A Word for the Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost

In today’s Sunday Gospel, our Lord Jesus Christ, in His answer to a question from a certain Pharisee, a lawyer, sets before all people, for their fulfillment, two essential commandments of the whole law of God: concerning love for God and for neighbor. «Love,» He says, «the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets» (Mt 22:37-50). Not many words, but great power lies in them; their meaning and their application to life are extremely broad; not many words, but their comprehension, their understanding in all their fullness and significance, is most important and necessary. Let us explain them, with God’s help.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This means: love God and His eternal righteousness in such a way that there is no room, in your heart, in your thoughts, in your words, in your deeds, or in your whole life, for sin or unrighteousness—love righteousness and hate lawlessness; for what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness, light with the darkness of sin, Christ with Belial, that is, the devil? None. For even a single unrighteous thought in the soul is an abomination to the Lord (Prov 15:26), how much more so an evil, cunning, unclean word or deed! Therefore, whether you pray to God, repent, give thanks, or do anything else for God’s sake, always pray with your whole heart, your whole mind, your whole strength; offer repentance with your whole heart and your whole mind, with a resolute turning away from sin, with a sincere readiness to love and do the deeds pleasing to God and salvific for you; do everything you do for God with your whole soul, your whole strength and mind. Do you bring some offering to God? Bring it with your whole heart, with all zeal and willingness. Must you stand against the temptation of sin, or keep righteousness and the law? Stand against sin with all your strength, with your whole heart and mind, and stand for righteousness even unto death, as did the great Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist of the Lord, John, whom we celebrate today, who suffered even unto death for exposing the incestuous cohabitation of King Herod with his brother Philip’s wife—and you will receive the crown of life.

What does it mean to love one’s neighbor as oneself? It means to respect him as yourself, without distinction of rank, condition, sex, or personal quality, to wish him every good, as for yourself, to act toward him as you wish to be treated yourself—to pity him, to pray for him, to help him however you can—when he errs, sins, is sick, is in need of what is necessary for life, such as work, food, clothing, money, a kind word, comfort and encouragement—for even this often means a great deal, and can have a beneficial effect on a person’s life. To love one’s neighbor as oneself means to strive and pray for his salvation, as pious people strive and pray for their own salvation—to wish salvation both for the living and for the departed, to pray for both the one and the other; there is no greater love for our neighbors than when we fervently desire and pray for their salvation as for our own. Do you do something for your neighbor? Do it as for yourself—sincerely, faithfully, justly. Acting this way, we will first of all draw down God’s blessing upon ourselves; «for with what measure you use,» said the Lord, «it will be measured back to you» (Lk 6:38), and every good deed done for a neighbor will return to us, if not in this age, then in the age to come. Amen