Genuine Love of Self: The Measure of Love of Others

The measure of love we must have towards our neighbor should correspond to the love that we must have for ourselves. (OOCC, IV, p. 309)

Though St. Vincent Pallotti stressed the importance of love of God and of  one’s  neighbor,  he  never  undermined  the  value  of  true  self-love. According to him, a proper self-love is essential for a person in order to become capable of loving God and his neighbor. The commandment of love that regulates a person’s love for his neighbor clearly states that one must love his neighbor as he loves himself. The implication of this law is that if a person does not know how to love himself, he also would not know how to love his neighbor. Thus, one’s love for himself becomes the measure of his love towards his neighbor. A person’s love of himself consists of accepting himself as the one who is created in the image and likeness of God, acknowledging the unique position in which God has placed him as the crown of creation, recognizing his rights as a human person and giving himself the value God has given him. Thus, true self-love consists of a person’s honest acceptance of himself, his abilities and his drawbacks. It also means that a person would make every effort to develop himself in the best way possible, both bodily and spiritually according to God’s plan for him. When a person lovingly takes care of himself in this manner, according to St. Vincent, he would definitely learn to love and care for his neighbor, who like himself, is an image of God and the crown of creation.

Do I acknowledge the dignity God has placed in me as a human person? Is my love of myself genuine or selfish? Am I determined to develop my God-given gifts and talents? Am I ready to accept my drawbacks and grow out of them? Do I acknowledge that my love of myself is the measure of my love of my neighbor?

You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Mk. 12: 31)