Are Christians required to love everyone equally? This question has recently become a matter of public and even political debate. So how should we answer? It seems necessary to ask what “loving thy neighbor” means in practice; for example is the love between friends, the love between spouses, the love within a family, the love among compatriots, and even the love of an enemy all the same kind of love? Do these relationships all entail the same kinds of moral responsibilities? Might it be reasonable to say, for example, that we have a greater obligation to care for our own children over others’ children, our own friends over strangers, and our own country over other countries? If so, however, how can Christians coherently claim that we love all people equally?
A listener asks how to forgive and let go of bitterness. I help my kids return to church?
00:00 | Introduction
01:43 | Bishop Barron’s recent trip to London
02:08 | Understanding love in the great commandments
03:50 | Love for specific relationships
06:13 | Properly framing love of self
06:58 | Love your enemies
08:03 | Critiquing love as granting another’s desires
09:07 | The distinct love for God
11:17 | Who is my neighbor?
12:55 | Ordo amoris: the order of love
17:52 | Equal regard vs. equal treatment
20:36 | Is it ever okay to circumvent ordo amoris?
22:20 | Does the Good Samaritan counter ordo amoris?
23:40 | Does Luke 9:60 counter ordo amoris?
26:52 | The evangelical impact of understanding love
27:43 | Listener question
29:54 | Join the Word on Fire Institute
Links:
- Ordo amoris article: https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/first-love-locally-jd-vance-and-ordo-amoris/
- Word on Fire Institute: https://institute.wordonfire.org/
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