Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We have been speaking of love as we hear Jesus’ words from his Sermon on the Mount. Moreover, he tells us not only to love your spouse and your brother and neighbor, but to love the one who is persecuting you, or riding you. He is telling you to love your enemy.
Last week you heard that a Christian is to be salt and light to the world, and this comes from Christ, not from ourselves. When you are truly salt and light you will really love people, preserve them from evil and light the path that takes them to God. There is someone in your life that you need to do that for; you need to figure out who that is. Bring that person to your prayer, at Mass, or after communion. God will show you what to do, and what to say. God put you in that person’s life for a reason!
I invite you to read the whole of the Sermon on the Mount, especially if you have never done so. It is chapters’ five to seven in the Gospel of Matthew; it is the Magna Carta of the Christian life.
The fifth commandment says not to kill. And Jesus says, “But I say to you, anyone who says to his brother, you fool, will be liable to the fiery Gehenna.” The Ten Commandments before said not to murder but now I cannot get angry either. Jesus is not speaking of a burst of anger, but the state of anger. When it leads you to call your brother, or anyone, a fool then it means you are dismissing them; you think yourself better than them; you judge them. They are disposable. You want him out of your life. Gehenna was the city dump, perpetually on fire, and the place where you brought your garbage. When you talk trash about people, and treat others like trash, you will end up in a dump. Living your life in anger is hell.
Therefore, Jesus says if you are going to do something very important and holy, like bringing your gift to the altar, better to lay it aside and go and reconcile with your brother. Repair the damage. Don’t make the excuse not to reconcile by saying I don’t want to hurt that person. Deep down you don’t want to hurt yourself. God does not want your sacrifices, he wants a person who forgives, who loves. How can a Christian go to praise and thank God at Mass and at the same time hold a grudge in his heart against him or her? It is contradictory!
Jesus also speaks about adultery. One thing is to see a person and another is to “look” at them to judge them, to possess them, to enjoy them, or to exploit them. It is I who sin, not just my eye. Any sexual relationship outside of Christian marriage is hell; those involved suffer a lot and the consequences are very serious. Don’t stay in this situation for a long time; better to avoid it altogether. Speak to a priest and see how it can be resolved.
So how can we change our hearts, which is where all these desires originate? First of all, get to know yourself and see what is in your heart. Humble yourself, or don’t reject humiliations to rid your anger. Always better to wait a day when you are angry before you say something. And lastly, ask the Lord to help you, to remove from your heart what does not belong there. If it is a serious sin be patient with yourself and God. It takes time to uproot it. God will help you to renounce it and to live in the freedom of a child of God.