Seventh Sunday In Ordinary Time, Cycle A.

Readings: 1st Reading; Leviticus 19 : 1 – 2, 17 – 18.
                Responsorial Psalm; Ps. 102 : 1 – 4, 8, 10, 12 – 13.
                2nd Reading; 1 Corinthians 3 : 16 – 23.
Gospel; Matthew 5 : 38 – 45.

  
In the first reading, we hear God’s invitation to be as Holy as He is. He invites us to be loving, avoid hatred, not to be vengeful, nor hold grudges. God’s love is holiness and should be same with God’s people. Love does not mean the absence of reproof. Of course, there is Holy anger which is meant to correct the defaulter.

The Gospel tells us that if we  are Holy, we will be perfect as God our Father is. Jesus concludes the call to perfection with a strange request for His followers – strange to hear and live it – when one cheek is slapped, turn the other cheek to receive more; go the extra mile of service and offer the wicked man no resistance. Wow! Possible? I can bet you this is hard. I wish I could! Is this what Jesus means by perfection for His followers? Then, I am way too imperfect! Are you too? I confess the ‘pagan’  in me makes me imperfect, demanding revenge, severity, quid-pro-quo exchanges and love that must be reciprocated. If you are like me, you too have certainly felt the ‘pagan’ side of you sometimes. This should not be a problem. We are imperfect trying to become perfect and Holy and to be the light and the salt of the earth. We can destroy those who hurt us by simply loving them.

When Abraham Lincoln was running for the President of the United States, there was a man called Stanton who never lost an opportunity to vilify him.  Yet when Lincoln won the election he gave Stanton a post in his cabinet. Why? Lincoln considered him the best man for the job. And Lincoln was proved right. Stanton gave  Lincoln loyal service. Asked why he didn’t destroy his enemies like Stanton, Lincoln replied ‘Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?

As a Christian, when someone insults you or tries to take advantage of you, how do you respond? As I write some family is trying to take advantage of my background and I can assure you, I feel like reproving and approaching with retribution. Jesus does not condemn justice  but advises that it should be used on the law of grace and love. We must not return evil for evil but must seek the good of those who do us ill. A distinct mark of a Christian should be to treat others not as they deserve but as God wishes them to be treated – with loving kindness and mercy. If we show kindness and mercy only to those who deserve it, then we have missed the essence of Christianity. We must go the extra mile.

There is nothing wrong, humanly speaking to seek punishment for those who hurt us. Community laws with retributive consequences have been put in place to represent our minds. It is a little tricky to be a Christian at this moment when community claims the right and responsibility to punish criminals, taking the role away from the injured parties. Punishment is administered coolly and objectively by one who does not feel vindictiveness. This sounds good in a situation where people have faith in the courts and the law has no loopholes to let criminals escape their fate. In the age of religious faith, people believed they could depend on God to mete out justice to evil doers. Religious voices or in the name of a more compassionate society, would urge us to forgive as the only way to break the cycle of hatred and violence. For us Christians, the obligation to forgive as we hope to be forgiven is  included in the Lord’s Prayer and incorporated in Jesus’ admonition to turn the other cheek which we hear today. This is the only true way to clear our consciences. The community courts of good laws punish, but cannot forgive!!!!.

When evil transcends to the third party or society, it becomes difficult for you to define where your right to forgive ends. When it reaches this level, society takes its responsibility and I find it ridiculous for a Christian to refuse to cooperate with the good laws of the land in digging out societal criminals in the name of forgiveness. I once read about a deeply religious woman who some years ago, was a victim of assault and refused to testify against her attacker, claiming that on religious grounds, she had forgiven him and had no desire for revenge. To me, that seemed to be an inappropriate violation of the separation of religion and the state. I believe that such attackers should be tracked down and meted out some form of societal punishment. As an individual, the Christian woman had every right to forgo the desire for revenge, I admire her for that. But as a citizen, she should have felt the obligation to ensure the safety of her neighbours by helping to get a dangerous man off the streets.

Paul, like the Psalmist, tells us that God is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy. His followers are His temple and should not be destroyed by being otherwise. Christians cannot think of paying every fault according to their gravity, but should show mercy and compassion on faults from others. I however, think it would be erroneous to fail to correct a defaulter in the name of compassion and love. If we punish people for wrongdoing without taking pleasure in tarnishing the wrongdoer, we are not revenging. We punish because, we want to live in a safe and just environment, a world in which people are protected from criminals who need to suffer the consequences of their bad behaviour for correction.

A few of us are victims of serious crimes, and we can hope that society will administer swift and appropriate justice. All of us are or will be victims of cruelty, thoughtless behavoir and petty annoyances. At times like that, we will have to choose between the seductive appeal for revenge, attractive but harmful to our souls as we hear in the readings today,  and the cleansing force of integrity, reclaiming power over our lives precisely by not giving in to the temptation to revenge. And we will know which side the angel is on.

A Little Prayer.

 Lord Jesus, thank You for Your love that brings me freedom and pardon. May Your Spirit set my heart ablaze with love and compassion, that I may not lose my temper, ruffle my peace and make me bitter towards those who hurt me. Amen.

 Have a Blessed Week! Bobe Talla Toh.