The Gospel from today's liturgy, Matthew 5: 38-48, starts out this way:
"You have heard that it was said,
an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
But I say to you, offer resistance to no one who is evil.
When someone strikes you on your right cheek,
turn the other 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 the one who wants to borrow."
AND
"...love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you..."
AND
"...be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."
This Gospel message is certainly part of our faith belief and strikes the love and peace chords within our hearts every time we hear these exhortations. We can't help but to ponder the message of these words for us in our everyday lives. We are invited to ask the following questions?
~Have I offered resistance rather than peace?
~Have I been generous toward those who needed assistance?
~Have I forgotten about my needs to go two miles when asked?
~Have I looked into the eyes of others to see Christ within them?
What a tall order!!! To "be perfect, just as our heavenly Father is perfect." It was my turn to present a reflection on this Gospel last night for Vigil. What a tall order!!! I pondered and pondered and pondered, but nothing was surfacing to complete this tall order at hand. As I sat pondering what direction to take, my eyes fell on one of my favorite books by one of my favorite inspirational authors, Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr, OSB. She provides the perfect reflection on this Gospel in her book, Abide, Keeping Vigil with the Word of God (2011, Liturgical Press). As I perused the Table of Contents, the following title jumped out before my eyes:
This Tremendous Love (Matthew 5: 38-48)
Sister Macrina's reflection on this Gospel was a wondrous gift as I read excerpts from it to the Sisters. The following passage from her reflection perhaps serves as the theme of this Gospel passage:
"A lot of space in the world is still filled with hate.
As followers of Jesus we have no option except to try to fill up these spaces with love.
What might happen if, instead of holding on to our desire for revenge,
we would endeavor to fill up all places of hate with love?
Where hate reigns, love can reign!
Where love reigns, there is no room for hate!" (Abide, pg.148)
Yes, we can believe this deep within our hearts. But how do we carry it out in our everyday lives?
Sister Macrina goes on to say that love is a spiritual practice.
"It doesn't happen automatically.
We have to practice loving.
Take a moment to underline the word practice.
It means exactly that! We practice!
If we want to excel in something like dancing, ice skating, music, gymnastics, or any kind of sport, it doesn't surprise us to be told we must practice.
What about opening our hearts to those who have wounded us?
What about forgiving?
What about loving our enemies?
What about becoming who we really are?
Might we need some practice?" (Abide, pg. 149)
Jesus is our model for the love practice. We see him loving, acting peacefully, turning the other cheek, walking the extra mile when he must have been tired and weary, and feeding the multitudes. Are we not called to do the same? We must practice Jesus' way of tremendous love day after day after day. Sr. Macrina concludes her reflection on this tremendous love with the following words of wisdom:
"We are opening our lives to the love that is flowing through our being.
Somewhere in the midst of this flowing
we discover that just as we cannot become holy on our own, we cannot love all alone.
My flowing flows into your flowing.
Together we are a vessel of this tremendous love." (Abide, pg. 151)
After Vigil last night, several of us gathered to watch the Olympics. Our interest was primarily to view the ice skating Gala. In between the figure skating episodes, we chatted, stuffed envelopes for our Lenten appeal, and sipped on some spirits in honor of National Margarita Day. During the conversation, I heard the word PRACTICE several times. I even heard the question, "What do Sisters do on Saturday night?" Well, every Saturday night activity varies, just as every moment of every day varies. But all of our lives is a steady PRACTICE of together becoming a "vessel of this tremendous love."
"Do not aspire to be called holy before you really are,
but first be holy that you may more truly be called so.
Live by God's commandments every day...
Pray for your enemies out of love for Christ."
The Rule of St. Benedict, Ch. 4: 62, 72
