Walking with Jesus: 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time A

Exodus 22:20-26; 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10; Matthew 22:34-40

The readings today ask very practical questions about God’s command of love and Jesus’ triple command of loving God … loving our neighbor … loving ourselves. How am I doing with these? Am I better at one and not so good with the others? Which one(s) give me the hardest time? How do I interpret these commands? Do I tend to place exceptions in interpreting and acting? Do I really believe that Jesus meant no exceptions, none excluded? Do I find myself helping only the “group” that I am on good terms with, or is my caring all-inclusive? How can I live when many are concerned only with themselves? Are these commands unreasonable or am I unreasonable? How do I live love today? The readings help interpret God’s command of love.

Exodus begins with the story of Moses leading God’s people from Egyptian slavery. They leave in the 12th chapter … cross the Red Sea in the 14th chapter … are fed by God with quail and manna in the 16th chapter … receive water from the Rock in the 17th chapter … and arrive at Mt. Sinai in the 19th chapter. In the 20th chapter, Moses receives the Ten Commandments.

“When the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the trumpet blast and the mountain smoking, they all feared and trembled. So they took up a position much farther away and said to Moses, ‘You speak to us, and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we shall die.’” [Exodus 20:18-19] Perhaps people still have unfounded fear of God blocking them from realizing He is a God of love. Can I see the Commandments as a covenant of love with God? Moses continues with practical interpretations: The people have accepted the challenge to serve God and realize loving God is to be lived. God reminds the tribes that they were once aliens, and later slaves, in Egypt. Now they have the privilege of being God’s chosen people. They are tested in the way they treat the most vulnerable members of society. During the Exodus journey they received the unconditional love of God; now this kind of generosity is expected of them in their dealings with all others. God has gifted them … God gifts me. Do I realize I am called to respond always? Do I realize that I have been chosen? My baptism is a sign of my commitment and dedication to God for loving me. What is my response? The last sentence in the reading spells out what God expects of my loving: “If he/she cries out to me, I will hear them; for I am compassionate.” [Exodus 20: 26] We so often shrug off the responsibility for those who aren’t “us.” This makes us vulnerable to the warning issued by Moses, the prophets and Jesus: All the world’s children are “us.”

Paul affirms the Thessalonians despite their “great affliction” [1 Thessalonians 1:6] as they continue to live for Christ as Paul has shown them. Listening to the life and teachings of Jesus has changed them and their entire world-view. Others have seen and been edified by their examples of love as Paul attests: “… you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.” [1 Thessalonians 1:7] These last eight months have been more difficult than we expected. Our routines have totally changed. We have witnessed many examples from workers, friends, “nobodies” who have kept us alive through it all. People with no poor technical experience taught us how to communicate through the media. We should take time, remember and reflect on what has been most helpful to keep hope vital and God’s love present throughout the ups and downs of the times.

Matthew's version of the “Greatest Commandment” sharpens its focus by making it a controversy between Jesus and the Pharisees. Matthew is Jewish, as is his audience. Judaism believed that in addition to the Ten Commandments, Moses received from God 613 oral laws: 238 positive ones and 365 negative ones. So today’s scholar wants to know which ones are most important. Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:5, which every Jew knew by heart: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord Alone! Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.” [Deuteronomy 6:4-5] Many rabbis would agree with this totality of love and that this love must be put into concrete practice. Jesus was not asked what commandment came next. Jesus quotes Leviticus 19:18: “Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen. You shall love your neighbor, as yourself.  I am the Lord.” Jesus makes it very clear that this commandment is not in “second place” but is equal to the first. Later, in Luke 10:25-37, Jesus defines the meaning of ”neighbor,” illustrating the superiority of love over legalism.

In The Practice of the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence writes that what counts as lost is the time not spent loving God. Whatever he does, he does with Jesus. He flips an omelet with God; repairs shoes, and speaks with others while remaining attentive to the Holy Spirit in his heart ... even penning the prayer over a broken teacup. His maxims help all in loving in the now.

So I reflect on:

• I think when I have taken expressions of love for granted: at the end of a phone call, as one is going out the door, etc. What jogs my mind to better appreciate who and what I have?
• Can I love God and others if I do not love myself? Why … why not? How do I express love of self? How do I express love for others? Can I make some resolutions?
• Can I see my neighbor as the person I don’t like, who has hurt me, is a different religion, or sexual persuasion, race, is richer or poorer, has publicly sinned or has no religion? God does!
  

Sacred Space 2020 states:

“Isn’t it possible for my heart, soul, and mind to want different things sometimes? Jesus calls me to integrity and to wholeness. As I am drawn into relationship with Him, I come to love what He loves, to desire what He desires, and to think as He thinks.

“I can do nothing to make God love me more. God’s love shines on me as the sun shines on Earth. Real prayer includes resting gratefully in that love. I have a treasure in my heart, which is the limitless love of God for me. But I must share it with my neighbor. I ask to be a true escort of God’s love to others.”