8th Sunday in Ordinary Time

My dear parishioners,

God is Good!!!  All the time!!!  And all the time!!!  God is Good!!!

To previous generations this book was known as Ecclesiasticus, meaning “Church book.” This title demonstrates the attraction this book held for the faithful with its treasury of wise and well-crafted teachings. Today the book carries the name of its author, Jesus ben Sira. A grandson translated the book into Greek. He wanted to make the work available to those who, like his grandfather, were “disposed to live their lives according to the law [of Moses].”

Today’s Gospel collects sayings from Luke’s Sermon on the Plain (6:17–49). Unlike the first part’s prophetic tone, this section uses a wisdom teacher’s style with instructions for how one lives in the kingdom of God. The main emphasis is to live out one’s covenantal relationship with God by imitating God. A disciple of Jesus must be compassionate, just as God is compassionate.

The blind cannot lead the blind.  One cannot help but see a reference to the Pharisees in Jesus’ observation that being able to see is a requirement for leading one who cannot see. Even though a disciple is not superior to the teacher, a disciple can indeed be fully trained. A fully trained disciple can be a good follower and an effective leader without being superior to the teacher.

The hypocrisy of judging others. Jesus’ teaching about judging others is clear and unambiguous. It is not to be tolerated. Not only is judging others wrong, but much of the time it is rooted in hypocrisy.  Others are severely judged and criticized by those who themselves manifest the same faults and failings. The splinter detected in another’s eye reflects a wooden beam in the eye of one who judges. One must first tend to one’s own deficiencies and wrongdoings before attending to another’s. The impression is that this will be full-time work—with little time left over to focus on others.

Good people produce good things.  Using the analogy that good trees produce good fruit, Jesus points out that, so it is with people. This should be understood as the driving force behind all discipleship. Character produces action. The old scholastic philosophers used to emphasize that a person cannot give what he or she does not have; that is very much the point Jesus is making here. It reflects the wisdom by which Jesus lived. Wisdom is concrete and practical, reflecting life as it really is. No one can be an authentic follower of Jesus and live like a hypocrite. Discipleship is not an actor playing a role. Discipleship is following in the footsteps of the teacher, realizing that imitating him is equal to imitating God. It requires mutual admonition, correction, and encouragement. All of this is a profile for living in the kingdom of God.

Excerpts from “Sunday Homily Helps”, is used by permission of Franciscan Media. www.FranciscanMedia.org. All rights reserved

 Sincerely in Christ,

Fr. Aloysius