By Brody Thibodeau
The little village of L’anse Amour on the south coast of Labrador is a community full of both beauty and history. The beauty is obvious as the ocean meets the land in the small cove bordering Forteau bay providing picturesque views of the ocean with its iceberg and whale encounters in their seasons.
The history here is rich. Consider the remains of the HMS Raleigh, a Royal Navy ship that ran aground here in 1922 bringing about the loss of 11 men. When we note that L’anse Amour is also the site of what is considered the oldest known burial monument in the New World and is home to the tallest lighthouse in Atlantic Canada, then this tiny hamlet becomes even more historically and culturally significant.
One small fact about L’anse Amour that deserves our attention is origin of its name. Of course right on the surface we see it is clearly a French phrase that means “cove of love”. We would have no trouble understanding how anyone choosing to settle in this area could insist that cove of love would be an excellent name for their home community. To tell someone you live in “love cove” would be an interesting way to start a conversation.
However, as we look closer at the development of this name we are faced with a contrast. L’anse Amour in fact began as a similar sounding French phrase, “L’anse aux Morts” meaning “cove of the dead”. With its harsh Labrador winters and the challenges facing ships that may have gotten off course in taking a shortcut through the Strait of Belle Isle, it isn’t hard to see how many years ago death could have characterized this rocky shore.The contrast really is fascinating. Other than the similar sounding French words, who would mistake a place marked by death as a place of love?
That leads us to think about another site that can be called both a place of death and a place of love. That location is called in the bible the place of a skull, or in the latin a word we are more familiar with, Calvary. It was there at the place of death that we learn the world’s greatest lesson about love.
…when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him… Luke 23:33
In order to understand the depth of meaning here we must first grasp what love really its. Love is not merely a feeling of desire or affection for someone, nor is it just wanting to be around someone or appreciating how someone makes us feel. Those things may accompany love, but true love is not self serving, it is self sacrificing. If I have true love for someone I will be interested more in their well being than my own. Sincere love will motivate me to give up what I have, or could have to ensure the welfare of others. This is why Calvary is so special.
When the Lord Jesus died on the cross at Calvary it was an act of self sacrifice. The bible says our sins against God are so serious that they would disqualify us from heaven, and banish us from God’s presence forever!1 The only way out was for a sinless person to take the punishment for our sins, and according to the bible “Christ died for our sins”.2 So, in death the Lord was showing the ultimate sacrifice of love when He gave everything for our salvation. Surely this should touch all of us as we consider this Man who loved so much.
Unfortunately, our sinful, selfish hearts keep us from acknowledging our need of Him and keep us from responding to that love. The response the Lord desires from us is that we would admit our sinfulness and receive Him, not only as a Saviour but as our personal Lord and Saviour. The bible tells us that through this loving Man, His death on the cross and His resurrection all who believe have the forgiveness of sins and are made right with God.3
May we consider these words of Love and Death carefully and respond to Christ today.
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