Heart, soul, and mind

The Gospel for this Sunday is known as the "Summary of the Law." When Jesus is asked which of the commandments is the greatest, he replies without hesitation with two quotes from the Hebrew scriptures:

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your mind." (Deuteronomy 6:4)
...and...
You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Leviticus 19:18)

Deuteronomy 6:4 is also known by Jewish people as the Shema and is repeated daily as Moses directed.

I think of this passage as encouragement for us to acknowledge God with our whole being: heart, soul and mind. Our emotions, our gut, and our brain. We're called to be whole people in our relationship with God, and to offer our whole being to God.

Ed Bacon, the rector of All Saints, Pasadena, said that when he and his wife were first attending an Episcopal Church, his wife asked him, "Why are we going to the Episcopal Church, anyway?" He replied to her, "I think it's because we're able to be the same person when we leave home as we are when we arrive at church."

In other words, they didn't feel the need to "churchify" themselves in order to go to worship, but their whole humanity was invited into worship - heart, soul, and mind. God wants to have a relationship with our whole being, not just the parts we want God to see.
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