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March 7, 2021Reflection: Third Week of Lent
One of the scribes . . . asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is God alone! You shall love your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.”
-- Mk 12:28-30
The above passage embraces the basic principle of the whole Mosaic law of Israel and is a cornerstone of faith. It is used as the opening words to the Shema (‘Hear’), a prayer central to Jewish piety. A rabbi once shared that this most well - known verse of the entire Torah is the first verse taught to the children as they learn to speak and the last verse recited with loved ones on their death-beds “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one." Jesus used these words as he proclaimed the greatest of all commandments and confirmed them as the foundation of the law of God.
During the Second Sunday of Lent, we heard proclaimed that, as the Lord Jesus was transfigured in front of the leaders among the Apostles, God the Father said from heaven, “this is my beloved Son, listen to Him.” During this third week of Lent, let us listen to God, hear His voice and do what He says to follow the two great commandments – First, Love the Lord your God with your whole heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength and the second as important as the first, to love your neighbor as yourself. This week spend some time, Be Still, hear His Voice, listen to Him. In this sacred time and into the future, what are you being asked to do in service to God and one another?
