31st Sunday in Ordinary Year B (Deuteronomy 6:2-6 Hebrews 7:23-28 Mark 12:28b-34)
Theme: Love of God and Neighbours
Today is the thirty-first Sunday in ordinary time Year B. On this Sunday, one idea that runs through our readings is love of God and neighbours. Love of God and love of neighbour is the supreme commandment that Jesus presents to us today. Also the first reading shows us that this commandment is very important in our lives as children of God and the people of God.
Also taking into consideration the world in which we live in, we are seriously in need of men and women who live out these injunctions in their lives. Today, love of God and love of neighbours is a commodity that is gradually becoming illusive even among us the children of God. Today’s liturgy enjoins us henceforth to have a re-think about our practice of love of God and neighbours in our human relationships and dealings with one another. The more we practice this, the better Christians we become and the better our society becomes. We are where we are today as a people because so many people have become very self-centred. People no longer think about the common good but about their personal interests and gains.
Even in our human relationships, people in authority are more concerned about what goes into their pockets, while the less privileged continue to suffer. The few privileged people continue to acquire the wealth of the nation and continue to use it to exploit and manipulate the poor. That is why on this thirty-first Sunday in ordinary time of the year, the church is admonishing us to accept the invitation presented to us in our liturgy today. Our readings are simply saying that there is a need for us to make a U-turn. There is a need for us to have a re-think because there is that urgent call for us to act as children of God.
If truly we want to impact in the world in which we live as Christians and as children of God, then we must make honest and sincere effort to live as true children of God. By so doing, there will be something different, something unique, something special, and something that challenges those who do not live the way they ought to as children of God. It is when we do this we can be assured that God will continue to bless us and our families. It is our duty as children of God to build our lives based on love of God and neighbours as is expected of us as followers of Christ.
Let us begin to practice love of God and love of neighbours in our daily lives if we truly want to attract the blessings of God to ourselves and to our families. This is the first step in the right direction. The more we do it the closer we get to God, the better people we become, and a better society will be created; that is a place where love will reign supreme.
We pray on this thirty-first Sunday of year B in ordinary time that God will grant us the graces we need to live lives worthy of emulation and pleasing to God, through Christ our Lord. Peace be with you.