Loving God and Each Other

"I am the vine; you are the branches."  (John 15)

In the Gospel according to Matthew, a clever lawyer tries to stump Jesus: Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? A tricky question, because the law had 613 do’s and don’ts. Jesus answers simply by reciting the daily Jewish prayer, the Shema: You shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. But then Jesus startles the Pharisees by adding love of neighbor. We love God to the extent we love our fellow human beings.

Yes, behind “appearances” people reflect the image of God. To be a disciple of Jesus is, first of all, to see the likeness of God in our fellow human beings. Mt. 25 connects love of God with love of our neighbor: “when I was hungry, when I was thirsty” you did something. We can’t say we love God and yet neglect our fellow human beings. All of us are called to make a difference for the better.

You may remember the play and film “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” In younger days, wrote the author of Genesis, Joseph went through betrayal by his jealous brothers and then slavery in Egypt. Yet in all these misfortunes, Joseph was ever faithful to God, trusting in God's unconditional love for  him. Soon the powerless slave became the powerful administrator in the court of the pharaoh of Egypt.  He made Joseph master of his household, ruler over all he possessed.

Not only did Joseph remain faithful to God, but he also forgave his brothers for what they did to him. Ultimately, Joseph's faithfulness to God led to a life of great fruitfulness.

Our life too can be immensely fruitful, because the Spirit of God lives within us. We are “the temple of the living God,” writes Paul. (2 Cor 6:16) Just as God dwelt in the Jerusalem temple, so now he dwells in us by his Spirit. The Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22–23).

God wants us to be a branch in his vine: producing fruit. The Gospel according to John explains Jesus is “the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower...Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remain on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches.” (John 15: 1-5).

I close with a paraphrase of one of my favorite quotes: We shall pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that we can do or any kindness that we can show to any human being, let us do it now, let's not defer or neglect it for we shall not pass this way again.

With this advice embedded into us, our love of God will shine through our love of our fellow human beings.