Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Homily: Tuesday - 11th Week of OT 2016 - Love your enemy



The teaching to “love your enemies and pray for your persecutors” must have been startling to the original hearers of the Sermon on the Mount.  In first-century Palestine, “your enemies” and “those who persecute you” first and foremost brought to mind the Roman oppressors. Throughout their history, Israel contended with enemies committed to their destruction: the Egyptians, the Amelekites, the Canaanites, the Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, and the Greeks.  Their enemies were often more numerous than Israel, better equipped, cruel, oppressive, and cunning. Their enemies enslaved them, exiled them from their home, sought to impose foreign cultural practices upon them, and even wipe out the practice of their religion and replace their worship of Yahweh with their own pagan gods.

Throughout the Old Testament God taught Israel not to fear their enemy, to trust in God even in times of persecution and oppression, to pray for deliverance, even to show kindness to your enemy.

Yet, Jesus takes it one step further when he teaches us, love your enemy.

Teaching us fallen humans how to love is at the heart of Jesus’ mission.  He tells us today that not only are we to love our neighbor, but our enemies as well, those who persecute you, those who sin against you, those who your country is at war with, those who cut you off in traffic, those who may have bullied you a half a century ago in grade school, those who seem to be bringing ruin to our country or our church, your employer who fires you unjustly.  Love them. 

Love them, forgive them, be patient with them, feed them, clothe them, teach them, serve them, hold no grudges toward them, seek what is best for them.

For the Jews, Israel was called to imitate the holiness of God. Yet, this was often interpreted in Jesus’ time as separating from everything that was considered unholy.  This is why we see Pharisees confounded by Jesus dining with tax collectors and sinners. The word Pharisee even means “to separate”, “to detach” from sin.  Jesus teaches us, instead of separating ourselves from the world of sinners, to enter into their world to infuse it with Christian love.

When we made ourselves enemies of God through sin, God entered into our lives and worked for our conversion, and we are to do the same. He does not give up on us until our last breath, and we must do the same, even with our enemies.


May word and sacrament continue to perfect our charity toward all, and help us to embrace with truth and love, those the world deems unembracable, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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