MONTHLY DEVOTIONAL FOR 22 AUGUST
August 22, 2025
FEAST OF SAINT ROSE OF LIMA, VIRGIN – 23rd AUGUST
August 23, 2025
TODAY’S GOSPEL READING
22 AUGUST, 2025
Matthew 22:34-40
When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together, and one of them,
a scholar of the law, tested him by asking,
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
He said to him,
“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD!
REFLECTION
In this passage, Jesus summarizes the essence of the Law and the Prophets into two great commandments: to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. These two commandments are inseparable, for genuine love for God is revealed in our love for others. This teaching reminds us that true faith is not found in rituals or knowledge alone but in the daily practice of love—towards God in worship and obedience, and towards others in compassion and service. When love is the foundation of our lives, every other commandment naturally falls into place.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of Your Word that calls us to love You above all things and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Fill our hearts with Your Spirit so that our love for You may be wholehearted and unwavering. Teach us to see others through Your eyes, to extend kindness, patience, and mercy in all our relationships. Help us to live out these two greatest commandments faithfully, so that our lives may reflect Your love in a world that longs for it. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
