What the World Needs Now Is Love, Sweet Love

As we turn the calendar over to February, our hearts pivot toward the theme of love. We are called to a love that is more than cupids or valentines, more than kindness, more than good intentions. It is a love that is patient enough to listen, courageous enough to forgive, generous enough to welcome, humble enough to learn and fearless enough to protest and act when we see evil being done to others. It is Christ’s love – steady, sacrificial, and unafraid.

The invitation of this month is beautifully simple: return to love.

In a world that has been fractured by division, rush, and noise, the invitation of this month is beautifully simple: return to love. Return to the Love who created us, sustains us, and calls us to be the presence of Christ in the world. In Benedictine spirituality, love is lived through hospitality to all, stability, obedience to one another, prayerfulness, a zeal to outdo each other in loving acts, and attention to the sacred in ordinary life. St. Benedict teaches that every person who walks into our lives is “Christ himself” and therefore deserving of reverence.

“What the world needs now is love, sweet love” – yes, but not the fragile kind that depends on feelings. The world needs the courageous, durable, hopeful love of God alive in us. Love that speaks gently when we might be angry. Love that chooses compassion in the face of misunderstanding. Love that heals by showing up with presence and listening rather than quick answers. Empathetic Love that recognizes our shared humanity, even across stark differences.

This February. may each moment be an opportunity to rest in God’s love and to let it reshape our hearts. May silence soften what has grown tense in us. May prayer remind us of what truly matters. And may peace ripple outward to our families, our communities, and a world longing for the sweetness of God’s love. May Christ teach us again how to love, and may we have the courage to proclaim it and live it.

As Lent begins later this month, know that all of us at Sophia remember you in prayer and wish you the joy of doing something extra to make Christ more present. We have many offerings that can enhance your efforts to be more prayerful and present to our Lord. We hope to see you online or on campus. Have a most blessed Lent.