The Politics of the Greatest Commandment

 

Many people fight about who will be first in line, first in the door, or first at the table because for them being ‘first’ is about privilege and control. To me it sounds a little silly that so many intelligent people get caught up in the race of “who will be first?” So, here we are coming to the end a of another political “silly season” inhabited by gubernatorial, mayoral and local candidates.

Not much has changed since the first-century Jewish world. In the context of (Mark 12:28-34), to be ‘first’ carries the weight of the first stone laid, the cornerstone upon which all of the other stones must rest. Consequently, the greatness of the love commandment lies not in its devaluing all other commandments of Jewish law, but, rather, in its ability to hold up all other commandments on a “pedestal.” It’s less about beating out all of the other candidates to the finish line and more about helping them to do their jobs.

Mark’s Gospel records how Jesus, in love, surrenders his life to bolster us up in our weakness. The two love commandments come first in the law because it is on them that all of the rest of the commandments of the Torah rest, and really it is all that God asks of His people.

Testament. The first, phileo, refers to ‘brotherly love,’ or a love between equals and expects reciprocity. (This is where the city of Philadelphia gets its name). The other, agapao, refers to a complete and selfless love and expects self-giving. Neither love reflects a solely emotional state, but rather, points to the relation in which one person lives toward another.

The scribe in Mark’s account appears sincere in his inquiry, although Mathew’s account suggests that the scribe is trying to trap Jesus into weighing in on the use of the word for love. The word love (agape) is derived from the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible with which Jesus and his contemporaries would have been familiar). On the cross, Jesus acts with this agape love.

But agape love doesn’t always have to mean death. At its heart, what it really means, is simply putting others first. This is countercultural today and especially evident in running a good political campaign.

Acting with agape love as means stepping back from any other code of conduct may characterize our personal ethics and ask: What does this mean for my neighbor? Or, even more potently, Is this me giving myself to my neighbor? Is this me giving myself to my God? Because to put love of God and neighbor first means not just providing what we think is best for our brethren, but rather, to act in such a way that we give our very self to our neighbor and to let that be the foundation upon which everything else is built. Wasn’t that Jesus’ ultimate “gift” to us? (Adapted from Amy Lindeman Allen, Political Theology Today, 2015)