Monday, June 10, 2019
10th Week in
Ordinary Time
1st Reading: 2 Cor 1:1-7
Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12
When he saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you (falsely) because of me.Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
The “Beatitudes” (from the Latin word for blessed) show how God’s justice reverses fortunes. In terms of proportion this arrangement appears harsh to the well off because earthly life is too short. Should those who have the best of temporal life be made to pay for it for all eternity? Obviously the arrangement is not proportionate. But the contrary will not be fair also to those persecuted in this lifetime. God prefers to be fair to those who suffer now.
The reversal can also happen in this lifetime. But it should happen by God’s initiative. If we hasten justice by taking revenge we migrate into the shoes of those who are targets of the reversal of fortunes. “Vengeance is mine”, says the Lord. Revenge is not only evil because it goes along the line of the “lex talionis” of the pagan world, but also because it is a direct affront to God to whom the right to punish the wicked and reward the just belongs.
But doesn’t revenge spare God the hassle of exacting justice from evil people? It sounds logical. But how much can we really get even with our persecutor? The exaction of justice is better left to the vengeance of God, for when the hand of God’s justice strikes, the repercussions can be scary.
For the consolation of victims, nature is capable of striking back. Under the law of comeuppance, a bad person suffers the results of his wrongdoing. Thus, reversal of fortunes can already happen now. When comeuppance strikes your persecutor, pay tribute to the justice of God but never nurture a vengeful heart. Otherwise you will have already pre-empted the reversal of fortunes and can expect nothing in the life to come. – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM., MAPM.
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