“He is One and there is no other than he.” (Mk 12:32)
FIRST READING - Dt 6:2-6
First reading from the Book of Deuteronomy
Moses spoke to the people, saying:
"Fear the LORD, your God,
and keep, throughout the days of your lives,
all his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you,
and thus have long life.
Hear then, Israel, and be careful to observe them,
that you may grow and prosper the more,
in keeping with the promise of the LORD, the God of your fathers,
to give you a land flowing with milk and honey.
"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!
Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God,
with all your heart,
and with all your soul,
and with all your strength.
Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today."
SECOND READING from the Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews - Heb 7:23-28
Brothers and sisters:
The levitical priests were many
because they were prevented by death from remaining in office,
but Jesus, because he remains forever,
has a priesthood that does not pass away.
Therefore, he is always able to save those who approach God through him,
since he lives forever to make intercession for them.
It was fitting that we should have such a high priest:
holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners,
higher than the heavens.
He has no need, as did the high priests,
to offer sacrifice day after day,
first for his own sins and then for those of the people;
he did that once for all when he offered himself.
For the law appoints men subject to weakness to be high priests,
but the word of the oath, which was taken after the law,
appoints a son,
who has been made perfect forever.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mk 12:28b-34
From the Gospel according to Mark
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.
There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
'He is One and there is no other than he.'
And 'to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself'
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
THIRTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Year B - Gospel (Mk 12:28b-34)
THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
Dear People of God,
Today's Word of God, God reminds people of the only and most important law that people need to listen to and practice, which is the commandment to love God and love people.
In today's first reading, through the book of Deuteronomy, God the Father also taught people in ancient times about the law that God engraved in the human heart. This is when they were first created, because He gave them a heart that knows how to love. This love comes from a soul created by God the Father. Therefore, right from conception, people already know how to love.
What God the Father wants humans to do here is: humans need to see who their origin is? That is God the Father of love - Who created man in the image of God, so only He can bring eternal life to man.
God the Father invites us in today's world to always live with a spirit of gratitude to God, thanking Him for loving and creating us as a small creature, in the image of God, to live happily with Him. God is also an infinitely kind Father, always loving, caring for and protecting His children under His mighty hand.
Moreover, He also sent His only Son to the world to become a human being to love, to make man in the image of God, to become conformed to His only Son through His sacrifice and death, through obedience to the will of God the Father at all times and places. But the fundamental and essential thing that God the Father wants people to aim for is to seek the Kingdom of Heaven, live to please God the Father, keep His commandments of loving God the Father above all things, loving others as yourself, loving with all your heart and soul.
This is also the Law that God teaches everyone in today's world. If anyone practices this important law, they will not be far from the Kingdom of God. Just like what Jesus said to a rich man when he confessed faith in God. He invited him to remember the commandments that God taught from the beginning: to love God with all our souls, with all our minds and to love our fellow human beings as ourselves; to honor our mothers and fathers, to practice the ten laws that God the Father gave on Mount Sinai. This law is still engraved in the human heart. In particular, put into practice the teachings of God, because these are the only laws which humans must obey to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. On the contrary, the happiness of the Kingdom of Heaven will not belong to those who do not practice the Law of God. We should be awake and live according to the law of God, because the laws that God gives to humans will never change. They will be the light, the path to bring us to live happily with God the Father in the Kingdom of Heaven in the future.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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