Paul writes in the letter to the church in Rome this: ‘Owe no one anything, 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 murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet”; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, “Love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.’ – Romans 13:8-10

As you’ve probably picked up by now, I spend a fair bit of time in the Gospels.  The Irish Jesuits do the same, in their annual prayer book and app of the same name: Sacred Space.  The more I go on, however, I find myself dipping into Paul’s thinking from time to time.  Don’t worry, I’m not going to do that today.  But I am going to highlight this verse from Paul’s letter to the church in Rome: that echoes the Gospel today.  This central understanding of what Jesus was on about.

Paul writes a lot about who Jesus is and what he means for our lives, but he rarely writes the teachings and stories of Jesus as recorded in the Gospels. But this part from Romans 13 is a notable exception; Paul knows that the law fulfilled in love is Jesus’ most central teaching: and maybe in his own personal experience of encountering the resurrected Jesus on that Damascus Road is the reason.  Paul speaks of the love of God in Jesus almost a hundred times (96 to be exact). The revelation of God in Jesus the Messiah is all about love.

And, today we encounter the heart of the faith in the Gospel.  And although today’s reading is from Matthew 22, the theme starts in Matthew’s Gospel with the really early on, Beatitudes, and gets clarified in chapter 5: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. . . . Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt 5:43-45a, 48).  

We’ve had 5 weeks of parables and encounter stories that explore and challenge Jesus authority. And today in our reading  cycle, the pinnacle  challenging testing question: “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”  after this month of consideration about Jesus Authority, what have you thought so far?  Has Jesus authority challenged your life over these weeks?  Has Jesus authority challenged you or encouraged you to walk more closely with Jesus or deepen your time with him in prayer?  

In this week’s terrible events in Wangaratta, and poor Helen hanging on to life that will not only be changed forever: but physically challenged forever also… we have seen the floods of flowers offered at her office door, speaking volumes of community grief and solidarity: We’ve seen the generosity of donations given to support ‘Save the Children’ at the family’s direction, speak volumes of a community wondering how are we community in these moments of crisis: and we have seen candles in windows and people standing at our homes front gates: all these actions are visible signs of human faith seeking to make meaning or responding to the violence of Humanity we have witnessed.  The violence of a human to another.

Which of course, is at the heart story of Jesus. Jesus’ story confronts human violence like no other.  But we don’t end at the cross.  Our story continues to transform the potential of all humanity to flourish and live differently.  With a different paradigm.  A paradigm of love.

Paul includes it in the earliest writings of the Christian Community as we have read from Romans. Matthew begins the Gospel with the pathway of love in Chapter 5 and crystallises it today’s reading from Chapter 22; Love is that pathway, which will demand far more of us than the simplify and stupidity violence.

He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’

This is the greatest and first commandment.

And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’

I asked this last week: and I ask us all again this week: how are you going with that?  How is it to Love God with all heart, soul and mind?  What did that look like for you this week past?

And do you recall the love you had for your neighbour?

Yesterday I was asked to be Chaplain at the Banyule Network of Uniting Churches first Q-Festival.  I was in the room with about 30-40 younger people, mainly from pentecostal christian backgrounds, who have been hurt in Church life, in their expression of their identities in the Rainbow Community.  To be honest with you: I was appalled by what these people shared and what they have lived through.  Some of those people who have only just got out of those communities in the past 5 years, told stories that I thought lived in other Nations, like the US.  Coercion, Manipulation, Spiritual Shaming and Guilt.  Ostracising.  Rumour mongering.  Outright condemnation.  Young women shared how growing up in echo chambers that only celebrate female identity as a wife and mother: and young men, enabled to lead communities with no accountability.

And then, the experience, that I too have known, of the very people who formed you in Christian community: the very people who raised you in family: the every community you grew up in telling you that you are outside the bounds of God’s love in Christ, because, in their theology, you are in sin.

Nonsense theology of Love the sinner: Hate the sin.  Which is not what Jesus lived or ever said.  And of twisted theology that tells a person they are broken or beyond redemption…

And not one mention of loving God, with heart, soul and mind: or any love of neighbour.

What does loving God look like, practically?

What does loving God with my heart mean?  Or my soul?  Loving God with my mind?

Christian Practice would tell us that I would spend some of my day in prayer: the name of God, Yahweh, would remind be the it is a name resembling two puffs of wind…  Breathe Ian, Breathe…  The hymns and songs would help me speak the words of yearning in my heart, helping to dare speak them aloud, … and reading, (or listening), dwelling in the Word would be loving with mind… and thinking things through… seeking God.

And if that felt too difficult, then I could just simply begin with trying to love.  Trying to love those who are easy to love: but also those with whom I have nothing in common: and even those who could be an enemy…  Even learning to love those who kicked you out of a church.

Do I dare to ask you how you are going loving those who have done you wrong?  Or who you don’t like?  Do I dare to ask you how you are going with a political party you are diametrically opposed to?  How do we speak of policy, not person…

And, then, to go out on a limb, how can you not speak of a person who makes a mockery of a woman’s gynaecological honesty?  And how do I love?

This week past, I was honoured to lead family and community in both a Service of Committal and a public Service of Thanksgiving for the life and ministry of Rev. Fred Waine.  Fred was a one-of-a-kind minister: who loved.  Having been dumped at birth with grandparents to raise him, while his mother left, disappeared.  Who was shunted to reluctant family and resentful family over and over again: mostly in judgement of his wayward mother’s behaviour: as if that was his fault.  And who, through the wonder of a local church community and the joy of the scouting movement, found life giving vocation serving God in the church.  Michael Leunig summarised his Gospel: 

Love one another and you will be happy

It’s as simple and as difficult as that

there’s no other way.

And we are called to practice this way, not for our own benefit: but for the benefit of all in our community.  I mean the practice will help us: but the benefit is for all human flourishing.

So I conclude with a story from Micheal Leunig, that offers a pathway towards loving God and loving neighbour… it takes us deep into Christian contemplation practice:

The optometrist said to the patient “Your sight is poor, but your gaze is very gentle and friendly.  How do you achieve this?

the patient said to the optometrist, “well… I stare with love al lowly worms.  I watch the silver stars at night.

I contemplate the coloured flowers.

I gaze at the dying butterflies…

The optometrist said to the patient, “Your sign is poor, but your vision is beautiful.