Deacon Tom Anthony

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 79

Reading 1 Lv 19:1-2, 17-18

The LORD said to Moses,
“Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them:
Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.
“You shall not bear hatred for your brother or sister in your heart.
Though you may have to reprove your fellow citizen,
do not incur sin because of him.
Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against any of your people.
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
I am the LORD.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 103:1-2, 3-4, 8, 10, 12-13

R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
He pardons all your iniquities,
heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he put our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.

Reading 2 1 Cor 3:16-23

Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person;
for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.
Let no one deceive himself.
If any one among you considers himself wise in this age,
let him become a fool, so as to become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God,
for it is written:
God catches the wise in their own ruses,
and again:
The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise,
that they are vain.
So let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you,
Paul or Apollos or Cephas,
or the world or life or death,
or the present or the future:
all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God.

Alleluia 1 Jn 2:5

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever keeps the word of Christ,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 5:38-48

Jesus said to his disciples:
“You have heard that it was said,
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.
When someone strikes you on your right cheek,
turn the other one as well.
If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic,
hand over your cloak as well.
Should anyone press you into service for one mile,
go for two miles.
Give to the one who asks of you,
and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.
“You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father,
for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good,
and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers only,
what is unusual about that?
Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 Over the past two weeks the Scripture Readings have challenged us to review our conduct and to hold ourselves to a higher standard than what is expected of us through society and cultural norms. Expected conduct as dictated by society is not enough to live the Christian Life. Its roots are in the material world and all that comes from it is corrupted by us and by the influences of Satan. God reminds us to, “Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.” This is a call for us to continuously pursue a relationship with God that is untainted by our own selfish desires, motivations, and opinion that might cloud our judgment and decision-making process. All of our thoughts and actions should be done with God as the most important factor. This keeps us open to a relationship with Him and insures Him a proper place in our lives. When we stay open to Him then we are able to receive the love that He pours forth onto us continuously. When this occurs our will is made secondary to His whereupon there is no room for negative thoughts or actions. His commands become easy to follow and our lives become easier as a result.

A natural reaction to feeling God’s love is for us to express that love to everything and everyone. What can be perceived as at first a series of commands by God in the First Reading today can then be seen as a description of what happens to us when we pursue the goal of holiness that God describes. It will become impossible to bear hatred or a grudge if we are right with God. There will be no room for animosity and the chance of sinning dwindles away. This can also be termed as Walking with God. With God at our side even the temptation to do these things will fade away. To pursue this means that we will never obtain it completely but we will be transformed by the experience and will be able to experience this life and the next as God intended us to. What God says in the First Reading is a universal call to holiness for everyone in His creation. Responding to this call is a requirement for all Christians and should be a central aspect of our faith. When we strive for holiness then we are working with God’s creation and not against it.

Paul stresses that the wisdom of the world is foolish in the eyes of God. As we continue to live out our faith this becomes more evident. All the right answers lie with God while a life without God only offers more questions and no answers. Society is filled with examples of people trying to offer revelation that does not include God. Instead of God the triumph of the human intellect and the human condition are substituted. These then offer only more questions and guesses instead of true wisdom which comes only from God. Concentrating on God offers immediate understanding and simplifies the things that society likes to complicate: Created in His image we were created to love God the same way that He loves us. Through this understanding true joy can be experienced and lived with.

There is no room for animosity and negative emotions in the Kingdom of God on this earth and throughout His vast creation. God did not create anything negative. What is felt negatively and done negatively is a result of us, our choices, and Original Sin. Choosing God above the ways of society and of Satan demands a commitment from us not to act out negatively. We should have no enemies. We should not promote violence and conflict. We have to focus on the good all of the time if we are truly going to espouse the virtues and spread the Love of God. This is definitely a countercultural way of doing things but that is who God is in comparison to society. He is countercultural because He came before society and will be here after society ends. Society is of the physical world and is corrupted by our presence and the presence of Satan. God is pure in comparison. Us focusing on this purity enables a cleansing process to begin that will bring forth the goodness that resides in all of us.

We are given instruction so that we may become closer to God. What is said and written down is entirely for our benefit. The words are guideposts to aid us on our journey. To the left and to the right of the path are negative emotions, actions, and darkness. The better way is on the path that leads to light and right relationship with God. From that place we can discover great things about ourselves and about the one who created. Us

Deacon Tom