6TH SUNDAY, YEAR A: REFLCETION BY FR JULIAN EKEH
THEME: HOW IT IS VS HOW IT SHOULD BE
(Matthew 5:17-37)
The Gospel of today is part of the
collections of Jesus' teachings and sayings on the mountain, popularly known as
the sermon on the mount. His sayings are loaded with wisdom, for He is the
wisdom of God. His teachings are filled with knowledge intended to correct,
redirect, educate, set records straight, reveal the mind of God, and guide
people on the right path by the light of the word. Let us follow Jesus and see
the steps He followed to impact His message.
OBSERVATION
Jesus must have observed the people,
listened to them, been with them, and spoken with them. During the course of
their interaction, He must have observed the missing links in their thought
patterns, modus operandi et modus vivendi. He must have tried placing side by
side what they do, what they say, what they claim to have heard, and what they
believed with what they ought to hold fast to. And this led Him to help them
out, to lead them out of both their ignorance and their distorted knowledge.
If Jesus looks below, wouldn't He find out
that it is worse now than then? Certainly, He will observe a lot of
abnormalities, inconsistencies, inhuman deeds, light headedness, etc.
Could it be that the silent days of Jesus
before His actual public appearance was a period of observation for Him, of
mingling with them, mixing with them, discussing with them in the form of
dialogue? Yes, it is. Then, when the time came, He came out to teach with
authority. Has Jesus not observed us a lot, given us enough signs to believe
and choose good and not evil? Must we wait for the teaching that will be
thought by experience? Let's be conscious of Christ in our midst trying to
guide us in the right path of life.
AND JESUS BEGAN TO TEACH THEM
When a teacher, a speaker or a preacher
stands to teach, speak or preach as the case may be, the people weigh him,
predict what he has to offer or attempt to grasp where he is heading to or even
expect him to say what they want to hear. Jesus warned them against such
thoughts. He says: "Do not think I have come to abolish the law and the
prophets." This presupposes the fact that there were people who would love
Jesus to thwart or bend some of the commandments to suit their personal whims
and caprices. Such persons are not happy with the " how it is" that
is in line with "how it should be." There are times when the practice
of our world is in order. There are people still who do not want it done that
way. Thus, Jesus comes to confirm the happenings that are good while
discouraging the laws or rather the interpretations of the laws that are
actually misinterpretations.
Are there laws we wish the Church, the
society, the family, and the community to abolish? A particular community
begged the Bishop to remove the sixth commandment for them. A boy pleaded with
the father to allow him to be viewing obscene videos. A man told his wife to
look away from his immoral and irresponsible lifestyle for peace to reign. Some
individuals in the Church continue to push for the pope to approve
homosexuality and see it as normal. In the faces of such circumstances, Jesus
maintains: "I have not come to abolish but to fulfil."
He comes to call the spade by its name.
Good is good. Evil is evil. No middle position. This is the summary of His
teaching. Say yes when you mean yes, and say no when you mean no.
WHAT HAVE YOU HEARD?
This statement continued ringing in the
Gospel: "You have heard how it was said... But I say to you. "What
have you heard? From whom? These are the questions. It is very important that
we evaluate the sources of our information to avoid deformation that comes
through misinformation. This is a lesson we must learn from Jesus. We have to
learn to listen to what God is in the midst of the multiplicity of ideas flying
here and there. We have to go back to the drawing board to know how God wants
it to be and how, indeed, it ought to be before we venture into it. After
hearing the many opinions, we must only listen and act according to the
directive of Christ in order not to face the crisis of abandoning God.
Society is saying a lot, the social media
is saying a lot, the peer associations are saying a lot, the various groups on
the social networks are saying volumes. When in crisis in your marriage, do you
go to these various sayers? When you are into relationship problems, where and
who do you run to? Jesus is the only teacher per excellence. Your children in
school will hear a lot. But when they come back, insist on: "But I say to
you." Temptations to cheat will come up but hear Jesus tell you: "But
I say to you" Friends will advise you to do it this way or that contrary
to your faith in God but obey Christ telling you: But I say to you. Don't get
used to how things are now that are not in accord with the will and teaching of
Christ.
May God bless His word in our hearts.
Thank You, Lord God, for Your Son's word
today from the holy mountain of Your glorious inspiration and truth. May it
continue to be a light to our paths and a lamp for our steps. Grant that we may
be rightfully guided by these right teachings and encouragements through Christ
our Lord. Amen.
Happy Sunday to you. (6th Sunday of
Ordinary Time, Yr A)
Rev Fr Julian O Ekeh
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