It is that time of year. A time to prepare, a time to welcome the birth of Jesus, a time to be with family, a time to reach out to our neighbor. The two Great Commandments easily come to mind at this time of year. Love God, and Love your neighbor as yourself. We have heard “love your neighbor as yourself ” our whole life, however what does it mean? How do I love my neighbor? Maybe because we don’t really understand this commandment, we don’t do it.
What I actually think Jesus is saying in the second Greatest Commandment is that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus is trying to blur the boundary between ourselves and our neighbor. Jesus is trying to form an identity relationship between us and our neighbor, to see our lives as intertwined. The central point is empathy, the ability to stand in another person’s shoes and ask a simple question: “If this were me, what would I want?”
How do we love our neighbor? Well….seek out your neighbor. Love them for who they are, not for who you want them to be. Jesus ate with tax collectors, he talked with prostitutes and spent time with the sick. His reputation was not a factor. He spent time with them because He loved them unconditionally. We have to put pride and our reputations aside if we want to truly love others.
Bless those who persecute you. God never stops seeking the hearts of man, even in the “self-centered” world we live in. We should do the same. We need to pray throughout the day for those who maltreat or offend us. And in all circumstances, show them love no matter what.
Be real. You just can’t feel love from someone when they are doing something good for you because “it is the right thing to do” or because other people are watching. Really, it needs to come from the heart. Sometimes it is better to do something that says, “I love you” than saying it. The interaction is really where true love is expressed. With interaction comes connection.
With connection comes a bond.
Sacrifice. I had to stain my house, but I was afraid of heights. I just could not go up the ladder to reach the high place. I did not know how I was going to finish the staining. Then a parishioner said “I will do it.” And he did. Spending hours way high on a ladder helping stain my house. He did it without being asked. He did it freely, never asking for a thing. He never counted the cost. I felt much compassion and love from him that day, especially because I knew that his love came from Christ. His sacrifice made such an impression on me that I will never forget it. I will always love and respect him for his act of compassion on me.
Be a good listener. We all know what it is like when we try to talk with someone and they interrupt us or ask, “What did you say again?” It feels like they don’t even care. You will always feel like someone cares for you when they genuinely listen to you. Listening is a conscious choice you have to make. James 1:19 says, be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger. We will show our neighbor love even if they don’t recognize it.
Respect the boundaries. You will not be seen as loving if you break into a person’s home. You have not respected their boundaries. The same goes for the fringe boundaries that each person has set for themselves. It is important that we can read the signs.
To love like Christ is to be the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). Salt adds flavor and seasoning to food. We are to be like salt. People want flavor. Colossians 4:6 says, “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” When we answer our neighbor like we “ought” to, they will be drawn to us.
Feed the good wolf. There is an old Indian proverb about two wolves. It says that there are two wolves inside every person. One is full of evil wanting to kill, destroy and devour anything it can. The other is full of love wanting to look after the weak and take care of the less fortunate. The one that grows is the one you feed.
The Christian’s “good wolf” is the Holy Spirit. When we are feeding it by reading the Word, spending time in prayer and worshipping our Father, we will be fully equipped to love our fellow man in all circumstances. In order to really focus on loving others, we have to constantly be aware of how much Jesus loves us.
Each month a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This month our contributor is Deacon Peter Mueller of St. John’s Catholic Church in Grand Marais.
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