Article February 16, 2009 Issue

THE DEMAND TO LOVE

IT IS OUR NATURE TO PAINT THE CANVAS OF HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS WITH MORE AND MORE LOVE.

BY CURT WAHLBERG

Love is perhaps the thing I have the hardest time describing on a deep level. It's not that I'm an unaffectionate guy. I probably kiss my kids more than they'd like. It's just that I get the feeling that there's a lot more to love than what I've been able to prove with my life so far.

I often simply tell people that I see love as "the way forward." Great love is the demand within our families, our communities, and our whole world. And the reason I say this is that I've seen how progress, or life-fulfillment, is all connected to our relationship with divine Love, another name for God. To me, the Scriptures back up this idea time and time again. In an epistle of John we read that "God is love" (I John 4:8). The Scriptures also indicate that the true nature of mankind is in being the expression or "image" of God (see Gen. 1:26). Christ Jesus was a clear example of how being closer to the essence of divine Life means a life that's all about love.

This love has to be about more than hugs and kisses, though. Not that there's anything so bad about those. There's also nothing wrong with giving someone presents or dishing out compliments, either. But I often ask myself, Where does the concept of love ultimately take us?

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