband and wife" and "there's no happy endings." But if it is true that romantic love is part of the love of Jesus for his Father, then there should be no such worry. Love will last forever, and it will be happy.

The problem, of course, lies in the fact that the romantic love is human love to begin with. Human nature is flawed, and often there will indeed be worries about the romantic love that human beings have for one another because our human natures do not totally understand love yet. But the beauty of a Christian's romantic love of another is that it is part of the divine love. It is love whose author is God, and if the relationship really is love, happy endings will always be the result.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, you call us to love one another, and you call most of us to a romantic love of others. May we come to a better understanding of your love so that our love will be more perfect in every circumstance of our lives. Be with us, we pray.

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GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: If any love is true love, it will last forever.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. In the Gospel, Jesus prays for the disciples and in a sense, all of us, in this part of the High Priestly prayer as recorded by John the evangelist. What do you need most right now as Jesus prays for you?
2. Jesus primarily prays for unity in this prayer. Why is unity so important for our world?
3. Text analysis: “When I hear stories about a husband and wife, there’s no happy endings.” This is obviously an exaggeration. In your opinion, what percentage of marriages are “happy”? Why?
4. What makes marriages happy?
5. Obviously, the person in the song is happy with the relationship. You really don’t know whether his partner responds the same way. How does a person know that the other is responding with love?
4. Project: “Love “ is not defined in the song. Write a definition of love in 25 words or less.
5. The “love” that Train is singing of is obviously “romantic” love. In your opinion, what are the different types of love?
6. Many times “young love” does not carry through into later life. Do you think that there is any obligation of concern for people whom we loved in romantic way early in life? Yes or no and why?
7. The meditation refers to how the media presents love? How does the media define “romantic love” and how does it differ from the way Jesus would define it?
8. The meditation says that “human nature is flawed.” What are the largest “flaws” of human nature?
9. What does the song “If It’s Love” teach young people?

Questions, comments? Let me know. Email Fr. Mike