To be saved by you, O Lord, is to receive from you the gift of loving you and being loved by you. This is why you willed that your Son be called Jesus, Saviour, for he saves people from their sins by the power of his love. He teaches us to love him by his love for us. He shows us the mercy of love by sacrificing himself on the cross out of his love for all mankind. By holding us so dear, he has stirred our hearts to love him.
Thus, Lord, through your Son you expressed your infinite love for us, that we might love you. That was not because you needed to be loved by us. It was because we could not be what you created us to be, except by loving you.
You, O God, our souls' creator, know that affection cannot be forced from unwilling souls, but has to be evoked. This is because there can be no freedom where there is compulsion. Love must always be freely given and freely received.
We could not with justice have been saved without learning to love you. And we love you because you evoked our love, through the loving sacrifice of your Son. You willed that we should love you, yet without ever constraining our freedom.
We hold as a gift more precious than gold, your love. From the beginning of creation your Son, the eternal Word, has been tossing about on the stormy waters of human souls, striving to bring peace through the gift of love. Now he has breathed over the waters of our souls, and the waves are calm. Merciful Father, we thank you. William of Saint Thierry - c.1065-1148
20.05.13
Thus, Lord, through your Son you expressed your infinite love for us, that we might love you. That was not because you needed to be loved by us. It was because we could not be what you created us to be, except by loving you.
You, O God, our souls' creator, know that affection cannot be forced from unwilling souls, but has to be evoked. This is because there can be no freedom where there is compulsion. Love must always be freely given and freely received.
We could not with justice have been saved without learning to love you. And we love you because you evoked our love, through the loving sacrifice of your Son. You willed that we should love you, yet without ever constraining our freedom.
We hold as a gift more precious than gold, your love. From the beginning of creation your Son, the eternal Word, has been tossing about on the stormy waters of human souls, striving to bring peace through the gift of love. Now he has breathed over the waters of our souls, and the waves are calm. Merciful Father, we thank you. William of Saint Thierry - c.1065-1148
