Gospel: Matthew 5:20-26
Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment,
and whoever says to his brother, Raqa, will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.”
- anger (angry): a strong feeling of displeasure and belligerence aroused by a wrong; wrath; rage
- What are the roots of anger in my own life? Does my anger come from within, or is it spurred on by external circumstances? Most importantly, is my anger objective, related to a concrete good/evil? Or is it mostly subjective, related more to my ego?
- brother: one related to another by common ties or interests; all members of a particular race, or of the human race in general; a male offspring having both parents in common with another offspring
- Who do I count as "brothers"? What are the strongest binding ties outside of my immediate family (faith, secular interests, politics)? What stands is the way of seeing all humankind, as children and creations of God, as my brothers?
- reconcile: to restore to friendship or harmony; to cause a person to accept or be resigned to something not desired; to win over to friendliness; make compatible; to restore to communion in a church
- Is my idea of reconciling with another making them resign to my will or belief system? Or is my sense of brotherhood in God strong enough to make me willing and able to compromise to restore friendship? Am I capable of treating others with dignity and deference even though I strongly disagree with them on matters of faith, morals and politics? Do I treat with respect those I disagree with, seeing them as part of the Body of Christ, knowing that He died for them, too?
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