A reading of the Holy Gospel according to Mk 12:28b-34
One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, "Which is the first of all the commandments?" Jesus replied, "The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, 'He is One and there is no other than he.' And 'to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself' is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
REFLECTION
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself
When you love someone with all your heart, soul and mind, in essence, you are giving everything you are and have for them. Many, identify with "love" for our fellow man, justice, and the world. However, there is seldom mention of God.
This love seems to have no origin but a "feeling" that tugs at minds depending at what is believed or best for the person. Cruelty to animals, littering, hate speech, hate crimes, yelling at school board meetings and speech that some deem "woke" result in investigations, prison time or loss of jobs. Tearing down statues that some, on their own, deemed offensive is okay.
Imagine if tearing the limbs of puppies was reported, filmed and the discarded dogs shown on the news. The outrage would be deafening. The perpetrator would be hunted and condemned for performing barbaric atrocities on defenseless animals and fined or sent to prison. Is this not what all the argument is about? The love of a human who is made in the image and likeness of God is not worth anything but the environment and animals are held in high esteem.
The right to abort an unborn baby is fought by many who call themselves Catholic. Euthanasia of a born baby is legal. The Empire State building lit up and people applauded when the new law was signed by a Catholic governor.
To love God above all and our neighbor as ourselves are the two main commandments. God is pure love and His divine infusion leads us to love Him for His own sake. God deserves to be loved. Some fear the punishment of hell and want the reward of heaven and so they love God. But what if the love we had for God had no stipulations, no "what if's" or "but's"? Awesome! and that is what we should strife for.
Stop the destruction of Creation, of life, of love. of virtue, values and of hope.
To love God is to stand up for what is right, pray for those who don't know Him and to let Him possess our hearts.
God Bless You
Comments