Gospel: Luke 11:37-41
As Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to have a meal with him. So he went and sat at table. The Pharisee then wondered why Jesus did not first wash his hands before dinner. But the Lord said to him, “So then, you Pharisees, you clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside yourselves you are full of greed and evil. Fools! He who made the outside, also made the inside. But according to you, by the mere giving of alms everything is made clean.
Reflection
To love God also means to love one’s neighbor.
I was once asked whether faith is merely a following of what has been set or handed to us. A person may tend to view faith as a mere obligation to fulfill a set of devotional practices. Paul’s words in his letter to the Galatians highlight what complements faith. At a time when the requirements to follow Jesus are debated, Paul reminds the people of what is essential. Our faith in Jesus always finds its way into love. Believing in Jesus Christ translates into action. Jesus, in the Gospels, has made this all clear. The two greatest commandments are inseparable – to love God also means to love one’s neighbor. The measure of one’s faith in God will always be the act of love one performs.
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