The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to respond to the injustice and greed we witness and experience with care and concern for our persecutor.
The Reading from the First Book of Kings presents the Seizure of Naboth’s Vineyard.
* [21:1–16] The story tells how Jezebel manipulates important structures of Israelite social order, law, and religious observance to eliminate a faithful Israelite landowner who frustrates Ahab’s will.
* [21:3] Heritage: Hebrew naḥalah. Naboth is unwilling to sell or exchange his vineyard. According to the Israelite system of land tenure and distribution, land was held in common within a social unit. The ancestral naḥalah was not private property, to be alienated at will. (1 Kings, CHAPTER 21 | USCCB, n.d.)
Psalm 5 is a prayer for the protection and joy of the Temple.
* [Psalm 5] A lament contrasting the security of the house of God (Ps 5:8–9, 12–13) with the danger of the company of evildoers (Ps 5:5–7, 10–11). The psalmist therefore prays that God will hear (Ps 5:2–4) and grant the protection and joy of the Temple. (Psalms, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus Teaching in the Sermon on the Mount is About Retaliation.
* [5:38–42] See Lv 24:20. The Old Testament commandment was meant to moderate vengeance; the punishment should not exceed the injury done. Jesus forbids even this proportionate retaliation. Of the five examples that follow, only the first deals directly with retaliation for evil; the others speak of liberality.
* [5:41] Roman garrisons in Palestine had the right to requisition the property and services of the native population. (Matthew, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)
Barbara Dilly comments that Jesus says no to violence as the first resort. Jesus also says no to resisting evil. But by advocating non-violence, he does not ask us to give up our dignity. He asks us to show restraint and to demand respect by not returning insults and evil. He wants us to break the cycle of retaliation and to engage in peacemaking in a creative and dignified manner. This is far from being passive. It is a radical response that asserts an unconventional power by refusing to be the one who is humiliated. It changes the terms of the interaction based on love as a new way of relating to others. It invites them to consider their actions on different terms.
Unfortunately, not every evil situation lets us do this. Non-violence is difficult for us to think about and even more difficult to put into action. That does not mean we should not take Jesus seriously on this. We can learn to reflect on our experiences of injustice, to practice non-violence and to show love to our enemies. There are books we can read and classes we can take that show us significant ways in which non-violence has brought about significant social and political change around the world and even in America. But it starts with our hearts first. I pray today that we will all try to become more like Jesus in this way. (Dilly, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “You tear yourself apart by hating,” by an anonymous early author from the Greek church.
"We have seen how murder is born from anger and adultery from desire. In the same way, the hatred of an enemy is destroyed by the love of friendship. Suppose you have viewed a man as an enemy, yet after a while he has been swayed by your benevolence. You will then love him as a friend. I think that Christ ordered these things not so much for our enemies as for us: not because enemies are fit to be loved by others but because we are not fit to hate anyone. For hatred is the prodigy of dark places. Wherever it resides, it sullies the beauty of sound sense. Therefore not only does Christ order us to love our enemies for the sake of cherishing them but also for the sake of driving away from ourselves what is bad for us. The Mosaic law does not speak about physically hurting your enemy but about hating your enemy. But if you merely hate him, you have hurt yourself more in the spirit than you have hurt him in the flesh. Perhaps you don't harm him at all by hating him. But you surely tear yourself apart. If then you are benevolent to an enemy, you have rather spared yourself than him. And if you do him a kindness, you benefit yourself more than him." (excerpt from INCOMPLETE WORK ON MATTHEW, HOMILY 13, The Greek Fathers) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Kings 21:1-16 asks how do we deal with the temptation to covet “anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 20:17)?
Today, try to keep a running list of the good, the true, and the Christlike thoughts that arise in your heart—as well as the Christlike people you come across. Then, at the end of the day, read over your list. Let the truths of God’s goodness that you see in that list convince you that Jesus is your greatest treasure!
“Lord, heal me of all envy and covetousness!” (Meditation on 1 Kings 21:1-16, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments that in 1 Kings the great opponent of Naboth is Jezabel, wife of King Ahab. The king wanted his neighbour’s vineyard but Naboth asserted that God had distributed the land to his family. In Hebrew practice, if you sold land, it was returned to the original custodian on the Jubilee year. Jezebel concocted a plot against Naboth that concluded with his execution and the property went to the King. Matthew continues the Sermon on the Mount and Jesus cites a Hebrew law that was, in effect, a merciful act that was a limitation of how much retribution could be permitted. Jesus goes way beyond and declares that If you are injured you give love and prayer generously to one who hurts you. Friar Jude comments that Jesus is teaching to destroy evil you do it by love and service and see enemies as people who need our help and assistance. It is through love that they will come around.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, describes the influence of the apostle Paul on the formation of the first Christian churches.
The churches or communities Paul founded are his audiovisual aids that he can point to inside of a debauched empire (where human dignity was never upheld as inherent) to give credibility to his message. To people who asked, “Why should we believe there’s a new or different life possible?” Paul could say, “Look at these people. They’re different. This is a different social order.” In Christ, “there are no more distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). This is not just a religious idea, but a socioeconomic message that began to change the world—and still can.
For Jesus, teachings such as forgiveness, healing, and justice work are the real evidence of a new and shared life. If we do not see this happening in churches and spiritual communities, religion is “all in the head” and largely an illusion. Peacemaking, forgiveness, and reconciliation are not some kind of ticket to heaven later. They are the price of peoplehood—the signature of heaven—now. (Rohr, n.d.)
We seek the calm and control offered by the Spirit to respond to broken people who persecute others with the love and compassion that Jesus asserts is the path to reconciliation.
References
Dilly, B. (n.d.). Daily Reflections. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-june-15-2026
Matthew, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/5?
Meditation on 1 Kings 21:1-16. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://wau.org/meditations/2026/06/15/1592497/
1 Kings, CHAPTER 21 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings, Audio and Video Every Morning | USCCB. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1kings/21?1
Psalms, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings, Audio and Video Every Morning | USCCB. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/5?2
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Being the Body of Christ. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/being-the-body-of-christ/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Do Not Return Evil for Evil. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 15, 2026, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/
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