(On true spiritual friends)"Happy the souls that are loved by such as these! Happy the day on which they came to know them! O my Lord, wilt Thou not grant me the favor of giving me many who have such love for me? Truly, Lord, I would rather have this than be loved by all the kings of the world..."(Teresa of Avila: "Living By Holy Wit")

 

You may remember the adage one may have many friends but only a few true friends. The former group are here today and gone tomorrow, while the latter remain steadfast no matter the circumstances. The quantity of friends is not the question. The quality of their friendship is. Even these will be a blessing to the extent our friendship is rooted in our relationship with God. He is the common denominator that sustains our relationship with each other. For our friendship is based on bringing each other closer to the Lord, who is the center and strength of our bond.

 

This is how St. Gregory expressed his and Basil’s friendship. “Our single object and ambition was virtue, and a life of hope in the blessings that are to come; we wanted to withdraw from this world before we departed from it. With this end in view we ordered our lives and all our actions. We followed the guidance of God’s law and spurred each other on to virtue. If it is not too boastful to say, we found in each other a standard and rule for discerning right from wrong.”