Scripture:
Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18
Matthew 25:31-46
Reflection:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself. -Leviticus 19:18
The Lord’s call to holiness for His people is consistent. Just as He told the Israelites through Moses, Jesus tells the disciples from His own lips that our responsibility to a neighbor is to love not only in word but also in deed as we love ourselves. Jesus goes further revealing that the concrete expressions of love for our neighbor will be the standard by which He will judge our love for Him and, ultimately, our salvation.
If reading these words convicts our hearts, it is natural to move quickly to commitments to DO more. However, the doing is meant to flow from the loving. Thus, the first step is to LOVE more. Christ has identified Himself with the desperate and broken-hearted. To see Him in our neighbor’s need, we must first recognize that He is in our need. Can we acknowledge our own wretchedness and love the Lord present there? Until we can love Him in the darkest places within ourselves, we will struggle to see Him in the suffering of others.
In this season of Lent, we have a beautiful opportunity to see Christ present to our need when we seek Him the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He has told us that the one who has been forgiven much loves much (Luke 7:47). As we receive His loving forgiveness, we will be equipped to go forth and love our neighbor.
Megan Silas, is a Lay Passionist at Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center in Houston, Texas.