Matthew 5:20-26
Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, Raqa, will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny."
Dawg's thought:
As I sat for a moment and reflected on today's reading, I was struck with what it means for us when we forgive someone.
Look at a crucifix.
When we forgive someone, we have to die to ourselves in order to forgive. If we want to grow in holiness, we have to die to ourselves. We have to die to our desires to make someone else feel the pain that they may have caused us. We have to die to our desires to be acknowledged for the pain we may feel.
In this way, we go beyond what the Pharisees "thought" was holiness. Their holiness was external, and Christ desires that our conversion and our charity come from within.
Today, die to the things that bind you to this earth. Today, forgive. Take care and God Bless.
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