Yesterday’s gospel reading is taken from Matthew (23:1-12).  Jesus, in Jerusalem, realizing His death is near, ramps up His condemnation of the actions (but not the words) of the scribes and Pharisees.   Being on the Chair of Moses they have divine authority to teach.  But their actions do not live up to their teachings.  Jesus accuses them of laying burdens on others, seeking praise because of their dress, desiring places of honor at banquets and in synagogues, and loving to be called “Rabbi.”  All this being said, Jesus says that all must take the attitude of servant and closes with the words above.  Another paradox that doesn’t necessarily comport with our natural inclinations or our observation.  Regardless, our exemplar must be Christ.  He who performed the most significant act of humility — God becoming one of His creatures — went on to live in humble circumstances even in the eyes of this world: born in a manger, living a hidden life for thirty years, living simply throughout His life, and suffering torture and the ignominy of the cross.  Following His words in this gospel and the life He led, we too must not be prideful, but have the attitude of servant to all.  Then we know that, as with Jesus, the Father will work through our humility to the benefit of others and our ultimate glorification.

For today’s short gospel passage we jump over to Luke (6:36-38).  This falls in the middle of Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:20-49), a much shorter counterpart to Matthew’s “Sermon on the Mount” (Mt 5-7).  The excerpt of this day comes after Jesus just finished telling His disciples to love their enemies.  To this, in itself, very difficult saying, Jesus adds the additional challenges of not judging and condemning, but rather showing mercy and forgiveness.  In particular, Jesus’ words seen heading this post can be most difficult.  Unfortunately, this is also one of the most misused and misunderstood passages in the gospels.  Often it’s used to excuse bad behavior: “Stop judging me!  I’m following my conscience.”  As Jesus states in the very next sentence, we certainly should not presume to pass eternal condemnation on anyone for his actions (even the Church does not declare anyone in Hell) — that’s up to the Lord.  But we can and should make rational judgments based on an understanding informed by Scripture, Tradition, and Church teaching.  In fact, when we see sin abound, injustice rampant, and persecution spreading, we err if we do not pray and act.  But our words and deeds must always be grounded in humility (“There but for the grace of God go I” — John Bradford) and love (“My dear children, love one another” — John the Apostle).  Like God, we should love the sinner, but care for him too much to let him wallow in his sin.

In this gospel for the Second Sunday of Lent (Mk 9:2-10) Jesus takes three of His disciples, leaving the rest behind, up a mountain where He is transfigured before them with Moses and Elijah appearing and conversing with Him.  After things go back to normal, as the four are walking back down, Jesus charges them not to tell anyone about this event until “the Son of Man had risen from the dead.”  (v. 9)  Before the Transfiguration ends, though, God the Father utters the words at top.  Now why would He do this?  The three apostles with Him, Peter, James, and John, were Jesus’ closest friends among the disciples (one indicator, among others, is that Jesus invited only these three to watch with Him in His agony in the garden as well).  They had been His constant companions for some time and had likely heard just about everything He said, probably multiple times.  This injunction by the Father to listen to His Son must have served as a jolting reminder to them that just hearing is not enough, but that Jesus’ words must be carefully considered and mediated upon, ultimately causing an interior transformation manifesting itself in exterior acts.  And, of course, the Holy Spirit meant this message for persons in every age (that’s why it’s in Scripture!).  We hear the Father’s voice explicitly in the New Testament rarely, so, when we do, we should be especially attentive, as these three apostles were.  And what does the Father relay?  That His “stamp of approval” is on everything Jesus says and does (on the latter, in Matthew’s telling of the Transfiguration episode [17:1-8], he records the Father’s additional words “with whom I am well pleased” between the two sentences above).  Crying out “Lord, Lord!” is not enough (cf. Mt 7:21-23),  Just as Jesus was transformed in this scene, so are we called to transform our lives in accordance with Jesus example and teaching.  Listen carefully.

