Loving the ignored and shunned

The Pharisee lawyer asks Jesus to explain the greatest commandment in the Law in the text from Matthew's Gospel from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today. The greatest commandment is to love God with our entire being above all else. Jesus continued to cite the 2nd commandment to love neighbour as ourself. The great guide of the Hebrew nation, the Law and the Prophets, are dependent on these commands.  Our story often includes exclusion of people and cultures from our lives. The psalmist identifies the God of Creation as the One who executes justice for the oppressed, provides food for the hungry, watches over strangers and upholds the orphan and widow. The story of the Israelite Naomi and her Moabite daughter-in law, Ruth, is one of feeding the hungry and upholding the widow. The irony for Israel is that Providence acts through the shunned Moabite tribe to bring life and the line of David (descended from Ruth) to Bethlehem. The great love of God experienced by believers is to be evidenced in the actions of the believers toward the ignored, marginalized and shunned which should mirror the generous and merciful action of the Divine.