The Feast of St James Berthieu SJ | Thursday 8 June 2023

Today is Thursday the 8th of June, the feast of St James Berthieu SJ, in the ninth week of Ordinary time.

Paul Zach, with the Porter’s Gate, sings, ‘The Greatest Commandment’.


Love the Lord your God
With all your heart and soul and mind
And love your neighbor as yourself
Love the Lord your God
With all your heart and soul and mind
And love your neighbor as yourself
Let us be known, let us be known
By the way we love
Let us be known, let us be known
By the way we love
Love the Lord your God
With all your heart and soul and mind
And love your neighbor as yourself
Love the Lord your God
With all your heart and soul and mind
And love your neighbor as yourself
Love the Lord your God (Let us be known)
With all your heart and soul and mind (Let us be known)
And love your neighbor as yourself (By the way we love)
Love the Lord your God (Let us be known)
With all your heart and soul and mind (Let us be known)
And love your neighbor as yourself (By the way we love)
Love the Lord your God (Let us be known)
With all your heart and soul and mind (Let us be known)
And love your neighbor as yourself (By the way we love)
Love the Lord your God (Let us be known)
With all your heart and soul and mind (Let us be known)
And love your neighbor as yourself (By the way we love)
Love, love, love, the greatest commandment is
Love, love, love, the greatest commandment is
Love, love, love, the greatest commandment is love

Today’s reading is from the Gospel of Mark.

Mark 12:28-34

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?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 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.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ 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”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ 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.

After the passages that come immediately before this one, the ones we’ve been listening to this week, Jesus might well have been expecting a trick question here, one designed to trap him. What must it have felt like for him to recognise a genuine enquirer here?

Why do you think that Jesus singles out these two commandments as fundamental?

“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.” If you hear Jesus say that to you, how do you react?

As you hear this reading again, notice particularly the last thing that Jesus says to this honest scribe.

Speak, finally, to Jesus about what it means in your own life to prioritise love of God and of your neighbour.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.