1. Unit 11: The Kingdom of God

2. Section 2: The Great Commandment and The Golden Rule The Gospel According to Mark, 12: 28-34 The Gospel According to Luke, 10: 25-28 The Gospel According to Matthew, 22: 34-40

3. The Great Commandment and The Golden Rule The Kingdom of God –Simply put, it is all about Love The love between a person and God The love between a person and other people –Most plainly expressed in The Great Commandment The Golden Rule

4. The Great Commandment “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” –A direct quote from the Book of Deuteronomy 6: 4-5 which contains the Shema prayer that Jewish people are required to recite twice (at dawn and at nightfall) every day –Right relationship with God –Love of God

5. The Golden Rule “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” –A direct quote from the Book of Leviticus 19: 18 –Right relationship with other people –Love of other people

6. The Great Commandment and The Golden Rule

7. Section 3: The Parable of the Great Judgment The Gospel According to Matthew, 25: 31-46

8. The Parable of the Great Judgment Love of God is best expressed in deeds of service to help other people in need Right relationship with God through right relationship with other people –“Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” –“What you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.”

9. The Parable of the Great Judgment Right relationship with God through right relationship with other people –“Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” Do you find God or Jesus in each and every person whom you meet or encounter in life? –After school, on your way home, try to see the face of Jesus in the face of each person you pass by o the street or look at on either the bus or subway –Does trying to find Jesus in each person change your belief about that person or your perspective about the world?

10. The Parable of the Great Judgment The Six Criteria for Judging who will gain Entrance to the Kingdom 1.I was hungry and you gave me food 2.I was thirsty and you gave me drink 3.I was a stranger and you welcomed me 4.I was naked and you clothed me 5.I was ill and you cared for me 6.I was in prison and you visited me

11. The Parable of the Great Judgment How can you live out each of the six criteria for building the Kingdom of God? –Provide specific examples from your life as a fourteen or fifteen year old young man living in New York City and attending Xavier High School at the beginning of the 21 st Century?

12. The Parable of the Great Judgment How can you live out each of the six criteria for building the Kingdom of God? –It might be helpful to first consider who are the hungry, the thirsty, the strangers, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned who you encounter in your everyday life at home, in your neighborhood, and at school –It might also be helpful to interpret this passage through the Biblical Contextualism Approach Think about each criteria in a figurative, rather than a literal way

13. The Parable of the Great Judgment How can you live out each of the six criteria for building the Kingdom of God? –Provide specific examples from your life as a fourteen or fifteen year old young man living in New York City and attending Xavier High School at the beginning of the 21 st Century?

14. The Parable of the Great Judgment Love of God is best expressed in deeds of service to help other people in need Different Types of Service –Direct Service Working directly with other people –Tutoring young students or reading to the elderly –Providing emotional or spiritual support to a friend who has suffered the death of a love done –Indirect Service Activities that will indirectly benefit other people –Donating money or goods (food or clothing) –Physical labor at a soup kitchen or to build a house –Advocacy Service Activities that work toward greater systemic or social change –Building awareness for issues at the grassroots level –Writing petitions or lobbying politicians to change laws

15. The Parable of the Great Judgment

16. Section 4: The Parable of the Good Samaritan The Gospel According to Luke, 10: 25-37

17. The Parable of the Good Samaritan “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” –“You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.” “And who is my neighbor?” –All people, regardless of age, religious belief, economic or social class, level of education, race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation

18. The Parable of the Good Samaritan “Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?” –“The one who treated him with mercy.”

19. The Parable of the Good Samaritan The Kingdom of God –Being a good or nice person is a start Basic civil behavior of saying hello/good morning to someone, holding a door, or lending an extra pencil –Jesus challenges his followers (Christians) to be the great-souled people of the world who practice love, generosity, mercy, and compassion A willingness to extend yourself, go out of your way, and sacrifice yourself for another person Truly being with others

20. The Parable of the Good Samaritan Being “A Man For and With Others” Why is the word “with” a part of this motto? –It is not sufficient to serve other, to do things “for” them –A follower of Christ (a Christian) must also be “with” them by recognizing and respecting their humanity

21. The Parable of the Good Samaritan Being “A Man For and With Others” Who is the “other”? –The “other” is not the members of your family, not your friends from the neighborhood, and not your fellow students or teachers at Xavier –The “other” is the people who are not like us, who are different with regard to age, religious belief, economic or social class, level of education, race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation –The “other” is the person who is not cool, who is un-attractive, who is repulsive

22. The Parable of the Good Samaritan The Priest and the Levite –Display pride and presumption; they sin from their strength, not from their weakness –They fail to welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, and care for the sick The Samaritan Man –Displays unconditional love, mercy, and compassion for a stranger; he displays love expressed through deeds of service to another person; he serves from his weakness –He welcomes the stranger, gives clothes to the naked, and cares for the sick

23. The Parable of the Good Samaritan The Two Problems with Unconditionally Loving All People Nationalism –Strong allegiance to a specific nation or an excessive sense of separation from all other cultures Legalism –An overemphasis on rules and regulations or an excessive focus on the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the law

24. The Parable of the Good Samaritan