Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!
In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 10:37–42), we hear some of Jesus’ exhortations on how to follow him and be witnesses to his kingdom. This is not just a matter of outward acts, but of committing ourselves entirely to a loving relationship with him. In order to bear fruit, love requires at least three things: detachment, loss and hospitality.
First, detachment. Jesus says, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” (v. 37). When the Lord begins to send his apostles on mission, he wants them to be free from any ties. However, this applies to everyone, as even the most significant relationships find their fullness through the love that Christ gives us. Consider married life: it can only be lived fully by “leaving” one’s parents’ home (cf. Mt 19:6) in order to commit to the life of marriage. We can also consider the upbringing of children. We help them to fulfill themselves and be happy by teaching them to “stand on their own two feet” and make their own choices. Saint Augustine says, “It is painful to part from what you love. Yet even the farmer temporarily loses what he sows” (Sermon 330: 2). Only by “losing” that seed sown in the ground, can we see it blossom.
In this sense, love is also loss. We find it difficult to understand this, especially in a world where losing is seen as weakness and we are obsessed with having and possessing. However, love only bears fruit in self-giving: when we are willing to lose a little of ourselves to make room for another; to lose a little time to listen to a friend; to lose a little comfort to share in a time of hardship. According to the Gospel, those who hold on to their lives merely for themselves actually lose them (cf. v. 39), for they do not open themselves to the joy of love and thus become barren. This is why Jesus invites us to embrace the cross. He offered himself, lost himself, and in this very way we were enabled to receive his life in abundance. In the same way, if we live by the logic of the gift of self, we too will be capable of bringing forth new life in our relationships.
Finally, hospitality. Love is expressed through concrete choices and actions; by a commitment made up of small daily gestures, such as offering a glass of water to someone who is thirsty (cf. v. 42). Jesus sent his disciples ahead of him without provisions, so that, by being dependent on the help of others, they would inspire hospitality in those they met. By welcoming those who come in Jesus’ name, we welcome him and the heavenly Father who sent him. Indeed, love for the Lord always involves welcoming our brothers and sisters.
Dear friends, let us pray to the Virgin Mary, who loved her Son, knowing that she would also lose him. May she help us to be humble and joyful witnesses to the love of Christ.
Source: vatican.va
