When Christ was asked which of the commandments was the greatest, he quoted two from the Old Testament. The first is to love God with your whole heart, your whole soul, with all your strength and all your mind, and the second is to love your neighbour as yourself. All other commandments, he said, are dependent on these. (Mark 12:30-31)

Love

There are two important usages of the word 'love' in the Scriptures: The first meaning is the pursuit of a person's good or happiness. This focuses on the well being of the person who is loved, and also implies that we consciously seek a harmonious relationship with them. In this sense the object of love can be anyone, including ourselves. The second denotes a strong liking or attachment, but here we are concerned essentially with our own well being rather than the welfare of the object. The two usages are different, but not incompatible: In a close relationship, the words, 'I love you', can convey both meanings at the same time. However, it is predominantly the former interpretation of 'love' that is intended in the commandments, as the latter is essentially involuntary.

Centering on God

• To love God with the whole heart, it is first necessary to believe that He is the ultimate good for us and hold our relationship with Him as the greatest of treasures and highest of all our values. This is consistent with Christ's teaching that ‘where your treasure is, your heart will be also.' It reasonably follows that all of our other values need to be in harmony with God, and that we should give priority to the universal and eternal over all short term, limited and more superficial considerations.
  



• Loving with the soul is less well defined, as it is not entirely clear how the ‘soul' was understood in the Scriptures. However, the following view appears to be consistent: The soul might be regarded as the core of human life and sensitivity, encompassing the spiritual or non-material part of oneself, one's motives and moral nature. Loving God with the whole soul suggests seeking the deepest possible relationship with Him and bringing our will into harmony with His. It would mean that we allow His will to override ours whenever there is a conflict. By implication, we should be consciously aware of His presence at all times, tune in to Him as fully as we can and be open to His influence.




• To love God with all our strength, is to seek harmony with Him and serve Him with all the power, resources, talents and freedom we have to the limits of our endurance. It is not sufficient if we use some of these in ways that are consistent with His interests and others in conflict with them.




• To love God with all our mind implies that we endeavour to know and understand Him and learn to think His way. We ought to pursue the truth in all things and make Him the fixed centre of our ideas and our reasoning processes.

It is clear from the pre-eminence of this commandment that our desire for consistency and harmony with God must be complete. It must dominate every aspect of our being and take the highest priority in all areas of life. It cannot be part-time or to a limited extent with reservations and divided loyalties contrary to His ideals. The purpose of the commandment is not to remove our freedom, but to create the kind of order at our core that leads to lasting freedom and productiveness. There is extensive scope within the boundaries that allows us to serve ourselves and other people, but we should never let the concerns of the world crowd out or override our relationship with God.

So how does one love God? Some of the indications in the Scriptures convey that we must avoid the worship of other deities, treat His name with respect, not ‘make craven images of God', which in a broader interpretation is more likely to mean that we should think of Him as spiritual rather than material, and that we should not develop fixed ideas of a limited kind. We should set aside special time, such as the Sabbath, oriented towards His affairs. Loving God is also expressed in the way we relate to other people and the sense of responsibility we take for the rest of His creation that has been entrusted to us. We love Him by the integrity with which we live our lives, our devotion to truth, wisdom, justice and the avoidance of deliberate deception. We love God by learning to think His way and aspiring to His ideals, particularly as demonstrated by the life and teachings of Christ, his disciples and the earlier prophets. We express our love by working towards becoming the kinds of people He wants us to be: people who live by faith and trust Him despite the seemingly overwhelming problems that sometimes confront us; people who appreciate and try to cultivate humility, generosity and forgiveness rather than greed, perversion and over-indulgence. We use our lives for learning and doing good things that generate the kind of happiness that is also deeper, broader and longer lasting. We invite Him into our lives and spend time with Him.

Loving Our Neighbours

A person's ‘neighbour' is commonly defined as anyone who could be affected by his behaviour. This practical view encompasses the extent of our basic responsibility in relation to other people, and is consistent with most legal usages of the term. According to established principles of justice we must carry out our lawful obligations to these ‘neighbours' to the same standard as would be acceptable to us if we were in their position. For example, we should not engage in noisy activity late at night when others nearby are trying to sleep, and we ought to work in a manner that does not endanger or unnecessarily inconvenience others. While this orientation is consistent with peaceful coexistence, it is basically a passive, superficial and minimal interpretation of the Second Great Commandment.

Christ, however, was more concerned with a deeper level. In the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37), he indicated that being a true neighbour involves internal awareness and empathy. The parable implies that we ought to expand our consciousness and become ‘neighbour' at heart, that is, develop compassion beyond our narrow field of immediate concern, take an interest in those we encounter and then love them actively.

Perhaps the Second Great Commandment is the most frequently misquoted and often misunderstood, for the predominant way it is stated both on the pulpit and in moral discussions is ‘love your neighbour', omitting one of the most important subtleties in the central guiding principle of all human relationships. It can reasonably be assumed that the original author included the words, ‘as yourself'', for a vital purpose, and judging by the effects of all the misguided forms of self-sacrifice that have pervaded thinking since the middle ages, the dangers of a convenient ‘half truth' are again brought to light.