We move along just a bit further into the Sermon on the Mount for today’s gospel reading (Mt 5:43-48).  Jesus’ teaching, in speaking to His disciples, finds its key in these words: “[L]ove your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you…” (v. 44)  A difficult command that Jesus does not water down, but rather ramps up with His final words today, found introducing this post.  It is not uncommon to hear someone (like ourselves) say “Nobody’s perfect” when a mistake is made or a wrong committed.  It is easy to let ourselves off the hook by considering our own fallen human nature and the difficulty of doing right even most of the time.  But Jesus calls us to something higher.  And He never commands us to do something impossible.  Now it’s true that being impeccable is impossible for us on our own, but with God’s grace all things are possible (cf. Mt 19:26 and ask Jesus’ mother [Lk 1:28]).  So we must continue to pray to become more and more open to that gift of grace that God so desires to bestow on us through the elimination of sin in our lives.  Regular (at least daily) examination of conscience, increasing familiarity with Scripture and Church teaching, and regular (at least monthly) Confession will certainly (even if more slowly then we’d like) help us on our path to holiness.

Once again we find Jesus speaking to His disciples during the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:20-26).  Here, the Lord focuses on anger, particularly anger between persons that causes a rift.  Christ urges reconciliation before approaching the altar; otherwise this unresolved bitterness can lead to divine punishment (some see the closing words “you will not be released until you have paid the last penny” [v. 26] as an allusion to purgatory) and possibly even the loss of one’s soul for eternity.  Strong words and a difficult teaching.  It is not difficult in today’s world to find much about which to be angry.  Wars, injustice, pogroms, ethnic cleansing, moral decay, and much more.  A righteous anger, which even Jesus displayed from time to time (see, for example, Mk 3:5 and Mt 21:12-13), properly harnessed and directed can lead us to positive action and change.  But this is not of what Jesus is speaking here.  This ire seeks to ignore, or worse, tear down another because of a real or perceived slight or injury.  In this case, as well as the broader examples of injustice, reconciliation is only possible if the focus is on the sinful actions, not a disparagement of the individual sinners (that is, all of us).  Love is the only acceptable response (since this is God’s only response) to others.  So while evil should prompt us to act, it should always be with the love of mankind in mind.  “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ez 18:23)

In another excerpt from the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 7:7-12), Jesus talks to His disciples about the efficacy of prayer and how the Father knows best how to give the right gifts to those who ask.  Jesus closes with The Golden Rule.  Jesus gives us much to ponder in these words, but let us focus on the short phrase that heads this post.  It is not uncommon for us to ask God for things — in fact, petition is undoubtedly the most common type of prayer.  Getting exactly what we ask for — now that is another story.  Yet we know if we ask, we receive from God — Scripture is clear here.  God knows what is best for us, and so He always honors our sincere requests, but not necessarily on our timetable or in the way we want.  Remember Isaiah’s words: “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Is 55:9)  This is why, when petitioning God, it is best to preface our requests with “If it be your will, Lord…” or end our requests with “…nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Lk 22:42) — or both.  What is required is trust.

Luke (11:29-32) records for us Jesus speaking to an ever-growing crowd after He just exorcised a demon.  He speaks of the people of His time as an “evil generation” seeking a sign, but the only sign they are to receive is the “sign of Jonah,” who in their day is Jesus (v. 29).  With the preaching of Jonah, Nineveh repented, and those people will rise to condemn Jesus’ generation.  And ours too, likely more harshly, unless we repent.  In a time when general moral decay in society is beyond what most people could have imagined even fifty or sixty years ago, it is tempting to say “To hell with them all!”  But we are called to lift up our culture, first by reforming our own lives, being a shining example of Christianity to everyone we encounter.  Repentance starts with us, but our call for repentance must extend to all of society.  This begins with prayer.  Fasting, which led the Lord to hold off His wrath against Nineveh (cf. Jonah 3:1-10), is also an example for us of a powerful means of penance.  But of course we must also get involved.  Study the hot button moral issues of our time and be prepared to defend the Church’s teaching on these matters.  Inform family and friends.  Write to elected officials and submit comments to magazines, newspapers, and influential websites.  Be a strong defender of the Faith, always in love, but firmly and without compromise.  Let us strive to be modern-day Jonahs, and thus modern-day Christs.

