Reading 1
Rom 13:8-10
Brothers and sisters:
Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another;
for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.
The commandments, You shall not commit adultery;
you shall not kill;
you shall not steal;
you shall not covet,
and whatever other commandment there may be,
are summed up in this saying, namely,
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Love does no evil to the neighbor;
hence, love is the fulfillment of the law.
Gospel
Lk 14:25-33
Great crowds were traveling with Jesus,
and he turned and addressed them,
“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother,
wife and children, brothers and sisters,
and even his own life,
he cannot be my disciple.
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me
cannot be my disciple.
Which of you wishing to construct a tower
does not first sit down and calculate the cost
to see if there is enough for its completion?
Otherwise, after laying the foundation
and finding himself unable to finish the work
the onlookers should laugh at him and say,
‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’
Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down
and decide whether with ten thousand troops
he can successfully oppose another king
advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops?
But if not, while he is still far away,
he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms.
In the same way,
everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions
cannot be my disciple.”
Meditation: Romans 13:8-10
Love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:10)
One day an expert of the law approached Jesus and wanted to know how to obtain eternal life. Jesus asked him what the law stated. The man explained that you must love God with your whole heart, mind, and strength, and also love your neighbor as yourself. Rather than giving a long list of regulations, Jesus agreed with the man’s conclusion (Mark 12:28-34). The heart of the gospel can be summed up in one word: love.
In today’s first reading, Paul is inviting us to reflect on the core of everything that God has planned for us—the core, in fact, of everything he has ever done. God’s love for us is the beginning from which all else flows. Before he even created us, he loved us. He called us into being because he wanted to share his love with us. Even when we rejected him and chose our own way, he didn’t abandon his plan. Rather, he continued to call us back to himself, seeking always to bring his plan to fruition in our lives.
When God gave us the commandments, it was not just so that we could stay out of trouble or avoid his wrath. Rather, the commandments were an invitation to put our lives in order so that we would be more open to receiving his presence and his grace. They were founded on the truth that his love, dwelling in us, has the power to fulfill us in ways that sin and self-centered behavior never could.
Today’s reading moves us to ask: Have I let a focus on rules or expectations cloud my vision of the love that God has for me? And a second question follows almost immediately: Have I allowed judgmental attitudes to overshadow love in my relationships with other people? When we are filled with God’s love, we begin to see people in new ways, focusing on mercy and compassion and not on judgments or condemnations.
Loving God and loving our neighbors: It really is a simple calling!
“Jesus, change my heart. I want your love to be in the center of my heart. Help me to be open to this love so that I can share it with those around me. Teach me the simplicity of love.”
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