The things that we love tell us what we are.

“The things that we love tell us what we are.” — so spoke Thomas Aquinas, the great philosopher-saint whose mind bridged heaven and earth. In this simple yet profound truth, he reveals the mirror of the soul: that what we love most deeply is the truest reflection of our inner being. Love, he teaches, is not a passing feeling but the orientation of the soul itself. What the heart clings to — what it treasures, yearns for, and serves — reveals the shape and destiny of the person. In the end, we become what we love.

To understand this saying, we must first remember that Aquinas saw love not as mere emotion, but as movement — the motion of the soul toward what it perceives as good. Thus, every act of love is a revelation of character. If we love what is noble, our souls rise toward nobility. If we love what is base, our hearts are drawn downward into decay. For love is the compass of being: it points unfailingly toward our chosen center. Therefore, to know what a person is, one need not look at their words or appearance, but at the objects of their love — what they serve in secret, what they sacrifice for, what they cannot live without.

In this way, Aquinas’ words shine with the wisdom of the ancients. The Greeks, too, knew that love was the shaping power of life. Plato spoke of eros — the divine longing that lifts the soul toward the Beautiful and the True. Yet Aquinas deepened this vision: he saw in love not only the yearning for beauty but the revelation of identity. For man, he said, is not defined by intellect alone, but by the affections of his heart. The will follows love as the tide follows the moon. Therefore, he who loves wealth becomes enslaved to it; he who loves pleasure becomes consumed by it; but he who loves truth, justice, or God becomes radiant with the likeness of what he loves.

History offers many who lived this truth. Consider Saint Francis of Assisi, who was born into luxury and surrounded by gold, but whose heart was restless. The world offered him wealth, but his love sought something purer. When he renounced his riches to embrace poverty and peace, he revealed his true nature — not a merchant’s son, but a soul aflame with divine love. The world saw a beggar in rags; heaven saw a man made rich by love. What Francis loved told the world what he truly was: not a creature of comfort, but a vessel of compassion, a mirror of God’s humility and joy.

So too, in every life, this principle endures. The artist who loves beauty more than fame becomes a conduit of grace. The scientist who loves truth more than recognition becomes a servant of wisdom. But the one who loves only power or vanity finds their spirit shrinking to the size of their desire. For the heart molds the being, as fire molds the metal. Therefore, guard your love well, for it is the architect of your destiny.

Aquinas’ insight carries a quiet warning: be wary of what you allow your heart to cling to. Many love what glitters but does not endure; many love comfort over courage, pride over peace, pleasure over purity. Yet these loves, though sweet for a season, corrode the soul. Choose instead the loves that ennoble — love truth even when it wounds, love goodness even when it costs, love the divine even when the world mocks. For these are the loves that draw the soul upward, transforming it into something vast and luminous.

So, dear seeker of wisdom, ask yourself this: What do I love? For in that answer lies the story of your life. If you would become great, love greatly. If you would be wise, love what is eternal. Let your loves be your teachers, your ladder to the heavens. As Aquinas teaches, our love reveals our essence, and our essence, once purified by love, becomes light itself.

Therefore, choose your loves as you would choose your gods, for in time, they will shape you in their image. Love what is true, good, and beautiful — and you will become true, good, and beautiful in return. For the heart, once given, becomes what it adores; and the soul, once lifted by love, becomes the very thing it seeks.