Moving to much earlier in Matthew (6:7-15), we drop into the middle of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.  Here, Jesus, in teaching His disciples how to pray, gives us the Our Father.  A well-known and oft-recited prayer.  One thing we usually don’t hear is the follow-up in which Jesus reiterates the most difficult part of the prayer (see above).  Consider how often we fly by that part without a second thought.  This reading makes us stop and think about the implications.  Why does Jesus hammer this point home?  Because He knows us better than we know ourselves.  Can we really forgive in imitation of Christ?  Can we, like Him, cry out on our crosses: “Father forgive them, they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34)?  How difficult this is when someone hurts us physically, or worse, emotionally.  More awful yet is when the one who is injured is a close loved one.  Forgiveness may not come easy, but does it come at all?  Do we reserve unforgiveness or a certain grudge because the circumstances of the offense are just too horrible?  Certainly, Jesus is giving us a hard saying, but there are no caveats.  Jesus, the perfect Man, was tortured and killed unjustly by the guilty.  We, less than perfect, must emulate His love to those who despised and killed Him, no matter how difficult.  God’s grace is sufficient for this when our will fails (cf. 2 Cor 12:9).  Pray hard.

Moving back to the gospel of Matthew (25:31-46), we hear Jesus speaking of His Second Coming and the judgment that will occur at that time.  Separating the righteous from the unrighteous, as sheep from goats, the souls who cared for others will find that they were also caring for Christ, and will have eternal life.  Those who had no interest in helping others are destined for eternal punishment.  Taking care of the physical needs of the hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, ill, and prisoner is absolutely required.  Charitable donations of a financial kind, as well as time and talents, as possible based on one’s state in life, are necessary.  But let us not neglect the spiritual dimension of the Lord’s command.  What of those who hunger and thirst for companionship, or just a friendly ear to listen to them?  Or those who, possibly unknowingly, are craving for the Word and parched for the Spirit — how can we be a conduit for these gifts?  Share the faith, by your life and your witness.  How about the stranger to town, or to your neighborhood, or to your church?  Let them not feel a stranger one moment longer; rather make them a friend.  And those spiritually ill from, or a prisoner to, sinful ways or addictions — how can we be the helping hand or support to those enslaved in such a manner?  Always respond in love, but never couch the truth, compromise on sin, or enable bad behavior.  We must consider every person we meet, friend or foe, acquaintance or stranger, another Christ.  And if it is difficult to see Jesus in a certain person, it was also hard to see Him in His bloody and disfigured state on the way to Calvary.  That’s what sin does.  Like the pious story of Veronica, we are called to help wipe away sin and that which sin causes, so that the face of Christ will shine through.

Today’s gospel reading comes at the beginning of Mark (1:12-15) immediately after Jesus’ baptism by John.  Driven by the Holy Spirit into the desert, Jesus stays there for forty days alone among the wild beasts while being tempted by Satan and then ministered to by angels.  Returning to Galilee, Jesus speaks the first words of His public ministry.  “This is the time of fulfillment.  The kingdom of God is at hand.”  (v. 15)  He concludes with the words at the top of this entry.  First, repentance is required.  Reflection on the way we have conducted, and are currently conducting, our lives, with a thorough examination of conscience, helps us to seek forgiveness and healing for past transgressions and ask for the grace to overcome our current persistent sinful ways.  Doing this will open in us an added capacity in which we can invite Jesus to fill us, as He so longs to do.  And when Jesus fills us, the gospel fills us, because Jesus and the gospel are one (“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” [Jn 1:14]).  If any one of us is asked: “Do you believe in Jesus?” we would say “Yes!” likely without even thinking about it.  But let’s stop to think about it.  Is it enough to believe that Jesus, as is widely affirmed, was a historical figure?  How about believing that He is our Savior?  Both of these are required.  But there is more.  Jesus says we must believe in the gospel.  That is, we must conform ourselves to His example and live according to His teaching.  Some teachings are hard to follow.  Others we may find undesirable to adhere to.  Nevertheless, we must embrace the entire gospel, that is, the entire Christ.  Not just the gentle and attractive Jesus, but the Jesus who was demanding and thus scorned, reviled, plotted against, falsely accused, disfigured and tortured, and died.  Before Easter Sunday came Good Friday — as it will for all of us.  Then will we be required to give an accounting of how sincere our repentance was and, in turn, how much we believed in the gospel.