The lesson offered to us in today’s reading is much easier said than done, easier spoken than lived. Who would ever enjoy loving one’s enemy? Giving the other cheek to the one who strikes us ? Lending our things without expecting their return? This would be impossible to do! One would even enjoy taking vengeance against one’s enemies if there is an opportunity. But Jesus, the Son of God, teaches us otherwise. And he did not only tell us but showed us by his life, how he lived according to God’s will even to the point of selflessness. But Jesus is also God! Is it possible for me to live this kind of life, me, a mere human being and a sinner?
If we look around¸ we can find not far away, a perfect model of a follower of Jesus, our Blessed Mother Mary who is human in every way and who has followed Jesus so closely in utter simplicity and humility. She did not publish her privilege of being chosen the mother of God, but openly accepted her vocation in quiet simplicity, though she was forewarned of the double sword that would pierce her heart when she presented the child Jesus in the Temple. We also have other saints as examples who were inspired to live as Jesus had lived. So if they were able to do it, this must be possible for me and for you, too. Why shouldn’t we give it a try? Loving our enemies and doing good to them? This is something new for us, but with and in Jesus, nothing is impossible.
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All Issues > Volume 29, Issue 5
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