Sunday, May 5th, 2024

What is most important to being a good Christian?  Our rules?  Or the commandment of love? 
 
In our first reading from Acts of the Apostles, Peter undergoes a conversion.  As a Jew, he had always believed that the Jews were the Chosen Ones and would be defiled to have contact with those who were not “in.” Everyone else was lost.  That was the long-standing “rule.” But when he sees the Holy Spirit coming upon Cornelius and other “Gentiles,” as the Spirit had come upon the apostles, Peter was able to move beyond what they believed and accept what the Holy Spirit was telling them: all are children of God, made in God’s image, and Jesus came to save all. That was a huge change for those early believers who had been Jewish; who knows what rules and traditions will change as we move forward, led by the Holy Spirit!
 
Our second and third reading emphasize LOVE.  The word LOVE appears 9 times in each reading. In the first letter of John, we hear this very blunt statement: Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In the Gospel, Jesus is also very direct:  This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. These two statements leave no doubt: we need to make love and acceptance of others, despite their faults and sins (which we all have), the focus of our spiritual life.
 
I believe what Pope Francis said: who am I to judge? As a pastor representing the Church, I believe it is important for me to convey what the Gospels and the Church call us to live and be.  But when people know these things and make decisions to live in a different way, that is between them and God.  If I rigidly demanded observance of every commandment and rule in order to be part of the community, there would be no one in the community, including me.
 
Rules and rituals and traditions are important: they help keep us from straying and they join us to the community. But we need to lead with love and acceptance of God’s children, not rules and barriers.
 
Church sign of the week: Maybe you wouldn’t have to mention you are a Christian all the time if you just acted like one most of the time.