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.“

mark 12:29-30

Mark 12:28-34

Reflection

A scribe asks Jesus which commandment is the first of all. Jesus answers that the first is to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself. The scribe agrees with Jesus.

Our number one goal is to love God above all else in this world. We must love him with our entire being – our heart, soul, and mind. This sounds like too much to ask, but he is our Creator; how can we not love him?

We tend to focus on this second commandment – love your neighbor as yourself. This is obviously important to follow as well, but if we can’t love God as we ought, it will be difficult to love our neighbor. God gives us the perfect example of love through his Son Jesus. Through his self-sacrifice, God shows us how much he loves us.

This Lent, reflect on your relationship with God more deeply. Do you love him above all? Or do you value something or someone over him? Pray for the grace to truly love our Lord with all your mind, heart, and soul.

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Saint of the Day

St. Alexander: died AD 260

St. Alexander was a companion of saints Malchus and Priscus. During the persecutions by Emperor Valerian, he was arrested and martyred by wild beasts in an arena.   St. Alexander, pray for us!