Thursday, April 15, 2010
TCR 419 - loving good, loving the neighbor, loving the Lord
TCR 419
A person who loves good because it is good,
and truth because it is true,
is the one who above all loves the neighbor,
because he loves the Lord,
who is good itself and truth itself.
There is no other source of the love of good and of truth from good,
and so of the neighbor.
This is how love towards the neighbor is formed from its heavenly origin.
It makes no difference whether we say service or good;
performing services is doing good,
and good deeds are good
depending to what extent and in what way they are of use.
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TCR 418. The reason why good is the neighbor is that good belongs to the will, and the will is the being (esse) of a person's life. The truth in the understanding is also the neighbor, but only so far as it is the product of good in the will. For good in the will takes on form in the understanding and there makes itself visible in the light of reason. All experience goes to show that good is the neighbor. Does anyone love a person except for what his will and understanding are like, that is, for the goodness and righteousness in him? For example, does anyone love a king, a prince, a duke, a provost or governor or magistrate of any rank, or any kind of judge, except for the [righteousness and]* judgment they display in speech or action? Does anyone love a bishop or any church minister or a person in holy orders, except for his learning, uprightness of life and zeal for saving souls? Does anyone love the general of an army, or any of the officers under his command, except for a combination of bravery and prudence? Does anyone love a trader except for his honesty? Or a workman or servant except for his faithfulness? To go further, does anyone love a tree except for its fruit, a piece of ground except for its fertility, a stone except for its value, and so on? The extraordinary thing is that not only does an upright man love goodness and fairness in another, but so does a dishonest man, because he knows that in dealing with him he need have no fear of losing his reputation, rank or wealth. But the dishonest man's love of good is not love of the neighbor, for the dishonest man does not inwardly love any other, except in so far as they serve his purposes. Loving the good in another out of the goodness in oneself is the real love for the neighbor; then the goodness in each kisses the other and establishes a mutual bond.
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