Matthew. 23:23-26

2 Thessalonians 2:1-3a, 14-17

Psalm 96:10, 11-12, 13

Matthew. 23:23-26

Jesus said:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.

You pay tithes of mint and dill and cumin,

and have neglected the weightier things of the law:

judgment and mercy and fidelity.

But these you should have done, without neglecting the others.

Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel!

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.

You cleanse the outside of cup and dish,

but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence.

Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup,

so that the outside also may be clean.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I hope to hear words of blessing and not woe when I encounter you at the moment of my death. I do not want to neglect the heart of your divine law. May I be just in all my works. May I be merciful to those around me. May I be faithful to your word.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Heart of the Law: In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus continues his series of seven woes. Today, he accuses the scribes and Pharisees of neglecting what is most important in God’s Law. Jesus has just declared that the two greatest commandments are love for God and love for neighbor (Matthew 22:34-40). The problem, however, was that the scribes and Pharisees mistakenly concentrated on lesser, more external things in the Law of Moses and were blinded about the importance of the interior acts of the heart. They were attentive to lesser matters like clean dishware, ritual washing before meals, human traditions, and paying taxes on spices. But by forgetting the weightier things of the law, their hearts were far from God. Ultimately all human beings will be judged by God and before God all will be revealed. We will not be able to hide behind lame excuses, sophistical interpretations, or false justifications. We will be judged on how we have loved, how we have been merciful with our brothers and sisters, and whether or not we have been faithful to God and his Law.

2. Jesus’ Return in Glory: In the First Reading, Paul tells the Thessalonians that they should not be alarmed by a forged letter about the second coming (Parousia) of Jesus Christ. He tells the community that it is true that Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead and that those who believe will be taken up into the glory of heaven, but also that we do not know the day nor the hour of Jesus’ return. Paul teaches that before Jesus’ return a great apostasy will occur and that the antichrist – the man of lawlessness and the son of perdition who exalts himself – will appear. This is in agreement with the signs of the end-times that Jesus spoke about in the Gospels. When we contemplate the end times, it is important to remember that Jesus has triumphed and will triumph over the evil one. This is a cause for our hope. We place our hope in God who is fully worthy of our trust and capable of fulfilling our desire for eternal life. We hope in the divine promise of salvation made present to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the true Witness to the Father, and the sending of the Holy Spirit (O’Callaghan, Christ Our Hope, 11-14). The Holy Spirit gives life to the promise of salvation and makes it present in our hearts.

3. The True Way of Christian Perfection: Our words and actions cannot be like those of the scribes and Pharisees. Too often we are tempted like them to neglect the weightier matters of the law of charity and mistakenly think that we are justified by secondary, external works done without charity. In the New Law of grace and charity, it is important to hold fast to the person of Jesus and share in his free, loving, and filial obedience to the will of the Father. The way of Christian perfection leads us to the love of God and neighbor, to a further detachment from possessions, and to the following of Christ. As Christians, we believe that God chose us in Christ to be holy and to share in divine glory. Those who follow Christ must stand firm and hold fast to the teachings of the Apostles. God’s grace brings consolation and eternal comfort to our hearts; his grace enables us to do good works and to proclaim the Gospel of salvation to our brothers and sisters.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you reserved your harshest judgment for the Scribes and Pharisees. They were supposed to be the good shepherds of your people and yet they often were obstacles between the people and the Father. Help me to be a good shepherd and eradicate any hypocrisy in my life.

Living the Word of God: Am I good at distinguishing between the heart of God’s law and things that are important but secondary? When have I been too concerned with lesser matters and not with weightier matters?