The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to seek the truth about our relationships and actions as we accept the invitation to transformation in Jesus Way.
The reading from the Book of Sirach presents some Tests in Life that reveal truth.
* [27:4–7, 11–15] The importance of effective speech is a favorite wisdom topic; e.g., cf. 20:1–8, 18–20; 22:27–23:15. (Sirach, CHAPTER 27 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 92 is a thanksgiving for Vindication.
* [Psalm 92] A hymn of praise and thanks for God’s faithful deeds (Ps 92:2–5). The wicked, deluded by their prosperity (Ps 92:6–9), are punished (Ps 92:10), whereas the psalmist has already experienced God’s protection (Ps 92:11–15). (Psalms, PSALM 92 | USCCB, n.d.)
The reading from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians exhorts us to Labour in the Lord.
* [15:54–55] Death is swallowed up in victory: scripture itself predicts death’s overthrow. O death: in his prophetic vision Paul may be making Hosea’s words his own, or imagining this cry of triumph on the lips of the risen church.
* [15:56] The sting of death is sin: an explanation of Hosea’s metaphor. Death, scorpion-like, is equipped with a sting, sin, by which it injects its poison. Christ defeats sin, the cause of death (Gn 3:19; Rom 5:12). (1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Luke, the Sermon on the Plain compares a Tree and Its Fruit.
* [6:20–49] Luke’s “Sermon on the Plain” is the counterpart to Matthew’s “Sermon on the Mount” (Mt 5:1–7:27). It is addressed to the disciples of Jesus, and, like the sermon in Matthew, it begins with beatitudes (Lk 6:20–22) and ends with the parable of the two houses (Lk 6:46–49). Almost all the words of Jesus reported by Luke are found in Matthew’s version, but because Matthew includes sayings that were related to specifically Jewish Christian problems (e.g., Mt 5:17–20; 6:1–8, 16–18) that Luke did not find appropriate for his predominantly Gentile Christian audience, the “Sermon on the Mount” is considerably longer. Luke’s sermon may be outlined as follows: an introduction consisting of blessings and woes (Lk 6:20–26); the love of one’s enemies (Lk 6:27–36); the demands of loving one’s neighbor (Lk 6:37–42); good deeds as proof of one’s goodness (Lk 6:43–45); a parable illustrating the result of listening to and acting on the words of Jesus (Lk 6:46–49). At the core of the sermon is Jesus’ teaching on the love of one’s enemies (Lk 6:27–36) that has as its source of motivation God’s graciousness and compassion for all humanity (Lk 6:35–36) and Jesus’ teaching on the love of one’s neighbor (Lk 6:37–42) that is characterized by forgiveness and generosity. (Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB, n.d.)
Eileen Wirth comments that Jesus is teaching us how to cope with family relationships that you can’t entirely walk away from even when you’re angry.
I found that his most important lesson is that we can’t change another person, only ourselves. I resolved to focus on this even if it doesn’t seem fair. With that shift, I somewhat grudgingly began to examine the beam in my eye while asking Jesus to do something about the splinter in hers. I asked myself the following questions:
Why can’t I forgive and forget old grievances? Do I kind of enjoy them?
Is there some truth in what she told me about myself?
Could I be more patient?
Can I listen better even if I don’t like what she’s saying?
Can I give her strokes even if I don’t feel like it?
