Saturday of the First Week of Lent
Love our Enemies?
http://www.usccb.org/nab/031106.shtml
Reflection:
It constantly amazes me how many things Jesus changed when he came. If you think about it, God, Yahweh, had had not only a relationship established with the Hebrew peoples, but a covenant (several actually) for thousands of years. They had developed a national identity around that relationship. The Old Testament is all about the racial experience of God. We see it established in the first reading from Deuteronomy with the conclusion of the covenant of Moses.
The Hebrews had a view of God called the "God of Justice" view. If something bad happened to a person, a group, or even the whole of the nation, it was because they had failed to live up to God's expectations. They recognized God's omnipotence but failed to see the underlying purpose for his outreach. This developed over years and is chronicled through the books of the Law (of which Deuteronomy is one), the Prophets, and the rabbinical writings that reflected on the scripture.
Now comes Jesus, at a time when the Hebrew race had been conquered, again, and were under the rule of the greatest empire since Alexander. Into this rebellious time comes the Son of God proclaiming the Kingdom of God. More astonishing still, he preaches a message of peace and love. He tells his followers that not only do they need to follow the Law of Moses, but they must understand that the relationship with God, his father, was one of heart, not just rules. He told them (and us) that it was His will that the letter of the law be seen in the new light of compassion ("But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father")
This was not the "God of Justice" the Hebrews had come to know. They had missed something fundamental in the characteristics of their God (our God). He loves us. He loves us so much he revealed himself to us in his only Son. Talk about epiphany.
Is it any wonder then, with Jesus redefining our relationship with God and the Laws he passed on to us through the Prophets, that the religious rulers of the Jews did not like him? How much easier is it to follow the laws of the Old Testament than the Laws of the New Covenant? How much easier is it to love just our friends and families than it is to love our enemies as Christ tells us? It is the difference between having a father who loves you and one who treats you like property. Pax
If you wish to comment and are not registered on Myspace, you can email me at miles_jj@excite.com and I will post your response as a comment. Thanks.
Scripture[1] from Dt 26:16-19
Jerome Biblical Commentary[2]
16 "This day the LORD, your God, commands you to observe these statutes and decrees. Be careful, then, to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
(V) Conclusion of the Covenant (26:16-19). In keeping with the general pattern of covenant making, we have here a final recapitulation followed in ch. 28 by the blessings and curses. 16. this day: See comment on 4:4 and the cultic Ps 95 :7-11.
17 Today you are making this agreement with the LORD: he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees, and to hearken to his voice.
18 And today the LORD is making this agreement with you: you are to be a people peculiarly his own, as he promised you; and provided you keep all his commandments,
17. See G. Mercati (Bib 24 [I943] 20I-204). The reciprocal assumption of the new bond brought into existence by the covenant relationship is expressed in the formula: "I am your God-you are my people" (Jer 3 1:33; Hos 2 :23); cf the formulary of marriage and divorce (Hos 1 :9).
19 he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory above all other nations he has made, and you will be a people sacred to the LORD, your God, as he promised."
19. a people sacred to the Lord: See comment on 7:6 and Ex 19 :6. The holiness, that is, apartness, derives from the new bond created by the covenant.
[1] All biblical references -New American Bible United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 (202) 541-3000 December 09, 2002 Copyright by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
[2] All references to Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc. 1968
Scripture from Ps 119:1-2, 4-5, 7-8
Jerome Biblical Commentary
1 1 Happy those whose way is blameless, who walk by the teaching of the LORD.
2 Happy those who observe God's decrees, who seek the LORD with all their heart.
4 You have given them the command to keep your precepts with care.
5 May my ways be firm in the observance of your laws!
7 I will praise you with sincere heart as I study your just edicts.
8 I will keep your laws; do not leave me all alone.
1 [Psalm 119] This psalm, the longest by far in the psalter, praises God for giving such splendid laws and instruction for people to live by. The author glorifies and thanks God for the Torah, prays for protection from sinners enraged by others' fidelity to the law, laments the cost of obedience, delights in the law's consolations, begs for wisdom to understand the precepts, and asks for the rewards of keeping them. Several expected elements do not appear in the psalm: Mount Sinai with its story of God's revelation and gift to Israel of instruction and commandments, the temple and other institutions related to revelation and laws (frequent in other psalms). The psalm is fascinated with God's word directing and guiding human life. The poem is an acrostic; its twenty-two stanzas (of eight verses each) are in the order of the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the eight verses within a stanza begins with the same letter. Each verse contains one word for "instruction." The translation here given attempts to translate each Hebrew word for "instruction" with the same English word. There are, however, nine words for "instruction," not eight, so the principle of a different word for "instruction" in each verse cannot be maintained with perfect consistency. The nine words for "instruction" in the translation are: law, edict, command, precept, word, utterance, way, decree, and teaching.
