Hear, O Israel!
Gospel Reflection
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
Today, our scriptural text reminds of the most important law that should be embedded in our hearts, that of the love of God - the singular love for the Father.
We heard the question of the scribe, who, if we read the previous verses, earlier questioned about the resurrection and the seven husbands.
A scribe, in Judaism, were the scholars of the Law, and so their sole interest would be to have a better grasp of what they consider is true wisdom, that is a better understanding of the law, but at times, they can be very strict with the Law's interpretation.
But in the reading we heard a question from a scholar who really was interested to learn more, at this Jesus was impressed.
So after asking about the next life, the scribe asked as to what the greatest commandment is. You see, according to scholars, the Old Testament apparently recorded a total of 613 commandments, but they could not agree which of these is the most important.
With this, Jesus cites a very common passage from Deuteronomy (6:2-6). Listen, O Israel. This is called the Shema, Hebrew for hear, or at least the first part of the Shema, and this is the Hebrew profession of faith which they recite or read for morning and evening prayers, during their synagogue service and other liturgical or prayer services.
So basically, what Jesus told the scholar of the law was something that they are very familiar with, and could easily relate to.
Hear, O dear people of God. There is only one God, love Him with all of your being. And to this Jesus added a verse from Leviticus, which is to love our neighbor as ourself. Although John quoted Jesus saying that we should love our neighbor as he loved us. This means that just as he was willing to sacrifice himself for our sake, we too must be willing to make sacrifices for the sake of our brothers and sisters.
In his angelus message of November 4, 2018, Pope Francis, said: In choosing these two Words addressed by God to his people and by putting them together, Jesus taught once and for all that love for God and love for neighbor are inseparable; moreover, they sustain one another.
He added: Even if set in a sequence, they are two sides of a single coin: experienced together they are a believer’s strength! Therefore, to love God means to invest our energies each day to be his assistants in the unmitigated service of our neighbor, in trying to forgive without limitations, and in cultivating relationships of communion and fraternity.
Today, let us pray that we be granted the heart that would put God as the top priority in our life and for us to learn to sacrifice for the sake of our brothers and sisters in need, for those who are lost, for the neglected and the forgotten. Amen.
Photo: Lars Kuczynski | Unsplash
One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
"Which is the first of all the commandments?"
Jesus replied, "The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
'He is One and there is no other than he.'
And 'to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself'
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
Today, our scriptural text reminds of the most important law that should be embedded in our hearts, that of the love of God - the singular love for the Father.
We heard the question of the scribe, who, if we read the previous verses, earlier questioned about the resurrection and the seven husbands.
A scribe, in Judaism, were the scholars of the Law, and so their sole interest would be to have a better grasp of what they consider is true wisdom, that is a better understanding of the law, but at times, they can be very strict with the Law's interpretation.
But in the reading we heard a question from a scholar who really was interested to learn more, at this Jesus was impressed.
So after asking about the next life, the scribe asked as to what the greatest commandment is. You see, according to scholars, the Old Testament apparently recorded a total of 613 commandments, but they could not agree which of these is the most important.
With this, Jesus cites a very common passage from Deuteronomy (6:2-6). Listen, O Israel. This is called the Shema, Hebrew for hear, or at least the first part of the Shema, and this is the Hebrew profession of faith which they recite or read for morning and evening prayers, during their synagogue service and other liturgical or prayer services.
So basically, what Jesus told the scholar of the law was something that they are very familiar with, and could easily relate to.
Hear, O dear people of God. There is only one God, love Him with all of your being. And to this Jesus added a verse from Leviticus, which is to love our neighbor as ourself. Although John quoted Jesus saying that we should love our neighbor as he loved us. This means that just as he was willing to sacrifice himself for our sake, we too must be willing to make sacrifices for the sake of our brothers and sisters.
In his angelus message of November 4, 2018, Pope Francis, said: In choosing these two Words addressed by God to his people and by putting them together, Jesus taught once and for all that love for God and love for neighbor are inseparable; moreover, they sustain one another.
He added: Even if set in a sequence, they are two sides of a single coin: experienced together they are a believer’s strength! Therefore, to love God means to invest our energies each day to be his assistants in the unmitigated service of our neighbor, in trying to forgive without limitations, and in cultivating relationships of communion and fraternity.
Today, let us pray that we be granted the heart that would put God as the top priority in our life and for us to learn to sacrifice for the sake of our brothers and sisters in need, for those who are lost, for the neglected and the forgotten. Amen.
Photo: Lars Kuczynski | Unsplash
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