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Central Expressions of Love

1st Tuesday of Lent
Feast of Saint Conrad of Piacenza


IN TODAY'S GOSPEL (Matthew 6:7-15) the Lord taught the crowd the right way to pray to the Father, the prayer Christians later named as the Lord's Prayer. He taught prayer as a child talking to his father. The first part of the prayer must be an expression of worship to the Father--may your name be held holy (v.9)--and an affirmation of our commitment to follow His will in our lives--your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven (v. 10). The second part consists of addressing our need for help to physically survive--give us today our daily bread (v. 11)--to be forgiven for our transgressions--And forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven those who are in debt to us (v. 12)--and to be spared from the temptation of the devil--And do not put us to the test, but save us from the evil one (v. 13).
 
The center of this prayer that Jesus taught his disciples is the love of God and our fitting response to that love. God expresses His love to us through His generosity of grace and providence (our daily bread), His willingness to forgive us if we forgive others (v. 12), and His protective grace against the seduction of the evil one (v. 13). And our fitting response is to be grateful for the Father's love by worshipping Him alone and by following His will. These are responses of love because these can only happen when we truly love God. We cannot truly worship God if we do not love him. We cannot really follow His will if our heart is far from Him.
 
In effect, the only road to God is the road of love, the complete surrender to the love of God.
 
FATHER, thank you for Your unending love for us. Thank you for making Your love flow upon us so that our hearts may be overwhelmed with it; so that we may stay inside Your love for the rest of our earthly lives.
 
LORD, thank you for letting yourself be the persona of God's love for us. Your sacrifice on the Cross reveals to us a love that knows no bound even in death in order to save us from perdition. Teach us to be grateful children of your Father, who too is our own. Teach us to be like you in following the will of your Father even to death. Amen.
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