Loving Others

The WORD today (see http://usccb.org/bible/readings/091017.cfm) reminds me how much God wants me to love others. 

When we hear the word love, a lot of times we think of something romantic. However, that is just one of the kinds of love. In the readings today, we see a powerful, everyday, normal kind of love - love we sometimes take for granted or not practice, because it is difficult.

In the first reading, we see how God wants us to care enough for other people to want them to be saved. It is not enough that we are doing good with our lives. In the gospel, Jesus wants us to love others by forgiving them – something very hard to do. It is very hard to forgive others, because we want to get revenge, we want to even the score, we want to protect ourselves. Thus, forgiveness is really not a sign of weakness, but of power and love. Forgiveness is showing God we love him more than we love ourselves. 

The second reading is full of love. It struck me because I remember how powerful and important love is. I remember how much God wants me to love others. 

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

Love. Love. Love. Forgive one another. Love one another. Love is so great that St Paul tells us that love is the fulfilment of the law. Wow. Big words. Love is the fulfillment of the law. Sounds simple, but very true. And hard to do. But looking at it, this actually makes sense. As we look at commandments 4-10, we see that they are all about other people. Therefore, to fulfill the law and commandments, we need not memorize everything word for word. We just need to remember one thing - love. Love God and love others. Love for God should be lived in others. 

It is very hard to love others, especially those unlovable. But God wants us to do it. because only as we love others even if it hurts, do we allow God to love us and love through us. It is by loving others that we are able to make God and his love more alive and more real in this world. 

May we obey God's commandment and love others. 

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for another Sunday. Thank you for another day to spend time with you and be one with you. Lord, thank you for your love. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for your forgiveness. I ask that I be able to soak it in and experience it, so that as I become more aware of it, I may share it with others. Sorry for the times I do not love others. Sorry for loving only those who are easy to love. Sorry for loving myself more than I love you. Help me to forgive like you do, and most importantly, to love like you do. Use me to make your love more alive and more real in this world. Amen.

Blessed Sunday!

In Christ,

-g-

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September 10, 2017
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 127

Reading 1EZ 33:7-9

Thus says the LORD:
You, son of man, I have appointed watchman for the house of Israel;
when you hear me say anything, you shall warn them for me.
If I tell the wicked, "O wicked one, you shall surely die, "
and you do not speak out to dissuade the wicked from his way,
the wicked shall die for his guilt,
but I will hold you responsible for his death.
But if you warn the wicked,
trying to turn him from his way,
and he refuses to turn from his way,
he shall die for his guilt,
but you shall save yourself.

Responsorial PsalmPS 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9

R. (8) If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us bow down in worship;
let us kneel before the LORD who made us.
For he is our God,
and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
"Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works."
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Reading 2ROM 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.

Alleluia2 COR 5:19

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 18:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples:
"If your brother sins against you,
go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. 
If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.
If he does not listen,
take one or two others along with you,
so that 'every fact may be established
on the testimony of two or three witnesses.'
If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. 
If he refuses to listen even to the church,
then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.
Amen, I say to you,
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, amen, I say to you,
if two of you agree on earth
about anything for which they are to pray,
it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. 
For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them."