7 Sunday of Ordinary Time
When we think of someone who we may consider an enemy, Jesus teaching to love that person can seem impossible (Mt 5:38-48). Part of the problem can be that we misunderstand what Jesus means by "love". Ultimately Jesus teaches us that non-violent resistance and forgiveness is the path that brings lasting peace.
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In the Gospel this Sunday (Matthew 5:17-37), Jesus tells us that He came to fulfill and not abolish the Law or the prophets. What does this mean? From the examples Jesus gives, we learn that He emphasizes our interior motivations for following the commandments. Jesus wants us to follow the commandments of course, but our living relationship with God is what is most important. As Benedict XVI wrote in Deus Caritas Est,
“Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.”
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In the Gospel today Jesus (Mt 5:13-16), Jesus teaches us a lesson we all probably learned in Kindergarten: we are called to transform those around us by being salt and light. We do this by letting the light of Christ, which we received at our baptism, shine through us to those around us.
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