By Peter K. Kilpatrick
It is fitting that the Catholic school week begins and we celebrate the feast of St.
I read a beautiful book called “The Friendship of Christ,” by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson. Msgr. Benson is one of the favorite authors of our current Holy Father, Pope Francis, and our Pope Benedict XVI. In his book about friendship, Msgr. Benson reminds us, first of all, how much Jesus wants to be a close friend, and, unfortunately, how often we leave him and do not give him love and with the relationship he wanted so much. In doing so, Msgr. Benson reminds us that we are called to be one another’s friends and how we can do that.
Why is this a big topic on the feast day of St. Thomas Aquinas?
St. John wrote extensively. Thomas himself about friendship. In 1267, St. Thomas in a short piece entitled “De regno ad regem Cypri” or “On Kingship to the King of Cyprus.” In that section he wrote:
“First of all, among all the things in the world, there is nothing that should be chosen more than friendship. Friendship unites all good men and women and preserves and nurtures them. to justice. Friendship is needed by all men in the professions they engage in. Fortunately, he does not throw himself upon us, nor leave us in danger. He is that brings so much joy, and the way that everything you want can be transformed into boredom when friends are gone, and difficult things and love are easy zero.
A good friend believes in us and comforts us. Friends came forward to give us without counting the price. We are made for self-giving love, as St. John Paul II reminded us, and this is what friends do. So it is not only good to have the warm friendship and heart of another, but it is good for us to be a giver of that friendship.
My wife, Nancy, reminded me that the main job of a husband and wife is to help each other save their souls and be welcomed into heaven for eternity. Isn’t this what a friend does? So call your friends today this season. Show them your appreciation for their friendship. Help them in their quest for redemption.
I also encourage you to find those people around you who need your friendship. We live in a time of crisis of loneliness and isolation, and many people want and need your friendship. Let us live according to the advice of St.
Peter K. Kilpatrick is president of The Catholic University of America.
The post Why you need to think about relationships this week in Catholic schools appeared first on OSV News.