Matthew 5:17-19

Deuteronomy 4:1-5-9

Psalm 147:12-13, 15-16, 19-20

Matthew 5:17-19

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.

I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.

Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,

not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter

will pass from the law,

until all things have taken place.

Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments

and teaches others to do so

will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.

But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments

will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, why do I struggle to heed and obey your law? Your law is something I should rejoice in because it leads me along the path that leads to life. And yet, I am continually tempted to follow my own way and reject your way. Do not allow me to succumb to these temptations and bring me along the path that leads to you.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The New Torah: The Gospel is taken from the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has just delivered the Beatitudes, the blessings of the New Covenant. In a profound way, Jesus transformed the curses of the Old Covenant, such as persecution and suffering, to become the path to blessing in the New Covenant. Moses promised suffering if the Israelites were unfaithful; Jesus promised suffering, tribulation, and persecution if his disciples were faithful. Jesus tells his disciples that he is not abolishing the Old Law and the Prophets of the Old Covenant, rather, he is fulfilling them. Jesus is giving a New Law, a new Torah, that was rooted in the Old Law of Moses, but far surpassed the Old Law and was meant not just for a single nation, but for the entire world. All human beings are called to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven inaugurated on earth by Jesus.

2. Moses’ Statutes and Decrees: In the First Reading, from the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses spoke to the people after their 40 years in the wilderness and taught them one last time the statutes and decrees of the Lord. These statutes and laws had a temporary dimension to them. They were meant for the nation of Israel and focused on their life in the promised land. Some of the laws Moses gave in Deuteronomy – such as those about divorce, warfare, dietary restrictions, sickness, and slavery – were imperfect. They were given because of the people’s “hardness of heart” and tendency to fall into sin. They awaited their fulfillment by a New Moses, promised by Moses himself in Deuteronomy 18:15: “A prophet like me will the LORD, your God, raise up for you from among your own kindred; that is the one to whom you shall listen.”

3. Until Heaven and Earth Pass Away: One way to interpret Jesus’ phrase, “until heaven and earth pass away,” is to understand that the Temple in Jerusalem was a microcosm of the universe. This meant that when the Temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, parts of the Law of Moses “passed away.” Many of the regulations about animal sacrifice, ceremonial rites, social restrictions, and dietary laws have all “passed away” with the destruction of the Temple. When we read the Acts of the Apostles, we see that the forty-year period between the death of Jesus in A.D. 30 and the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 was a special time in which the Old Law was passing away and the New Law was being implemented. Much of the ministry and teaching of Peter and Paul in this period was dedicated to understanding the passing away of the Law of Moses and its fulfillment in Christ Jesus.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you gave us the New Law of grace and the great commandment to love. You gave us the supreme example of love by giving your life for us on the Cross. Pour your Spirit into my heart so that I may live the New Law to the full.

Living the Word of God: We are called to live according to the New Law of grace. This New Law was taught by Christ and established for us by Christ on the Cross. Through his passion and death, he merited for us the grace that enables us to fulfill the New Law, respond to the action of the Holy Spirit, and go beyond the demands of justice in our dealings with others. It is the Law of the children of God the Father that fills our minds with the Wisdom of the Word and directs us to act in accord with the Love of the Holy Spirit. How am I living the New Law of grace and charity? What can I do better?