Fr. Carlo Di Sopra sx
Reflection on the readings of VI Sunday in ordinary time
In every society, association, group there are rules and regulations. The observance of those rules are the condition of belonging to that particular group, and the wisdom of those regulations are often the pride of those who practise them.
When God gave the Commandment to Moses, they became the identity of the Israelites and the condition of their belonging to the People of God, the condition of a reciprocal belonging of the people to God and of God to the people: they sealed a Covenant.
Likewise, but in very different ways, God inspired at all times and places many other laws for people to identify themselves with in different cultures around the world. Even here in Sierra Leone we can see it in the great variety of parties, tribes, groups and associations we belong to. There is undoubtly beauty, richness and wisdom in this great diversity worthy to be maintained and preserved and transmitted from one generation to the next.
There are, though, two aspects that Jesus wants to underline or add to the beauty of the laws. The first is interiority. It is not enough to observe the rules without adhering to the spirit who inspired them. The law establishes the limit, the border between what is admitted and what is forbidden, but perfection is not living on the border. "It was said to you, do not kill, but I say, if you are going to the altar and remember that your brother has something against you, leave the altar and go to reconcile first". Jesus considers the law in a deeper way, more personal, more genuine, more interior. In this interiority there is no space for excuses or complications as always happens in “ palavas” and in courts! Here "yes" is "yes" and "no" is "no".
The other aspect is universality. The multiplicity of cultures and the differences among peoples can bring about, and often do, as we all know and see in the world today, conflicts of any kind. Groups want to affirm themselves 'against' others and from there all the wars and tensions. The cure that the Gospel suggests is the deepening of the meaning of all identities and all the laws and of all the rights until we discover that law of laws, the mother of all laws which is Love, which is God himself!
There is finally a third aspect suggested by St Paul when in 1Cor, 2:6 he says "we (the Church, the Christian) have a wisdom to offer to those who have reached maturity...". There is something more therefore for those who have reached maturity... There is a progress in life. It is like a journey, a development, something dynamic. There is always something new that we can not only discover with our intelligence, but that we can experience in the relationship with the others and with God too. The possibilities of our experiences are so many that we cannot count them. The depth of God does not have an end, a limit. It will never be boring because every day is new. Indeed: "Open my eyes that I may consider the wonders of your law" (Ps 118)
Reflection on the readings of VI Sunday in ordinary time
In every society, association, group there are rules and regulations. The observance of those rules are the condition of belonging to that particular group, and the wisdom of those regulations are often the pride of those who practise them.
When God gave the Commandment to Moses, they became the identity of the Israelites and the condition of their belonging to the People of God, the condition of a reciprocal belonging of the people to God and of God to the people: they sealed a Covenant.
Likewise, but in very different ways, God inspired at all times and places many other laws for people to identify themselves with in different cultures around the world. Even here in Sierra Leone we can see it in the great variety of parties, tribes, groups and associations we belong to. There is undoubtly beauty, richness and wisdom in this great diversity worthy to be maintained and preserved and transmitted from one generation to the next.
There are, though, two aspects that Jesus wants to underline or add to the beauty of the laws. The first is interiority. It is not enough to observe the rules without adhering to the spirit who inspired them. The law establishes the limit, the border between what is admitted and what is forbidden, but perfection is not living on the border. "It was said to you, do not kill, but I say, if you are going to the altar and remember that your brother has something against you, leave the altar and go to reconcile first". Jesus considers the law in a deeper way, more personal, more genuine, more interior. In this interiority there is no space for excuses or complications as always happens in “ palavas” and in courts! Here "yes" is "yes" and "no" is "no".
The other aspect is universality. The multiplicity of cultures and the differences among peoples can bring about, and often do, as we all know and see in the world today, conflicts of any kind. Groups want to affirm themselves 'against' others and from there all the wars and tensions. The cure that the Gospel suggests is the deepening of the meaning of all identities and all the laws and of all the rights until we discover that law of laws, the mother of all laws which is Love, which is God himself!
There is finally a third aspect suggested by St Paul when in 1Cor, 2:6 he says "we (the Church, the Christian) have a wisdom to offer to those who have reached maturity...". There is something more therefore for those who have reached maturity... There is a progress in life. It is like a journey, a development, something dynamic. There is always something new that we can not only discover with our intelligence, but that we can experience in the relationship with the others and with God too. The possibilities of our experiences are so many that we cannot count them. The depth of God does not have an end, a limit. It will never be boring because every day is new. Indeed: "Open my eyes that I may consider the wonders of your law" (Ps 118)