THIRTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
4 NOVEMBER 2018
When
the scribe asks Jesus about which is the greatest of the commandments, the
question is much more difficult and complicated than we might think. At the time, there were 614 Commandments just
in the first five books of the Bible – the Torah. And for each of these commands, scribes and
teachers would develop ways to interpret each of the commandments. For example, there were 39 different
categories of work that must be avoided just on the third commandment to
observe the Lord’s Day! Despite these
well intentioned efforts to help people follow the law, law-abiding Jews were
crushed under the burden of laws and interpretations.
Jesus
responds by quoting from the Book of Deuteronomy: you shall love the Lord your God with every
fiber of your being. This commandment is
at the heart of both the Old and New Testaments. If we love God, then God will come before
anything else we might hope for: power,
wealth, success, security, comfort, prosperity, control, or prestige. Then he quotes a second passage from the Book
of Leviticus: you shall love your
neighbor as yourself. Jesus so radically
combines these two commandments that they cannot be separated. We cannot love our neighbor if we do not love
God. We cannot love God if we do not
love our neighbor.
This love has
little to do with emotions or warm feelings.
Jesus has already shown the depth of God’s love by taking on human flesh
and identifying with us in every way except sin, as the Letter to the Hebrews
insists. In just a few days after this
exchange with the scribe, he will demonstrate his love for neighbor by offering
himself as a sacrifice on the cross.
This love has no limits, and this love cannot be defined by rules or
laws. We live the Great Commandment when
we imitate the love of Jesus Christ – placing God above every other reality and
giving ourselves in humble service to others.
The Gospels
also make it clear that Jesus defines the word “neighbor” in a much wider
context than would the scribe. A
neighbor is not just someone in my clan or class or tribe or race. A neighbor (as we learn from the parable of
the Good Samaritan) is anyone we encounter who is in need. We show our love in many diverse and
challenging ways.
That is why
the Diocesan Office of the Propagation of the Faith assigns a mission preacher
to each parish every year. That office
connects one mission from a struggling area to a parish in our Diocese, giving
us a chance to share our resources with our neighbors. Most mission speakers stand up here to
present the needs of their missions.
This year, the office has allowed us to respond to the needs of someone
we know very well. Father Larry Kanyike
has been to Saint Pius often to present the needs of his people. Through our response, he has been able to
build a health clinic, a new church, and most recently a new school. Now he is asking for our help in furnishing a
convent to house the sisters who teach in his school. He emailed me last week, saying that the Archbishop
of Kampala is celebrating Mass in his parish this Sunday to celebrate the tenth
anniversary of the founding of his parish.
Remembering his hour-long homily at the dedication of the new church, I
wonder how long he is talking today!
The mission
preachers in the past have asked us to trust their word about their needs. I have been to Father Larry’s parish and have
seen their needs myself. Since his “day
job” keeps him at his parish this weekend, I am asking for your help in his
name. The image of Saint Charles Lwanga,
one of the Ugandan martyrs on our triumphant arch underscores our connection
with Father Larry and his parish. You
will find pictures of the church and the school in today’s bulletin. You can place your donation in one of the
envelopes in the pew. I can assure you
that Father Larry puts our gifts at the service of his people, who are most
grateful for our help.
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