This Fifth Sunday of Easter invites us to listen closely to Jesus’ words spoken just before his crucifixion. In John 13:31–35, as he prepares to leave his disciples, Jesus says: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” (v. 34)

It’s a familiar command—but also a bold one. Can love really be commanded? Isn’t love something we feel or fall into, not something we are told to do? Yet the idea of love as a commandment is not new. It appears in the Torah, specifically in Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” So what, then, makes Jesus’ commandment new?

This question has challenged not only modern readers but also early Church thinkers. Cyril of Alexandria, for example, reflected on the difference in degree between the commandment in the Law and the commandment of Christ. He wrote: “The law of Moses mandated the necessity of loving our brother as ourselves, yet our Lord Jesus the Christ loved us far more than he loved himself... Otherwise, he would have never descended to our humiliation... nor undergone... the bitterness of his death in the flesh.”  In other words, Jesus’ commandment is not merely about mutual respect or empathy—it calls us to a deeper, more sacrificial love. A love modeled on Christ himself. A love that serves, stoops, and suffers. A love that is willing to give itself completely for the sake of others.

In this Easter season, as we live in the light of resurrection, we are reminded that this kind of love is not only possible—it is essential. Christ's commandment is not just a moral ideal; it is the pattern of life for those who follow the risen Lord. It is by this kind of love, Jesus says, that the world will know we are his disciples.

UMCW is holding a food drive at our church to benefit the Merrimack Valley Food Bank of Lowell. The focus of the Merrimack Valley Food Bank is to help meet a person’s most profound need — adequate nutrition and freedom from hunger. Through their six hunger relief programs, they provide nutritious food to food pantries, shelters, soup kitchens and other programs that serve individuals and families in 32 cities and towns in MA and NH. We are asking for donations of nonperishable foods. These could include, but are in no way limited to, salad dressings, cooking oil, spices, coffee/tea, cereals, peanut butter, flour/sugar, canned goods, pasta, and juice boxes. Please plan to participate in this drive by bringing your food items to our church at 10 Church Street in Westford, on Saturday, June 7, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. If you have questions, please contact our church office at 978-692-4176 or office@umcw.org.