From the Gospel acclamation: “Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 12:28-34)
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.”
In response to Jesus’ words, the scribe recognizes the kind of love that is “worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices” and commends Jesus. “You are not far from the Kingdom of God,” Jesus says to the scribe. With the words that begin “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone!” Jesus prays a daily prayer of the ancient Israelites, still recited today, the Shema . With God as Lord alone, it is possible to say what Jesus says next. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The right ordering of God first affirms the inseparability between sincere love for God and love for neighbor. As Sulpician theologian Adolphe Tanquerey said: “Fraternal charity is indeed a theological virtue . . . provided that we love God Himself in our neighbor . . . that we love the neighbor for God’s sake. Should we love the neighbor solely for his own sake, or because of the services he may render us, this would not be charity.” How is God calling us into a genuine, wholehearted love that transforms our relationship with him and our interactions with others?
Father in heaven, you are the source of all love, and you loved us first. For the sake of your glory, Lord, show me how to love you and to love my neighbor. Keep me in your care. The daily trial of loving one another puts into sharp relief the realization that you are God, the source of love, and I am not. In the prayer of the psalmist, I ask for your guidance: “Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths, Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior. Teach me your ways, O Lord.” Saint Norbert, pray for us!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.