There once was a Rabbi, Rabbi Hillel, who lived about a hundred years or so before Jesus’ time. He was originally from Babylonia, and as a young man made his way to Israel to study the Torah. He worked as a woodcutter and did not make much money, and at times could not pay the admission fee at the synagogue to study the Torah. It is said, because of him, this fee was abolished.
But he just did not study. He was also known for his kindness, gentleness and concern for humanity. Eventually Hillel became a leading rabbi and religious scholar of his day.
Most certainly Jesus and his contemporaries read or studied the teachings of Rabbi Hillel.
And from Rabbi Hillel, there is a story of a gentile who wanted to convert to Judaism. After being chased away by another rabbi, the would-be convert approached Rabbi Hillel and asked him what he needed to know in a nutshell. Rabbi Hillel told him, "That which is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor. That is the whole Torah; the rest is commentary."
If you thought this sounded a lot like the Golden Rule, you are correct. The Golden Rule however is just worded a little differently, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".
What is the root of these teachings? Love!
So let’s talk about love!
Love is the basis of just about all world religions. And more songs, poems & stories have been written about love than any other topic in the world!
And who does not want love?
What gives you love? How do you feel it? How do you give love? What is it that you love?
You know, you all have such a wonderful look on your faces right now...for you all are thinking about love and how it feels.
When I think of love and feel it, it is so closely related to the feeling of peace. And joy, and happiness. All these are intertwined.
I heard from someone, who heard it from someone, who told someone, who heard it from someone else, that if I talked about my doggies one more time in a sermon they would explode! Well, here goes. So if we have any explosions here, you will know why...
Yes my three doggies bring much joy, happiness and love to my household. And when they sit next to me in the morning as I drink my coffee and emerge into consciousness, how peaceful and wonderful it is!
Of course, having three little dogs does make for extra housework & cleaning. But, it is a labor of love.
So, what more can I say about love that has not already been said before?
The Buddha’s Flower Sermon pops into my mind here. Are you familiar with it? In Buddhism, this is a very famous sermon. It goes like this…
[SILENCE. Pick up a flower and smile.]
 |
| Lotus flower |
And that’s the sermon! I will explain…
The Buddha was with his followers. They sat quietly. He picked up a flower, and smiled! It is a sermon not of words, but an act.
So what is the message?
It is an act of love, appreciating the beauty of the flower, its “suchness” as it is called in Buddhism, and imparting this wisdom to others by the action of holding up a flower and smiling.
For you see in Buddhism, direct experience is way more important than doctrines, creeds and intellectual analysis.
I thought of the wordless Flower Sermon because when it comes to love, no matter what we say about it, nothing in words is entirely adequate.
Perhaps that is why we sing about it so much. For music helps us open a door to feel that love.
In the Hebrew Bible there are 613 mitzvahs. A mitzvah is a law, a commandment. When a Jewish young boy or girl have their Bar or Bat Mitzvah, they become a son or daughter of the commandment. As full fledged Jews, they now must follow the Torah, the law.
This is why in our Gospel story for today, Jesus is asked, ‘Teacher, what is the most important commandment?’
And how does Jesus answer?
He quotes the Shema from the book of Deuteronomy: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…”
Jesus then goes on to say there is a second commandment – “to love your neighbor as you love yourself”.
This second commandment is also is from the Hebrew Bible. It’s in the book of Leviticus: “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord your God.”
How easy and wonderful it would be if we could just do this! But oh so hard it is sometimes, for some people are just, well as we know, just more difficult to love than others!
So I ask you, do you love God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your soul?
And, do you love your neighbor as yourself? I mean, really?
But wait! Don’t answer with words! Let us answer by how we live.
Let us answer by how we treat people…and animals. Let us answer by how we talk to people… or about them. Let us answer by our actions, by what we do, and what we do not do. Even by what we think.
For 'God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God'. (1Jn 4:16)
'Love is
patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It
does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not
rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things,
believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends…' (1Cor.13)
Oh loving God, help us to live and walk in your love.
Amen.
[Sermon by The Rev. Laura Adelia, given Oct 26, 2014]
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