Jesus' next teaching in Matthew (5:38-42) is about retaliation or vengeance and is often misquoted and misused. Jesus was not condoning "eye for eye, and tooth for tooth", he was condemning it. He was continuing to point out in his teachings that the 10 commandments were a minimum. "Thou shalt not kill" was to be interpreted broadly. Taking an eye for an eye or a tooth for a tooth might not kill someone but it would do grievous harm, and, therefore, should not be done. The urge to get back at someone is strong within us. The bigger the wrong done to us the more we want to retaliate. We want to make them hurt and suffer as much as we do. But Jesus said to let it go. Instead, do to others what you would want them to do to you. This maxim, he said, sums up the Law and the Prophets - the entire teaching of the Old Testament (Matthew 7:12). Is this easy to do? Is it natural? No, it is supernatural. We need God's grace to do it. For reflection: Who am I holding a grudge against today? Let us pray. "The law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:17). Jesus, I need your grace to see the truth of this situation. I need your grace to see this person, who has hurt me so badly, as you do. Help me to see them through your eyes.
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We have been looking at Matthew 5:11-30 since March 5, the beginning of Lent. We have been using these verses as a protracted examination of conscience in preparation for Easter which is April 20 this year. The purpose of the examination of conscience is to confess our sins to God and be set free from all the things that hold us back from progressing in our relationship with Jesus. Jesus said that he came to set the captives free and I think we should take him up on that offer. With two weeks until Easter, let's look at what Jesus said about swearing (Matthew 5:33-37). Taking the Lord's name in vain, as we used to call it, has become so common that there is now an abbreviation for it: OMG. And you hear and see it everywhere. In fact, I saw it used in a novel I was reading and "God" was spelled "god". I'm not sure if that was better or worse. But this use of God's name has no relationship to praising God. For reflection: Has any kind of swearing slipped into my speech? Let us pray. "'I am ruined! for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.' "Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, 'See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.'" (Isaiah 6:5-8) We return to images and the effect they can have on us. Images are used to draw our attention, to lure us in to a story, to get us to buy something. There's a reason why beautiful people are posed in ads for cars and cigarettes. The advertising industry knows that sex sells. University researchers on memory have demonstrated that we are still affected days later after we have seen certain images even if we don't remember having seen the picture. Subconsciously we are influenced by what we have seen. Because of these studies on memory, I've wondered how responsible we are for what we do based on what we have seen. If a picture we don't even remember can influence a particular choice days later, was that choice made with free will? Or were we so influenced that free will did not apply? I don't know, but I do know that we have a choice about what we look at in the first place. We can avoid looking at advertising, internet sites and movies that lead us into sin through what is portrayed. Avoiding sin means not putting ourselves in a position to see things that lead our minds and bodies astray (see Matthew 5:27-30). For reflection: Where and when have I been deliberately looking at temptation? Where and when have I accidently been led into temptation? How can I avoid these? Let us pray. Jesus, I am guilty of looking at things I shouldn't. Renew a clean heart and a right spirit within me. Do not look on my sins or take your Holy Spirit away from me. Instead, grant me a willing spirit to help me. (based on Psalm 51) In the Newseum in Washington, DC there is a display of iconic news photographs from the last 50 years or so. They are gritty, black-and-white, moments forever frozen. Most are unforgettable and immediately take you back to the time and place where you first saw them. Your stomach clenches as war, famine and upheaval come roaring back into your mind. Along with the photos are a few words describing the time and place, plus a short biography of the photographer who won a prestigious award for the photograph. I was stunned by how many of these photographers had committed suicide. They were unable to get the images out of their heads. They could not help the people they immortalized. The war, or the famine, or the genocide were not their fault but they could not escape what they had seen and felt helpless to change. I mention this today because I want to bring out the power of images and the impact on our lives of what we see. It can be difficult to guard our eyes, being careful of what we see and let enter our minds. But it is necessary. Images are hard to forget whether they are in print, TV, movies or the internet. Where can images lead us? They can lead us to good or evil. Jesus knew this problem when he said, "(A)nyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:27-28). Adultery and lust are old issues made worse today by visual images that leave little of the human body uncovered. So we must be careful about what we look at for we are responsible for what we do because of it. For reflection: What response do I make to news photos? Do I pray for the people involved? Send aid to the afflicted? What response do I make to other images in the media? Do they lead me to good or to evil? Let us pray. Today, Jesus, the people of Chile have suffered an earthquake. What response should I make? (My apologies, faithful readers, for not posting on Monday. I've been sick but I am recovering now. Thank you for your prayers.) |
AliceI started this website and blog on May 1, 2012. I am a Catholic who has been in ministry for many years. I first developed what I would call a close relationship with Jesus in the early 1970s. Ever since then I have been praying with people for healing and other needs. It is because I have seen so many of these prayers answered that I am so bold as to offer to pray for you individually through this website and phone line. Archives
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