True love of yourself and your neighbours

Saint Augustine says: “Chastise me here, O God, and spare me the tortures (fire) of hell.” Lord, I want to be a holy egoist. I want to love myself truly and so I do not want to be in Purgatory for a single minute. If through chastising I will be saved from Purgatory, please chastise me. But I love my neighbours too. I do not even want my enemy to go to hell or Purgatory. If You want to purify him by Your fire through suffering, e.g. a disease, Your will be done. I love both myself and my neighbour, and I believe that the punishment which You will send on both me and him will save us. I want to be with him in heaven. This is pure love of enemies too. Jesus says: “Love your enemies.” It would be no love if I said: “Let them do what they want!” True love says: “Chastise them, O Lord, in order that they may be saved and not go to hell nor even to Purgatory if possible.” But we want this for ourselves first. And what we want for ourselves we also want for them – eternal life, true happiness – and this is in Christ. That is why we want others to have Him too. This is true love.

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