THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT ~ CookingFood.Org

“HONEY FROM THE ROCK”

Friday, 19^th August 2016,

Twentieth Week of Ordinary Time

Ez 37: 1-14;

Ps 107: 2-9;

Mt 22: 34-40

THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT

The Gospel of today invites us to reflect on the fundamental principle on which the life of every disciple of Christ is founded: Love of God and Love of neighbor. What does it mean to love God and to love neighbor? First and foremost, love of God is to experience God’s love for us. We are weak and vulnerable; we cannot love God as we should. But in Jesus we can experience that God loves us. Therefore, experiencing the love of God, in spite of one’s lowliness will make one to love God in return. This is the beginning of loving God. When a child experiences the love of the mother, it will never do anything against the mother. This is the meaning of loving God. When we experience God’s love we will not do anything against God, we will not fall into sin, rather we will do all that pleases him.

It pleases God when we love one another. Therefore, while loving God one begins to love one another. In what way can my love towards my neighbor become perfect? When we love our neighbors we desire that they always be partakers in God’s eternal life. We wish and pray for them that they may live all the days of their life in grace. Thus they become the partakers of eternal life given to us gratuitously by Jesus. When we love our neighbor in this manner we do not undermine their physical and other needs. We remember what Jesus said ‘what you do to the least of the brethren, you do it unto him.’ We reach out to people who are in need in the ways possible to us. This is our love for our neighbor.

Prayer: Lord help me to love You so that I may love others. Amen.