Love your neighbor as yourself

The late Father Thomas Hopko said,

‘The second commandment, according to Christ and the New Testament, after the great commandment, is: “And you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Now many people think, and even some Bibles translate it this way, incorrectly, that the law said and Jesus quoted, “You shall love your neighbor as you love yourself.” And you do have to have that good, healthy self-esteem and self-love to begin with. Well, obviously God doesn’t make junk and we’re all value, and our value comes from God, and we should love who we are and be who we are and where we are and with whom we are, with the gifts we have, with the strength we have, with the money we have, with the properties we own — and all those things [have] to be for God.

‘However — I learned this from a rabbi — it cannot be translated, “You shall love your neighbor as you love yourself.” It has to be translated, “You shall love your neighbor as, or because, he or she is yourself.” Your true self is found in the other; it’s not found in yourself. It’s when you empty yourself of your self and deny yourself and take up the cross for the sake of love—and it has to be for the sake of love, otherwise you’d better go to a mental institution. You deny yourself for the sake of loving. You empty yourself for the sake of giving. Then you realize, as St. Silouan said, your brother is your life.’

Read the rest of what he said here (scroll down a bit.)