Most of us have heard the quote that goes something like this, "There is nothing so great as an idea whose time has come."  Major dilemmas frequently occur, however, when someone does give birth to an idea.  Great ideas are seldom greeted with enthusiasm.  The reason for this is that they generally threaten the current balance being maintained by the status quo.   

            Think of the impact, for example, if someone discovered a new technology that would free America from its reliance on petroleum based products.  Think of all the industries that would have to change or go out of existence. 

            In our Gospel lesson today, we learn that Jesus was giving his disciples a new commandment.

            This is what he said, "And now I give you a new commandment:  love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  If you have love for one another, then everyone will know that you are my disciples."   

            Why would Jesus refer to such a common sense idea as "new"?  Had no one in his world experienced the sharing of love in their communities?  After all, the spirit of most Americans has been based on a broad understanding of this teaching whether this it been recognized or not.   

            In a much earlier time, our family drove across the United States five times during our extended vacations.  We found the same sense of community everywhere.  It did not matter which state borders we crossed, what shopping malls we entered, or in which National or State Park we camped. The people there were living the same values found elsewhere in our culture. 

            The concept of loving each other is so gentle to our ears.  Love is described in our music and poetry.  In our spirits, we know that those who have perfected this energy have mastered the art of living.  Yet as a practice, loving behavior is still experiencing the pains associated with the birth of a new idea.  Few of us are capable of hanging from our respective crosses while loving those who put us there.  Why is this so?   

            When we love, we have requirements, attachments and expectations.  The idea that love is a one way street is still foreign to us. It leaves us with a sense that there is no justice with the seemingly passive behavior of unconditional love.  It is very challenging to give ourselves away and not expect anything in return.  Perhaps this is why Jesus called his commandment "new." It still is new for many of us. 

            It appears that loving one another will always remain an individual choice.  Love is not a behavior or attitude that can be forced on anyone nor can an entire society become committed to it. Our differing values and attitudes will not permit this to happen in our current state of evolution.  For the sake of discussion, however, what would happen if loving each other became mandatory? 

            Perhaps the story of Anna Jarvis may give us an answer.  Anna moved to Grafton, West Virginia from Philadelphia where she affiliated with a Methodist church. When her mother grew ill, she returned to Philadelphia to take care of her.  Her mother died in 1905 and Anna grieved a long time.  She brooded for years and almost became bitter over her observation that many grown children were neglecting their mothers. 

            Anna committed the rest of her life to doing something about her perception.  She conceived of Mother's Day. She thought, "If children were too busy with their lives to express love to their mothers, at least one day they could do so."  On May 10, 1908, Mother's Day began in two churches -- one in Grafton and the other in Philadelphia.  The only problem was that these services were dedicated to the honor and memory of only Anna's mother. 

            After sensing this success, she singlehandedly wrote members of Congress, influential businessmen, governors and newspaper editors.  Slowly she got results.  In 1910 three states declared Mother's Day a holiday.  The year after that other states followed.  In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson declared Mother's Day a national holiday and designated its celebration for the second Sunday of May.  He declared that citizens should set aside this day for the public expression of love and reverence for mother.   

            This is how Mother's Day began 90 years ago.  In a sense, expressing love to our Mothers became a national preoccupation on this one day.  Has it worked?  As a national policy we have set this day aside, but as a culture do we truly treasure motherhood?   

            Just as with the Sabbath Day, a new form was created.  Not everyone worships.  Not everyone sets the Sabbath aside as a day of rest and reflection. In fact, for many people Sunday is no different from any other day.  Perhaps this is the reason why stress has become the new silent killer.  The created forms of Christmas and Easter are met with the same result.  Many give token acceptance to these holidays by attending their places of worship only twice a year.      

            From very humble beginnings Mother's Day has grown to a 13 billion dollar industry.  Hallmark estimates that 175 million cards will be bought for this single day.  The flower industry receives a tremendous infusion of fresh dollars for Mother's Day.  Yet where is society with respect to motherhood? 

            Motherhood is not necessarily embraced or respected in the market place.  A single parent mother discovers this when a sick child requires that she miss a day or two of work.  When she tries to find adequate child care, those belonging to "the old school" admonish her with, "A mother's place is in the home."  Stay-at-home moms frequently feel awkward in certain social settings when they are called upon to make an accounting of themselves while being among female judges, physicians and university faculty. 

