A couple of weeks ago the second reading at Mass was from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. It is one of the most popular of all scripture references. It talks about love.

“Love is patient; love is kind. Love is not jealous, it does not put on airs, it is not snobbish. Love is never rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not prone to anger; neither does it brood over injuries. Love does not rejoice in what is wrong but rejoices in the truth. There is no limit to love’s forbearance, to its truth, its hope and its power to endure. Love never fails.”

It is amazing that something that was written almost 2,000 years ago can hold such an important place in society still today. I can guarantee that many of the weddings you have attended probably used this reading. It is one of those readings you hear so often, but do we actually listen to what it has to say?

It is also fitting to bring this scripture verse up during the month of February, the month of Valentine’s Day. 

When symbols of hearts and love are all over the stores, as well as in the media and advertisements on television. February for many is considered a month of love.

But I would like to pose a challenge to you in this month ahead. I would ask that you take St. Paul’s famous piece of scripture and replace the word love with your own name. Let that sink in for a moment. Reread the verses above and where the word love appears (or the pronoun it) put your own name in the reading. How does the verse change? Is it accurate? Is that how you would truly describe yourself? Is that how others would describe you?

Are you patient? Are you kind? Are you not jealous? Are you not prone to anger? Is there no limit to your forbearance, your truth, your hope and your power to endure? Do you rejoice in the truth? Are you not snobbish or rude?

In my opinion, this famous scripture reading about love and relationships seems to take on a whole new meaning when it challenges us to look at who we are as a person. 

It challenges us to look on how we treat not only those whom we are “in love with” but all those in our neighborhood, community and world. 

As the old saying goes, it is always easier to love our friends than our enemies. 

So why not take this month of February, and truly do that? Love. Love our neighbors as ourselves. Work hard to be the person that St. Paul challenges us to be. To be a loving, caring, compassionate person. This is a challenge that is not easily done. We get frustrated quickly when we don’t get what we want or need immediately. We get angry when that person cuts us off while we are driving. We get emotional when we feel we are not being heard. But when we let the idea of love rule not only our hearts but our minds as well, we will be a happier person to not only those who we are in love with, but to all those we should be loving unconditionally. In this time, more than ever, the world needs a lot more lovers, not haters. 

— Joe Peters is the principal at St. Victor School in Monroe. His column appears on the second Saturday of each month. He can be reached at joepeters@stvictormonroe.org.