Man’s greatest responsibility in life is to do God’s will by living in His love and to practice the “new commandment” of love of neighbor.

Jesus said: “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love” (John 15:9-10).

The action of the Holy Spirit is made clear when the distinctive characteristic of Catholic moral teaching–love–is brought to light. All precepts and counsels of this moral teaching are summarized as faith working through love. Love (charity) is, as it were, faith’s soul.

Jesus taught us about God’s way of life, that is, one of total and complete sacrificial love. God is forever giving Himself. To belong to His Kingdom means to imitate Christ, i.e., to live by love. We must be willing to live for others and become a person for others, as Jesus did.

We are called to embrace, in faith, a life of charity towards God and towards our neighbor; in this lies our greatest responsibility and our exalted moral dignity.

We show our love for God, ourselves, and our neighbors by embracing the state in life and the vocation to which God calls us. When we accept what it is God wants for us, He unites us to Himself and to each other in an orderly, concrete way.

One of the most important ways we prove our love for God and neighbor is by helping others discern, discover, embrace, and live the vocation and state in life to which God calls them. Parents, especially, need to respect, encourage, and assist their children in this regard. At the same time, parents must not impose their own dreams and preferences on their children.