Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Jaime L. WatersFebruary 07, 2020
Photo by Neal E. Johnson on Unsplash

Jesus sets high standards for his followers. He calls on them to be perfect and to love as God loves. Is Jesus setting unattainable goals? Yes and no. As in last Sunday’s readings, today’s Gospel comes from the Sermon on the Mount. This Sunday, the focus is on retaliation and the treatment of enemies.

You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Lv 19:18)

Liturgical day
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Readings
Lv 19:1-2, 17-18; Ps 103; 1 Cor 3:16-23; Mt 5:38-48
Prayer

How can I work toward reconciliation instead of
retaliation?

What can I do to live out agape (divine love)?

What can I do to emulate God?

 

Matthew depicts Jesus critiquing “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” (Mt 5:38, see Ex 21:23-25, Lv 24:20, Dt 19:21) and instead calling for his followers to “turn the other cheek.” Jesus seems to endorse passivity and submissiveness rather than vengeance. Ancient and modern audiences have almost opposite interpretations of the original command, though both would be likely to reject Jesus’ call to turn the other cheek. In antiquity, “an eye for an eye” was a call for moderation in punishment. It might be better understood as “only an eye for an eye.” This law limited retaliation; it should be in proportion to the crime being punished. In modern idiom, however, “an eye for an eye” serves as a rationale for harsh sentences and an invitation for retaliation. It has unfortunately been used to justify capital punishment, though it was originally intended as a law of restraint.

Jesus’ apparently passive responses have a message for both ancient and modern readers. By telling his followers to turn the other cheek, Jesus calls on them to resist tendencies toward punishment. Implicitly, Jesus introduces the idea of reconciliation rather than retaliation. Jesus does not want his followers to be abused and taken advantage of, as the passage might suggest. When Jesus says, “Offer no resistance to one who is evil” (Mt 5:39), he does not mean do nothing in the face of injustice. Instead, Jesus insists that his community reject and work against retaliation by focusing on love, an idea that he continues to develop in the following verses.

As the Gospel continues, Jesus refers to a law that says, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy” (Mt 5:43). There is no known Jewish law that calls for hatred of enemies, and hating enemies is only rarely encouraged (e.g., Ps 139:19-22). Jesus insists that his followers focus less on hatred and more on love (Greek agape). There are multiple words for love in Greek (e.g., philia, brotherly love; eros, sexual love). This passage calls for agape (divine love), a term that expresses God’s unconditional love. Jesus compels his community of believers to treat all people with Godly love.

Jesus’ interpretations of Scripture in the Sermon on the Mount are rooted in the first reading from Leviticus, which similarly advocates love over hate. The law insists, “You shall not hate…take no vengeance and cherish no grudge” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Lv 19:17-18). By loving all people, even enemies, Jesus’ followers can “be perfect” as the Father is perfect (Mt 5:48).

What does Jesus mean when he calls for perfection? The call to be perfect is a call to strive to be like God. On this topic, the first reading calls for people to “be holy” as the Lord is holy (Lv 19:2). Luke’s version of this passage says “be merciful” as the Father is merciful (Lk 6:36). Matthew, like Leviticus and Luke, calls us not to be formed by instincts for retaliation or vengeance but to emulate God in our treatment of one another, continually working to love one another as God loves all of us.

We don’t have comments turned on everywhere anymore. We have recently relaunched the commenting experience at America and are aiming for a more focused commenting experience with better moderation by opening comments on a select number of articles each day.

But we still want your feedback. You can join the conversation about this article with us in social media on Twitter or Facebook, or in one of our Facebook discussion groups for various topics.

Or send us feedback on this article with one of the options below:

We welcome and read all letters to the editor but, due to the volume received, cannot guarantee a response.

In order to be considered for publication, letters should be brief (around 200 words or less) and include the author’s name and geographic location. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

We open comments only on select articles so that we can provide a focused and well-moderated discussion on interesting topics. If you think this article provides the opportunity for such a discussion, please let us know what you'd like to talk about, or what interesting question you think readers might want to respond to.

If we decide to open comments on this article, we will email you to let you know.

If you have a message for the author, we will do our best to pass it along. Note that if the article is from a wire service such as Catholic News Service, Religion News Service, or the Associated Press, we will not have direct contact information for the author. We cannot guarantee a response from any author.

We welcome any information that will help us improve the factual accuracy of this piece. Thank you.

Please consult our Contact Us page for other options to reach us.

City and state/province, or if outside Canada or the U.S., city and country. 
When you click submit, this article page will reload. You should see a message at the top of the reloaded page confirming that your feedback has been received.

The latest from america

November 24, 2024, The Solemnity of Christ the King: It matters that we come to recognize the conflict and discover hope in a truth that triumphs over drives for competition and needs to dominate.
Victor Cancino, S.J.November 20, 2024
November 17, 2024, the Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time: In this Sunday’s Gospel, the dimming of cosmic lights provides an opportunity to read the signs of the times.
Victor Cancino, S.J.November 12, 2024
November 10, 2024, the Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time: An easy way to place oneself into the Gospel this Sunday is to go outside near a public area without your smartphone for a solid ten minutes.
Victor Cancino, S.J.November 05, 2024
November 3, 2024, the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time: Jesus reveals God’s heart and purpose, which is to love us. It takes a lifetime to learn how to flesh out one’s response to this love with all of one’s heart, soul and strength.
Victor Cancino, S.J.October 29, 2024