The new commandment of Jesus, love of one’s neighbor, is a journey in which we can progress every day and where we find the fullness of Jesus’ message.

“The whole of the Law is summarized in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Galatians 5:14 JB) This sentence comes from St. Paul the Apostle. It is brief, precise, explicit and truly wonderful.

It tells us that love of neighbor must be the basis and constant inspiration of the Christian way of life.

For the Apostle, the fulfillment of the Law lies in practicing this command. The Law, in fact, speaks of not committing adul­tery, not killing, not stealing, not coveting…. And we know that those who love do not do these things. Those who love do not kill or steal, etc.

Those who love, however, do not merely avoid evil. They are open to others; they desire good and accomplish it; they give of themselves, going so far as to give their very lives for their neighbor.

For this reason, St. Paul writes that, when we love our neighbor, we are not merely observing a single command because — “the whole of the Law” is summarized in it.

(…)

If the whole of the Law is summed up in love of neighbor, the other commandments should be seen as means to enlighten and guide us in finding the way to love others in the often com­plex situations of life. We become aware of God’s purpose in giving us the other commandments, of his will as expressed in them. He wants us to be obe­dient, chaste, mortified in our pas­sions, meek, merciful, poor and so on, in order to better fulfill the commandment of love.

Chiara Lubich

C. Lubich, in Words of Life: The Works of Chiara Lubich – Part 5, New City UK, 2022