?I?m thrilled to be here. I?d rather be here than in meetings at my office,? Bishop Nelson Perez told the 400 students, faculty, staff and guests gathered Oct. 9 at Elyria Catholic High School for an all-school Mass.
His homily focused on love, but not just romantic love.
Using the biblical story of Jonah, who was swallowed by a large fish and tossed onto the shore of Nineveh, a place he despised, the bishop explained how Jonah had a conversion of heart and ministered to the people at Nineveh.
He said God?s love involves being strong and caring, unlike the romantic love experienced by teenagers.
?Boy meets girl, they like each other and two weeks later, say they love each other, and then two weeks later, they break up. And the process repeats,? he said. ?But what does love look like??
He said it?s the most unlikely people whom God uses to show us what love really looks like.
He told another biblical story of the Samaritan man who cared for a badly injured traveler after the man had been ignored by a priest and Levite. The Lord instructs us to ?love our neighbor as our self. But who is our neighbor?? the bishop asked. ?It?s the most unlikely person. Mercy and compassion
