Love Your Neighbor as Yourself

In this day and age, most everyone is willing to work together especially when things are going their way. When they don't, there's a growing number of people who become angry and uncooperative; many times even belligerent. I've watched some of the videos from the Williamson County School Board meetings. People getting a bit too cra-cra! Wonder what those people think when they go back and see themselves on YouTube? In the words of Sheldon Cooper, "For shame!" 

Nothing wrong with disagreeing; just need to disagree agreeably. That's how we compromise and find solutions to our disagreements. My way or the highway isn't a good managerial or relational strategy.

This morning's gospel reading was from Matthew 22 where the Pharisees tested Jesus on the greatest commandment. His response is what we should always be doing as children of God. "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

Unfortunately, we don't love God the way we should. And, we definitely don't come close to loving our neighbor as ourself. For many, hating our neighbor is probably more common than loving our neighbor especially if they don't think the way we do. Jesus never said for us to love our neighbor unless our neighbor does not look, act, or think the way we do. Sometimes, I'm as guilty as the next person, but I actually do try to follow the greatest commandment.

Loving God and our neighbor does not mean we are supposed to make everyone happy. Actually, trying to make everyone happy is a recipe for disaster and should not be our goal because it will never work. If our actions and decisions are made out of love, yet some people aren't happy with our actions and decisions, then so be it. We aren't all going to be happy, but we should all get along. Here's a great quote to follow: "Stop trying to make everyone happy. You are not tequila!"

Winston Churchill once said, "Never let a good crisis go to waste." We are approaching 630,000 COVID deaths in this country and 4.4 million world-wide. Don't know about you, but I would categorize this as a crisis. During this crisis, it might be a good time to learn to love God, our neighbor, and ourself.

We should all work together for the common good. Br. Joel McGraw (one of my favorite people on this earth), once told me, "In a disagreement, put on your velvet gloves and kill them with kindness." That was his way of loving his neighbor as himself. Let's be a lot like Jesus and Br. Joel by using this crisis to look for ways to love our neighbor.

I will end with some great advice from St. Teresa of Calcutta: “People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway. If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway. For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.”

God bless you, Didier Aur