            If love were made mandatory for all human beings, we would create another form, something that religion has been good at doing for thousands of years.  Giving birth to the new idea was easy for Jesus, but it was exceedingly challenging to accomplish in the mind and hearts of others.  It sounded good, but not many people subscribed to this new commandment with much commitment or enthusiasm. 

            In fact, Christianity on many occasions has communicated just the opposite.  Through the centuries the Church has sent the message, "If you conform to these requirements, Heaven will be your reward.  If you believe this creed, follow this plan of salvation or fashion your faith journey according to our denominational beliefs and traditions, your life will be pleasing to God." We have all heard these things but such theology has created more miscommunication than it has in modeling what loving behavior looks like.  Theology like this has also made our understanding of God's nature highly suspect. 

            The reason Jesus understood this commandment as being new was because of how it was greeted by his listeners.  Many of his students may have found it difficult to resonate with this "new" concept.   If we are honest with ourselves, a good number of us must stand with them.  We have standards that must be met and when they are violated, we want justice.    

            For example, there was something wrong with the parable of the Prodigal Son.  How could a responsible father claim to love his son and yet allow him to walk away from his wonderful home setting, take his rightful inheritance and squander it on illusionary living?  The parable did not send a message that Jesus' listeners were used to hearing. 

         Why would a faithful shepherd leave the 99 faithful sheep in order to search for the one who was lost?  This did not sound right. Some Christian doctrines have taught that "Divine Justice demands that people will have to live with the consequences of their choices.  They made their beds now let them lie in them.  Heaven is for those who have been faithful and have followed the correct beliefs?"  Jesus thought otherwise.   

            There was the story of the laborers who were hired at different times during the day.  At sunset the Lord of the estate paid them all the same wage.  The laborers were angered because of the obvious lack of justice in paying a person who worked eight hours the same wage as a person who worked only one.  Jesus said, "This is the way God loves." 

            How do we love when there are so many layers of our society that need justice, improvement, better follow-through, increased attention, more people getting their education and finding employment commensurate with their skills?  What are we to do?  What we can do is let our little light shine, as the delightful song with that title instructs.   That is what Jesus did as he hung on a cross.  He continued to love those who put him there. 

            A number of us have been long term admirers of Bill Keane's Family Circus.  Here is the scene from one of his cartoons:  A mother is driving home from the store with four small children, the dog and numerous bags of groceries.  Her face remained composed as though abiding by the philosophy that "this too shall pass."   

            In the bubbles above the heads of the children were these words.  "Mommy, tell Billy to stop looking at me.  Which bag has the lollipops? Janie just dropped the ketchup bottle on top of the prune juice and the bag is leaking.  It's cold back here.  Why do I have to sit on the frozen food?  Jimmy's opening the cookie bag."  And finally the best one, "You don't smile very much when you drive, do you Mommy?"  Bill is a master at capturing our common family experiences in cartoon form. 

            We were called upon by Jesus to love without expectations.  We, however, tend to look for results from our loving, forgetting that God is deeply involved in everyone's life whether they believe so or not.  All people are God's creations.  We are all God's children and we should not judge the parenting skills of God when others are not responding according to our result-area or time table. Even when love does not receive the response we seemingly require, love does not fail the one radiating such energy.  Jesus understood this truth in his own experience. 

            He lost Judas. He listened to James and John who wanted to call fire down on a town because they refused to received Jesus.  He knew that Peter would deny knowing him.  The disciples were often featured as being short-sighted, selfish, complainers and competitive.  Jesus simply loved them as they were, just as Bill Keane's mother loved her children regardless of their behavior.   

            One of the lesser celebrated qualities of love is that it is not motivated by the thought or need to change people.  Love as a one way street has no expectations, yet it is the most powerful force in the universe for the ones who have found this pearl of great price.  This is a point of misunderstanding for many Christians through the centuries.   Nothing is required from us before God loves us.            

            But clearly there is another aspect to the dynamic of loving energy.  What happens to people who become exposed to such one-way love?  Those who stand in its presence become encouraged to change who they are.  Think of how many times, "Father forgive them, they know not what they do" has inspired us.  What seems to matter in an argument, no longer does when love is present.  Our insistence on being right is no longer an absolute when love is present.  "Our way or the highway" melts into our acceptance of others when love is present.  

            The spirit behind his behavior is clearly why Jesus is referred to as "the light of the world."  A light draws people no matter where they are in their darkness.  What is sad is that Jesus commandment is still "new" to many of us.  The good news is that we can change that by altering how we think and how we respond to others.  Doing so also communicates our trust that God will do the rest.