From the Pastor to His People

10-29-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Bing Colasito

A Scholar of the Law asked Jesus which commandment is the greatest. Jesus answered using two Old Testament texts: You shall love the Lord your God. (Dt. 6:5), You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Lev. 19:18) Yes! The two greatest commandments are the Love of God and love of neighbor.

Recently, I was on a Pilgrimage to Italy and had the chance to visit San Giovanni Rotondo. That place in South Italy is famous because of St. Padre Pio, an Italian Capuchin friar, priest, stigmatist, and mystic. Call it a coincidence or a blessing, but we arrived there on the evening of the 22nd of September.

The following day was Padre Pio’s feast day, and we celebrated Mass at around 10:00 am in the chapel, where he would say the 4:00 am Mass daily and celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation for 1012 hours. I was privileged to be the main celebrant with two other pilgrimage chaplains on the feast of St. Padre Pio. Beside the church is the Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza (Home for the Relief of Suffering) Hospital, which the holy friar started. Padre Pio was a priest whose love for God and neighbor, especially the poor and the suffering, is evident in his words and deeds.

Loving God and our neighbor will lead us to a meaningful and mission filled life that leads to eternal life. But notice also that the first commandment is to love God totally: with all your HEART, SOUL, and MIND. By stating it that way, it is clear that the Love of God should be the highest priority. Unless and until we realize and put this into praxis in our lives, we still have a long way to go in our journey toward the heart of God. By the way, do you know that the word spa comes from the Latin phrase salus per aquam, meaning health through water? But it could also mean Salvatio Per Amorem, i.e., salvation through love.

On the other hand, in the second commandment, the love of neighbor precedes the love of self: You shall love your neighbor as yourself, meaning that the basis of loving should not be the love of self. People who are self centered are the unhappiest people, who make the I, me, and myself the focus of living and loving. Pope Francis once said: Every time we give in to selfishness and say NO to God, we spoil His loving plan for us. Jesus, help us to love YOU most, love our neighbor more, and love ourselves less.

The Scholar of the Law expected that Jesus would cite one of the Ten Commandments. When Jesus said love of God and neighbor is the greatest commandment, He actually summarized all the commandments into two (2). By doing so, He moved the focus from the letter and observance of the law to the SPIRIT of the LAW, which is LOVE. Often, strict legalism is motivated only by compliance and not the desire to love unconditionally and unlimitedly. Jesus, help us to obey your commandment to love YOU and our neighbor as ourselves.