Sunday
of the Seventh Week
in
Ordinary Time
Is-Seba' Hadd Matul is-Sena
Ħobbu 'l Egħdewwa tagħkom
Messalin A pp 284
The
LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them: Be
holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy. “You shall not bear hatred for your
brother or sister in your heart. Though you may have to reprove your fellow
citizen, do not incur sin because of him. Take no revenge and cherish no grudge
against any of your people. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the
LORD.” This is the Word
of the Lord.
L-Ewwel
Lezzjoni
Qari mill-Ktieb tal-Levitku 19,
1-2 17-18
Il-Mulej kellem lil Mose' u qallu: "Għid lill-ġemgħa kolla ta' wlied Iżrael: "Għandkom tkunu qaddisin,
għax qaddis jienil-Mulej Alla tagħkom.La tbejjitx lil ħuk f'qalbek, imma lil għajrek wissieh u
erġa' wissih, biex ma tkunx ħati tiegħu. La
titħallasx b'idejk, u la żżommx f'qalbek għal ulied niesek, imma ħobb lil għajrek bħalek innifsek:
Jiena l-Mulej.". Il-Kelma
tal-Mulej
Responsorial Psalm
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
He pardons all your iniquities,
heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he put our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful.
Salm Responsorjali
Salm 102(103)
Bierek, ruħ tiegħi, lill-Mulej!
B'qalbi kollha nbierek l-isem qaddis tiegħu.
Bierek, ruħ tiegħi, lill-Mulej,
u la tinsiex il-ġid kollu
li għamel miegħek.
R/ Ħanin u twajjeb il-Mulej
Hu li jaħfer dnubietek
kollha;
ifejjaq il-mard tiegħek
kollu;
jifdi lil ħajtek
mill-qabar;
iħaddnek bit-tjieba u bil-ħniena.
R/ Ħanin u twajjeb il-Mulej
Ħanin u twajjeb il-Mulej,
idum ma jagħdab u kollu mogħdrija.
Ma mexiex magħna skond ma ħaqqhom ħtijietna;
ma ħallasniex skond
ma ħaqqha ħżunitna.
R/ Ħanin u twajjeb il-Mulej
Daqs kjemm hu
mbiegħed il-Lvant mill-Punent,
hekk hu jbiegħed minna ħtijietna.
Bħalma jħenn il-missier għal uliedu,
hekk iħenn il-Mulej għal min għandu l-biża' tiegħu.
R/ Ħanin u twajjeb il-Mulej
Brothers
and sisters: Do you not know that you are the temple of God temple
of God
Qari mill-Ewwel Ittra ta' San Pawl Appostlu
lill-Korintin 3, 16-23
Ħuti, ma tafux
li intom tempju ta' Alla u -Ispirtu ta' Alla
jgħammar
fikom? Jekk xi ħadd jeqred it-tempju ta' Alla, Alla jeqred lilu. Għax qaddis hu t-tempju ta' Alla, li huwa intom. Ħadd ma għandu jitqarraq! Jekk xi ħadd fostkom jaħseb li Hu għaref f'din id-dinja, ħa jiblieħ, biex isir għaref. Għax hemm miktub: "Hu li jaqbad l-għorrief fil-ħażen tagħhom; u terga' :
"Il-Mulej jaf li fiergħa huma l-ħsibijiet ta'
l-għorrief." Għalhekk ħadd ma għandu jiftaħar
bil-bnedmin, Għax kollox hu tagħkom: sew jekk Pawlu, sew jekk Apollo, sew jekk
Kefa, sew jekk id-dinja, sew jekk il-ħajja, sew jekk
il-mewt, sew jekk iż-żmien ta' issa, sew
jekk li ġej; kollox huwa tagħkom, u intom ta' Kristu, u Kristu
ta' Alla. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
Gospel
Jesus
said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth
for a tooth. But I say to
you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your
right cheek, turn the other one as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you
over your tunic, hand over your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into
service for one mile, go for two miles. Give
to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to
borrow. “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies and pray
for those who persecute you, 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. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will
you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers
only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father
is perfect.” This is the Word of the Lord.
L-Evanġelju
Qari mill-Evanġelju skond San Mattew 5, 38-48
F'dak iż-żmien,
Ġesu' qal lid-dixxipli tiegħu: "Smajtu
xi ntqal: "Għajn b'għajn u sinna
b'sinna." Imma jiena ngħidilkom biex bniedem ħażin ma tiqfulux; anzi jekk xi ħadd jagħtik daqqa ta' ħarta fuq ħaddejk
tal-lemin, dawwarlu l-ieħor ukoll; u lil
min ikun irid itellgħek
il-qorti u jeħodlok il-libsa, ħallilu wkoll il-mantar. U jekk xi ħadd iġħagħlek timxi miegħu mil
wieħed,
mur miegħu tnejn. Agħti lil min jitolbok u ddawwarx spallejk lil min ikun
irid jissellef mingħandek. Smajtu
xi ntqal: Ħobb lil għajrek, u obgħod lill-għadu tiegħek."
Imma jiena ngħidilkom: Ħobbu lill-għedewwa tagħkom, u itolbu għal dawk li jippersegwitawkom, biex tkun wlied Missierkom li hu fis-smewwiet; għax hu jtalla' x-xemx sew fuq il-ħżiena u sew fuq it-tajbin, u jniżżel ix-xita sew fuq
it-tajjeb u sew fuq min m'huwiex. Għax jekk intom tħobbu lil min iħobbkom, xi ħlas jistħoqqilkom?
