Daily Mass Gospel Reflection- Avowing Commitment

Word on Fire Ministry ^ | 06.11.22 | Bishop Robert Barron

[MurphsLaw]

Memorial of Saint Barnabas, Apostle

Matthew 5:33-37

Friends, in today’s Gospel,
the Lord teaches his way about oaths and vows.

Although Jesus prohibited oath-taking,
the tradition of the Church has allowed oaths “made for grave and right reasons,”
for example, in court.
But the Church has traditionally employed vows to sustain
the commitments of priests and religious so that they may,
as the Catechism puts it,
“conform themselves more fully to the obedient Christ.”

For example, vows have sustained the holiness of many women religious who have become saints,
including St. Katharine Drexel, a philanthropist who shows us what justice looks like when it is invaded by love;
Thérèse of Lisieux, a Doctor of the Church whose “little way” demonstrates a prudence radicalized by Christ;
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), a philosopher and martyr who is an icon of evangelical courage;
and St. Teresa of Kolkata, a missionary of charity who embodies the power of poverty and asceticism
when placed in the service of Jesus.

[MurphsLaw]

+++Jesus said to his disciples:
“You have heard that it was said to
your ancestors,
Do not take a false oath,
but make good to the Lord all that you vow.
But I say to you, do not swear at all;
not by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool;
nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city
of the great King.
Do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make a single hair
white or black.
Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your
‘No’ mean ‘No.’
Anything more is from the Evil One.”+++