The Gospel
Mark 12:28‑34
The two great commandments.
St. Gaspar:
Why have you come here? For what purpose are we in the Society? To cooperate with the great designs of divine Providence in the sanctification of ourselves and others; to be united in the bond of charity in order to set up a rampart against the sinfulness of the world, and to quench the thirst of Jesus for souls; to imitate more closely the life of Jesus Christ through detachment from home, parents, worldly comforts and, above all, from ourselves. How all of this contributes to our real benefit and to the glory of God! ...
... In this matter, may our love be very, very special. Let it be generous and outgoing, patient and longsuffering, judicious and vigorous.[1]
"Anyone who loves deeply (final characteristic of divine love), that is to say intensely, so noble an object as God, is never satisfied with his service to him. Nothing upsets him. Nothing frightens him. Nothing restrains him. His heart is like a torrential river that inundates the surrounding countryside; or similar to nourishment in no other thing than in loving the Lord; its thirst never says that it has enough. Just as bees feed on nothing other than honey, so also this person is entirely immersed in the nectar of paradise, in that fountain of sweetness, in that holy, divine love...
"However, Jesus could have achieved that without undergoing so much suffering, I mean, without the total outpouring of his Blood. Jesus wanted to be the model for confessors and martyrs, for apostles and virgins, for hermits and contemplative. Jesus wanted to be the universal master. Jesus wanted to nourish us with his very self; he wanted to die for us! Oh love! Oh love! My dear redeemer, grant that I may live only to love you. Amen." [2]
Reflection
The ancient Prophet Hosea, The Psalmist, Jesus our Savior, and St Gaspar all ask us to consider why we are here. It is not just an answer to a catechism question. It is a response to a relationship. We are here to learn to love. We are here to learn to love God. For Hosea this love of God is so far reaching it is like a forest putting out its shoots. For St. Gaspar it is like a torrential river that inundates the surrounding countryside. Limits to this love can never be reached. It is never finished. Our whole life consists in this and in this alone. And only this will lead us home. Nothing else will satisfy. So why have we come here? Is this an obligation or an experience of grace? At the table we gather at each day and each Sunday, we gather to learn to give, to serve, to love, to become what we eat in this Eucharistic feast.
[1] From the Eleventh Circular Letter
[2] from Letter No. 66 to Countess Lucrezia Ginnasi, May 10, 1813, Resources 4, pg. 23
Mark 12:28‑34
The two great commandments.
St. Gaspar:
Why have you come here? For what purpose are we in the Society? To cooperate with the great designs of divine Providence in the sanctification of ourselves and others; to be united in the bond of charity in order to set up a rampart against the sinfulness of the world, and to quench the thirst of Jesus for souls; to imitate more closely the life of Jesus Christ through detachment from home, parents, worldly comforts and, above all, from ourselves. How all of this contributes to our real benefit and to the glory of God! ...
... In this matter, may our love be very, very special. Let it be generous and outgoing, patient and longsuffering, judicious and vigorous.[1]
"Anyone who loves deeply (final characteristic of divine love), that is to say intensely, so noble an object as God, is never satisfied with his service to him. Nothing upsets him. Nothing frightens him. Nothing restrains him. His heart is like a torrential river that inundates the surrounding countryside; or similar to nourishment in no other thing than in loving the Lord; its thirst never says that it has enough. Just as bees feed on nothing other than honey, so also this person is entirely immersed in the nectar of paradise, in that fountain of sweetness, in that holy, divine love...
"However, Jesus could have achieved that without undergoing so much suffering, I mean, without the total outpouring of his Blood. Jesus wanted to be the model for confessors and martyrs, for apostles and virgins, for hermits and contemplative. Jesus wanted to be the universal master. Jesus wanted to nourish us with his very self; he wanted to die for us! Oh love! Oh love! My dear redeemer, grant that I may live only to love you. Amen." [2]
Reflection
The ancient Prophet Hosea, The Psalmist, Jesus our Savior, and St Gaspar all ask us to consider why we are here. It is not just an answer to a catechism question. It is a response to a relationship. We are here to learn to love. We are here to learn to love God. For Hosea this love of God is so far reaching it is like a forest putting out its shoots. For St. Gaspar it is like a torrential river that inundates the surrounding countryside. Limits to this love can never be reached. It is never finished. Our whole life consists in this and in this alone. And only this will lead us home. Nothing else will satisfy. So why have we come here? Is this an obligation or an experience of grace? At the table we gather at each day and each Sunday, we gather to learn to give, to serve, to love, to become what we eat in this Eucharistic feast.
- Why am I a Catholic?
- Why do I belong to this parish?
- How can I enter into the heart of this experience of belonging?
[1] From the Eleventh Circular Letter
[2] from Letter No. 66 to Countess Lucrezia Ginnasi, May 10, 1813, Resources 4, pg. 23
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