Gospel – Mark 12:28-34
“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.
Reflection on the Gospel
Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.
Tough Love
“People won’t always remember what you said, but they will remember how you made them feel.”
Maya Angelou
By the end of the day, students and teachers alike are exhausted and seeking refuge in having a sense of accomplishment and rest. Yet, it is so easy to look back at the day and feel like nothing was accomplished besides more headache, more paperwork to be done and an ever growing list of tasks. Having started a second year of teaching brings new joy, new struggles, new insight and new opportunity for ‘tough love’ from above. So often does a teacher wake up with the mentality of a roster of items one has to accomplish for the day including lessons, paperwork, grading and the like. Yet, how often and easy it is to go home feeling defeated and no closer to the kingdom of heaven.
As in the gospel, we see Jesus encounter a scribe, perplexed and questioning what the true value of work and end goal should be in life. Jesus replies as he does with an attentiveness on ‘Love’. Love is more important than any burnt offerings or sacrifices one can offer He tells the scribe. Love is the primary commandment above all other laws and regulations. As a young teacher, I am finding it more and more difficult not to teach lessons, but to love as God loves. Understanding that we offer each other an ‘imperfect’ love doesn’t satisfy the search as to why life is so difficult. Yet, the good Lord invites and encourages us to find refuge in Him. He offers us refuge from the rejections, burdens and hardships and offers to help us carry our crosses.
The crosses of life were not promised to be easy, but they are possible to be carried when oriented on Love…His love…perfect love without judgment. Let us continue to travel and hope that our love speaks above all else during our lifelong journey. Let us hope to hear the fateful words… well done my good and faithful servant…live Jesus in our hearts…forever. Amen.
Brother Kyle Mena
Jeremy House
Saint John Baptist de La Salle – Pray for us.
Live, Jesus, in our hearts – Forever.