So what are the words ‘as yourself' intended to convey? To assume that another person's less obvious needs and desires were the same as ours, would often be wrong, and could result in highly inappropriate actions. To avoid this we should endeavour to tune in to their reality so that we can be true neighbours at a deeper level. We need to extend our 'selves' and expand our awareness of their specific needs so that we can do what is really best for them in their position, and thereby love them most effectively. So the words ‘as yourself' mean inclusively as part of your extended self, as if you were in their circumstances and with as much concern for their good as for your own.

Being ‘neighbour' is also a matter of degree and real friendship is perhaps the closest and deepest form. Closeness places a person in a very privileged position where anything he does or fails to do could have a greater impact on the well being of the other. As people become ‘closer', the potential rewards and risks increase, which makes love and responsibility even more vital.

The parable of ‘the Good Samaritan' clearly implies that the obligation to love our neighbours as ourselves applies across all of our relationships, not only within our own religious, ethnic, organisational or kinship groups. Competitors, adversaries and even enemies can be our ‘neighbours' to the extent that we become aware of what is important to them. In this respect, Christ's controversial teaching, ‘love your enemies', is completely consistent with the second great commandment.

Loving Ourselves

In ordinary terms, loving ourselves does not imply endless self indulgence, narcissism and pampering, but learning to know ourselves, developing our abilities, taking care of our basic needs and avoiding gross abuses of our health, listening to the signals from our physical nature and working constructively with them, but not being completely ruled or enslaved by them. It includes nurturing our sensitivity, allowing ourselves to appreciate the beauty around us and generally enhancing the quality of our lives.

Unfortunately, the notion of ‘loving oneself' often develops connotations of complete selfishness such that the opposite extreme of ‘selfless love' becomes idealised. However, espousing a total disregard for our own welfare for the sake of others, suggests that we can aspire to even higher ideals than God has prescribed. This is self-deception. If God expected us to make sacrifices for no reward whatsoever, then we would be regarded as expendable and His love for us would be meaningless. While in many circumstances it is appropriate and honourable to put the deeper well being of others ahead of our own immediate superficial interests and postpone our reward, chronic self-neglect is counter productive and is as serious as failing to love one's neighbour. Even Christ who was totally committed to his mission also ate, drank, rested and enjoyed the company of people.

Compassion for others less fortunate than ourselves does not consist of the refusal to enjoy ourselves or appreciate the beauty around us. That is an insult to the creator of that beauty whether it be natural or of human origin. All parties lose: The creator's work is rendered meaningless, the receiver deprives himself of its enjoyment and there is still no improvement in anyone else's well being. The message of love is to share what we can and thereby elevate the other person's quality of life wherever possible, not to pander to personal feelings of guilt.

We have a moral obligation to know and love ourselves – to seek what is really good for us. When we apply the same orientation to others we contribute to a better world. To love our neighbours as ourselves, we must adopt an inclusive frame of mind and give the same consideration to their happiness as to our own. In this way, the well being of everyone is increased, which is consistent with God's love for each of us.

A Matter of Priorities

Love presents the individual with decisions as to where his efforts should be focused and how his love should be put into practice. The order of the greatest two Commandments indicates that love of God takes priority over both the neighbour and the self, and this order of importance is necessary to expand our effectiveness in the latter areas. In almost every occupation, a higher loyalty to the sound practice of one's profession actually increases the ability to serve oneself and other people. The most effective and successful way to care for a person is not necessarily to put them first. Loving God above all else actually works better in everyone's interests.

Whether we ought to put our neighbour ahead of ourselves in any given instance depends on the circumstances. Sometimes we must attend to our own welfare before that of others, not because we love them less, but so as not to diminish our ability to care for both. However, the overall emphasis should be similar.

The greatest two commandments are not devoid of self-interest, but capture its most enlightened form. They provide the most consequent, expedient and effective criteria for orienting ourselves in relation to the most important objective– everyone's lasting happiness, including our own.

The Ten Commandments and Other Rules

The original 'Ten Commandments' that were given to Moses by God still form the essential basis of social order and peaceful co-existence, and continue to apply to the extent that they are not in conflict with the greatest two commandments. For example, the rule ‘Thou shalt not steal' enforces respect for private property and all the social benefits that it brings. However, it might not apply where a person is starving and does not have the means to purchase food from another who has it in abundance. To adhere rigidly to the law against stealing in such a situation, would be to place the value of his neighbour's property above his own life, which is inconsistent with the second great commandment. Likewise, a person may kill an assailant in self-defence if necessary when under malicious attack that could cost him his life. Nonetheless, one never has an automatic licence to disregard the Ten Commandments or other important laws except as a last resort when all reasonable attempts to comply with them have been exhausted or they are clearly incompatible with the greatest two commandments.

The overriding principle in any system of rules is that no law is greater than the purpose it serves. The higher the law, the more general is its purpose, the wider its application, and the fewer the exceptions. It could be argued that the greatest two commandments are universal.

