Homily Ordinary 30A: We love because God has loved us and others first

Homily for 30^th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A 2023

Introduction

"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"  That sounds like a good question.  Wouldn’t we all want to know, which among the many laws of God in the Old Testament, those of the New Testament, and then those of the Church, even those of the state, which of them is the most important, so that we can keep that one commandment and thus make our way to heaven?

The scholar of the law who asked Jesus this question, did not have this same noble motivation, but did so to test him.  It is like,we heard last week the Pharisees and Herodians, asking Jesus whether paying taxes to Caesar was right or not.  And just like in last week’s gospel, any answer Jesus gave to this question would land him in trouble.  Which of the 613 laws would he pick without offending somebody?

But you can trust Jesus to find a way out of this pickled, just like in last week’s gospel.  How does he escape the trap set him by the scholar of the law?

Scripture and Theology

First, let us remember that the 613 laws in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy were of three types: the ceremonial laws like washing, the liturgical laws like sacrifice, and the moral laws like the Ten Commandments.  From the whole gospel we know that Jesus more or less superseded the ceremonial and liturgical laws; that is why we don’t circumcise anybody or sacrifice animals.  However, the moral law, that we still keep, because it has everlasting value.  And so it is the moral law that he turns to for the greatest commandment.

So which of the myriad moral laws does he pick?  Well he doesn’t.  Instead, goes to what should be at the root and heart of all laws.  Jesus goes back to the Tradition, specifically to Deuteronomy 6:5 and pulls out this injunction of God: "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.”  And then he says: “This is the greatest and the first commandment.”

For a person of faith, this should make sense.  God must come first, God must be the centre of our lives, since he created us, sent us a saviour and he continues to provide for us.  Any law that does not in some way love God is no law at all.  Underlying every law must be the desire to love God, with all our hearts, with all our souls, and with all our minds, that is, love him completely.

But Jesus does not stop there.  Although the lawyer asked for one commandment, Jesus gives him two.  For the other greatest commandment, Jesus draws from another Old Testament book, Leviticus 19:18 to say: “The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  Just like with the first one, any law that does not in some way do good for a neighbour is no law at all.

But why does Jesus include this second commandment about love of neighbour at all?  And why does he say it is like the first the commandment?  What does loving our neighbour have to do with God?

Let me illustrate this with a story that I once heard a story about a married couple.  For years they went to the opera.  Several years into their marriage, however, it slipped accidentally from the lips of the husband, that he did not like the opera at all.  When the wife asked him, "honey, why then did you go with me all these years?" he said: “I loved the opera, because you love the opera and I love you.”  That is when the wife also said, “I too only went to the opera, because I thought you loved it and since I loved you, I had to love it.”

Similarly, the second greatest commandment enjoins us to love our neighbour, because we love God, who loves our neighbour.  The spouses in the story I told you, loved the opera, not in itself, but because they loved the person, who loved it or whom they thought loved it.  And so we are enjoined to love not only God whom it is easier to love, and not just the neighbour that is likeable, cute, useful, pretty, and intelligent.  The real reason we must love our neighbour is because this commandment is based on the first one – we love our neighbours because we love God and God loves them.

Christian Life

That is why often God commands us to love neighbours that we would not naturally be inclined to love.  Today’s first reading gives us a few examples of neighbours we must love as we love ourselves because God loves them:

About migrants and refugees God says: "You shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt.”  This country faces a real immigration problem, something that only the politicians can solve.  But what you and I do?  The one thing I suggest is we do not use demeaning language of our fellow man, simply because of his her immigration status of national origin. That would be falling foul of the second greatest commandment, which the Lord tells us is to love our neighbour, even our foreign neighbour as ourselves.

A Catholic Relief Services worker currently serving the people Gaza was asked why she was working in this Muslim region?  And her response was, we feed the need women and children, the refugees, not because they are Catholic, but because we are Catholic.  We love our neighbour, because God has loved them and frankly us first.

Our first reading also gave another example of loving one’s neighbour saying, “You shall not wrong any widow or orphan.” Today we don’t have too many widows or orphans, but at that time, the widow and the orphan were one of the most vulnerable people in society.  The widow had no husband to care for her, and the orphan had no parents.  That is why the Law of God enjoined the society at large for these most needy people.  Who are widows and orphans today, against whom we must do no wrong, who we must take care of?

One more law from the reading regards the poor who you happen to lend money or other help. God says: “You shall not act like an extortioner toward” them.  While justice demands that they pay pack what they owe, charity demands that you may have to forgive the loan or part of the loan and certainly the interest.  Who are the poor of today, whom we might be tempted to extort due to their poverty and lack of power, political or otherwise?