Mhux il-pubblikani wkoll jagħmlu
dan? U
jekk issellmu lil ħutkom
biss, xi tkunu tagħmlu żejjed? Mhux
il-pagani wkoll jagħluh dan? Kunu mela perfetti, bħalma perfett Missierkom li hu fis-smewwiet. Il-Kelma
tal-Mulej
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Commentary:
“Be Holy, For I,
the Lord, Your God, Am Holy"
By Matthew Harrison
The Scripture readings for next Sunday issue three calls to
us– to be holy as the Lord our God is holy; to not deceive ourselves with the
wisdom of this age; and to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute
us. Let us begin our reflections this week by considering the words of the
Leviticus reading (19:1-2, 17-18.)
God is the Holy
One and the Creator of human life, and the human being is blessed and obliged
by God’'s utter holiness. Therefore every human life is holy, sacrosanct and
inviolable. According to Leviticus 19:2 God’s holiness constitutes an essential
imperative for the moral behavior: "You shall be holy for I am Holy, the
Lord your God!" This loaded statement describes best the vocation of every
man and woman, and the entire mission of the Church throughout history: a call
to holiness.
You
shall be holy
Holiness is a
truth that pervades the whole of the Old Covenant: God is holy and calls all to
holiness. The Mosaic Law exhorted: "You shall be holy; for I the Lord your
God am holy." Holiness is in God, and only from God can it pass to the
crown of God’s creation: human beings. We are made in the image and likeness of
God, and God’s holiness, his ‘total otherness’ is imprinted on each one of us.
Human beings become vehicles and instruments of God’s holiness for the world.
This holiness is
the fire of God's Word that must be alive and burning within our hearts. It is
this fire, this dynamism, that will burn away the evil within us and around us
and cause holiness to burst forth, healing and transforming the society and
culture surrounding us. Evil is only eradicated by holiness, not by harshness.
Holiness introduces into society a seed that heals and transforms.
Holiness is a way
of life that involves commitment and activity. It is not a passive endeavor,
but rather a continuous choice to deepen one's relationship with God and to
then allow this relationship to guide all of one's actions in the world.
Holiness requires a radical change in mindset and attitude. The acceptance of
the call to holiness places God as our final goal in every aspect of our lives.
This fundamental orientation toward God even envelops and sustains our
relationship with other human beings. Sustained by a life of virtue and
fortified by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, God draws us ever closer to himself
and to that day when we shall see Him face to face in heaven and achieve full
union with him.
Here and now, we
can find holiness in our personal experience of putting forth our best efforts
in the work place, patiently raising our children, and building good
relationships at home, at school and at work. If we make all of these things a
part of our loving response to God, we are on the path of holiness.
True
wisdom
In Sunday's
second reading (1 Corinthians 3:16-23), St.
Paul
If the
Corinthians were genuinely wise (3:18-20), their perceptions would be reversed,
and they would see everything in the world and all those with whom they exist
in the Church in their true relations with one another. Paul assigns all the
persons involved in the theological universe a position on a scale: God,
Christ, Church members, Church leaders. Read from top to bottom, the scale
expresses ownership; read from bottom to top, the obligation to serve. This
picture should be complemented by similar statements such as those in 1
Corinthians 8:6 and 1 Corinthians 15:20-28. Christians are holy by profession,
and should be pure and clean, both in heart and conversation.
Love
your neighbour
As we reflect on Sunday’s
Gospel passage (Matthew 25:38-48), Jesus in no way teaches us to be passive in
the face of physical danger. Jesus teaches that violence can breed violence.
And if non resistance will shame our opponent into peace, then such is the
better course.
"You have
heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say
to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil." (Matthew 5:38-39). With
metaphorical language Jesus teaches us to turn the other cheek, to hand over
not only the tunic but also the cloak, not to respond with violence to the
vexations of others, and above all, "Give to the one who asks of you, and
do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow" (5:42). This is a radical
exclusion of the law of retaliation in the personal life of Jesus' disciples
whatever be the right of society to defend its members from evildoers and to
punish those guilty of violating the rights of citizens and of the state
itself.
Jesus teaches the
ultimate step in the process of bringing to perfection, that in which all the
others find their dynamic centre: "You have heard that it was said, 'You
shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your
enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 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" (5:43-45). In opposition to the
common interpretation of the old law which identified the neighbor with the
Israelite, and indeed with the pious Israelite, Jesus set out the authentic
interpretation of God's commandment. He added to it the religious dimension of
reference to the clement and merciful heavenly Father who does good to all and
is therefore the supreme exemplar of universal love.
Jesus concluded,
"Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect" (5:48). He
asked of his followers the perfection of love. Love is the synthesis of the new
law he brought. This love will enable us to overcome in our relations with
others the classical opposition of friend-enemy. It will tend from within
hearts to transform into corresponding forms of social, political and even
institutionalized solidarity.
The
fruit of nonviolence is love
There are lots of
mean-spirited people who have never broken the law, but can they truly be
models for Christians? There is always the risk of being taken advantage of
when we are generous and unselfish. If we open ourselves to love, we may very
well get hurt. If we share our material goods, we may very well be used. In no
instance are we obligated to get hurt or used; it just happens sometimes. The
only way to be fully protected is to be suspicious, stingy, cynical and
selfish. But this is certainly inconsistent with love. The fruit of nonviolence
is love. This love blossoms everywhere when people meet each other, and
everywhere it divulges its divine origins. This love overcomes all opposition.
It brings together strangers, overcoming distance. It fills emptiness. It heals
the sick. It raises the dead to life.
Let us try to
break those patterns within us individually and communally that lead to
violence, destruction and lack of love. If violence seems a reasonable option
for us, then let us invent a different kind of logic. If violence is a machine,
dealing mechanically with people whom we don't like, let us pray for the
courage to throw a monkey wrench into it. And if violence is a chain of which
we are part, let us be the first link that's broken.
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