“Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

He emphasizes love for enemies,

This sounds like an impossible standard Jesus is placing before us.

Jesus is the only One who has lived a perfect life,

and it is through Him that we meet God’s standard.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊     

Deuteronomy 26:16-19

On this day,

The Lord your God commands you to fulfill these norms and these commandments.

Obey them now and put them into practice with all your heart and with all your soul.

Today the Lord has declared to you that he will be your God, and so you shall follow his ways,

observing his norms, his commandments and his laws, and listening to his voice.

 

Today the Lord has declared that you will be his very own people even as he had promised you,

and you must obey all his commandments. He, for his part, will give you honor, renown and glory,

and set you high above all the nations he has made, and you will become a nation consecrated to the Lord, your God, as he has declared.

 

Ps 119:1-2, 4-5, 7-8 Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊     

Matthew 5:43-48

You have heard that it was said: Love your neighbor and do not do good to your enemy.

But this I tell you: love your enemies; and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in Heaven.

For he makes his sun rise on both the wicked and the good; and he gives rain to both the just and the unjust.

If you love those who love you, what is special about that? Do not even tax collectors do as much?

And if you are friendly only to your friends, what is so exceptional about that? Do not even the pagans do as much?

As for you, be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

 

Gospel Reflection ：

"Walk the perfect way of love and justice."

Think back to when someone last offended you. What was your reaction? Were you calm or did you explode with anger?

Were you calm on the outside, but churning with emotion on the inside?

Jesus challenges us to take the way of perfection, which is another word for holiness.

We might be tempted to save all our kindness for those who are kind to us,

but Christ commands us to take the higher way of love, and we are to keep God's commands.

 

Jesus quotes a saying "love your neighbor and do not do good to your enemy,"

which is not to be found anywhere in Holy Scripture. Rather, our Lord is correcting an attitude that was popular among the Zealots of the time,

who sought to overthrow the Romans by violence. In our own day, suspicion,

hatred and an unwillingness to reach out to those who do not belong to our own group lead to a polarized society,

which often fails in cooperation, compassion and solidarity. We are to challenge injustice, but not with more injustice.

Instead, we are to walk the perfect way of love and justice, recognizing common human dignity, and inviting others to grow through loving example.