In today’s Gospel Jesus takes us to the heart of what our faith is all about. When asked, ‘Which is the greatest of all the commandments?’ he simply answers: “Love of God, and love of neighbour as ourselves.” Any teaching or commandment of our faith only exists so as to lead us into a deeper relationship with God and with each other. It’s as simple and as challenging as that!

Love of God & love of neighbour were of course not new teachings – they are absolutely at the heart of the Jewish faith. But Jesus stressed the essential connection between the two as no one had ever done before. You cannot have one without the other. Love of God, whom we cannot see, is empty if it is not expressed in love of the people we can see. And love of people is incomplete unless it is infused with the love of God. Jesus had no time for a religion of dry, intellectual debate and empty words. Our faith should bring us to our knees in humble adoration of God; it should make us stand up for the poor and needy in our world, not afraid to challenge the unjust and greedy; it should inspire us to walk with the zeal of a missionary to share the Good News of God’s love with others. So faith is love in action. It means first and foremost knowing that we are each personally and passionately loved by God and then showing and passing on His great unconditional love to others. His love is the true measure for all our actions.

This weekend is a very special moment for our parish with the visit of Archbishop Richard. He is with us to celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving – a celebration of all the ways in which God’s love is made real in our parish community. This includes thanksgiving for all of the sacrifices and generosity which have made possible the renovation of our parish centre over the last year. And for the vibrant spiritual life of our parish portrayed in our magnificent six new windows which Archbishop will also bless today. May this be a weekend of great blessing for us all!



With blessings & prayers from Fr Richard, Fr Ephrem & all the parish team
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