Sunday - February 19, 2023
A double-minded person is one who kneels down to ask God for things and beseeches Him to grant them, and yet feels so accused by his conscience that he distrusts his ability to pray. A double-minded person is also one who, when he does good deeds, looks for external approval rather than interior reward. The wise man is right when he says, "Woe to the sinner who walks along two ways!" (Sirach 2:12) People of this type are inconstant in all their ways, for they are very easily overpowered by adverse circumstance and entrapped by favorable ones, with the result that they stray from the true path.
-- St. Bede the Venerable
TODAY'S READINGS
February 19, 2023
Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 79
Reading I
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."
Responsorial Psalm
R. (8a) The Lord is kind and merciful.
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.
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.
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person;
for the temple of God, which you are, is holy.
Let no one deceive himself.
If any one among you considers himself wise in this age,
let him become a fool, so as to become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God,
for it is written:
God catches the wise in their own ruses,
and again:
The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise,
that they are vain.
So let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you,
Paul or Apollos or Cephas,
or the world or life or death,
or the present or the future:
all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever keeps the word of Christ,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
R. Alleluia
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 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.
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."
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How to Open the Door of Love with Mercy
Mercy is the key to understanding this Sunday’s Gospel reading. Think of love as the front door to people’s hearts. When they close it, mercy is the love that sneaks in through the back door.
In ancient times, if someone gouged another person in the eye, the victim could gather his clan and punish him by wiping out his aggressor’s clan. So God gave his people a law that brought them closer to love: If someone hurts your eye, you may do nothing more than the same to him. It was still unloving, but at least it was fair.
When Jesus came onto the scene, he raised the standards: If someone hurts you, don’t play fair; give that person love.
When people sin against us, they don’t understand that they’re closing their hearts to God and his love. But if we give them love, we give them God through a back door.
This does not mean we are to remain in harm’s way. But if we continue to give them love — even if only from afar — we bring God and his healing into the situation.
If someone steals from you or demands something from you unjustly, you can’t stop his greed but you can stop him from sinning against you: Let it go, give it to him. And as an act of generous love, give him more! I know it doesn’t feel right, but this is what Jesus says is right. Divinely right.
If someone asks you to do a chore for her because she’s lazy, prevent it from becoming a sin of cruelty; gladly do what she asks and volunteer to do more.
This plan of Jesus demonstrates, through us, that God’s love is superior to everything else. It proves that love conquers evil.
This is what it means to be perfect. Perfection in the Bible means the fullness of love — complete, unlimited, merciful love.
Today's Prayer
Thank You, Lord, for Your unconditional love. Give me a merciful heart to pray and to work particularly for those who offend me or reject me. Amen.
The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
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