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Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit
dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy
that person. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. (1
Corinthians 3:16-17)
Passages like this are read to remind believers that every one of them is
God's temple, that the only temple that God really cares about is the
temple in their hearts, and that the church as a community of believers
is secondary or nonessential in comparison to the kingdom of God in
their hearts. In support of this interpretation, they cite Luke 17:20-
21, "The kingdom of God does not come with your careful
observation, 21 nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,'
because the kingdom of God is within you." But there is a basic error
in this interpretation.
You can see why they are wrong who preach individualism as what
Jesus and Paul taught. By teaching that the kingdom of God is in the
heart of each and every believer, they relativise the church and make it
seem unnecessary. By teaching that each and every believer is the living
temple of God, they encourage a go-it-alone or a do-it-yourself
Christianity. This, however, is very far from the teaching of Jesus and
St. Paul, which centred on the community, with individuals sharing in
the blessings of the community if and to the extent that they associate
with the community. Jesus did not promise the individual separated
from the community that the kingdom of God is within him or her. St.
Paul did not teach the Christian lone ranger that he or she is the temple
of God. These promises and blessings are true first for the community
of faith, and then for the individual in so far as he or she identifies with
the faith community.
St. Paul reserves a very strong admonition for Christians who use the
faith as a cover for individualism: "Stop deceiving yourselves" (verse
18). May the Lord enlighten us all who believe in his name to overcome
the temptation of the Corinthians, the temptation to follow a doctrine
simply because it suits our ideology or lifestyle, and the courage to
make an about-turn and follow the true teachings of Jesus and his
Apostles in the Scriptures, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
SUNDAY HOMILIES FOR YEAR A
By Fr Munachi Ezeogu, cssp
Homily for 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time - on the
Gospel
Home > Homilies > Year A > 7th Sunday Epistle
You have heard that it was said, "An eye for an eye and a tooth for
a tooth." 39 But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if
anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; 40 and if
anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well;
41 and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second
mile. (Matthew 5:38-41)
The virtue of longsuffering does not mean that Christians are to turn a
blind eye on abusive situations or fail to work for a more just society.
On the contrary, it means that we are to imitate Jesus who, in his
personal life, gave up the right to get even while at the same time
condemning all forms of abuse or exploitation of the weak.
You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbour
and hate your enemy." 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and
pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be children of
your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on
the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the
unrighteous. (Matthew 5:43-45)
In the comic strip For Better or Worse, teenage Lizzy has had a fight with
her friend Candace over a boy and the two girls are not speaking.
In the first panel of the comic strip, you see Lizzy and Candace walking
along side each other, “Humph!” It’s Candace,” Lizzy says to herself. “I do
not know her.”
In the second panel, the two girls are seen later in the day, approaching
each other in the corridor, on their way to class. And again, they’re ignoring
one another.
Lizzy is saying to herself, “She’s going down the hall one way, so I’ll go the
other way. If she sits near me in class, I’ll move.”
In the third panel, Lizzy is sitting at her desk when she spies Candace
coming into the classroom: “Here comes Candace. If she talks to me, I’ll
pretend I don’t hear her; if she looks at me, I’ll pretend I don’t see her.”
In the final panel, we see Candace sitting in the background, Lizzy in the
foreground, with her head in her hands saying, “Whew! I didn’t think
hating somebody could be so much work!”
The teaching we are given in today’s readings supports this emotional and
psychological truth. The Scripture deals with the question of how we
should treat someone who has harmed or offended us.
First, in very early Old Testament times, religious practice made it okay to
retaliate against anyone who had hurt you. And there were absolutely no
limits to the amount of retaliation one could make.
It made no difference who the person was. And even if the offense was
slight, like not sending you an invitation to a party, you could so much as
burn down their house for not doing so.
In later Old Testament times, there is a big progression, a big movement
forward in this teaching. The development was in two areas.
Now you were no longer able to get back at people you are related to. This
would include members of your family, your neighbors, and even to your
fellow citizens.
The other area where the teaching progressed in this second stage is in
limiting the amount of retribution you can take. The norm has
become: “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” You reprimand my child, I
reprimand yours. You throw trash in my front yard, I throw trash in yours.
Sometimes we look down on this norm as primitive, but in its day, you
have to realize that it was a real advance because it says that the amount of
retribution must be proportional to the hurt you received.
So, now you can’t burn someone’s house down because they stole a can of
cream of mushroom soup. You can only take a can of their soup in return.
Now clear the stage, because with Jesus you get the third and final stage in
the progression of moral or ethical behavior. Jesus teaches us to take no
vengeance at all on anyone; again, no vengeance at all.
Listen to him yourself: “You have heard the commandment, ‘An eye for an
eye, a tooth for a tooth.’” That is later Old Testament times, Part II. He
continues, “But what I say to you is: offer no resistance to injury.”
There’s more, stay tuned: “You have heard the commandment, ‘You shall
love your countryman but hate your enemy.’ My command to you is: love
your enemies, pray for your persecutors.”
The Hebrew word that Jesus uses for “love” does not mean an emotional
feeling. Instead, it has more of the meaning of benevolence – we are to
want what is good and act for the good of others, even though we may not
feel love.
And take that friend who spread lies about you and soiled your good name,
it isn’t easy coming face-to-face with them and trying to be pleasant or
civil. But just try letting the anger over injustice go, not hanging on to it or
stirring it up, just for one day.
Conclusion
And as Lizzy, and our own unkindness toward others makes very clear,
loving and forgiving take a lot less energy and offer us a lot more freedom
for living fully.