Ps 119. An acrostic poem; each 'Of the eight verses of the first strophe (aleph) begins with the first letter of the Hebr alphabet; each verse of the second strophe (beth) begins with the second letter; and so on for all 22 letters of the alphabet. The classification is not easy (wisdom 1), and it seems best to recognize that it is sui generis. It is a Torah Ps (Kraus), which is a composite of several types (hymn, lament), and influenced by various movements (deuteronomic school, wisdom writers, anthological composition). The entire work is in praise of the Law, and the joys to be found in keeping it. It is not "legalism" but a love and desire for the word of God in Israel's Law, which is the expression of the Lord's revelation of himself and his will for man. In almost every verse, a synonym for the Torah is to be found: decrees, ways, precepts, statutes, commands, ordinances, promises. There is no logical progression of thought in the .Ps.
Scripture from Mt 5:43-48
Jerome Biblical Commentary
43 27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44 But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you,
27 [43-48] See Lev 19:18. There is no Old Testament commandment demanding hatred of one's enemy, but the "neighbor" of the love commandment was understood as one's fellow countryman. Both in the Old Testament (Psalm 139:19-22) and at Qumran (1QS 9:21) hatred of evil persons is assumed to be right. Jesus extends the love commandment to the enemy and the persecutor. His disciples, as children of God, must imitate the example of their Father, who grants his gifts of sun and rain to both the good and the bad.
(iv) Love of ones enemies (5:43-48) 43. love your neighbor: The precept of the love of one's neighbor is quoted from Lv 19:18; the precept of hating one's enemy is not found in the OT, nor is it a summary of rabbinical teaching as it has been preserved (Str-B 1, 353-68). It no doubt represents the popular understanding of the love of one's neighbor; no one needs to be instructed to hate is enemies (cf. M. Smith, Har TR 45 [1952] 71-73). The saying should not be restricted to personal enemies among one's brotherhood, implying a toleration of hatred of the enemies of one's group; this would not distinguish the Christian from the Gentile or the tax collector (5 :46-47). The "neighbor" is the member of one's group or fellowship: one's village or town, one's religion or nation, one's tribe or race. In many languages the same word is used to designate "stranger," "foreigner," or "enemy." The enemy is specified in Mt as the persecutor, probably a reflection of the experience of the early Church; Lk has "those who mistreat you" (6:27).
45 that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
46 For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors 28 do the same?
47 And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? 29
28 [46] Tax collectors: Jews who were engaged in the collection of indirect taxes such as tolls and customs. See the note on Mark 2:14.
29 [47] Jesus' disciples must not be content with merely usual standards of conduct; see Matthew 5:20 where the verb "surpass" (Greek perisseuo) is cognate with the unusual (perisson) of this verse.
45. be sons of your Father: The disciples are to show the same indifference to friends and enemies that God shows in his distribution of sunshine and rain; in exhibiting this godlike providence they vindicate their title of sons of God. Love within one's group or fellowship is merely a natural and universal human trait; Mt uses terms that identify two despised classes among the Jews: the Gentiles and the tax farmers. The use of these terms is something of a lapse from the principle Mt is stating; elsewhere the Gospel is friendly to these despised classes; see 9:ro; II :19; 21 :31. By this kind of love the disciples will be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect.
48 So be perfect, 30 just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
30 [48] Perfect: in the gospels this word occurs only in Matthew, here and in Matthew 19:21. The Lucan parallel (Matthew 6:36) demands that the disciples be merciful.
48. This verse is conflated from Dt 18:13 and Lv 19:2, where the word "holy" is used. "Perfect" represents the Hebr word for "whole" or "integral"; it is the love of one's enemies that assures the integrity of Christian morality and distinguishes it from merely ethical morality. This passage also is echoed in Rom 12:17-21.
