A sermon on enemies and love

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today connect our desire to live in accord with the will of God to practical action in the social and political environment around us.

Conscience and consequences

Condemnation of the dynasty of Ahab by Elijah in the First Book of Kings had serious political implications.

* [21:20–26] In these verses the narrator uses against the third Israelite dynasty the same condemnation formula that was uttered against the first two dynasties, those of Jeroboam (14:9–11) and Baasha (16:2–4). Part of the formula is put in Elijah’s mouth, in an oracle against Ahab and his descendants (vv. 21–22), and part of it in an aside to the reader that extends the condemnation to Ahab’s wife, Jezebel, and his whole household (vv. 23–24). The oracle against Jezebel will be fulfilled in 2 Kgs 9:36; the obliteration of the dynasty will be recounted in the bloody stories of 2 Kgs 9–11.

In the Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus directs us to love our enemies.

* [5:43–48] See Lv 19:18. There is no Old Testament commandment demanding hatred of one’s enemy, but the “neighbor” of the love commandment was understood as one’s fellow countryman. Both in the Old Testament (Ps 139:19–22) and at Qumran (1QS 9:21) hatred of evil persons is assumed to be right. Jesus extends the love commandment to the enemy and the persecutor. His disciples, as children of God, must imitate the example of their Father, who grants his gifts of sun and rain to both the good and the bad.

Andy Alexander, S.J observes that, for the most part, we are followers of Jesus' way up to a point and then stop.

Then I can ask myself - perhaps throughout the day - Do I love my enemies?  Do I pray for those who persecute me? It shouldn't be very hard to come up with people that fall into this category:  from people who bug me to people I simply can't stand. I should include people who really don't like me. Of course, anyone who has hurt me badly in the past should go on this list.  And, I can even let myself consider "classes of people" I don't care too much for - the people who act or think differently from me.
Next, before I become terribly discouraged about ever being able to be Christian at all, if it means loving people on this list, I can simply and humbly ask our Lord for the grace he wants to give me to love these people the way he has loved me: with patience, compassion, healing and peace.

Don Schwager uses the words of John Chrysostom, 347-407 A.D to ask if we perceive how elevated is a Christian disposition?

"For neither did Christ simply command to love but to pray. Do you see how many steps he has ascended and how he has set us on the very summit of virtue? Mark it, numbering from the beginning. A first step is not to begin with injustice. A second, after one has begun, is not to vindicate oneself by retaliating in kind. A third, to refuse to respond in kind to the one who is injuring us but to remain tranquil. A fourth, even to offer up one's self to suffer wrongfully. A fifth, to give up even more than the wrongdoer wishes to take. A sixth, to refuse to hate one who has wronged us. A seventh, even to love such a one. An eighth, even to do good to that one. A ninth, to entreat God himself on our enemy's behalf. Do you perceive how elevated is a Christian disposition? Hence its reward is also glorious. (excerpt from THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, HOMILY 18.4)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 5:43-48 comments that we share many similarities with many people—if we dig deep enough.

Once you have identified these similarities and others, you can take the next step: look for some of that person’s unique qualities. He probably has his own story of heroic generosity and virtue. She may well be bearing an unseen cross with quiet faith and trust. Because everyone bears the image of God, everyone can reveal a facet of God’s nature that you never have encountered.
So are we the same? Or are we different? We are both. And that’s exactly how God wants it.

Fr Jack Mahoney SJ, Emeritus Professor of Moral and Social Theology, is asking what value we might find in historical and more modern attempts to interpret and live up to the values set forth in this important passage in Matthew’s Gospel.

Likewise, ‘rationalising’ the Sermon on the Mount divorces it from its theological context in Matthew’s Gospel, which we saw earlier, and disregards its purpose as being the demanding yet grace-bearing code of life for the followers of Jesus as they enter into God’s kingdom and live his new covenant with his new chosen people. Christian morality must be understood as part of an embracing love of God as well as of neighbour. Both the Decalogue and Sermon on the Mount begin with the gift of God and his covenant, and sketch the response of members of the chosen people, the ancient and then the new Israel, as they attempt to live with God’s gift and grace in their lives.

Friar Jude Winkler provides background on the “banana republic” instability of the northern kingdom of Israel when Elijah condemns Ahab. When we cheat and lie we are committing a form of blasphemy. Love is a question of giving what you need whether you deserve it or not. The Sermon on the Mount calls us to be perfect in Love and purify our motivation and act out of selflessness.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, reminds us that the church’s role is to change the world through the life and love of Jesus Christ. He quotes Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who said, “The church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the state, but rather the conscience of the state.”

WE BELIEVE we are one body. In Christ, there is to be no oppression based on race, gender, identity, or class (Galatians 3:28). [I would add sexual orientation as well.] The body of Christ, where those great human divisions are to be overcome, is meant to be an example for the rest of society. When we fail to overcome these oppressive obstacles, and even perpetuate them, we have failed in our vocation to the world—to proclaim and live the reconciling gospel of Christ.

Fr Jack Mahoney SJ quotes German scholar, Georg Strecker that, ‘there is scarcely a realm of New Testament exegesis in which the danger of erroneous interpretations is so great as in the area of actualizing the Sermon on the Mount’. St Francis of Assisi had a point when he is said to have demanded, ‘the Gospel without the gloss’ (evangelium sine glossa), or explanatory footnotes, for in this case many of the attempts to explain the Sermon on the Mount can easily slide into explaining it away.

References

(n.d.). 1 Kings, chapter 21 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved June 19, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/1kings/21

(n.d.). Matthew, chapter 5 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved June 19, 2018, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/5

(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections .... Retrieved June 19, 2018, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 19, 2018, from http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/

(n.d.). Sermon on the Mount | Thinking Faith: The online journal of the Jesuits .... Retrieved June 19, 2018, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/tags/sermon-mount

(n.d.). Daily Meditations Archives - Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 19, 2018, from https://cac.org/category/daily-meditations/