Reading 1
Hos 14:2-10
Thus says the LORD:
Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God;
you have collapsed through your guilt.
Take with you words,
and return to the LORD;
Say to him, “Forgive all iniquity,
and receive what is good, that we may render
as offerings the bullocks from our stalls.
Assyria will not save us,
nor shall we have horses to mount;
We shall say no more, ‘Our god,’
to the work of our hands;
for in you the orphan finds compassion.”
I will heal their defection, says the LORD,
I will love them freely;
for my wrath is turned away from them.
I will be like the dew for Israel:
he shall blossom like the lily;
He shall strike root like the Lebanon cedar,
and put forth his shoots.
His splendor shall be like the olive tree
and his fragrance like the Lebanon cedar.
Again they shall dwell in his shade
and raise grain;
They shall blossom like the vine,
and his fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
Ephraim! What more has he to do with idols?
I have humbled him, but I will prosper him.
“I am like a verdant cypress tree”–
Because of me you bear fruit!
Let him who is wise understand these things;
let him who is prudent know them.
Straight are the paths of the LORD,
in them the just walk,
but sinners stumble in them.
Ps 81:6c-8a, 8bc-9, 10-11ab, 14 and 17
Responsorial PsalmR. (see 11 and 9a)
I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
An unfamiliar speech I hear:
“I relieved his shoulder of the burden;
his hands were freed from the basket.
In distress you called, and I rescued you.”
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
“Unseen, I answered you in thunder;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.
Hear, my people, and I will admonish you;
O Israel, will you not hear me?”
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
“There shall be no strange god among you
nor shall you worship any alien god.
I, the LORD, am your God
who led you forth from the land of Egypt.”
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
“If only my people would hear me,
and Israel walk in my ways,
I would feed them with the best of wheat,
and with honey from the rock I would fill them.”
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
Gospel
Mk 12:28-34
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.
Meditation: Mark 12:28-34
“Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone!” (Mark 12:29)
“Which is the first of all the commandments?” asks the scribe (Mark 12:28). He is looking for the key, a simple principle on which to hang all the other rules. A questioner in a different setting asks the same question in a different way: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25). What is the one thing I can attend to so conscientiously that it will guarantee me entrance into God’s kingdom?
This is a familiar passage. We know Jesus’ answer. He tells the scribe what he must do: Love God. Love your neighbor.
But that isn’t where he begins. Instead, Jesus begins where God told Moses to begin, with the words every Jew committed to memory as a small child: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone!” (Deuteronomy 6:4).
Come to know who God is! Get in touch with his covenant love and faithfulness! See how deeply committed he is to you! If you can grasp this, you will almost naturally bow down in worship and put all your energy into loving God. And as you experience God’s love and mercy —as you get to know him as a friend—you can’t help but see how deeply God loves all his other children. Catching even a glimpse of God’s love for others shows you that loving your neighbor is the most natural thing in the world.
Does it feel as if you’re not making all that much progress this Lent? Rather than just gritting your teeth and trying harder, take a different approach. Stop, look, and listen. Slow down, spend time in God’s presence, and let him speak to you and lift you up. Maybe read a couple of psalms slowly (Psalms 23, 63, 3, 118, 136, for example). Let them remind you how great God is and how much he has done for you.
Do this, and love will well up within you. Do it, and you’ll find it easier to love God and follow his ways. Do it, and you’ll find a greater compassion in your heart for those around you. If you take the time to hear, you will find it easier to obey!
“Father, you alone are Lord. Let your Spirit rise up in me, filling me with love for you and love for every neighbor.”
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