Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost
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Scripture |
Mark 12:28-34 28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel : the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 Then the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that ‘he is one, and besides him there is no other’; 33 and ‘to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength,’ and ‘to love one’s neighbor as oneself,’--this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God .” After that no one dared to ask him any question .
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Devotional |
Mark presents this questioner in a favorable light. He gives a hearty approval to the reply of Jesus and receives in return the assurance that he is not far from the kingdom of God . This is in contrast to the generally hostile attitude of the scribes in the Gospels. This also places Jesus’ teachings at the heart of Jewish faith. This teaching of the love of God and love of neighbor is also a basic teaching and belief of other religions. So this is not an exclusive Christian teaching as some would claim, but the heart of both Judaism and Christianity. In this section of the Gospel, Mark has emphasized the importance of single hearted devotion as what God intends for God’s people. ‘Within most religious traditions prayer and love cannot be separated. Both are essential aspect of the faithful life. If we listen deeply in the silence, sooner or later we will hear and know that if we wish to remain in close communion the Holy One, we need to try to love others with the same kind of unconditional love that God pours out on all who receive it.” 1 Mark is establishing a life style for the followers of Jesus. Nancy Lukens in an interview with Martin Niemoeller in August of 1981 where he gives a different interpretation to Jesus’ saying. I remember a seminar of old Professor Smend in Muenster where I studied theology. One day he asked a rather sleepy fellow student of mine to recite the greatest commandment, whereupon the student rattled it off absent-mindedly: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." Smend responded, "Say it again!" So he did, after which Smend came down with his point: "Don't you ever say it that way again-- as yourself!" Today's translations make the commandment sound like a "fifty-fifty" proposition. Today's psychology (I started out studying psychology, by the way, until Barth came along, thank goodness!)--today's psychology makes us think as if we had to divide up the available love like a pie. Luther translated the Greek in one place in a way that makes sense for us today: Love your neighbor in place of, instead of, yourself. In other words, change places with your neighbor. 2 Does loving your neighbor in place of yourself give a different meaning to Jesus’ words? Loving our neighbor in place of ourselves is a new twist. How does changing places with our neighbor become a lifestyle? Professor Smend has changed the meaning of loving my neighbor. Can I love my neighbor in place of myself? Am I ready to change places with my neighbor? Does Jesus say to us, “You are not far from the kingdom of God ”?
1 Morton Kelsey, Reaching: the Journey to Fulfillment. San Francisco : Harper and Row Publishers, 1989. p. 96 |