Love IS the Horizon

Greetings on this the Memorial of Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs
Readings: Tb 6:10-11; 7:1bcde, 9-17; 8:4-9a; PS 128:1-2, 3, 4-5; Mk 12:28-34

Note: For those who follow me on WordPress, Twitter or Instagram I hope you enjoyed the photos taken and shared from a vacation trip. Connecting with family and nature is a great blessing. At the same time, bliss!

Note: We are in day two of a Novena of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

First Reading
A continuous reading of the Book of Tobit all weekdays this week.

The first reading from the book of Tobit is a wonderful expression of love. It is not a linear reading so best to read from the lectionary: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/060321.cfm

We have to work through the cultural and historical realities of the time but it is well worth the effort. So different from our culture today how they honored women and heroically married even with the possibility of death from forces unseen. Their horizon was beyond the immediate and what they could ‘know’ in the ordinary sense of the word.

May we love again as Tobiah and Sarah. May we share their trust in the One who created them.
They shared the greatest commandment to love.

Responsorial Psalm
Blessed are those who fear the Lord.

It would be helpful to understand this scripture as: Blessed are those who ARE IN AWE OF the Lord.

Awe in the Lord brings:

• Willingness to act rightly in all things.
• Spouse and children joyful, most of the time, because you are joyful.
• Spouse and children trusting, most of the time, because you trust the Lord and they can trust you.
• You place a shared faith in the greatest commandment, to love.

Alleluia Verse
Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.

Gospel Portion
Today we honor St. Charles Lwanga and Companions. These young men held fast to the promises of the Creator and in their Baptism into Christ above the torment and demands of an unjust Babandan ruler, Mwanga.

The torture was brutal and their end violent.

Their horizon was beyond the immediate beyond what they could ‘know’ in the ordinary.

Like Tobiah and Sarah, St. Charles Lwanga and companions, trusted in the promise.

Death has been destroyed and life has taken on a new light!
They shared the greatest commandment, to love.

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
“Which is the first of all the commandments?”
Jesus replied, “The first is this:
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.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Love IS the Horizon.
Keep your eyes on the Horizon.

Peace be with you,
Deacon Gerry