What must we do to inherit eternal life?

Many times in life we ask the question “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” The answer to this question is found in the parable of the Good Samaritan, when Jesus answers the expert in the law “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Through this parable Jesus teaches three important things. Firstly, this parable teaches that lack of love is often easy to justify, even though it is never right. Many times we find different excuses for not to love, maybe we are too tired, or having a lot of things to do at home, having a lot to study, or maybe because of a lot of work. These are different attitudes that take over our action from loving our neighbour. These are attitudes which will surely do not help us to inherit eternal life. We can literally be like the priest or the Levite, we see with our eyes of people in need, but do not help.

Secondly, this parable teaches us that our neighbour is anyone of any race, creed, or social background who is in need. My neighbour is not only my family, my cousins, my next door neighbour, my neighbour is everybody. My neighbour is that person I meet in every present moment of my life (at school, at work, at sports activities, at church, and also on social media). So, our neighbour embraces all humanity, and it is expressed concretely in the person next to us. This is what we are to live in our life, to truly love each person.

Thirdly, this parable teaches that love means acting to meet the person’s need. Wherever you live, there are needy people close by. There is no good reason for refusing to help. So what must we do when we are with our neighbour? Are we capable of having such a big heart to love our neighbour? How can we come to possess such kindness as to consider even someone who is far away as our neighbour? We are to always LOVE our neighbour. Loving our neighbour is not an ordinary love, it is not a simple friendship. Loving our neighbour is the love that has been poured out into our hearts at baptism: this is the love that is the life of God himself, of the blessed Trinity. That is why we are to love everyone, because the love we give to others, is the love of God. This is how deep our love should be, because it is the love of God.

To love our neighbour, we are not to discriminate, we are not to love depending on if the person is kind or not, is beautiful or not, is a foreigner or a local person… we are to love everyone. To love our neighbour as Jesus loves us, is only possible by having this personal relationship with Jesus. It is through Jesus, that we be able to love in an authentic way, that is… to love our neighbour is to suffer with those who are suffering, rejoice with those who are rejoicing, carry the burdens of neighbour. This is what we have to do to be real witnesses of Christ and to inherit eternal life, we are not to be afraid to love our neighbour, because we would be loving Christ Himself.

(This reflection can be viewed at:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7F_cQkyZzoI   )