A New Commandment

Gospel: Matthew 5: 1-12

For far too long we have attempted to live a Christian life based solely on the commandments to the neglect of the Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount.  This omission is not accidental, but rather intentional.  For the Beatitudes and Sermon on the Mount challenge us to a way of life that seeks perfection and a greater holiness, while a mere adherence to the commandments enables us to define downwards the moral law to a minimalism that runs contrary to the Gospel.

Consider  how we celebrate the fact that we have not killed another person ever in our life, adhering to the letter of the fifth commandment.  But the Beatitudes go deeper: do we have murderous and hateful thoughts about our neighbor? Are we meek and merciful? No.  We canonize ourselves for not committing adultery with another person.  But our lustful thoughts about other people suggest we are not pure of heart and far from holiness and perfection.  

We love the legalism of the commandments and the many loopholes and exceptions we can create in order to exonerate ourselves for our killing, adulterating, lying, and the like.  We hear little of the Beatitudes because they convict us of our casuistry and minimalism and much more besides.  Today and the coming days to follow, let us challenge ourselves to live the Beatitudes, to apply them to our life as Jesus does throughout the Sermon on the Mount, and imitate the Lord Jesus in living the Beatitudes in our life.