A Few Words On "The Word"

November 5, 2006
The 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Mark 12:28b-34

Love in Two Parts

Love is a big word. Our culture is obsessed with it. People want love and will look anywhere and do anything to get it. Advertising appeals to our desire for love and the happiness that it brings. Oddly enough, our faith is obsessed with love too. What's the deal? How can the Church be obsessed with something that calls us to focus on our worldly possessions? The bottom line is that it doesn't! The world's idea of love and Jesus' idea of love are two very different things.

Think of the times that you've really waited for something you wanted: The newest album from your favorite artist, the big Christmas present you know you'll be getting, or even something like your driver's license. We all feel that if we only had this one thing we wanted we would be happy. Unfortunately, things get old and we end up feeling rather empty until the next new item comes along.

Jesus wants us to break out of this mold! This is why Jesus begins by asking us to love God above all else. He wants us to know that God loves us in a way that goes beyond our material worth. God finds ways to make us see and experience this love. It's because God "loved us first" that love can also blossom as a response within us.

When we begin to love God with all we are the emptiness we felt before starts to go away. Jesus' second point is that our love for God changes our perspective. We begin to look at our possessions in a different way. Most importantly we start to look at other people differently.

The problem here is that most people don't really get this second part. Loving God? Seems simple enough! Loving my friends? No problem! Loving my neighbor? Who's that? What does it even mean? It's easy to love those that already love us. In fact, it's usually a lot more pleasant.

However, loving the neighbor isn't really about us at all. When we begin to love those that we don't know or even like we have to sacrifice our own worldly desires for love. We give 100% of who we are to another person and expect nothing in return. That's what love really is. It's not conditional. There's no give and take. There's only equality and peace despite the confused world around us. Part of being a living, breathing human lover of God is loving my neighbor.

Reflection Question

In what ways do you personally make the connection between loving God and loving my neighbor?

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