At least Jesus knows I’m trying and that I pray daily for my relative. If I’ve done my utmost to improve my share of the relationship, I won’t feel guilty about telling Jesus to do the best he can with us. (Wirth, 2025)
Don Schwager quotes “Seeing the speck in another's eye,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"The word hypocrite is aptly employed here (Luke 6:42, Matthew 7:5), since the denouncing of evils is best viewed as a matter only for upright persons of goodwill. When the wicked engage in it, they are like impersonators, masqueraders, hiding their real selves behind a mask, while they portray another's character through the mask. The word hypocrites in fact signifies pretenders. Hence we ought especially to avoid that meddlesome class of pretenders who under the pretense of seeking advice undertake the censure of all kinds of vices. They are often moved by hatred and malice. Rather, whenever necessity compels one to reprove or rebuke another, we ought to proceed with godly discernment and caution. First of all, let us consider whether the other fault is such as we ourselves have never had or whether it is one that we have overcome. Then, if we have never had such a fault, let us remember that we are human and could have had it. But if we have had it and are rid of it now, let us remember our common frailty, in order that mercy, not hatred, may lead us to the giving of correction and admonition. In this way, whether the admonition occasions the amendment or the worsening of the one for whose sake we are offering it (for the result cannot be foreseen), we ourselves shall be made safe through singleness of eye. But if on reflection we find that we ourselves have the same fault as the one we are about to reprove, let us neither correct nor rebuke that one. Rather, let us bemoan the fault ourselves and induce that person to a similar concern, without asking him to submit to our correction."(excerpt from Sermon on the Mount 2.19.64) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Sirach 27:4-7 suggests that we might ask ourselves; “How can I fill the storehouse of my heart with good? How can I nourish and cultivate myself so that I can bear the good fruit I was created to bear?”
There are some obvious answers to these questions. Regular prayer can help you set down deep roots in the Lord. Committing Scripture to memory can create an environment of grace and faith that will help you produce good fruit.
But there is another not-so-obvious answer: your relationships with other brothers and sisters in Christ. People who share your faith can be a great help in nourishing your heart. Sisters and brothers with whom you can pray can lift you up. People whom you can join in serving the less fortunate can help you bear the fruit of compassion. Friends who speak words of blessing and encouragement can help you steer clear of gossip, resentment, or bitterness.
Above all, never forget God’s grace. It’s God himself who created you to bear good fruit. He wants to fill you and enable your words to reveal his goodness and love, and he wants to use your friends to help you!
“Lord, help me bear good fruit!” (Meditation on Sirach 27:4-7, 2025)
Friar Jude Winkler comments that the Book of Wisdom (circa 250 BCE) notes that speech and tribulation often reveal the truth of a person. Paul teaches the Corinthians about the sting of death that results from sin. Friar Jude reminds us of the wisdom in Luke’s Sermon on the Plain that exhorts us to look at our own lives when we are tempted to condemn the actions of others.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, sees the “The Way of Tears” as one that leads to sympathy with suffering and communion with reality.
There’s an inherent sadness and tragedy in almost all situations: in our relationships, our mistakes, our failures large and small, and even our victories. We must develop a very real empathy for this reality, knowing that we cannot fully fix things, entirely change them, or make them to our liking. This “way of tears,” and the deep vulnerability that it expresses, is opposed to our normal ways of seeking control through willpower, commandment, force, retribution, and violence. Instead, we begin in a state of empathy with and for things and people and events, which just might be the opposite of judgmentalism. It’s hard to be on the attack when you are weeping.
Prophets and mystics recognize what most of us do not—that all things have tears and all things deserve tears. The sympathy that wells up when we weep can be life changing, too, drawing us out of ourselves and into communion with those around us (Rohr, n.d.)
We implore the Spirit to guide us in the difficult and challenging path of seeking the truth behind our motivation and action while inspiring the correcting of our path to love, compassion, and mercy through owning the truth.
References
Luke, CHAPTER 6 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/6?39
Meditation on Sirach 27:4-7. (2025, March 2). The Word Among Us. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/03/02/1217546/
1 Corinthians, CHAPTER 15 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/15?54
Psalms, PSALM 92 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/92?2
Rohr, R. (n.d.). The Way of Tears. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-way-of-tears/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Do You Not See the Log in Your Own Eye? Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=mar2
Sirach, CHAPTER 27 | USCCB. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/sirach/27?4
Wirth, E. (2025, March 2). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved March 2, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/030225.html
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