St. Paul poses one of the most profound questions in all of Scripture: "Who will separate us from the love of Christ?" (Romans 8:35). His answer is unequivocal: nothing. Yet this certainty gives rise to another, more soul-searching question: If nothing can separate us from Christ's love, why do we so often fail to live in that love? The obstacles are rarely external; they arise within the human heart. Pride resists humility, fear refuses trust, resentment imprisons forgiveness, indifference blinds us to the suffering of others, and the illusion of self-sufficiency keeps us from depending on God. None of these can diminish Christ's love for us, but they can diminish our capacity to receive that love, to be transformed by it, and to share it with others.

Modern culture often reduces love to emotion, attraction, or personal fulfillment. Love is measured by how intensely it is felt rather than by how faithfully it is lived. Relationships are frequently sustained only as long as they satisfy personal desires. We long to be loved, yet we fear the cost of loving. We seek ourselves in the other; we love because the other reflects our own needs, desires, or identity. When that reflection fades, love often fades with it. What we call love can become little more than attachment to ourselves.

Christ reveals a radically different understanding of love. His love is not based on reciprocity, usefulness, or emotional satisfaction. It is self-giving, creative, and unconditional. This is why St. Paul's question is so extraordinary. To love Christ, then, is not merely to admire Him or to preserve memories of Him. Christ is not simply a figure from history but the living presence of God continually encountered in the Eucharist, in the poor, in the stranger, in the community of faith, and in the ordinary moments of daily life. His love is not an abstract idea but a reality that seeks to transform our way of seeing and being. When His love becomes the center of our existence, we no longer ask merely, "Who will separate me from Christ?" We begin to ask, "Does my life reveal the inseparable love of Christ to others?" Faith reaches its fullness when the love we have received becomes the love we freely give.

Blessings in Christ,
Fr. Lijoy Jose, OFM Cap.
Pastor

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