Saturday of the First Week of Lent
In today’s first reading we have the narrative of the establishment of the covenant between God and the Hebrews through the prophet Moses. This ends the section of Deuteronomy (or “Second Law”) which expounds on the law. Both parties of the covenant—God and the Hebrews—are to keep up their ends of the agreement. The Hebrews “are to walk in [God’s] ways and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees” (Dt 26:17) and God will make them His chosen people.
It is fitting that we have this reminder of the covenant between God and the Israelites because in today’s gospel, Jesus pushes those expectations of the covenant further.
As we know, Jesus was a devout Jew. In Jewish law, it was expected that one had contempt for one’s enemies. In today’s gospel, Jesus challenges us to love even our enemies (Mt 5:44).
We must reflect a bit on the nature of love here. As you may have heard before, the Greek word that appears in Matthew’s gospel here is “agape.” This word, of the four Greek words for love, denotes a self-sacrificial form of elevating the other. It is a response that is unconditional. And it is clearly divine, even identified with God in John’s first letter, “God is love.” (1 Jn 4:8)
Jesus models this agape in His ultimate sacrifice offered on the cross. He is perfect. He is the embodiment of divine love. And it is through this ultimate sacrifice of Himself, this ultimate act of love, that Jesus establishes the New Covenant between God and humanity.
Three powerful examples of loving one’s enemies come to mind. First, Pope John Paul II who, after Mehmet Ali Ağca shot and seriously wounded the pope in 1981, visited his attacker in prison and asked people to pray for “my brother,” Mehmet. They developed something of a friendship and Ağca even sent a letter wishing John Paul well shortly before the pope’s death. The second is the story of Debbie Morris, one of the victims of Robert Willie portrayed as “The Dead Man Walking” in the film of the same name. Morris engaged in an arduous path to forgive Willie as well as Sr. Helen Prejean, whom she resented for ministering to Willie on death row. The third example is Joseph Cardinal Bernardin who took concrete steps to reach out to Steven Cook who had accused Bernardin of sexual abuse and then withdrew his accusation. Bernardin sought out Cook and celebrated Mass with him.
Let us be inspired by these great Christian witnesses to enact selfless love, even to those who persecute us in one way or another.
– Tim Gabrielli