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November 3 rd, 2024 (31 Sunday Ordinary B)

Dear brothers and sisters,

today we are presented with the Shema. Moses proclaims to the people of Israel the first commandment of the law which is : “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. Therefore, you shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your souls, and with all your strength.” The Shema is the command given to Israel to take possession of the land that flows with milk and honey and prosper and grow,. In the Gospel a scribe interrogates Jesus Christ exactly on this. The scribe asks Christ what is the first of all the commandments and Christ answers him with the Shema. The scribe agrees with Christ that it is in effect the first and most important commandment and Christ answers him: “You are not far from the kingdom of heaven.” We see that the world tells us that there are also many commandments, meaning many ways to find happiness, to grow and find prosperity. For the world the number one commandment is: “Be strong, make money! Money gives you life. With money you can get whatever you want!” We see this is exactly the world’s creed and what society is proposing constantly to us and to our younger generations. But Christ shows us that the truth is another. To love God alone. Not to have idolatries. You cannot love God and money. To listen to God alone first with our whole heart, mind and strength. To love God in this way introduces us into the kingdom of heaven. It gives us the biggest freedom, the freedom the world does not know. Like Christ on the cross loved God in this way and experienced the kingdom of heaven, he was on the cross but was totally at peace. May God help us today to fulfill the Shema in our lives and in our daily cross may we also listen to God alone, and love him with our whole heart, mind and strength and experience the kingdom of God. In the cross if we love God in this way he does not abandon us but provides for us and loves us.

Peace, Fr. Nicholas, Pastor