June 15, 2009 Gospel

DAILY GOSPEL
«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68


Monday, 15 June 2009
Monday of the Eleventh week in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates : St Aurelian


Second Letter to the Corinthians 6:1-10.

Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says: "In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you." Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We cause no one to stumble in anything, in order that no fault may be found with our ministry; on the contrary, in everything we commend ourselves as ministers of God, through much endurance, in afflictions, hardships, constraints, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, vigils, fasts; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, in a holy spirit, in unfeigned love, in truthful speech, in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness at the right and at the left; through glory and dishonor, insult and praise. We are treated as deceivers and yet are truthful; as unrecognized and yet acknowledged; as dying and behold we live; as chastised and yet not put to death; as sorrowful yet always rejoicing; as poor yet enriching many; as having nothing and yet possessing all things.

Psalms 98:1.2-3.4.

Sing a new song to the LORD, who has done marvelous deeds, Whose right hand and holy arm have won the victory.
The LORD has made his victory known; has revealed his triumph for the nations to see,
Has remembered faithful love toward the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth; break into song; sing praise.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 5:38-42.

You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on (your) right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.


Commentary of the day :


"I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil"


The Law used to say: «An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth» (Ex 21,24). But the Lord not only exhorts us to take patiently the blow of one who slaps us in the face but, even more, humbly to offer him the other cheek. For the purpose of the Law was to teach us not to do to others what we ourselves would not want done to us. And so it prevents us from doing evil from fear of suffering. But what is now asked of us is to reject hatred, love of pleasure, love of glory and the other evil inclinations.

Christ teaches us through the holy commandments how we are to be purified from our passions so that they no longer cause us to fall back into the same sins. He shows us the cause of our going so far as to despise and transgress from God's precepts. Thus he provides us with the cure so that we can obey and be saved.

What is this cure, then, and what is the cause of this contempt? Hear what our Lord himself says: «Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves» (Mt 11,29). Here, very briefly and in a word, he shows us the root and cause of all our ills together with the remedy, the source of all good. He shows us that it is our haughtiness of heart that causes us to fall and that it is impossible to win mercy except by means of the opposite attitude, which is humility. In fact haughtiness begets contempt and the disobedience that leads to death, whereas humility begets obedience and the salvation of souls. (By which I mean, true humility, not an abasement in words and demeanor only, but a truly humble attitude in the interior of our heart and soul.) Hence the Lord says: «I am meek and humble of heart». So let anyone who wants to find true rest for his soul learn humility.