AN UNPLEASANT BUT BADLY NEEDED TEACHING
Chapter
7 of the Gospel according to Matthew is the last installment on the
Sermon on the Mount. We read it today, just as we begin a new week.
Thank God for this special grace!
But Jesus’ message today is by no means pleasant. It is His direct
injunction against judging one another. And yet the irony of it is that,
while we disdain being judged and criticized negatively (passive
judgment, when we are on the receiving end of the judgment), we also
give in too easily in judging others (active judgment, when we are the
ones judging).
How easy it is to point a finger and put the blame, for example, on our
parents, society at large, or the government. How hard it is, on the
other hand, to point a finger to our very own selves, own up our faults
and take responsibility for them. The funny thing is that for every
finger we point towards others, there are at least three other fingers
pointing back to ourselves.
And so, Jesus does have a point, even with His unpleasant teachings
today. We do need to wake up and be provoked. And we thank Him for doing
that to us today! Fr. Martin Macasaet, SDB
REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Are you more prone to judge others or are you most often on the receiving end of judgment? How do you handle both?
Heal
me, Lord, from my tendency to be quick in judging others. Remind me
always that what I dislike most in others is the same thing that I
unconsciously do not like in myself. Amen.
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