Two Loves Only

“I believe wholeheartedly that the only way out of domination is love, and the only way into really being able to connect with others, and to know how to be, is to be participating in every aspect of your life as a sacrament of love.”

          bell hooks (from an interview with George Yancy)

____________________________

 

“there are two loves only”

Michel Quoist once wrote

“love of self and love of others”

 

I am not so sure they are exclusionary

for as Jesus aptly noted

we cannot love others if we do not have a love of self

and we cannot love ourself

(in my experience)

unless we are nestled down in that Love in which

we live and move and have our being

 

but there are two ways of living

two paths we can take as we

stumble through the darkness

 

and these paths, I think seldom of ever meet

for they are radical opposed

 

the way of domination and the way of love

 

America is all about domination

the more power

the more money

the bigger the gun

the more toys

the greater the privilege

the better

 

the goal of domination is to control

to have the capacity to force others to your will

to make them who you want to be

 

this is the path of the AR-15

the path of “turn or burn’

the path of abortion bans

and voter suppression

 

and it is devastating

leaving women minimized

and young black men dead

and immigrants languishing on our borders

and the homeless on the street

 

it is the way of injustice

and economic inequity

and abuse

 

the only way off this path

the only way out of this darkness

is to follow the path of servanthood

using the flickering light of love

 

we will not defeat those who want to dominate

by playing their game

domination will not defeat domination

(although we are tempted to believe it will)

 

if we use domination to end the domination of the other

we lose

hate does not end hate, it creates more

violence does not end violence, it creates more

 

what works is strong love

not a permissive love

not a silent love

not a comfortable love

 

but an in-your-face love

a love that stands up in the face of evil

an active love

that listens, gives, forgives, helps cares

sacrifices

 

Christians celebrate a sacrament of love

but it is a sacrament grounded in sacrifice

in the most radical of giving

the most radical love

possible

 

our lives should be a sacrament of love

_______________________

 

“We lift our voices, We lift our hands

We lift our lives up to You, We are an offering

Lord use our voices, Lord use our hands

Lord use our lives they are Yours

We are an offering

 

All that we have, All that we are

All that we hope to be, We give to You

We give to You”

 

Songwriter: Dwight Liles

We Are An Offering lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc

Used through OneLicense