Comments on: The Idea of a Duty to Love http://www.smatthewliao.com/2008/05/02/the-idea-of-a-duty-to-love/ Thu, 02 Dec 2010 19:58:15 +0000 hourly 1 By: Catherine Potterwell http://www.smatthewliao.com/2008/05/02/the-idea-of-a-duty-to-love/comment-page-1/#comment-91 Catherine Potterwell Thu, 02 Dec 2010 19:58:15 +0000 http://www.smatthewliao.com/2008/05/02/the-idea-of-a-duty-to-love/#comment-91 Think of love without a sense of duty in it. What would that look like? A loving daughter tells her mother she loves her very much but she will not take care of her dog when she is away, that her mother should take the dog to a kennel which causes the mother to secretly cry. A sister says she loves her sister but feels no sense of duty to help care for her sister's children when the brother-in-law is sick. "Not my problem. Find another solution. Let someone else do it." Love is easy when there is no sense of duty to go along with it. What is love without duty? Empty love. One shows love by joyously taking up the duty required. Duty and love combined feeds the love and self-respect. Think of love without a sense of duty in it. What would that look like? A loving daughter tells her mother she loves her very much but she will not take care of her dog when she is away, that her mother should take the dog to a kennel which causes the mother to secretly cry. A sister says she loves her sister but feels no sense of duty to help care for her sister’s children when the brother-in-law is sick. “Not my problem. Find another solution. Let someone else do it.”

Love is easy when there is no sense of duty to go along with it. What is love without duty? Empty love.

One shows love by joyously taking up the duty required. Duty and love combined feeds the love and self-respect.

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