Loving Our Neighbor
Mark Twain once said that it was not the parts of scripture that he did not understand that gave him the most trouble, but the parts that he did understand! I think we can all relate. All of us struggle with the understanding of some aspects of theology…
Reflection on “Loving Our Neighbor” – Based on the Gospel of Luke 10:25-37 – July 13, 2019
Mark Twain once said that it was not the parts of scripture that he did not understand that gave him the most trouble, but the parts that he did understand!
I think we can all relate. All of us struggle with the understanding of some aspects of theology and Biblical interpretation. But perhaps the greatest test of our faith is not whether we can understand deep mysteries, but whether we can be obedient to the teachings of our faith that are perfectly clear to us.
For example: Have no other gods before the one true God. Honor your parents. Do not steal. Do not commit adultery. Tell the truth. Learn to be content and be satisfied with what you have, and do not be envious of your neighbor’s possessions; Love your neighbor as yourself.
You see – We clearly understand these commandments.
The difficulty is living up to the ideals of these words. Our minds can grasp the truth. It is our feet, our mouths, our hearts, our hands that have trouble living by the truth our minds know.
The Bible can be a frustrating book in the sense that at times it simply does not provide the kinds of answers we are looking for. Ask Jesus a question about heaven and he’ll start talking to you about your neighbor!
Like in our Gospel story, when asked about eternal life by a scholar of the law, Jesus replied: Love God with your whole being and love your neighbor as yourself. It wasn’t the answer the scholar of the law wanted, so he asked Jesus, “Who is my neighbor?”
For the scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ time – To the question: Who is my neighbor? Their response was: Only those of my own people, another Jew. Maybe only another Pharisee. Not a Gentile. Certainly not those half-breed Samaritans. The scribes and Pharisees were trying to find the limits of their obligation. Their real question was, in other words: “What is the least I can do and fulfill my duty?” We can all relate to that.
People ask: What is the least I can do to get to heaven? …to inherit eternal life?”
… minimal Christians so to speak.
What is your concept of heaven? People say heaven is about life after death. Unfortunately – that is all it’s about for most people.
But the Scripture presents heaven as a quality of life. It is fulfilled beyond this life, but it begins here. Jesus said: The kingdom of heaven is at hand. That is why we pray: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” It is a God-like quality of life that is only found through self-giving, self-sacrificing love… as Jesus showed in His life.
People often think of heaven in a self-concerned way… and so they are afraid of death because they focus on self-preservation. Psychological studies show that the more self-centered you are the more you fear death. But the more you live for other people and other purposes, the less threatening death is.
If we live our lives – with self-giving, self-sacrificing love of God and others – in communion with Christ, who gave His life for our sake, then we will find ourselves are at peace knowing that any day is a good day to die… because heaven is actually our true destiny
Where is heaven? We will find it first in the neighbor who is in need. The poor and those who are in need or are helpless and those who cannot pay us back – they teach us how to love. Where love is = God is = because God is love. Heaven is where God is.
Jesus made a Samaritan the hero in the parable of the Good Samaritan. Samaritans were former Jews who had intermarried with Gentiles. The Jews of Jesus’ time saw Gentiles as godless and sub-human. They had complete contempt for Jews who married Gentiles, and that is why they rejected Samaritans.
Jesus’ point is that God is pleased with any person who understands that the neighbor is every other person, especially someone in need. God does not favor one race, or one nationality, or one socio-economic class over another.
Jesus made it very clear that we love, and give, and help, not just for the sake of the other person, but for our own sake. It is for the good of our own soul that we must care, and love, and give ourself.
What does the story of the Good Samaritan mean for us? In the simplest terms – it means that the truly righteous person knows that the neighbor is whoever is there. Your neighbor is the next person you meet…the one sitting next to you at this moment. Forget borders, race, and language. God’s neighborhood includes everyone. God calls us to be a neighbor to everyone…not only those of our own people.
Admittedly, it is really a risky business to get involved in human need. You could be deceived and played for a fool. You could end up wasting your time and effort. You could even get hurt!
No doubt, the Samaritan recognized all of those possibilities. Still he took the risk of becoming personally involved. He gave his own time. In short, he did for that man what he would have wanted someone to do for him, if he lay wounded beside the road. He loved his neighbor as himself.
Love to him had real meaning. Love meant risks taken, time given, money spent and service rendered. He knew how to love in a practical and personal way.
Jesus is the ultimate Good Samaritan and we are the victim on the side of the road.
Jesus risked everything to save us. He has become a neighbor to all of us…even while we are still sinners.
What does it mean for you and me? We must open our eyes to those people who are in need, whose wounds may not be as dramatic as the victim in the parable, but still no less real.
We probably walk right past them almost every day. Some are wounded by loneliness, some by fear, some by guilt. Some have been beaten and robbed by economic circumstances beyond their control. They may live next door, or across town, or even under our own roof. Wherever they live, whoever they are and whatever their need might be, Jesus describes them as neighbors. And Jesus placed upon every one of us the responsibility to love each one of them, even as we love ourselves.
St. Teresa of Avila said it so beautifully:
Christ has NO body now on earth but yours.
Yours are the eyes with which He looks with compassion on this world.
Yours are the hands with which He blesses all the world.
Yours are the feet with which He walks to do good.
Christ has NO body now on earth but yours.
In other words –
Be other Christ in the world.
Who wants to go to heaven?
Then love your neighbor as Jesus loves you.
My brothers and sisters in Christ – God loves you!
Now – please turn to each other – left and right… and see in each other a neighbor to love… whom God loves.
