Word to the Wise
Wednesday, November 8, 2023 - Wednesday in the 31th Week in Ordinary Time
[Rom 13:8-10 and Luke 14:25-33]Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, You shall not commit adultery; you shall not kill; you shall not steal; you shall not covet, and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this saying, namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no evil to the neighbor; hence, love is the fulfillment of the law. [Romans]
The debt of love can be challenging. I am daily reminded of that debt by the multitude of photos on the wall of my office, most of which are photos of student friends from my years at Texas Tech. Many of them have stayed in touch regularly by e-mail, text, FaceTime or Zoom. I owe them much for their love and support as I have transitioned into a new assignment. I try to repay that debt by praying for them and being available in good times and bad. But this is what one might call a "joyful debt" to pay. What about those folks in life who almost dare us to love them? Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, challenges us to love our enemies! [Matt. 5:43-48]. He says "For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same?..."
Although figures on the stage in news media often attract our anger, it is the ones who are part of our everyday life that present the real challenge. Whom do we consider to be "unlovable?" I am speaking about particular individuals, not categories. Indeed the one whom we consider unlovable may be ourselves! Jesus challenges us to love our neighbor as ourself, If we have trouble loving someone, is it because they remind us of our own faults that we find unlovable?
The "joyful debt" of love can be a hard one to pay. On the cross Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do!" The thousands of "What if's..." that immediately arise in our minds and hearts testify to the challenge. We can be confident of God's help in paying the debt, but we are the ones who must pay it. AMEN
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