05/11/2006 - XXXI SUNDAY in ORDINARY
TIME - Year B
First Reading Deuteronomy 6:2-6 Psalm 17/18
Second Reading Hebrews 7:23-28 Gospel Mark 12:28-34
You shall not covet your neighbour's wife. Jesus refers to this commandment
when He says: "Everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed
adultery with her in his heart" (Mt 5:28). We will always have desires,
more or less strong, which will inspire our actions, give them meaning and stimulate
us into action. Our desires, though, are not all sane; nor, are they all holy!
They are not a manifestation of the psyche to act on them, at all cost, so that
we may gain happiness. That's when temptation is hidden; it is then that they
lead us down a path which God tells us that, if we follow, they will ruin our
life and the life of others. We can, we should, and we must, discern, among
them, which we are to follow and which we must abandon. How can we do this?
We can do this by comparing them to the Word of God and the teachings of the
Church, or by taking the advice of a spiritual father, who loves us and prays
for us. Before I follow any desire, I ask God, my Father, and Jesus, my Saviour!
By sifting through our desires, we find some which, above all, stir our emotions.
To whom should I open my heart? To whom must I show my feelings and my aspirations?
We know that, by opening our heart to someone else, we can end up in permanent
relationship; easier yet, if we are attracted to that person. Therefore, I will
not open my heart to someone who is already married, so as not to risk linking
my heart to hers and arouse feelings for me, within her. And those who are married
must be, even more careful, not to get to the point of "separating what
God has joined together"! We must learn to dominate our desires, so as
to keep our hearts faithful to the mission to which we are called to live within
our own family, as well!
One of the signs, through which we recognize the Messiah, is the fact that He
"makes the deaf hear"! There is a material deafness, for which not
a sound is heard; but there is an even deeper spiritual deafness, to which we
don't adhere: the Word of God; that Word directed at us, with love, for our
salvation. We can be cured from this deafness, only, when we choose it! This
is why the invitation keeps coming back in all the Scriptures; sometimes, as
a command: "Listen"! Jesus, Himself, repeats the invitation of Moses,
and makes it resound in the ears of the scribe who asks Him which is the most
important commandment. It would almost seem to be that the commandment is "Listen!"
Listening is, fundamentally, an act of love. He, who does not love, does not
listen. And he, who loves, is always seeking to hear more deeply; to be, always,
more attentive, more at the disposal of others; always, more ready. He, who
loves, listens in such a way that the one, who speaks to him, is helped in expressing
himself, and in showing all his desires and all his wisdom. He, who loves, also
listens with the desire to carry out the will of the one who is loved! This
is how spouses listen; this is how children and parents listen. This is, also,
how God listens! God, Himself, is happy that we speak to Him, and this is why
Jesus invites us to: "knock and it shall be opened", as if to say
that God is ready to hear us and to carry out all that we ask of Him. But we,
too, want to listen to God in such a way that He can show us His desires. We
know that He is all-knowing; that He loves us; that He, even, knows our future
and the most distant and most complex consequences of our actions; and that's
why we desire His Word as the surest guide for the path we take, and for our
actions. This is why the invitation to "listen" becomes one, as He
continues: "Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart…."! He, who
listens, is already on the road of love! He, who listens, is already giving
way to the true and concrete path of love. Love is not a series of feelings
to be enjoyed and to experience; but love is a concreteness of action, of disposal,
of an offering of one's own time and energy, of one's own life. Love the Lord,
your God! And Jesus adds: "Love your neighbour as yourself"! He, who
loves God; that is, he who listens to Him, continues to listen to the neighbour,
as well, because God can speak to him, through those whom he meets along his
way.
Love brings the kingdom of God closer! Jesus says exactly that, to the scribe
who understands His words: "You are not far from the kingdom of God"!
And we ask ourselves: love, is that enough? In order to enter the kingdom of
God, what else is important, besides love? Love brings us closer to the Kingdom,
but it is not enough! The Letter to the Hebrews helps us. We do not enter the
kingdom of God, through our own strength, alone; not even, with the strength
of our love! We enter the kingdom of God, thanks to the grace of the sacrifice
of Jesus, the high priest, holy, innocent and uncontaminated, who gives Himself
to the Father. Our love brings us closer to God; but, in order to reach Him,
we must welcome the Son, whom He sent; we must offer ourselves with Him, who
is without sin, perfect.
I will seek, above all, to listen to Jesus, to love Him, to put Him above everything
and everyone. This love will, then, give the necessary colour and intensity
to the love of the Father, and that of neighbour, also. When I love Jesus, both
God and neighbour will feel loved by me!