31st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mass for those in Consecrated Life – November 3, 2024

Throughout the gospels, Jesus is beset by one conflict after another, precipitated by religious leaders and others who all seemed to be intent on disrupting his mission and dismissing his teachings. 

So, when a scribe approached Jesus in today’s gospel reading, it would be fair to expect that yet another trap was being laid for him.  “Which is the first of all the commandments?” the scribe asked Jesus.  And Jesus answered by reciting the Shema, from the Book of Deuteronomy“Hear O Israel!  The Lord our God is Lord alone!  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.”  …  Fair enough.

But then Jesus went on to elaborate on his answer to the scribe’s question by adding a bit of an addendum.  As noted in the Book of Leviticus, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

More years ago than I care to admit, while attending Saint Rose Elementary School in Carbondale, where I was taught by the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters, I can recall these words being posed to me and my classmates, time and again, likely in response to some unfortunate thing that we did or didn’t do.  “How can you really love God whom you can’t see if you won’t get along with your neighbor whom you see every day?”  …  Good question!

Jesus understood human nature very well.  He understood that like the scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees, we can easily feel justified by claiming that we scrupulously fulfill the command to love God.  …  Why?  …  Because it’s not that difficult to follow rules, regulations and religious practices if that’s all we believe is necessary in loving God.  And because most of these practices can be measured externally, one could appear to be quite righteous in the process.

Jesus, however, knew that what really mattered in fulfilling the great commandment to love God was less about externals and far more about the movements within one’s heart.  And for that reason, he linked to it the more challenging commandment of love of neighbor, the place where the true test of a person’s commitment to God could be determined.  …  It’s easy to fulfill a ritual, isn’t it?  It’s quite another thing to love in a selfless and authentic way.

To love as God calls us to love – not in empty rituals or religious practices but in flesh and blood amid the muck and mire of human existence – demands every fiber of our being – heart, soul, mind and strength.  It is in our love and compassion for one another that humanity most closely resembles God.  And it is in our charity and selflessness that we participate in God’s work of creation.

In joining together during this time of prayer to celebrate the Eucharist, we would do well to pause and reflect upon this great commandment that Jesus offers to us in today’s gospel.  For at the heart of the Eucharist itself – a gift that we have reflected upon deeply during these past few years of revival and devotion – is nothing short of the very essence of how we are called to live the great commandment. 

In the Eucharist, we come to understand why we are commanded to love God above all things.  We love because God has loved us first in giving us his son for our life and salvations.  As such, our only response to such a gift, is to love in return – to love that part of creation made in the image and likeness of the Creator – the life of every living soul that God places in our midst and in our care.

The great Saint John Chrysostom put this in perspective when he spoke of the bond between reverence for the sacramental presence of Christ and our relationship with his mystical body: “Would you honor Christ’s body?  Then do not permit him to be despised in his members, that is, in the poor who are in need of clothes.  Do not honor him here in church clothed in silk, while outside, you neglect him when he is cold and has no clothes.  …  What advantage is it to Christ if the altar is covered with gold vessels while he himself is starving in his poor?  First, feed those who are hungry and only then, adorn the altar with what remains.”

Today, we gather to celebrate the gift of consecrated life in the Church.  We reflect upon women and men who understand these words of Saint John and have shown us how to live the great commandment that Jesus calls us to embrace. 

We join today with woman and men celebrating anniversaries of 50, 60, 70, 75 and 80 years in religious life.  Quite honestly, as I look at all of you who gather today in our cathedral – you are amazing!  You are living testimony of the power of faith and its ability to carry us through life with peace at our center, despite the ups and downs that we all endure.  …  And for the record, collectively, our jubilarians represent 1,390 years of service to the Church in Consecrated Life.  What a blessing you all have been and continue to be for all!

My sisters and brothers, we celebrate your lives and we give thanks this day for your unique and singular contribution to the Church.  More than you realize or appreciate, you continually challenge us to fulfill in our own lives the great commandment of loving God and doing so most authentically through the love and service that we extend to one another. 

Your openness to listening to the needs of God’s people – your willingness to dialogue and discern how we can best walk together as sisters and brothers – and your determination to engage and serve the entire people of God – especially through your commitment to work for justice for the marginalized – immigrants, the poor, and all those oppressed by far too many who deem themselves righteous – provide us with a unique and powerful witness to the presence of God at work in our world – especially today. 

In words that he recently shared, Pope Francis offered these thoughts regarding your commitment to the Consecrated Life:  “God calls us to encounter him through faithfulness to concrete things – God is always encountered in concrete things: daily prayer, Holy Mass, Confession, real charity, and closeness, especially to those most in need spiritually or physically.”

My sisters and brothers in Consecrated Life, thank you for opening your lives to the blessings of God’s grace.  …  Thank you for challenging us to live the great commandment in concrete ways, most especially through our love and service of the least among us.  …  And thank you for reminding us of the treasure that is ours when we live not so much for ourselves, but for Christ, in service of our sisters and brothers.