Love our Enemies?
http://www.usccb.org/nab/031106.shtml
Reflection:
It constantly amazes me how many things Jesus changed when he came. If you think about it, God, Yahweh, had had not only a relationship established with the Hebrew peoples, but a covenant (several actually) for thousands of years. They had developed a national identity around that relationship. The Old Testament is all about the racial experience of God. We see it established in the first reading from Deuteronomy with the conclusion of the covenant of Moses.
The Hebrews had a view of God called the "God of Justice" view. If something bad happened to a person, a group, or even the whole of the nation, it was because they had failed to live up to God's expectations. They recognized God's omnipotence but failed to see the underlying purpose for his outreach. This developed over years and is chronicled through the books of the Law (of which Deuteronomy is one), the Prophets, and the rabbinical writings that reflected on the scripture.
Now comes Jesus, at a time when the Hebrew race had been conquered, again, and were under the rule of the greatest empire since Alexander. Into this rebellious time comes the Son of God proclaiming the Kingdom of God. More astonishing still, he preaches a message of peace and love. He tells his followers that not only do they need to follow the Law of Moses, but they must understand that the relationship with God, his father, was one of heart, not just rules. He told them (and us) that it was His will that the letter of the law be seen in the new light of compassion ("But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father")
This was not the "God of Justice" the Hebrews had come to know. They had missed something fundamental in the characteristics of their God (our God). He loves us. He loves us so much he revealed himself to us in his only Son. Talk about epiphany.
Is it any wonder then, with Jesus redefining our relationship with God and the Laws he passed on to us through the Prophets, that the religious rulers of the Jews did not like him? How much easier is it to follow the laws of the Old Testament than the Laws of the New Covenant? How much easier is it to love just our friends and families than it is to love our enemies as Christ tells us? It is the difference between having a father who loves you and one who treats you like property. Pax
If you wish to comment and are not registered on Myspace, you can email me at miles_jj@excite.com and I will post your response as a comment. Thanks.
Scripture[1] from Dt 26:16-19
Jerome Biblical Commentary[2]
16 "This day the LORD, your God, commands you to observe these statutes and decrees. Be careful, then, to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
(V) Conclusion of the Covenant (26:16-19). In keeping with the general pattern of covenant making, we have here a final recapitulation followed in ch. 28 by the blessings and curses. 16. this day: See comment on 4:4 and the cultic Ps 95 :7-11.
17 Today you are making this agreement with the LORD: he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees, and to hearken to his voice.
18 And today the LORD is making this agreement with you: you are to be a people peculiarly his own, as he promised you; and provided you keep all his commandments,
17. See G. Mercati (Bib 24 [I943] 20I-204). The reciprocal assumption of the new bond brought into existence by the covenant relationship is expressed in the formula: "I am your God-you are my people" (Jer 3 1:33; Hos 2 :23); cf the formulary of marriage and divorce (Hos 1 :9).
19 he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory above all other nations he has made, and you will be a people sacred to the LORD, your God, as he promised."
19. a people sacred to the Lord: See comment on 7:6 and Ex 19 :6. The holiness, that is, apartness, derives from the new bond created by the covenant.
[1] All biblical references -New American Bible United States Conference of Catholic Bishops 3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 (202) 541-3000 December 09, 2002 Copyright by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
[2] All references to Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc. 1968
Scripture from Ps 119:1-2, 4-5, 7-8
Jerome Biblical Commentary
1 1 Happy those whose way is blameless, who walk by the teaching of the LORD.
2 Happy those who observe God's decrees, who seek the LORD with all their heart.
4 You have given them the command to keep your precepts with care.
5 May my ways be firm in the observance of your laws!
7 I will praise you with sincere heart as I study your just edicts.
8 I will keep your laws; do not leave me all alone.
1 [Psalm 119] This psalm, the longest by far in the psalter, praises God for giving such splendid laws and instruction for people to live by. The author glorifies and thanks God for the Torah, prays for protection from sinners enraged by others' fidelity to the law, laments the cost of obedience, delights in the law's consolations, begs for wisdom to understand the precepts, and asks for the rewards of keeping them. Several expected elements do not appear in the psalm: Mount Sinai with its story of God's revelation and gift to Israel of instruction and commandments, the temple and other institutions related to revelation and laws (frequent in other psalms). The psalm is fascinated with God's word directing and guiding human life. The poem is an acrostic; its twenty-two stanzas (of eight verses each) are in the order of the Hebrew alphabet. Each of the eight verses within a stanza begins with the same letter. Each verse contains one word for "instruction." The translation here given attempts to translate each Hebrew word for "instruction" with the same English word. There are, however, nine words for "instruction," not eight, so the principle of a different word for "instruction" in each verse cannot be maintained with perfect consistency. The nine words for "instruction" in the translation are: law, edict, command, precept, word, utterance, way, decree, and teaching.
