In today’s gospel, Jesus counts the ways we can love Him. It is simultaneously easier and harder than we think.
Listen to Him
Jesus says: Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. Whoever loves me will keep my word. John 14:21a, 23
Which of course leads to a crucial question: do we do this? Do we have and hold on to the commands and instructions of Jesus? Before giving casual assent, let us take a quick inventory of some of Jesus’ core teachings and sayings:
Greatest Commandment: You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Mat 22:37
Critical Equation: Forgive us, but only as well as we in turn forgive others.
Caring for others: Whatever you did (or did not do) for one of these least brothers of mine, you did (or did not do) for me. Mat 25:40, 45
Lex Talionis, begone! But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. Mat 5:44
Danger of riches: It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. Mat 19:24
Watch and pray: So, you could not keep watch with me for one hour? Mat 26:40
Sacramental Confession: Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained. John 20:23
Holy Communion: Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. John 6:53
Cut To the Heart
The fact is: we do not keep any of this well. Not His words, not His commandments, not His beatitudes. Practicing Catholics only keep the last three items mentioned reasonably well. Devout Catholics will be fulfilled with regular Mass attendance, fervent preparation and reception of the Eucharist, regular Eucharistic adoration, and confession. But what of the rest of Jesus’s words? When was the last time you and I invited the crippled, blind and those who could not repay us for our elaborate dinners? When was the last time we went the extra mile? How often do we forgive the slightest slight perpetrated against our well-tuned expectations of dignity owed us? Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa!
Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints, and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
Let our hearts too, like the hearers of St. Peter, be cut to the heart so that we are galvanized into a proper response.
Loved By the Trinity
Jesus promises three amazing things: The Father’s love, The Son’s Revelation, and The Spirit’s Teaching.
Imagine the Father’s loving gaze as He continues to preserve and sustain you. Imagine Jesus revealing Himself to you and dwelling within you. And, imagine the Spirit’s gentle counsels, promptings, and reminders of Jesus’ teachings.
Now, imagine no more! Our beloved Catholic Church has faithfully guarded the deposit of faith and handed it down to us over two millennia, faithful to the words of Jesus that began this reflection. We are loved by the Trinity and all that is required by us is to love in return, as fully as we can manage and then some.
So thank we now, O Triune God, Father, Creator and Giver of beatitude; Son, Co-creator, Redeemer, Teacher, Savior, Lord and Light that dispels the darkness that surrounds us; Holy Spirit, Paraclete, Counselor, the Spirit of Truth who gives knowledge, understanding and wisdom, Gifts and Fruits, inspirations and right desires. Let us make the sign of the Cross in thanksgiving, praying: In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit!
