Daily Mass Gospel Reflection- Unavoidable Judgement

Word on Fire Ministry ^ | 7.18.23 | Bishop Robert Barron

[MurphsLaw]

Matthew 11:20-24

Friends, in today’s Gospel,
Jesus reproaches the unrepentant towns where he performed most of his mighty deeds.
The idea of Jesus as judge is one with which we are distinctly uncomfortable,
yet even the most cursory reading of the New Testament reveals its unavoidability.
Indeed, it has been said that in front of every church
there ought to be a statue of the compassionate Jesus
and a statue of Christ in full flight of fury,
since both are indisputably present in the Gospel stories.

The point is that when God’s own ordo appears in the world,
he necessarily judges the disorder that surrounds him.
To judge, in the biblical sense of the term,
means to bring into the light, to throw into sharp relief.
When good and evil are confused or intermingled,
divine judgment separates them, clarifying the issue.

By his very nature, in his every word and gesture,
in the very way that he stood,
Jesus, God’s Word, was a judge.
He was the light of the world,
harshly exposing that which would prefer to remain in the dark;
he was the unadulterated criterion,
the truth in the presence of which falsity necessarily appeared for what it was.

[MurphsLaw]

+++Jesus began to reproach the towns
where most of his mighty deeds
had been done,
since they had not repented.
"Woe to you, Chorazin!
Woe to you, Bethsaida!
For if the mighty deeds done in your midst
had been done in Tyre and Sidon,
they would long ago have
repented in sackcloth and ashes.
But I tell you,
it will be more tolerable
for Tyre and Sidon on the day of
judgment than for you.
And as for you, Capernaum:

Will you be exalted to heaven?
You will go down to the netherworld.

For if the mighty deeds done in your midst
had been done in Sodom,
it would have remained until this day.
But I tell you, it will be more tolerable
for the land of Sodom on the day
of judgment than for you."+++

[chajin]

in front of every church there ought to be a statue of the compassionate Jesus and a statue of Christ in full flight of fury, since both are indisputably present in the Gospel stories.

That is the basis for the famous icon at St. Catherine monastery of Jesus, with His benevolent look on the left and His judgemental look on the right.

[MurphsLaw]

Wow... that is such cool painting.
Exactly, the Divine nature.

Thanks so much for adding that!