“ I’m Hungry ”

St. John Brindisi, great saint and Doctor of the  Church, is quoted as saying,  “the greatest longing in the spirit of man is the hunger for love.” In some ways that sounds a bit vague or maybe “mushy”. Actually, what does love mean anyway…. aren’t there different types of love… romantic love (eros), friendly love (philia), selfless love (agape), etc. So for you and me, what is the love that we truly hunger for? Hmmmmmm….. getting a bit complicated Professor Dave. 

I think we need to pause and think this through a bit. What is this love that we hunger for, that is our greatest longing. It’s hard to answer when we’re in the midst of the whirlwinds of life. If I’m starving to death, my greatest longing can be for food; if I’ve been in solitary confinement for a year, my greatest longing may be for a friend; eros love can tend to consume the man in the virility of youth. But what is the most fundamental longing that St. John B. is talking about… a longing that stands the test of time… that’s true at 18 years old, 50 years old, and 90 years old, and on my deathbed ?

What are some of the scriptures that can shed some light on this love we’re looking for … words of the Lord that stir our spirit.

• Jerimiah 29:11 tells us: “I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare, not for woe! Plans to give you a future full of hope.” The Lord wants the best for us …. joy and happiness and hope….and is taking steps to make it happen. 
• The Psalms shed light on how important each of us is to God. “ Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his faithful ones”. (Ps. 116) We are precious; God looks on us with tenderness and kindness.
• Of course all the passages pointing to Jesus and his great love for us are helpful in understanding this love. “For God so loved the world  that he gave his only son , that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) 

As for me, “to know that I’m precious to the Lord, that I’m his pearl of great price,  that he doesn’t tolerate me but actually wants to be with me, that he has and will defend me with no limits, that he enjoys me, that he wants to show me his heavenly kingdom and can’t wait for me to be with him in heaven one day…. that’s the love that I long for, that I hunger for. Jesus rescued me from sin and death and the devil because he loved me and I’m worth it. That’s “the greatest longing in the spirit of man ….this hunger for love.”

As we experience more and more this love, we will in turn give ourselves more and more to our wonderful savior and God in return, and be willing to sell all for the kingdom of God. This is really good news.