THE SIXTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
GOSPEL: MT. 5:17-37
Dear friends,
In the gospel, Jesus said that unless our righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, we will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Both were so obsessed with the laws that they had lost the meaning of the purpose of the law, the necessity for flexibility, common sense and even the meaning of mercy. Jesus reminds us that to follow God is not only about external behavior but about the conversion of our hearts and our way of living because of a deep, personal relationship with God. To follow God is a commitment to a living relationship with God and from that relationship comes our external behavior reflecting the love of God and neighbor.
Christ is not abolishing the Ten Commandments, but he is demanding of his followers a more perfect, a more sincere, fulfillment of them. True and loyal service of God therefore begins in the heart and has its value from this interior disposition. Keeping the Ten Commandments is our way of proving to God that we are grateful, obedient and loyal to him who gave us all we have and who has promised us future gifts infinitely greater still. And just as our love for God is proved by our true love for our neighbor, so the last seven of the commandments impose on us obligations regarding our neighbor. It is only by fulfilling these seven that we can fulfill the first three which govern our relations with God.
Let us respond to this challenge in our daily life. Millions are starving, persecuted, homeless, lacking quality education and leading hopeless lives. The only way their lives and dreams can become a reality is through the efforts of people like us. That is why we are told that we will be judged on the basis of our acts of mercy and charity (Mt. 25:31-46). St. Teresa of Calcutta, (Mother Teresa) and her Sisters accepted this challenge and demonstrate that we can “live the beatitudes” in the modern world. Hence, let us remember that each time we reach out to help the needy, the sick, and the oppressed, the poor, the illiterate; we share with them a foretaste of the promises of the beatitudes here and now. Just as the apostles were called to minister to society's untouchables, all people of God are called to minister to the untouchables, and the discriminated against, and the marginalized in our own modern society.
FR KYAZZE FRANK LWANGA
