SEPTEMBER
16, 1984
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with
all your soul, and with all your might"
(Dt 6:5)
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
This commandment, the greatest one, was proclaimed
in the Old Testament to
Israel alone. It was the first and the greatest commandment of the Old Covenant that God made with the
Chosen People. He gave it through Moses after the liberation from slavery in
Egypt. The Covenant, which
was linked to the commandments, placed on all Israelites the obligations
inherent in belonging to the People of God.
The first reading of today's liturgy speaks
to us in a very detailed way of
how the Israelites were to know and put into practice "the commandments, the statutes and the ordinances" (Dt 6:1) which
God had taught through Moses. The Israelites
were to pass them on and teach them to their children and to all the
generations to come, both during the journey towards the Promised Land and
when they would be living there.
"You shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall
be as frontlets between your eyes. And you
shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates" (Dt
6:8-9).
The Covenant with God became a fundamental source of the spiritual
identity of Israel as a nation among the other peoples and nations
of the earth.
The second reading, from Saint Paul's First
Letter to the Thessalonians,
introduces us into the dimension of the New Covenant. This Covenant is
new and everlasting. It was brought about in the flesh and blood of Christ, by his death on the Cross and by the
Resurrection, and it is universal. It
is open to all the peoples and nations of the earth. For the Apostles have been
sent to everyone to proclaim the Gospel: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit" (Mt 28:19).
Saint Paul can therefore write to the
Thessalonians saying: It was God who
decided that we were fit to be entrusted with the Good News, and when we are speaking, we are not trying to please men but God, who
can read our inmost thoughts. ... We
felt so devoted and protective toward you, and had come to love you so much, that we were eager to hand over to you not
only the Good News but our whole lives as well" (1 Th 2:4,8).
The Gospel has become - and always continues to become - the
source of spiritual culture for men and women of different nations, tongues
and races. It has also become the
basis of the individuality and cultural identity of many peoples
and nations throughout the world.
This statement takes on singular eloquence in Canada, where,
through immigration, a varied inheritance
of peoples, nations and cultures becomes the common good of the whole of society.
God's commandment to Israel expresses the good of society.
Its fulfilment is the
condition on which all cultural identity is consolidated, and without which there can be no lasting and effective
multicultural community. God's word
expressed through Moses brings with it a promise and constitutes a charter of hope for all
society: "If you keep all his laws and commandments which I lay on you, you will
have a long life ... Listen then, Israel, and keep and observe
what will make you prosper and give you great increase" (Dt 6:2-3).
It is in the perspective of faith that we perceive how much the
Word of God - brought to fulfilment in the Gospel - contributes to the building
and preservation of cultures. And we see how
necessary it is to fulfil the Gospel
message in order to succeed in harmonizing cultures in a pluralistic unity. In the civil order too, the Gospel is at the
service of harmony. To detach culture
from its link to the Gospel commandment of love would be to make impossible the
multicultural interplay which is characteristic of Canada. The Church speaks to us repeatedly of the
need to evangelize in depth man's
culture and cultures, "always taking the person as one's starting-point
and always coming back to the relationships of people among
themselves and with God"
(Evangelii Nuntiandi, 20). At the same time we are alerted that "the split between the Gospel and culture is
without a doubt the drama of our time"
(ibid.).
The historical experience of the two founding
peoples of Canada who bound
themselves to live in mutual respect for the unique cultural identity of each other has providentially created that
atmosphere of respect for cultural diversity which
characterizes Canada today. In her own multicultural interaction, Canada not only offers to the world a creative
vision of society but she also has a splendid opportunity to show consistency between what she believes and what
she does. And this is accomplished by applying
Christ's commandment of love.
Manitoba itself truly reflects a variety of
many different cultures. Besides
its population of British origin and French origin - in addition to native peoples - so many other Western countries-are represented
here. Immigration from Western and Eastern
Europe, Asia, Africa and South America contributes
to making up the reality of this civil society. Latin and Ukrainian ecclesial
jurisdictions compose one Catholic Church. Today I greet in a special way the Church of Winnipeg with
its pastor, Archbishop Exner; the Archdiocese of Winnipeg of the Ukrainians led
by Archbishop Hermaniuk; and the faithful of the Archdiocese of Saint Boniface
under the pastoral leadership of
Archbishop Hacault. Yes, you come from almost "every tribe and tongue, people and nation" (Rv 5:9).
