Weekly Catholic Bible Study

Oratory of Divine Love Reflection 766: Christian Community :(Sirach 15 : 15-20 ; 1 Corinthians 2 : 6-10 ; Matthew 5 : 17-37)

 

[Sirach]

If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you; if you trust in God, you too shall live;
he has set before you fire and water to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand. Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him. Immense is the wisdom of the Lord; he is mighty in power, and all-seeing. The eyes of God are on those who fear him; he understands man's every deed. No one does he command to act unjustly, to none does he give license to sin.

 

[1 Corinthians]

Brothers and sisters: We speak a wisdom to those who are mature, not a wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are passing away. Rather, we speak God's wisdom, mysterious, hidden, which God predetermined before the ages for our glory, and which none of the rulers of this age knew; for, if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him, this God has revealed to us through the Spirit.  For the Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God.

 

[Matthew]

Jesus said to his disciples: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven. I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; and whoever says to is brother, 'Raqa,'  will be answerable to the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

"You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin,
tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

"It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce. But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife -  unless the marriage is unlawful - causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

"Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow. But I say to you, do not swear at all; not by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your 'Yes' mean 'Yes,' and your 'No' mean 'No.' Anything more is from the evil one."
 

 

Now, this Sunday, we read about holiness and communion as the hinge and heart of life; since God who is our life is holy and is a communion of persons. As it is, we read a part of that first sermon of Jesus as he began his public ministry in Galilee, which talks about relationship in a community among Christ’s faithful. Here, as with the whole Sermon, Jesus emphasizes a new law and a new way of life. They are not easy ways, but Jesus was sure that his new way of life is the only way, hence he reminded us that he came not to do away with the law and the prophets, but rather to fulfill and make them stronger (Ma 5:17-18).

 

As it were, the commandments that Jesus’ teachings emphasized in the Sermon on the Mount, are not easily fathomed by human wisdom rather they must be seen through the perspective of divine wisdom, as St. Paul says in 2nd reading (1 Cor 2:6-8). The wise must choose to obey them, as exhorted in the 1st reading (Sir 15:15-20), to gain the fullness of life and love of God (1 Cor 2:9). For having created us God has bestowed a destiny to each of us to choose and follow faithfully in order to return to God and to the fullness of life (Sir 15:14-19). In other words, we should understand that the commandments and the new emphasis of Jesus on them are underlined because when we chose to live by them, we are choosing life by expressing the original divine law that God instituted at creation, which is the law of love for all human beings.

 

Now, a Christian action that can sustain the healthy exercise of love is Christian fellowship with others in smaller groups and sodalities that exist in our parish. For one, such groups and their activities help us to renew our spiritual, psychological, intellectual, and physical life. Two, they keep us abreast with what is happening with others thereby bettering our myopic views and perspective. And three, they give us opportunity to socialize, to create and build positive friendships that assist us in realizing our full potentials not just as Catholics but also as rational human beings, able to be who we are meant to be to our families and community. In fact, these small groups, and sodalities, helps us experience an overall speedy life change for the better, as we search for meaning and changes that matter in our life.

 

Now, a good relationship with joyful people in the faith community can promote happy and blessed thoughts since they are of like minds. And just as the seeds we sow, the thoughts we feed our minds with, show the fruit we would bear. If we are around happy people of faith, we will most likely find ourselves thinking happy and faith-filled thoughts. But if we avoid the company of faith-filled people or feed our minds with negativities, discouragement, unhappy and depressive thoughts, most likely we will be negative, discouraged, and sooner than later be overwhelmed by crises that challenge our faith. Let us joyfully and  lovingly keep joining all our brothers and sisters in our parish fellowships in the coming weeks and months, as the gospel implied (Ma 5:17-37), in order to enjoy what God has prepared for the blessed (1 Cor 2:9-10). Peace!

 

Fr. Francis

 

Prayer: Act of Love “O Lord God, I love you above all things and I love my neighbor for your sake because you are the highest, infinite and perfect good, worthy of all my love. In this love I intend to live and die. Amen.”

 

Quote from a Saint: “Perfect love means putting up with other people’s shortcomings, feeling no surprise at their weaknesses, finding encouragement even in the slightest evidence of good qualities in them.” — St. Thérèse of Lisieux

 

Questions for reflection:

1. Do you find the teachings from the Sermon on the Mount to be challenging?

2. Jesus says that if something causes us to sin we should we remove it. Are you willing to cast away the things in your life that are or have the tendency to lead you away from Jesus and His way of life and towards sin?

3. Do you find yourself justifying troublesome activities in order to hold onto them? If so, bring these to the Lord and ask him to help you discern how to handle those things.

4. Do you “exercise love” by interacting with other Christians on a regular basis?

5. Are you or have you ever been involved in a small group in your parish?

6. If you have never been involved in a small group are there opportunities at your parish or a neighboring parish for you to join one?

7. It is implied in the homily that Christianity should be practiced in community and it is not an individualistic pursuit. Why do you think Jesus wants us to be members of a community?

8. Do you spend time with faith filled people or do you avoid them?

 

-Benjamin & Kristen Rinaldo, CfP