“Will you … strive for justice and peace?”

Despite Jeff’s warnings against reading blogs, I recently stumbled across a vitriolic one lambasting the Episcopal Church. Why? Because of our “all-you-need-is-love nonsense.”

I took offense to this remark for two reasons. First, I’m a Beatles fan. And second, I truly believe that “all you need is love” was precisely the Gospel Jesus preached. Did our Lord not point to the two Great Commandments and say, “On these two hang all the law and the prophets”? Love is all we’re responsible for, and any other commandment worth keeping will flow naturally from love.

But maybe I shouldn’t have gotten worked up about it. After all, I do understand where this blogger was coming from. And I think it comes down to the definition of “love,” a word that’s been kicked around and abused perhaps more than any other in our language. For some people, “love” just conjures up mushy images, whether of a teenage crush or of the way one feels when looking at a sleeping baby. While feelings of “love” are all well and good, that’s certainly not “all we need.”

I have a great little book called 101 Reasons to Be an Episcopalian. One of the reasons given was contributed by Carter Heyward of the Diocese of Massachusetts: “We believe that love without justice is cheap sentimentality.” Carter is right! I guess that anonymous blogger didn’t get the memo.

When “love” is merely a warm fuzzy feeling and does not lead to action, we shouldn’t call it love in the first place. How many abusive husbands insist they “love” their wives? How many clingy, desperate attempts to curry favor are purportedly done out of “love”? How many times do we say “I love you” when we really mean to say, “I like the way I feel when I’m with you”?

But Love—with a capital L—is what Jesus did on the cross, sacrificing his own life because that’s what it took to get the message to sink in. Two thousand years later, it’s still sinking in.

Unfortunately, the word “justice” is nearly as maligned as “love.” Most people think justice has something to do with punishing criminals, but that’s only the tiniest part of what the word means. Justice—with a capital J—means that all people concerned have what they need to survive and to thrive.

In San Salvador at the Anglican Church of San Juan Evangelista is a large mural with the words “Pan … Amor … Paz.” That’s “Bread … Love … Peace.” The church’s rector, Padre Luis, told our El Salvador mission team that he likes to rephrase it: “Bread + Love = Peace.” When we make sure that everyone has enough to eat, this is an act of Love. And only then, when Justice calls and we answer that call, can peace flow freely. If you want Peace, work for Justice.