And this is expressed in our liturgical assembly today, not only through different
languages but also through the different liturgical traditions of Christianity, both in the West and the East.
In this Eucharist the Church in Canada celebrates her
diversity and proclaims her unity in Christ and in the universal Church.
Against the broad background of history and
culture, the first and most
important commandment which Moses transmitted to
the one Chosen People of the Old Covenant takes
on a fresh eloquence in our times.
Jesus Christ says: "This is my commandment:
love one another as I have loved you" (Jn
15:12).
The commandment of love is rooted, in a new way, in love
of God: "As the Father has loved me, so
I have loved you. Remain in my
love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father's commandments
and remain in his love" (Jn 15:9-10).
Therefore, love of God above all things is a sharing in
Christ's love - the love whereby Christ loves.
And at the same time: love of God is organically
linked with love for others -
with mutual love. This love makes us Christ's friends. "I
shall not call you
servants anymore... I call you friends" (Jn 15:15)
This love is a moral and existential
expression of the election and calling by
Christ "to go out and to bear fruit,
fruit that will last; and then the Father will give you anything you ask him
in my name" (Jn 15:16).
The pluralism of traditions, pluralism of
cultures, pluralism of histories, pluralism of
national identities - all of these are compatible with the unity of society.
Today we pray for the moral unity of this society - since
this unity is the foundation and common
denominator of all "civil needs".
From the most ancient times Christianity has
educated people -witnesses for
Christ - to have a sense of responsibility for the common good of society.
This is equally true when society has clearly pluralistic characteristics. The importance of the
Church's teaching in this regard has been
summarized by the Second Vatican Council in the penetrating words: "Let there be no false opposition between
professional and social activities on
the one part, and the practice of religion on the other. The Christian who neglects his temporal duties
neglects his duties toward his neighbour and even God, and jeopardizes his
eternal salvation" (Gaudium et Spes. 43).
At the basis of this teaching is the
commandment of mutual love which today's Gospel speaks about. Mutual love means, in its fundamental dimension, the relationship between human
beings based on respect for the personal dignity of the other person and on
real care for his or her true good.
Mutual love has particular importance for
the formation of the community of marriage and the family. And then that
mutual love extends to many different circles and levels of human
coexistence: in different environments,
communities, societies, and between societies.
In this sense this love is "social", and constitutes the
essential condition for the formation of
the civilization of love proclaimed by the Church, and especially by
Paul VI.
In this great region of Canada, mutual love
between all the different communities
that make up the multicultural character of this pluralistic society becomes an immense power for good.
The mutual love that uplifts and
unites the individual elements enables all of them, when put together, to be a particularly effective instrument of
service to humanity. Love makes it possible for a vast
series of talents to produce a united action. Through
this united action, a multicultural society is then able to place at the
disposal of others all those blessings which it has so bountifully received.
Remember, O Canada, that the greatest
richness of your multicultural character
is to be able to reach out and help others -
your brothers and sisters in need. This is
what faith makes possible; this is what love requires. In the name of love I
urge that the openness shown to so many immigrants and refugees of
ethnic minorities, and the generous reception given to them, should continue to
characterize and enrich Canada in the future as in the past.
In this regard it is worthwhile to recall those prophetic words of
John XXIII: "The best interests of
justice are served by those public authorities who do all they can to
improve the human conditions of the members of ethnic minorities, especially in
what concerns their language, culture, customs, and their economic activity and
enterprises" (Pacem in Terris,
AAS 55, 1963, p. 283). This contribution of public authority must be coupled by the active efforts of all
individuals and groups to continue to build a socially just Canadian
society - a lasting civilization of love in which are ensured "the
priority of ethics over technology, the primacy of the person over things, and the superiority of spirit over
matter" (Redemptor Hominis, 16) - and all this for the glory
of God, who is the Father of us all.
Let us pray for this intention, especially in
this Eucharistic assembly, and
through this prayer let us unite ourselves with Christ. Truly, we wish to accept his invitation:
"Remain in my love". Amen
Conférence
des évêques catholiques du Canada