"Love Thy Neighbor"

We are all weak and we all fail. My destiny is to love you neighbor as myself. I am a princess, a mother, My Father is a King and my body is a temple for God to dwell. Being a daughter, a child of God’s, I try to everyday, to be a sign of God’s faithful love to all my neighbors.

Being a catholic woman in today’s world can be very hard and belonging to a catholic community is hard too. I feel saddened and disturbed at times to learn how exclusive and cruel a parish can be. When mass is finished, I try and avoid shaking the priest’s hand, so I find a space and sneak out because if I go up or get caught in the crowd and  have to shake his hand, he says “Oh! it’s you.” I guess that is his way of loving his neighbor or maybe he doesn’t know my name. I once heard, “I have love for them in my heart, I have to it’s my job.” Yes, you get paid to love for an hour once a week. Here is a question; What about for the rest of the day, week, month, year or years? I didn’t realize it was a job to love someone, I thought love comes naturally and if you choose to live your life Holy, following Jesus Christ and being a disciple of God’s, wouldn’t your love for people and all people be unconditional? I suppose having power, in a leadership role, you don’t need to love unconditionally or love a fellow neighbor because you are entitled not too.

 However, Jesus is saying to us today in the bible, in the first and second readings. “Love Thy Neighbor,” St Paul to the Corinthians is saying we are the temple of God, my body is the house of God. So, you can’t love me, your neighbor who has God dwelling inside and the book of Leviticus is asking us to live holy lives, never to hate, never to bear a grudge to love your neighbor as yourself. We are all different, we act, love, believe differently, yet we need to find a way to love each other. There is no reference to race, color, or class distinction, our neighbor is every person, every soul that needs help, love, compassion, healing, mercy, promise. Everyone, Everything, all of God’s creations is our neighbor and therefore we are to love, listen, give, trust, forgive and to share.

I am not perfect and I know, I have pushed  a neighbor away, created distance, I have hurt, caused pain and heartache and doing all that didn’t help and I hate it, I hate how hard it all is and how much my neighbor has hurt me and keeps hurting me. There were times when I wished things, but I couldn’t. I do love this neighbor and I do feel this neighbor keeps me from releasing the God who dwells within me. But I keep going, I keep praying.

Women of Faith and Hope, be strong, be of good courage, we are truly royal spirits. Maybe through all the chaos we build a temple of Love, not of hate. Let us not be selfish, ambitious, vain, but let us consider others better than ourselves, let’s not think of our interest but also to the interests of others. Be a sign of God’s faithful love to all neighbors.

May God Bless Always

Written and created by My Mother Rose