Jesus concludes his answer to the lawyer by saying: “The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments:” love of God and love of neighbour.  That is because these two summarize the Ten Commandments:

·        When we keep the first three commandments, the commandments of the first tablet of Moses, we in fact love God: by worshipping him alone, by not profaning his name and by keeping the Lord’s Day holy.

·        When we keep the last seven commandments, those on the second tablet of Moses, we in fact love our neighbour: by respecting our parents and elders, protecting life, observing marital fidelity, respecting the property of others, speaking the truth, avoiding envy of others’ property and spouses.

Conclusion

And so, although the scholar of the law had an ill intention in testing Jesus by asking “which commandment in the law is the greatest? he has provided the occasion for Jesus to teach us a fundamental truth.  We are now able to see good law, not as obstacle to our happiness, but rather as the concrete means for me to show my love for God and my love for neighbour.

Moreover, these loves are not separate.  As the First Letter of St. John tell us, “We love because he first loved us.  If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.  This is the commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:19-21).

Homilia Ordinaro 30A: Amamos porque Dios nos ha amado a nosotros y a los demás primero

 Homilía para el 30º Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario Año A 2023

Introducción

"Maestro, ¿cuál es el mandamiento más grande de la ley?" Suena como una buena pregunta. ¿No querríamos todos saber cuál, entre las muchas leyes del Antiguo Testamento, las del Nuevo Testamento y luego las de la Iglesia, incluso las del Estado, cuál de ellas es la más importante, para que ¿Podemos guardar ese único mandamiento y así llegar al cielo?

El doctor de la ley que le hizo esta pregunta a Jesús no tenía la misma noble motivación, sino que lo hizo para ponerlo a prueba. Es como escuchamos el evangelio de la semana pasada a los fariseos y herodianos preguntarle a Jesús si pagar impuestos al César era correcto o no. Y al igual que la semana pasada, cualquier respuesta que Jesús diera a esta pregunta le causaría problemas. ¿Cuál de las 613 (seiscientos y trece) leyes elegiría sin ofender a nadie?

¿Cómo puede Jesús escapar de la trampa que le tendió el doctor de la ley?

Escritura y teología

Primero, recordemos que las 613 leyes del Génesis, Éxodo, Levítico, Números y Deuteronomio eran de tres tipos: las leyes ceremoniales como el lavado, las leyes litúrgicas como el sacrificio y las leyes morales como los Diez Mandamientos. Por todo el evangelio sabemos que Jesús reemplazó más o menos las leyes ceremoniales y litúrgicas; por eso no circuncidamos a nadie ni sacrificamos animales. ¿Sin embargo, la ley moral? Esta todavía guardamos, porque tiene un valor eterno. Y por eso es la ley moral a la que Jesús recurre en busca del mandamiento más importante.

Entonces, ¿cuál de las innumerables leyes morales elige? Bueno, no lo hace. En cambio, se dirige a lo que debería estar en la raíz y en el corazón de todas las leyes. Jesús vuelve a la Tradición, específicamente a Deuteronomio 6:5 y saca este mandato de Dios: "Amarás al Señor, tu Dios, con todo tu corazón, con toda tu alma y con toda tu mente". Y luego dice: “Éste es el más grande y el primero de los mandamientos”.

Para una persona de fe, esto debería tener sentido. Dios debe ser lo primero, Dios debe ser el centro de nuestras vidas, ya que él nos creó, nos envió un salvador y continúa proveyéndonos. Cualquier ley que de alguna manera no ame a Dios no es ley buena. Detrás de todas las leyes debe estar el deseo de amar a Dios, con todo nuestro corazón, con toda nuestra alma y con toda nuestra mente, es decir, amarlo completamente.

Pero Jesús no se detiene allí. Aunque el doctor de la ley pidió un mandamiento, Jesús le da dos. Para el otro gran mandamiento, Jesús se basa en otro libro del Antiguo Testamento, Levítico 19:18, para decir: “el segundo es semejante a éste: Amarás a tu prójimo como a ti mismo”. Al igual que la primera, cualquier ley que de alguna manera no beneficie al prójimo no es ley buena.

Pero, ¿por qué Jesús incluye este segundo mandamiento sobre el amor al prójimo? ¿Y por qué dice que es como el primer mandamiento? ¿Qué tiene que ver amar a nuestro prójimo con Dios?

