lOVE
Notes
Transcript
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dt 6:2-6
Mk 12:28b-34
After a long and dull sermon, the parishioners quietly left the church without a word to the preacher. At the end of the line was a thoughtful person who usually commented on the sermons. He approached the priest and said, “Father, today your homily reminded me of two things: patience and the love of God.” The priest was delighted and asked, “Why is that?”
The man replied, “Well, it reminded me of patience because I managed to sit through such a long talk while others were dozing off. And it reminded me of God’s love because love lasts forever!
Many Catholics said that is why the catholic church has so many rules and regulations. But Judaism has more than we know; only in OT do they have 613 commandments, But Jesus summarized them with two commandments of love:
Love God: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." Love neighbor: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
These two commandments are the foundation of the Law and the Prophets. And there is no greater commandment than these.
The Great Jewish Shema became The Christian Shema: Loving God and Neighbor
A church Father reminds us that “we cannot fully express our love for God without also loving our neighbor. These two loves are inseparable.”
But What is Love?
Marriage advice: Some people say love is about looking in one direction together, and that’s a beautiful thought. Others believe love is when someone makes you happy. Love is feeling good when someone does some good for us. That is beautiful, but it is not complete.
When someone comes to me for marriage advice, I often ask why do they want to get married? If they said, “Because I love her/him because he makes me happy.” Then I would say to her or him, “Do not marry him or her because that is not true love.” That kind of love can be more about self-love than true love. What if one day, one cannot make the other happy?
Instead, you should seek a partner who says, “I want to marry you because I love you, and I want to make you happy.” That is true love, a selfless desire to care for others.
Church Teaching on Love:
St. Thomas Aquinas offers a beautiful definition: love is “willing for the good of others."
Love is “willing for the good of others." True love means wanting what is best for the other person. It’s about Agape love, which is God’s highest form of love from God, who willed the goods for us, became a slave and died for those he willed the good. This love goes beyond mere feelings; it’s a choice to care for others, even at a personal cost. In short, true love is a selfless love willing the good for others, even sacrifice for that love.
A Legend of Love from a Monk
There is a touching legend about an old monk who, one night, looked out his window and saw an angel writing in a golden book, recording the names of those who love God. Curious, the monk wondered if his name was there. The angel opened the book but did not find it.
Desperate, the monk pleaded, “Please write my name as someone who always loves others.” The angel listened and added his name to the golden book.
The next evening, under the bright moon, the angel returned and opened the book again for the monk. This time, the monk saw his name at the very top of the list of those who love God.
After the monk passed away, his fellow brothers in the monastery looked through his journal. The first entry was a quote from 1 John 4:20: “If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar; whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” Following that, he wrote: “I searched for my soul, but I could not find it. I was seeking God, but God was beyond my grasp. I searched for my brother, and in him, I found God and my soul.”
This legend reminds us that loving others is essential to truly loving God. We cannot find and love God in our thoughts alone; we meet Him through others. God and our neighbors come together in our hearts. We love others in God, and we love God in others.
In fact, loving God and others is one commandment, like two sides of a coin. Our love for others should be rooted in the Agape love of God. St. John Vianney said that loving our neighbor means three things: wanting the best for everyone, doing good when we can, and being patient with others' faults.
Election day: Our Christian virtue will be tested this Tuesday. This Tuesday is an important day for this country. If your candidate wins, congratulations! If not, it’s a chance to put Jesus' words into action: “Love your enemies and do good to them.” We do not only love each other in good times but also in bad times. Jesus said “For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.” This Tuesday is the day we demonstrate our love for God and Neighbors. I know it will be very hard because I fail almost every day. But what is Christian life all about? We try and try again.
May we love what God loves, and may we always be willing for the good of others.
May God bless us all.