And say “And I love you, too!”
Mean it.
God bless…
FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – CYCLE C – July 14, 2019
Luke 10:25-37
Deuteronomy 30:10-14
Freedom and Following Jesus
No word is more important in the American heritage than “freedom.” As Patrick Henry, the American patriot even said: “Give me liberty or give me death.” Ask anyone what freedom means, and the answer is likely to be about freedom FROM something…
Reflection on “Freedom and Following Jesus” – based on the letter to the Galatians 5:1.13-18 and the Gospel of Luke 9:51-62
On Thursday is July 4. Americans will celebrate Independence Day.
No word is more important in the American heritage than “freedom.” As Patrick Henry, the American patriot even said: “Give me liberty or give me death.”
Ask anyone what freedom means, and the answer is likely to be about freedom FROM something – – – freedom from restrictive rules and regulations of authority – even freedom from parents, freedom from paying mortgage, freedom from bad relationships, etc.
Meaning – We have understood freedom almost often or primarily only as freedom FROM something or someone.
The problem is, Freedom in all its beauty and gift from God, can be also the biggest obstacle on our way to God because freedom is often abused by us.
For example, look at the drug addict. He demanded the right to do as he pleased. Those silly medical warnings and legal prohibitions would not restrict his freedom. But now – he is no longer free. Drugs have taken control of his life.
We hear people say – this is my life – this is my body. I am pro-choice. I can do whatever I want with my body. Yes – you have free choice but please, always choose life!
St. Paul reminds us that freedom is not only a privilege, it is also a responsibility – and it must be exercised within certain boundaries…
Remember: We are wrong if we define freedom as the ability to do whatever we want without having to bend to any sort of authority or moral law.
We cannot let our freedom be destroyed by our lack of legal or moral restraints especially disregarding sexual restraints – and disregard for strict rules of moral correctness.
A lot of people have this misconception that to be a Christian, to follow Christ means the end of real life – “end of having good times” and the beginning of bondage to rules and guilty conscience.
The truth is – Being a Christian, yes – we belong to Christ… Christ reigns in our life… no one else or nothing else in all the world is to gain control of our life…. But it does not diminish our freedom but rather protects it… To be mastered by Christ is to be set free to enjoy and experience life to its fullest. You see, that’s paradox. To be a slave to Christ is to be truly free… As Jesus said: “Know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
For Christians, freedom is the ability to be the unique person that God created each of us to be. We all know this and experience this. We are at our happiest when we are at our best. Yes, we have responsibilities, and, yes, we have authority over us, but this does not limit our freedom.
God’s laws/commandments given through His Church actually leads us to true freedom – to be our true selves as God meant us to be… free to love.
Freedom as only freedom FROM – is ultimately destructive.
And so, we need to discover what we are free FOR. Once we are free – We need to ask the question: What new opportunities are we now able to embrace, what new commitments are we now finally free to make?
We are reminded not to use our freedom as a license to selfishness, but to serve one another in love. We do not have the right to do anything that hurts someone else… Our lives are intertwined and involved in the lives of other people.
When we are free to be our true selves as God created us, then we allow His reflection to be seen or experienced by others.
There are so many people who are like that, be they canonized saints, or members of your own families, and many of you who are continually at your best because you have God at the center of your lives, you try to follow Christ the best you can and are always giving to others.
If at any time in your lives others can see Christ in you, even if it is only a glimpse, then you are truly free, free to be who God meant you to be.
Again, freedom is not being able to do whatever you want whenever you want however you want… where anything goes. We now live in such a society. Sin is basically telling God:
“God, I know what you want. I do not care. I will do what I want.”
That is slavery to sin but people call it “freedom”.
This is what St. Paul is speaking about in the second reading.
“Brothers and sisters: For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. For you were called for freedom. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through love.”
We cannot just say we are Christian. We have to be determined to live the Christian life… But this takes courage. This takes determination.
Think of Elisha in today’s first reading. He was so determined to heed God’s call and follow Elijah that he slaughtered his twelve head of oxen and burned their yokes… which means – no more turning back for him. We are called to have same that determination… and by the grace of God – We can conquer anything that is holding us back from being our best selves.
Like Jesus in today’s Gospel, we must be resolutely determined to do whatever the Father’s will is for us. We can be our best selves. We men can be Men of God. You ladies can be Women of God.
Some of us who are old enough to remember the old version of the
The Act of Contrition: Oh, my God, I am truly sorry for having offended thee and I detest all of my sins because I fear the loss of heaven and the pains of hell. …
To fear the loss of heaven and to fear the pains of hell can seem like one and the same thing. They’re not. There’s a huge moral difference. Fear of hell is based upon fear of punishment. Fearing the loss of heaven is based upon a fear of not being a good, loving person… not being what we are meant to be. A sign of Christian maturity is when we are more worried about not being loving enough than when we’re fearful that we will be punished for doing something wrong.
As we mature more in our spirituality, we need to learn to worry less and less about going to hell and we need to worry more and more about the bitterness, anger, ingratitude, and non-forgiveness that still remains in our hearts. Let us worry less about committing a mortal sin and let us worry more about whether we are gracious, respectful, and forgiving towards others.
Fear of the pains of hell and fear of the loss of heaven is a good start as our guiding principle but a more mature Christian attitude is to fear offending God because God is all good and deserving of all our love.
We pray and we continue to seek the grace, the wisdom and the courage to be whom God calls us to be. Amen.
13TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – CYCLE C
Galatians 5:1, 13-18