Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 79
Reading 1
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
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
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
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever keeps the word of Christ,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
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,
We are indeed on a journey to holiness. God requires this of us. It is not a demand, but it is part of Divine Revelation. Examining our faults and shortcomings with the intent on removing them from our thoughts and actions, brings us deeper into a relationship with God. We will then be in a better position to feel the love of God and the healing effects it can bring into our lives. The Scripture Readings that are presented during this last Sunday in Ordinary Time before the Season of Lent present us with words that define the entire Lenten Journey. We are to start this journey focusing on our brokenness and unworthiness of our birthright as God’s children. We are encouraged to embrace our sinfulness and take up our own cross, beginning our journey with Jesus to Calvary. Burdened by our sins, we confront them head on, repenting for our wrongs while committing to do better in the future. Repentance is the key to holiness and holiness is what we are striving for.
There cannot be hatred or anger in our hearts. These things are not from God, but instead entered into the world as a result of Original Sin. To become holy, these must be removed from our thoughts and actions. The only thing that can result from these feelings is more sin and less holiness. How can we bear hatred for another for what they did when God is ready to forgive us for our own thoughts even though we are undeserving of this forgiveness? As Christians, it is our duty to forgive and to love, including those who wish to do us harm. Being kind and merciful is something we must do because God has been kind and merciful to us. We pray for our enemies. We pray for a changing of hearts so that they may too experience the love of God. As Saint Maximus the Confessor said,
“So the man who does not love his neighbor does not obey God’s command. But one who does not obey his command cannot love God. A man is blessed if he can love all men equally. Moreover, if he truly loves God, he must love his neighbor absolutely.”
There really isn’t any leeway in these words nor in God’s commandment about loving our neighbor. We plead for love and mercy, thus we must give it.
The Apostle Paul tells us that we are temples of God, and that God dwells within us. There is no room for dark thoughts and feelings within God’s temple. In fact, we are fooling ourselves if we cannot acknowledge this. Furthermore, we are cutting ourselves off from the Sunlight of the Spirit, which is what we are seeking in the first place. This will then lead to our own destruction and damnation. How can we achieve salvation and a transformational experience through things that ultimately come from Satan and a fallen nature? It is impossible to experience the ultimate good when we embrace things that are bad. All these things must be purged if we are to keep our temple clean. We have that responsibility. Our bodies are not our own. Our souls are not our own. All these things belong to God. If we do not take care of these things, if we do not take care of our spiritual well-being, then we are ultimately destroying God’s temple.
Jesus tells us not to focus on conflict whatsoever. There should be acceptance of things beyond our control that are rooted in this world. If we should be focused on holiness, then why should we be angered at the conflict raging in the hearts of other people? Even though these dark thoughts and actions may be directed towards us, we are answerable to a higher purpose and a relationship with God who is high above these things. Earthly desire for earthly things not created by God, but instead created by man, have no room in our considerations. Instead, we should perform acts of kindness when faced with adversity. We should focus on acts of charity instead of acts of selfishness. We pray for our enemies and a conversion of their hearts. Yes, this may be very challenging at times, but that doesn’t mean that we ignore what Jesus is saying. That is what a journey is all about. We are never the same at the beginning of a journey and at its end. If we are to benefit from this journey to holiness, then we must embrace the guiding principles of the journey. When we start to change, all those around us will also benefit in a shared experience.
Deacon Tom
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