To love your neighbor as yourself taken in its original context would mean to love one’s fellow Israelite. However, Jesus uses four terms (heart, soul, strength, mind) that would mean not distinct faculties or parts of the person but, the person in his or her entirety. Our love for God is expressed in its entirety in our love for our neighbor. To love them as we love ourselves would mean to make their well-being as high a priority as our own, a demanding standard indeed. Jesus makes clear that our love must extend to every person without limit, since the one God is the God of all.  Our love for God and for others is not based on mere sentimentality or spontaneity, it calls for a commitment. In other words, every ounce of our energy because we have experienced and first known God who loved us. Indifference is still the most deadly poison of our lives. A lack of concern for others is a rejection of God’s love and a failure to live in accordance with our faith. Let us beg the Lord to soften our hearts to be merciful and compassionate to all we encounter.