In most communities, the hierarchy of rules consists of laws, regulations and customs in decreasing levels of importance. The Ten Commandments can be regarded as being in the first category. As discussed earlier, situations can be encountered where some of the ‘Ten Commandments' may be inapplicable. The person has a measure of discretion but carries the burden of demonstrating that it would have been wrong to comply in the given circumstances. As one moves to the level of ‘regulations', applicability becomes even more limited, the likelihood of encountering exceptions and the importance of individual judgement increases. When any are disregarded, the burden shifts increasingly towards the moral critic having to demonstrate that compliance was in fact necessary or desirable in that instance. At the level of customs and traditions there is very little authority and almost complete individual consideration. It is also notable that as we move lower down any hierarchy of rules, there is an increasing possibility that rigid compliance without proper discernment may violate the spirit of a higher law.

Implications and Interpretations

Most of the Ten Commandments were originally stated in a very short cryptic form. Taken literally, they tend to cover only the most serious matters. A good example is the eighth: ‘Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.' Certainly this would be one of the most damaging and serious forms of lying, but is that the limit of our obligations in relation to falsity? No. The teachings of Christ indicate that every deliberate violation of the truth in our communications is essentially evil. However, to hold that even the smallest lie is an equal violation of the law is unreasonable and conducive to exaggerated feelings of guilt in much less important matters. It is clear that some of these may warrant no more than a reprimand and certainly not eternal damnation. Thus although the Eighth Commandment is probably most completely expressed as ‘You should not tell lies', and this is the spirit of the law supported by the New Testament (Matt 5:37) , it is important to recognise that there can be varying degrees of non-compliance.

Likewise, the commandment, ‘Thou shalt not kill', is really concerned with the avoidance of anything that can lead to harming a person. In a similar way, ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery', is the most extreme expression of a principle that addresses the healthy, safe and respectful conduct of intimate relationships, although this has at times been taken to excess with puritanical interpretations.

Overall, it is clear from the teachings of Christ that the ‘spirit' of the Ten Commandments is much broader and deeper than the ‘letter' of their simple form, although historically, this may well have been the most effective initial step in turning an unruly society progressively towards an appreciation of order without having unreasonable expectations at that stage of their development. However, the appropriate interpretation of any commandment must be governed by its real purpose in the context of the situation. One way of minimising the risk of misguided legalism or the incorrect application of a moral rule, is to ask ourselves in any doubtful instance whether we are honestly obeying the greatest two commandments . If we are, then there should be no reason for guilt.

As I Have Loved You

"A new commandment I give to you: Love one another as I have loved you. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Greater love than this has no man, than that he lays down his life for his friends." (John 15:12)

Over the course of history, countless people have died for their beliefs, and it is true that if necessary a Christian should be prepared to do the same. That is nothing unusual, for every soldier, police officer and many other professionals might have to die in the line of duty under special circumstances. However, that kind of death is not the destiny we must actively seek. In the context of this new commandment, the Father did not die for the Son, so physical death was not the intended interpretation of 'laying down one's life'. It is not the way our physical lives end that is the issue, but the way we choose to live. Although Christ did die on the cross and surrendering his physical life in that way at the early age of 33 was part of his special mission, laying down his life began much earlier and involved far more.

Christ set his own life and his relationship with his disciples as an example. He was inclusive and treated even the least person in society, including the outcasts, as special. He taught them about the important things in life, healed them, forgave them their failings, spent time with them and was gentle and patient. He never refused to help just because the victim might have brought his condition onto himself. He was accepting of people without compromising the standards he taught and although he was often critical of behaviour, he did not condemn the person. He understood their deeper needs and cared about their sensitivities. He served them rather than expecting to be served, and no service was considered too low or demeaning.

Christ was concerned with every level of existence from the innermost and deepest to the most universal and eternal. As individuals, our lives are usually dominated by comparatively superficial immediate concerns, with an awareness that is severely restricted in time, place and people. The 'life' that we cherish is a very narrow and limited one that tends to be focused on the survival and comfort of a very small, temporary and exclusive concept of our 'selves'. Christ wanted us to expand the notion of who we are to include others. It is for good reason that He taught us to pray to "Our Father", with emphasis on the plural rather than the singular, and warned us that those who want to save their ‘lives' will lose them, but who loses his life for his sake shall have it. He came so that we could 'have life in abundance'. To achieve this we have to give up our preoccupation with our tiny personal 'territory' and think more in terms of 'us'. As this grows to include the universal and eternal, we find our lives again, far better and richer. Like the seed that is to become a tree, it is the attachment to the small, restricted, self-contained life that must ‘die' to enable the expanded life to start growing and develop (John 12:24) .

This 'new' commandment takes its place alongside the older ones and is still subject to the greatest two. Where it differs is that it focuses on the 'how' rather than the 'what'. Christ did not philosophise from a remote and comfortable position. He put the commandments into practice in his own life in their proper order and set an example for his disciples to follow. Of primary importance to him was always his Father's will, and within that orientation he dedicated his life to his mission of serving people and rescuing humanity from the slavery of evil.

"Matters of Faith"
©Carl Jacob

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