VI SUNDAY OF THE YEAR: Matthew 5:17-37
Jesus came to fulfil the Law and the Prophets
During these sundays, we have been reading the Sermon on the mountain, where Jesus, like a new Moses, presented the demands of the new Covenant. Contrary to Jewish opinion, who accused Jesus of disregarding the Law and being intent on abolishing it, Jesus proclaimed very clearly that he was not abolishing the Law, but giving it its full meaning and that he came to fulfil the Law and the Prophets. However, Jesus was at variance with the Scribes and the Pharisees in the interpretation of the Law, and he warned his disciples that they "will never enter the kingdom of heaven" if their righteousness does not "exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees” (Mt 5:20).
The righteousness of the Pharisees
We may be surprised by Jesus' attack on the Pharisees. In their strict legalism, they missed the aim of the Law, which is to provide protection and guidance, and to enhance an interior attitude that comes from the heart and gives direction and meaning to one's life. Instead, they became casuists, continuously asking themselves what is allowed and what is forbidden. They were strict keepers of the Law, paying attention even to the smallest details, but in their legalism they did not understand the spirit of the law, that is to discover God's will in each life situation.
Jesus radical demands
Jesus presented six examples of commonly accepted doctrine, opposing to it the demands that come from an attitude of total faithfulness to God's will and love. In those six examples, Jesus spoke about the correct attitudes in the relationships between people.
Murder is condemned in every society, but Jesus deals with the source of crime in our hearts: anger, hatred, jealousy,insults, which lead to trample down on the other. That is where sin starts and takes hold of our hearts and then our lives.
Jesus had the courage to speak about sexual relationships: when based on lust, they transform the other into a tool at the service of pleasure and self-indulgence, destroying at the same time the dignity of the one who abuses the other. It is from within our hearts that lust comes to dominate our minds and our bodies.
Jesus spoke also about marriage and divorce, reminding us that marriage is a sacred commitment before God, and not something to play with.
According to Jesus, there is no need of oaths; we just have to be truthful in whatever we say, that is all.
Revenge and retaliation cannot bring harmony and peace. When we pay back evil with evil, the evil that destroys the other consumes us as well. We must make an extra effort to defeat evil by doing good.
Jesus goes on challenging sand forcing us to examine the prevalent ideas and check the accept ideologies - the so called politically correct, because many of them are not correct at all.
The first reading, taken from the book of Sirach (or Ecclesiasticus)tells us that we must choose between life and death, ending with these wise words: God "has not given anyone permission to sin" (Sir 15:20).
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