Ps 119. An acrostic poem; each 'Of the eight verses of the first strophe (aleph) begins with the first letter of the Hebr alphabet; each verse of the second strophe (beth) begins with the second letter; and so on for all 22 letters of the alphabet. The classification is not easy (wisdom 1), and it seems best to recognize that it is sui generis. It is a Torah Ps (Kraus), which is a composite of several types (hymn, lament), and influenced by various movements (deuteronomic school, wisdom writers, anthological composition). The entire work is in praise of the Law, and the joys to be found in keeping it. It is not "legalism" but a love and desire for the word of God in Israel's Law, which is the expression of the Lord's revelation of himself and his will for man. In almost every verse, a synonym for the Torah is to be found: decrees, ways, precepts, statutes, commands, ordinances, promises. There is no logical progression of thought in the .Ps.
Scripture from Mt 5:43-48
Jerome Biblical Commentary
43 27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44 But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you,
27 [43-48] See Lev 19:18. There is no Old Testament commandment demanding hatred of one's enemy, but the "neighbor" of the love commandment was understood as one's fellow countryman. Both in the Old Testament (Psalm 139:19-22) and at Qumran (1QS 9:21) hatred of evil persons is assumed to be right. Jesus extends the love commandment to the enemy and the persecutor. His disciples, as children of God, must imitate the example of their Father, who grants his gifts of sun and rain to both the good and the bad.
(iv) Love of ones enemies (5:43-48) 43. love your neighbor: The precept of the love of one's neighbor is quoted from Lv 19:18; the precept of hating one's enemy is not found in the OT, nor is it a summary of rabbinical teaching as it has been preserved (Str-B 1, 353-68). It no doubt represents the popular understanding of the love of one's neighbor; no one needs to be instructed to hate is enemies (cf. M. Smith, Har TR 45 [1952] 71-73). The saying should not be restricted to personal enemies among one's brotherhood, implying a toleration of hatred of the enemies of one's group; this would not distinguish the Christian from the Gentile or the tax collector (5 :46-47). The "neighbor" is the member of one's group or fellowship: one's village or town, one's religion or nation, one's tribe or race. In many languages the same word is used to designate "stranger," "foreigner," or "enemy." The enemy is specified in Mt as the persecutor, probably a reflection of the experience of the early Church; Lk has "those who mistreat you" (6:27).
45 that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
46 For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors 28 do the same?
47 And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? 29
28 [46] Tax collectors: Jews who were engaged in the collection of indirect taxes such as tolls and customs. See the note on Mark 2:14.
29 [47] Jesus' disciples must not be content with merely usual standards of conduct; see Matthew 5:20 where the verb "surpass" (Greek perisseuo) is cognate with the unusual (perisson) of this verse.
45. be sons of your Father: The disciples are to show the same indifference to friends and enemies that God shows in his distribution of sunshine and rain; in exhibiting this godlike providence they vindicate their title of sons of God. Love within one's group or fellowship is merely a natural and universal human trait; Mt uses terms that identify two despised classes among the Jews: the Gentiles and the tax farmers. The use of these terms is something of a lapse from the principle Mt is stating; elsewhere the Gospel is friendly to these despised classes; see 9:ro; II :19; 21 :31. By this kind of love the disciples will be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect.
48 So be perfect, 30 just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
30 [48] Perfect: in the gospels this word occurs only in Matthew, here and in Matthew 19:21. The Lucan parallel (Matthew 6:36) demands that the disciples be merciful.
48. This verse is conflated from Dt 18:13 and Lv 19:2, where the word "holy" is used. "Perfect" represents the Hebr word for "whole" or "integral"; it is the love of one's enemies that assures the integrity of Christian morality and distinguishes it from merely ethical morality. This passage also is echoed in Rom 12:17-21.
posted by Deacon Jim | 3:36 PM
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