At 12 today, the Holy Father Francis appeared at the window of the study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
These are the words of the Pope in introducing the Marian prayer:
“Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In today’s Gospel passage (cf. Mt 22 : 34-40), a doctor of the Law asks Jesus what “the great commandment” (v. 36) is, that is, the principal commandment of all the divine Law. Jesus replies simply: “” You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind “” (v. 37). And he immediately adds: “The second is similar to that:” You shall love your neighbor as yourself “” (v. 39).
Jesus’ response takes up and unites two fundamental precepts, which God gave to his people through Moses (cf. Dt 6: 5; Lv19.18). And thus he overcomes the pitfall that was set for him “to put him to the test” (v. 35). His interlocutor, in fact, tries to drag him into the dispute between the experts of the Law on the hierarchy of prescriptions. But Jesus establishes two essential cornerstones for believers of all times, two essential cornerstones of our life. The first is that the moral and religious life cannot be reduced to anxious and forced obedience. There are people who try to fulfill the commandments in an anxious or forced way, and Jesus makes us understand that moral and religious life cannot be reduced to anxious and forced obedience, but must have love as its principle. The second hinge is that love must strive together and inseparably towards God and neighbor. This is one of the main novelties of Jesus’ teaching and it makes us understand that it is not true love of God that which is not expressed in love of neighbor; and, in the same way, it is not true love of neighbor that which does not draw from the relationship with God.
Jesus concludes his response with these words: “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (v. 40). This means that all the precepts that the Lord has given to his people must be related to the love of God and neighbor. In fact, all the commandments serve to implement, to express that double indivisible love. Love for God is expressed above all in prayer, especially in adoration. We neglect the adoration of God so much. We make the prayer of thanks, the supplication to ask for something…, but we neglect the adoration. It is to worship God that is the very core of prayer. And love for one’s neighbor, which is also called fraternal charity, is made up of closeness, listening, sharing, caring for the other. And many times we neglect to listen to the other because he is boring or because he takes away my time, or to take him, accompany him in his pains, in his trials … But we always find time to chat, always! We have no time to console the afflicted, but a lot of time to chat. Be careful! The apostle John writes: “Whoever does not love his brother who sees, cannot love God who does not see” (1 Jn 4:20). Thus we see the unity of these two commandments.
In today’s Gospel, once again, Jesus helps us to go to the living and gushing source of Love. And this source is God himself, to be loved totally in a communion that nothing and no one can break. Communion which is a gift to be invoked every day, but also a personal commitment so that our life does not allow itself to be enslaved by the idols of the world. And the verification of our journey of conversion and holiness is always in the love of neighbor. This is the verification: if I say “I love God” and I don’t love the neighbor, it doesn’t work. The proof that I love God is that I love my neighbor. As long as there is a brother or sister to whom we close our hearts, we will still be far from being disciples as Jesus asks of us. But his divine mercy does not allow us to be discouraged, on the contrary he calls us to start again every day to live the Gospel consistently.
May the intercession of Mary Most Holy open our hearts to welcome the “great commandment”, the double commandment of love, which summarizes all the law of God and on which our salvation depends.“
[01272-EN.02] [Original text: Italian]
