What is the LOVE
that Jesus speaks about?
By Rev. Zlatko Sudac

Look at the sun. The sun shines and heats. Look at the sea. Look at nature in all its beauty. It simply is. Flowers are simply fragrant. One of the greatest characteristics of love is that it is spread equally around. The sun shines both for the good and the evil ones. The rain waters the land for both of them. Can a tree say – I shall give my shade to the good, and deny it to the evil. The tree simply gives what it gives. It gives shade even to the one who is about to cut it down. If only we might gain this quality and stop dividing people into good ones and bad ones, into saints and sinners. Comprehend that sins do not vanish. No-one sins because he knows. ‘’Father forgive them Father, they know not what they do.’’ That is love.

Another great quality of l ove is its freedom

A tree will leave you free. The flowers will leave you free. The sun will leave you free. Have you ever heard of a flower that smells nice in order to attract your attention? The fragrance, warmth of the sun, the softness of the rain, like love, simply exist, without any objective. We rightly say that a man does not love a woman if he takes her by the amount of the dowry she brings into the house. And we are right to claim so. But do you love only when you are with people who can return love, and with others are you arrogant? Is that love? Does the love arise only when an object appears, or it simply is? Have you ever felt sick seing a forest being cut down somewhere, although you will have no benefit from that forest? Or watching the innocent suffer, although you do not know them? Have you ever moved a stone from the road, so someone might not get hurt although you may never meet that person? You probably have. Then it was love, and it emerged on the surface. And seek no merit for that, for love is free.

What is the third quality of life?
It is free of charge

You cannot buy it, if both you and me get rid of the anxiety to control other people. Understand, whenever there is in you coercion, anxiety, a fear of not being loved, the love dies. Love cannot stand such feelings. It simply is.

The last and the greatest quality of love is that it is not aware of itself. Just as the sun is not aware of its shining and heating, the bird of its singing, the flower of its fragrance, or the tree of providing the shade, so the love is not aware that it loves. Can you imagine feeding two or three thousand hungry children? You do it from the goodness of your heart. Can you feel bad when you are so useful in this world? No. You say we do good deeds many times in our lives. So we do, but do we do them for love? ‘'Come the blessed by my Father, for you fed me when I was hungry, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, and I was naked and you dressed me.'' And what will they say: ‘'When, when did we see you Lord, hungry and thirsty and in dungeon, when, we did not know?'' But we know.

Sometimes a horrible thought comes across my mind that the Lord might say: ‘'Come you blessed by my Father, for I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink, and they say: Yes, Lord, we know. And He responds: I am not talking to you, you should not have known.''

The full article can be found on page 38 of Vol 3
2007 issue.