Friday, February 19, 2016 1st Week of Lent 1st Reading: Ezk 18:21–28 Gospel: Mt 5:20–26
Jesus said to his disciples, “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)
There were many Rabbis in Jesus’ time offering courses on Scriptures to interested Jews. The format of teaching was as follows. First, an Old Testament text was presented, followed by the wrong interpretation, and concluded by the Rabbi’s correction. The standard formula was, “You might think this means…., but I say to you…”
In using the same formula Jesus exercised his authority as teacher. But unlike many of his contemporary Rabbis, Jesus did more than correct wrong interpretations. While the ordinary Rabbis went lateral and flagged down anybody going beyond recognized boundaries, Jesus went spiral, digging deeper into the meaning of Scriptures in relation to the Father’s will. Only he could do that, for only he had real authority over Scriptures.
Because he went deeper, his interpretations tended to be more demanding. Thus in today’ Gospel he taught in effect that one could still be covered by the Law against murder if he performs the antecedents of murder such as anger, insult, and name-calling. He pointed out how unjust it was to seek stronger bond with God while despising others. Bad relationships changed the meaning of Temple sacrifice from devotion to mockery, or even bribery.
Although Jesus used basically the same formula of the Rabbis, he had something more to teach, a more challenging teaching to impart and a bigger call to deeper spirituality.—Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com. Website: www.frdan.org.
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