She had taken me for a homeless woman, and she was afraid of homeless people like me. No one had ever looked at me with pure, raw fear. It stung. I slunk back to my seat and watched as the visitors placed their donations on a folding table and backed away.

Most parents are keenly aware of their children’s social, emotional, intellectual and physical development. We record our children’s height with pencil marks on the kitchen wall and note milestones in photo albums and scrapbooks. We monitor their health and celebrate their achievements.

“The heart of the human being aspires to great things, lofty values, deep friendships, ties that are strengthened rather than broken by the trials of life. The human being aspires to love and to be loved. This is our deepest aspiration: to love and be loved; and definitively.” –Pope Francis

A few weeks before his 33rd birthday, on an eight-day retreat to prepare for his ordination, Jorge Mario Bergoglio wrote a short “Credo,” or statement of his personal beliefs (which can be found at the end of this blog). Here are his most intimate thoughts about the purpose and promise of love, “the greatest power for the transformation of reality.”