Mt 5: 20-26
For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire.
So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Reconciling Relationships
In our current national and international climate of extreme polarization, Jesus’s challenges about reconciliation and forgiveness in the Gospel we read today can feel so out-of-reach. For many of us, reconciling the wrongs we’ve perpetrated or experienced from our relatives or neighbors—those closest to us—feels so insurmountable that we cannot fathom how to tackle these massive chasms—racism, poverty, violence, extreme economic inequality, and myriad other areas in need of reconciliation and redressing—in any meaningful way.
Yet, indeed, we are not exempt from Jesus’s commands to reconcile our hurts and settle our divisions on the micro and macro levels. Consider today not only those personal relationships that need mending and forgiveness, but also ways that you may contribute—consciously or not—to larger-scale injustices and how you can join others to work for right relationships all across our global community.
—Kristen Schenk is a former Jesuit Volunteer (Belize City 2008-10) and an alumna of Saint Louis University and Loyola University Chicago who now works in healthcare chaplaincy.
Prayer
Spirit of God,
You are the breath of creation,
The wind of change
That blows through our lives,
Opening us up to new dreams and new hopes,
New life in Jesus Christ.
Forgive us our closed minds
Which barricade themselves
Against new ideas,
Preferring the past
To what you might want to do through us tomorrow.
Forgive our closed eyes
Which fail to see the needs of your world,
Blind to opportunities of service and love.
Forgive our closed hands
Which clutch our gifts and our wealth
For our own use alone.
Forgive our closed hearts
Which limit our affections to ourselves
And our own.
Spirit of new life,
Forgive us and break down
The prison walls of our selfishness,
That we might be open to your love
And open for the service of your world
Through Jesus Christ. Amen.
— Spirit of God By Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, United Kingdom