Permítanme ilustrar esto con una historia que una vez escuché sobre una pareja casada. Durante años fueron a la ópera. Sin embargo, varios años después de su matrimonio, se le escapó accidentalmente de los labios al marido que no le gustaba la ópera en absoluto. Cuando la esposa le preguntó: "cariño, ¿por qué entonces fuiste conmigo todos estos años?" Él respondió: “Me encantó la ópera, porque tú amas la ópera y yo te amo”. Fue entonces cuando la esposa también dijo: “Yo también fui a la ópera sólo porque pensé que te encantaba y como yo te amaba, tenía que amarla”.

De manera similar, el segundo gran mandamiento nos ordena amar a nuestro prójimo, porque amamos a Dios, quien ama a nuestro prójimo. Los esposos de la historia que les conté amaban la ópera, no en sí misma, sino porque amaban a la persona, a quien la amaba o a quien creían que la amaba. Por eso estamos obligados a amar no sólo a Dios, a quien es más fácil amar, y no sólo al prójimo simpático, lindo, útil, bello e inteligente. La verdadera razón por la que debemos amar a nuestro prójimo es porque este mandamiento se basa en el primero: amamos a nuestro prójimo porque amamos a Dios y Dios los ama.

Vida Cristiana

Es por eso que a menudo Dios nos ordena amar al prójimo que naturalmente no estaríamos inclinados a amar. La primera lectura de hoy nos da algunos ejemplos de prójimos que debemos amar como nos amamos a nosotros mismos porque Dios los ama:

Acerca de los migrantes y refugiados Dios dice: "No hagas sufrir ni oprimas al extranjero, porque ustedes fueron extranjeros en Egipto". Este país enfrenta un verdadero problema de inmigración, algo que sólo los políticos pueden resolver. ¿Pero qué hacemos tú y yo? Lo único que sugiero es que no usemos un lenguaje degradante hacia nuestro prójimo, simplemente por su estatus migratorio de origen nacional. Eso sería incumplir el segundo gran mandamiento, que el Señor nos dice que es amar a nuestro prójimo, incluso a nuestro prójimo extranjero como a nosotros mismos.

A una trabajadora de Catholic Relief Services que actualmente sirve a la gente de Gaza se le preguntó por qué estaba trabajando en esta región musulmana. Y su respuesta fue: alimentamos las necesidades de las mujeres y los niños, los refugiados, no porque sean católicos, sino porque nosotros somos católicos. Amamos a nuestro prójimo, porque Dios los ha amado y francamente a nosotros primero.

Nuestra primera lectura también dio otro ejemplo de amar al prójimo diciendo: "No explotes a las viudas ni a los huérfanos". Hoy no tenemos demasiadas viudas ni huérfanos, pero en aquella época, la viuda y el huérfano eran las personas más vulnerables de la sociedad. La viuda no tenía marido que la cuidara, y el huérfano no tenía padres. Por eso la Ley de Dios ordenó a la sociedad en general cuidar de estas personas más necesitadas. ¿Quiénes son hoy las viudas y los huérfanos, a quienes no debemos hacer ningún mal, a quienes debemos cuidar?

Una ley más de la lectura se refiere a los pobres a quienes se les presta dinero u otra ayuda. Dios dice: “no te portes con él como usurero” con ellos. Mientras que la justicia exige que paguen lo que deben, la caridad exige que se tenga que perdonar el préstamo o parte del préstamo y ciertamente los intereses. ¿Quiénes son los pobres de hoy, a quienes podríamos sentirnos tentados a extorsionar debido a su pobreza y falta de poder, político o de otro tipo?

Jesús concluye su respuesta al intérprete de la ley diciendo: “En estos dos mandamientos se fundan toda la ley y los profetas:” el amor a Dios y el amor al prójimo. Esto se debe a que estos resumen los Diez Mandamientos:

•      Cuando guardamos los tres primeros mandamientos, los mandamientos de la primera tabla de Moisés, de hecho, amamos a Dios: adorándolo sólo a él, no profanando su nombre y santificando el Día del Señor.

•      Cuando guardamos los últimos siete mandamientos, los de la segunda tabla de Moisés, amamos de hecho a nuestro prójimo: respetando a nuestros padres y a nuestros mayores, protegiendo la vida, observando la fidelidad conyugal, respetando la propiedad de los demás, hablando la verdad, evitando la envidia, de los bienes ajenos y de los cónyuges.

Conclusión

Y así, aunque el doctor de la ley tuvo mala intención al poner a prueba a Jesús preguntándole “¿cuál es el mandamiento más grande de la ley?" ha brindado la ocasión para que Jesús nos enseñe una verdad fundamental. Ahora podemos ver las leyes buenas, no como un obstáculo para nuestra felicidad, sino más bien como el medio concreto para mostrar nuestro amor a Dios y al prójimo.

