In Graham Greene’s novel, The Power and the Glory, the unlikely hero is a priest. He is caught by the revolutionary Mexican government and condemned to be shot.

On the night before his execution, he sits in his cell and thinks back over his life. Greene tells us that tears poured down the priest’s face, not because he was afraid of death, even the fear of pain was in the background; he was crying because he had to go to God empty-handed. His life had been a dingy failure. It seemed to him, at that moment, that it would have been easy to be a saint or an apostle.

In our first reading, we hear about a summit meeting of the apostles. The original twelve are now eleven—one of the twelve has proved unfaithful—his life is a dingy failure. He has not simply denied Jesus, as Peter did. He has not simply run away as all save John did. This one sold Jesus for silver, and in despair hanged himself. It is time to replace him, to replace Judas.

Jesus gives us a commandment in today’s gospel. It is simple and concise. We are to love one another as Jesus has loved us. We are to love as God loves. Now this, of course, is a huge responsibility, and it begins by understanding how God loves and how God loved the world!

Jesus’ commandment is to love one another as he has loved us. That means that our love cannot be narrow, partisan, or stingy. Of course, it is difficult to stretch our love so that it begins to approximate the way that God loves.

Yes, my dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ, we shall love one another and prove before Christ that we are the true disciples of Christ Jesus.

Love and Prayers,

Fr. Charley