V/ My eyes are turned to You, O Lord.
R/ You are the joy and gladness of my youth.
V/ Grant me the Wisdom that sits by Your throne.
R/ That I may dwell as a child in Your presence.
Let us pray:
Lord, in Your all-providential plan, You have led me to this moment to rediscover myself in Your Word and Wisdom. Aid me to make this time of meditation and prayer enriching, transforming, and liberating for my well-being and others.
LOVE — SIMPLEST LANGUAGE EVER SPOKEN AND UNDERSTOOD
By Rathan N. Almeida, OCD
30th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, YR A
Exodus 22:21-27; Psalm 18; 1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10; Matthew 22:34-40
Jesus, in his teachings today explains us the dynamics of Christian love. As usual, Jesus is confronted by the rigid Pharisees with a tricky question concerning the greatest commandment. Jesus, without wasting much time and energy in pointless arguments and speculations, which would only confuse people, replied: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” It’s not over yet. He pairs this first commandment with a second, somewhat similar, without which the commandment of love would be incomplete: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” and he concluded that all the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments. Our laws, rules and regulations are intended to direct us to communion with God, to a loving fellowship and union with Him, which would also include our relationship with one another. Let us reflect on three simple points today.
1. Love God with all your heart: What does it mean to love God? It means to give God the first place in our lives. Think of a small child who loves his mother. The child may not know how to explain love. He may not know beautiful words. But he runs to his mother, trusts her, listens to her, and wants to be close to her. In a similar way, we love God when we trust him, speak to him in prayer, listen to his Word, and try to follow his commandments. Sometimes we pray only when we have serious issues in life — lack of good health, financial crisis, difficulties with children, our aging parents etc. and we call upon God. Of course, we should pray in our difficulties. God is our loving Father, and he welcomes us whenever we come to him. But let us also ask ourselves: Do I remember God when everything is going well? Do I thank him when I wake up in the morning? Do I thank him for my family, my work, my food, and the gift of another day? True love does not remember someone only when it needs something.
There is a beautiful lesson we can learn from St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, the Little Flower of Jesus. She understood that holiness does not always mean doing extraordinary things. We can become holy by offering to God our small acts/gestures of love – like our daily work, our sacrifices, our difficulties, and even our little acts of kindness. She teaches us that we can love God while cooking for our family, we can love God while working in the field, while cleaning the house, while caring for a sick person — provided it is done out of pure and genuine love.
2. Love your neighbour as yourself: Jesus does not stop with the first commandment. He gives us a second one: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” and this is where our love becomes practical. It is easy to say, “I love God” but how do I treat people around me? How do I speak to my spouse? How do I treat my children? How do I behave towards my parents, my neighbours, and the people who work with me? Sometimes we are very polite to people in the church, but we are impatient with the people at home, we might pray the rosary, but we might fail to forgive our neighbour, we might make beautiful offerings to God, but at the same time, refuse to help a poor person who comes to our door. Jesus tells us that love must be seen in our daily lives. Small acts of kindness are beautiful expressions of our love for our neighbour. Every day God gives us opportunities to love and we must make sure that we don’t miss them.
3. St. Teresa of Ávila teaches us to recognise Christ in others: We have another great Carmelite saint, St. Teresa of Ávila, a woman of deep prayer. She loved silence, contemplation, and union with God. Yet, she understood that prayer must also change the way we live. She reminds us that love for God must be expressed in our actions. It is not enough to have beautiful spiritual feelings; we must show our love through patience, kindness, humility, and service. Sometimes we believe that we can meet Jesus only in the church, before the Blessed Sacrament, or during Holy Mass. Certainly, we meet him in a very special way in the Eucharist. But Jesus also comes to us through the people who need our love. “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40).
Therefore, whenever we leave the church after the Eucharistic celebration, let us carry Jesus into our homes, our workplaces, our streets, and our neighbourhoods. We cannot love everybody in the whole world through our own efforts, but we can certainly begin with the person whom God has placed in front of us.
May St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus teach us to love through little things. May St. Teresa of Ávila teach us to unite prayer with loving action and may the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother and Queen of Carmel, help us to follow Jesus faithfully.
Prayer
Lord God, increase our love for You and allow that love to overflow into every relationship we have in life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Questions to Ponder and Tips to Practice
- How do I show my love for God in my daily life? Do I remember to thank him for his blessings, pray faithfully, and trust him especially in times of difficulties?
- How do I show love to my neighbor? Am I patient, kind, forgiving, and ready to help those who are in need, especially within my own family and neighborhood?
- Can I practice one act of love every day? Is there someone I need to forgive, comfort, visit, or help and thereby bring Christ to them?