Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

Welcome back for another edition of deacon rudy’s notes. I’m your host, Deacon Rudy Villarreal and together we’re going to break open the Word!

In today’s Gospel, a scribe approaches Jesus out of what seems like a spirit of goodwill. <1> He asks Jesus which is the greatest commandment (Mark 12:28b).

Why?

The Torah has 613 commandments! There were often debates among scholars whether anyone commandment was superior or provided a framework for the rest.

Jesus answers the scribe, “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.” (Mark 12:29-31)

The scribe says to Jesus, “Well said, teacher.” (Mark 12:32) You see, the scribe knows that Jesus didn’t dodge the question. The law was so important that Jesus said it two ways. <2> You cannot say you love God but turn around and hate your neighbor or worse – pretend they don’t exist.

What happens next is extraordinary. Jesus gives the scribe the single greatest compliment given to anyone in the Gospel. <3> Jesus tells the scribe, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” (Mark 12:34)

Why did Jesus pay the scribe a compliment? Because the scribe gets it. You can’t just talk the talk. You have to walk the walk!

But the compliment is also a challenge! Jesus said, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” He didn’t say the scribe was already there. The scribe is on the right path but hasn’t fully realized missionary discipleship in his life.

This is a wildly important point for us. The scribe in Mark’s Gospel account is an example for all of us. How can we do better? By remembering that everyone we encounter is a creation of God. Everyone – even those people we don’t agree with – are worthy of our love and respect simply because they are created in the image and likeness of God.

Living that can be a tall order in our lives. How can we grow in understanding the Greatest Commandment? One way is to step outside our comfort zone – to go to the margins like Pope Francis suggests. The Pope reminds us that we are encouraged to reach out to people around the world.

I am a missionary disciple and I volunteer with Friends of los Niños. We work with orphans and abandoned children in Honduras, and we also minister in villages like Brisas del Salto. Why? Why should we travel or send support to a program outside our own country when there is so much need in our own country? That is an excellent question!

Traveling to another country and ministering to the poor is like jumping into a swimming pool filled with cold water. It shocks us awake. There is a family of children at the orphanage where we work. Mom was desperate. She had no income – no means of supporting her family of 6 children and her baby. She was all alone. So, one day, she decided to force-feed each of her children poison. Maybe she thought if she killed her babies, she could spare them from going to bed hungry one more time.

Through God’s providence, mom didn’t give her children enough poison to actually kill any of the children. Oh, they got sick and that’s how she got caught. The children came to COPPROME, the orphanage where we minister. Today, the youngest, that little baby, is a healthy growing boy. He’s sharp as a tack and honestly a little spoiled by all the love and attention he’d get when he was a baby.

You see, that’s one of the main things we do through our sponsorship program – we shower the children and the staff with love. We share our love for God with these innocent children. Through our work, we offer these children and the villagers we work with some hope – hope that God has not abandoned them – hope that God hears their prayers.

Who is we? We are all the people – people just like you – who sign up to sponsor children at the orphanage or at the village of Brisas del Salto. People like you who travel with us to Honduras to see for yourselves where the money goes. People like you who look into the eyes of these beautiful children and say to them, “You can make a difference!” How can we say that? That is the hope of Sister Teresita Gonzalez. She is a School Sister of Notre Dame and her life’s work has been to try to break the cycle of poverty through education.

Our work is not easy. We’ve had some ups and we’ve had some downs. Two of the graduates from the orphanage – two sisters, Karen and Amerita – became psychologists. Not only do they maintain a thriving practice but inspired by people like you who’ve they’ve met over the years, they became quite the entrepreneurs. They started youth leadership program augmented by coaching and counseling to help shape the next generation. And they work with children at the orphanage. We lost Karen through an act of senseless violence, but Amerita pushed forward with the love and support of friends including many volunteers from the United States. Amerita recently got married and Katrina was fortunate enough to be in town for the wedding. Going on is made easier by the example of our volunteers who model strength and resolve.

These two sisters are a success story despite the tragedy they’ve experienced. Their hope is a gift from God and nourished by volunteers who travel to Honduras to share the love of Jesus Christ. There are so many more opportunities to help – so many children with tremendous potential to make a difference. All they need is our love, encouragement, and support. Won’t you join us? As one of the priests who travels with us says about our children, “I dare you not to fall in love!”

Homework! Nourished by the Word of God and the Eucharist, I encourage you to reflect on the following challenge.

My brothers and sisters, through today’s Gospel, Jesus is inviting you to step up – to share your love for God by sharing your love with people like the children and villagers we work with in Honduras. I encourage you to think about the ways you can make a difference in the life of a child on the margins.

I think doing our homework will help us be the intentional disciples we are called to be. Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Then go make disciples! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen!

You’re listening to deacon rudy’s notes. Our theme music was composed by Silent Partner. You can find all sorts of helpful information on the website at www.deaconrudysnotes.org. I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Join me again next weekend as we break open the Word! Peace!

Image Credit: Unknown. JPG file.

Notes:
<1> Mary Healy, Hebrews, 246.
<2> Michael Himes, “Chapter Three: Incarnation.”
<3> Ibid.

References:
1. Healy, Mary. Hebrews. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2016. Kindle.
2. Healy, Mary. The Gospel of Mark. Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2008. Kindle.
3. Himes, Michael. The Mystery of Faith: An Introduction to Catholicism. Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2004. Kindle.
4. Montague, George T. SM. Mark: A Popular Commentary on the Earliest Gospel. Steubenville, Ohio: Franciscan University Press, 1992.

Catechism References http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm:
1. The two great commandments: 201-2, 2055, 2196
2. Jesus’ intercession for us: 519, 662, 2634, 2741
3. Jesus’ once-for-all sacrifice made present in the liturgy: 1084-5, 1364-8
4. Priesthood of the old covenant: 1539-43
5. Holy orders in the economy of salvation: 1539-47
6. The first commandment: 2052, 2093-4
7. Commandments as a call for a response to love: 2083

Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103121.cfm
Lectionary: 152

Reading 1
Deuteronomy 6:2-6
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.”

Responsorial
Psalm 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51
R. (2) I love you, Lord, my strength.
I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
The LORD lives! And blessed be my rock!
Extolled be God my savior.
You who gave great victories to your king
and showed kindness to your anointed.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.

Reading 2
Hebrews 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.

Alleluia
John 14:23
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord;
and my father will love him and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Mark 12:28b-34
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.

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