Chosen by the Lord

This word of the Lord places us before a demanding yet deeply consoling truth: we have been chosen out of love. Not because of our own merit, but through a gratuitous calling. He invites us to live in communion with Him, within our vocation. On the path of marriage, this calling becomes concrete in loving our spouse each day as He loves, beyond every difficulty. Spouses, being taken out of the world does not mean withdrawing from reality, but rather learning to love within it with a transformed heart — with a faithful, self-giving love, open to life, able to forgive, and always seeking communion. A love contrary to what the world promotes. That is why, when we live according to this love, it is normal to experience misunderstanding or rejection, because we are going against the current. If spouses strive to live in this way, we become a visible sign of the Love of God — a faithful and fruitful love that the world so desperately needs. This is our mission.

Louisa: Alex, do you know? This phrase from today’s Gospel unsettles me: “I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” Do you really think our marriage goes against the world?
Alex: I think it does, but in the best possible sense. Loving one another as spouses, with self-giving and fidelity, does not fit with what is promoted today. Just look at television series, films, the news… everything is filled with sex without tenderness, infidelity being normalised, broken relationships… Or think about that dinner with our friends the other day — we came away exhausted from hearing so many superficialities, from seeing how people treat one another…
Louisa: It feels as though since we began this journey, the things of the world no longer attract us as they once did. But I can also see that it is distancing us from some of our friendships. I notice they look at us as though we were strange, and I feel displaced, almost out of place. It is as though our happiness together provokes rejection.
Alex: Yes, you’re right. But that is precisely where our calling lies. Choosing one another every day, forgiving one another, being open to life… that is what it means to live “outside the world.”
Louisa: So even if it causes rejection, it is not failure?
Alex: No, it is a sign that we are walking with the Lord. Our love, when lived truthfully, may unsettle others, but it will also bring light — you’ll see.
Louisa: Thinking of it that way gives me peace. Chosen… also to love better. And to be light for others.

Mother,

Teach us to live our love fully, as you lived yours, without fear of the world’s rejection. Blessed and glorious are you, Mother. Praised be the Lord forever!