ANG PINAKAMAHALAGANG UTOS

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Sa pag-ibig nakasalalay ang tanang kautusan ng Panginoon; pag-ibig sa Diyos at sa kapwa. Pagibig ang isinagot ni Hesukristo sa mga Pariseo na nagnais subukan ang Kanyang dunong, sa halip na matuto mula sa Kanya. Pag-ibig ang mensaheng ipinahayag Niya sa Kanyang pangangaral at gawi ng pamumuhay; pag-ibig na nakamit ang kasukdulan sa Kanyang pagaalay ng sariling buhay sa krus. Pag-ibig din ang inaasahan Niya mula sa atin na Kanyang iniibig nang lubos.

Ayon sa kahuwaran ni San Juan Crisostomo (Pseudo Chrysostom), pag-ibig sa Diyos ang isinagot ni Hesukristo, bilang pinakamahalagang utos ng Diyos at hindi takot, sapagkat sa alipin ang takot, sa mga anak ang pag-ibig; takot ang nasa sapilitan, pag-ibig ang nasa malaya. Hindi nais ng Diyos na paglingkuran Siya ng tao sa paraang pinaglilingkuran ng isang alipin ang kanyang amo. Pag-ibig ang nais ng Diyos, kapara ng pag-ibig ng isang anak sa kanyang ama, kung kaya nga ba kinupkop Niya tayo bilang Kanyang mga anak. Inibig tayo ng Ama. 

Lantad ang pag-ibig ng Ama para sa atin, sa pamamagitan ni Hesukristo kasama ng Espiritu Santo. Marapat, kung ganoon, lantad din ang pag-ibig natin sa Kanya;pagibig ng isang anak sa kanyang Ama. Isabuhay natin ang pag-ibig natin sa Diyos sa pag-ibig natin sa kapwa, kung hindi wala tayong pinagkaiba sa mga Pariseyo; sinusubukan at hinihiya lamang ang Panginoon.

PROMISE!

We often hear people say, “Promises are meant to be broken.” But promises are made to be fulfilled. Today, we are reminded of that because the gospel for this very day talks about the fulfilment of the law, the law that God gave to man – the commandments. 

Jesus said that He came to this world to fulfill the promises that His Fa­ther promised and He did. God fulfilled what he promised to us, He is very true to His words. Are we in the same way true to our words? God promised that we will be saved and so we are saved. In our case, we promised God that we will follow His commandments. God only ask for ten things from us, and yet we cannot do them. We break promises. 

Now it is our turn to return what God did to us. We have to be true to ourselves and our words. We have to fulfill what we promised from the very first place, to obey the com­mandments of God. Do this for God, and for us, human kind, to be re­deemed from the mistakes we make. Start following what is meant to be.

The New Commandment

A face that only a mother could love. This is one of the funnier ways of saying someone is ugly. On a related note, it is also a portrayal of a mother’s love. Sacrifice, going against social biases, complete and selfless love – all these can be found in the phrase only a mother could love. This kind of love is difficult to achieve to the point of being reserved only for very close relationships like that of a mother and her child.

Yet in today’s Gospel, this is the kind of love that Jesus calls us to. It is Christian love. It is the kind of love that Jesus Himself lived and shared with us. The kind of love that enabled Him to forgive and pray for those who persecuted and executed Him. The kind of love that enables one to love in spite of. True, we can say that we have experienced this kind of love: with our families, with our best friends, with the special person with whom we share our whole life. But Jesus calls us to something more – to extend this love to others just as His love redeemed all mankind. Christian love must go beyond borders and break all barriers. It loves in spite of. And in doing so, we show to others the love that God Himself shared with us through Jesus His Son.

Look at the faces around you. Are they faces that only a mother could love? Or are they faces that you as a Christian could love?

Lord, we thank You for the example of love that You have given us. Give us grace that we may love as you have loved. And if everything else fails, remind us of the sacrifices you went through to show us Your love. Amen