ALL I ASK OF YOU IS WHAT WILL MAKE YOU WHOLE . . .

“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.’”  Mark 12:28-31

GOSPEL REFLECTION BY BISHOP ROBERT BARRON

“When a scribe asked Jesus to identify the first commandment, he answered with what the ancient Israelites referred to as the shema: ‘Here, O Israel:  the Lord our God, the Lord is one.’ This invites an examination of conscience:

• “Is God the one Lord of your life? Is God the ONE Lord of your life? Really?
• “Who or what are his rivals for your attention, for your ultimate concern? Stop and answer that. Who or what are his rivals for your attention, for your ultimate concern?

“Or to turn the question around:

• Does absolutely everything in your life belong to God?”

BUT GOD IS SOMEONE WHOM I CANNOT SEE

“You might ask, ‘But how do I give myself to a reality that I cannot see?’ This is where the second command of Jesus comes into play. When asked which is the first of all the commandments, Jesus responded with the shema, but then he placed a second command alongside it — namely, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

“There is a strict logic at work here. When you really love someone, you tend to love, as well, what they love.

“Well, what does God love? He loves everything and everyone that he has made.

“So, if you want to love God,
but you find this move difficult
because God seems so distant,
then,
love everyone
you come across
for the sake of God.”
~ Bishop Robert Barron, Mark 12: 28-34, The Word On Fire Bible