6th Sunday in Ordinary Time – 12th February 2017

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Sunday 12th February 2017)

 

 

Fulfilment of the Law – (Matthew 5:17-37)

Jesus often ran into conflict with the scribes and Pharisees.  They insisted that people should observe six hundred and thirteen prescriptions of the law.  The scribes were writers and teachers of the law of God.  The Pharisees were the strictest sect among the Jews for outward religious practices and righteousness.  Both groups concerned themselves with external observance, giving little consideration to motives and attitudes.

This would mean, for example, that no matter how much you hate a person, if you do not kill him you are not guilty of breaking the commandment.  No matter how much lust you have in your heart, you are not guilty of committing adultery if you do not commit the physical act.  This mere external observance of the law misses the point.

The Law was considered to be a precious gift from God, a sure guide to happiness by living in accordance with God’s plan. Psalm 119 gives beautiful examples of how much the people of Israel loved it and asked God to show them the blessings it gave.

The scribes and Pharisees accused Jesus of undermining the Law.  With the authority of the Son of God, He says: “Do not think I have come to abolish the Law or the prophets, but to fulfil them”.  Speaking through the prophet Jeremiah, God had already said (Jer 31:33) “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts”.  That is what Jesus was doing, writing the law in our hearts, so that our actions and behaviour flow from our following of Him.

He says “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven”. Our observance must flow from an inner conviction in our mind and heart, based on our faith in Him, who is the way, the truth and the life.

He gives examples of what he means, referring to murder and adultery.  What is in the heart? No wonder the psalmist (Ps 51) prays “A pure heart create for me O God, put a steadfast spirit within me”.  A pure heart and a steadfast spirit are great and necessary gifts, which we cannot create for ourselves.  We need to pray for them, because it is so easy to act on a whim, to take the easy way out, to act out of selfish motives, or to build a house on sand.

We are familiar with the practice of examining our conscience at the end of the day.  We can see how the day has gone and how we have lived it.  In order to benefit even more from this excellent practice, we might ask the Holy Spirit to let us see what was going on in our minds and hearts during the day.  In that way, we can see not just what we did or didn’t do, but what lay behind it.  Then, the way we live will surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees.

Fr. Kevin O’Rourke S.J.