Leaving the altar of offering

Thursday, June 15, 2017
10th Week in
Ordinary Time
1st Reading: 2 Cor 3:15—4:1, 3-6
Gospel:
Matthew 5:20-26

Jesus said to the crowds, “I tell you, then, that if you are not righteous in a much broader way than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven.

“You have heard that it was said to our people in the past: Do not commit murder; anyone who does kill will have to face trial. But now I tell you: whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial. Whoever insults a brother or sister deserves to be brought before the council; whoever calls a brother or a sister ‘Fool’ deserves to be thrown into the fire of hell. So, if you are about to offer your gift at the altar and you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with him, and then come back and offer your gift to God.
“Don’t forget this: be reconciled with your opponent quickly when you are together on the way to court. Otherwise he will turn you over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, who will put you in jail. There you will stay, until you have paid the last penny.”

D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)

Ritual offerings are meant to please God. But we learn from today’s Gospel reading that there are particular types of ritual offerings that displease him. Such are the offerings of people whose religiosity is at the same level of the religiosity of the Pharisees. Their offerings of these people take them nowhere nearer God but only to a certain level of righteousness. Unfortunately, that level of righteousness is the home court of the Pharisees whom Jesus labeled as hypocrites.

For offerings to be pleasing to God, these must come from people whose religiosity is broader than that of the Pharisees. The Pharisees thought their offerings were pleasing to God because they were righteous people. But their righteousness was based on literal compliance of the law and the commandments. Tied to the letter of the commandments their offerings couldn’t soar higher to the abode of God.

If we want our offerings to be pleasing to God, our religiosity must be broader than the religiosity of the Pharisees. Broader religiosity goes beyond mere compliance of the written commandments of God. Today’s Gospel takes up as example the case of anger. The commandments prohibit killing. But we should not even get angry toward others because such could lead to murder. How many times have we come to the altar of offering with anger in our hearts and still thought that our offerings were pleasing to God? – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM

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