Además, estos amores no están separados. Permítanme dar la última palabra a la Primera Carta de San Juan, que dice:

Amemos, pues, ya que él nos amó primero. Si uno dice «Yo amo a Dios» y odia a su hermano, es un mentiroso. Si no ama a su hermano, a quien ve, no puede amar a Dios, a quien no ve. Pues este es el mandamiento que recibimos de él: el que ama a Dios, ame también a su hermano (1 Juan 4:19-21).

Homily Day of Prayer and Fasting for the Holy Land: For the Peace of Jerusalem Prayer

 Homily for Mass for the Preservation of Peace and Justice

Notre Dame Seminary, New Orleans LA

October 17, 2023

READINGS: Rd 1 - 888-3 - Jas 3:13-18, Ps - 889-3 - Ps 122:1-2, 3-4a, 4b-5, 6-7, 8-9, Ac - 890-1 - Matt 5:9, Gs - 891-2 - Matt 5:38-48

Introduction

“Prayer is the meek and holy force to oppose the diabolical force of hatred, terrorism and war.”  With these words at last Sunday’s Angelus, Pope Francis invited all believers to pray and fast today for the people of the Holy Land.

Inviting the faithful to pray is something that the Pope has consistently done, starting the very day he was elected pope.  He has invited the whole world to pray during the COVID crisis; he invited us to pray when the war in Ukraine broke out.  The terrorist attacks by the Hamas on innocent Israeli citizens is clearly another occasion for worldwide prayer.  For although the conflicts in Palestine have been going on for many decades, the ferociousness of these recent events has raised the stakes for violence and terror to new levels.  And as Catholics, one of our responses, is prayer.

Scripture and Theology

But what will prayer do, one might ask?  Is this not just another case of “thoughts and prayers” often glibly doled out by politicians and celebrities after a tragedy?

For us Catholics, prayer is how we deal with everything, the good, the bad and especially the ugly.  We turn to God. Our prayer today continues in the Old Testament tradition of prayer by lamentation.  A large portion of the psalms and the Book of Lamentations are exactly the kind of prayer we offer now. We cry out to God in agony, naming our terrible sufferings and asking God, as only he can, to save us.  Even when with Jesus we ask: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” we are not doubting him, but instead trusting him.  Because our relationship with him is that of a humble child talking to a loving father, we trust that he knows and will answer our prayers according to his will and in his time.  Our prayer of lament is not a sign of despair, but the antidote to it; it is not a sign of hopelessness, but a sign of hope.

Such prayer of lament also helps us be real and not live in the clouds.  We avoid the extremes of either sweeping our of pain under the rug or reacting in the kind of vengeful ways Jesus teaches against in the Sermon on the Mount.  We respond constructively by telling God, “This is what we are feeling.  Can you do something about it?” And then we leave it to him.

Besides lament, our prayer today is also a prayer of intercession.  We are praying primarily not for our own suffering, but for the suffering of others, even our enemies, real or perceived.  With Pope Francis, we are praying that “children, the sick, the elderly, women, and all civilians not be made victims of the conflict.”  We are praying for bereaved mothers who have seen their children die brutally, from both the attacks of Hamas and the indiscriminate bombings of Gaza by the Israeli military.  We are praying for the release of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas, whose place Cardinal Pierbattista, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, has offered to take.  We are heeding the instruction of St. Paul to Timothy, “that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and for all in authority” (1 Tim. 2:1).

Christian Life

But our prayer for the Holy Land must not leave us unaffected.  This day should inspire us to be better informed the complex situation of the Holy Land.

1.    Do we know enough about the Holy Land conflict to speak about it through the lens of faith and reason, and not that of ideology?  Do we know about the unspeakable living conditions of 2.5 million Gazan including 150 Catholic families?

2.    Do we know something about the on-going efforts at mediation, even by the Church?  Do we know about the two-state solution long supported by the Church, "which would allow Palestinians and Israelis to live side by side in peace and security", for peace can only come from justice?

3.    Do we know what the Church teaches about legitimate and proportional self-defence as opposed to vengeance?

Conclusion

Psalm 122, which we prayed for Vespers 1 this past Sunday says, “For the Peace of Jerusalem pray”.  And so, as we celebrate this Mass, this sacrament of unity, “Let us pray for the Israelis; let us pray for the Palestinians; let us pray for Christians, Jews, and Muslims.”  Let us pray for ourselves, that we may always work for peace and justice always.