Choose Wisely

First Reading

If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you; if you trust in God, you too shall live; he has set before you fire and water to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand.

Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him. Immense is the wisdom of the Lord; he is mighty in power, and all-seeing. The eyes of God are on those who fear him; he understands man's every deed. No one does he command to act unjustly, to none does he give license to sin. (Sirach 15:15-20)

Responsorial Psalm: Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord! (Psalm 119)

Second Reading

Brothers and sisters: We speak a wisdom to those who are mature, not a wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age who are passing away. Rather, we speak God's wisdom, mysterious, hidden, which God predetermined before the ages for our glory, and which none of the rulers of this age knew; for, if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him, this God has revealed to us through the Spirit. (1 Corinthians 2:6-10)

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven. I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; and whoever says to his brother, 'Raqa,' will be answerable to the Sanhedrin; and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise, your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

"You have heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

"It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce. But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife - unless the marriage is unlawful - causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

"Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow. But I say to you, do not swear at all; not by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. Let your 'Yes' mean 'Yes,' and your 'No' mean 'No.' Anything more is from the evil one." (Matthew 5:17-37)

“Choose wisely.”  These are the words spoken to Indiana Jones in The Last Crusade (1989) when told to select from a large number of cups and chalices the one used by Jesus.  The Holy Grail Knight said to Indiana: “You must choose. But choose wisely, as the true grail will bring you life, and the false grail will take it from you.” He chose wisely by picking the plain, wooden cup instead of a bejeweled chalice.  Makes me wonder whether the cup the priest and I drink from when on the altar might “take our lives away from us” meaning we focus our eyes – and perhaps our lives – on an ornate, metal chalice representing wealth, not poverty.  Then again, it’s what inside that counts – the sacramental blood of Christ.  In a mystical way, we drink from the “true grail” that brings us life.

And what brings life to all of us?  The Gospel informs us. If our brother has anything against us, we must go and be reconciled with our brother. If we men look at a woman with lust we already have committed adultery with her in our hearts.  We must not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that we vow [especially appropriate for priests and deacons, married couples, and all Congressional representatives who ignore their sacred vows].  We must let our 'Yes' mean 'Yes,' and our 'No' mean 'No.' Anything more will be from the evil one.  Otherwise, we become despicable hypocrites.

Jesus set a high bar for us – a bar that is far more demanding than the 10 Commandments (the Law) because it requires internal transformation of our hearts and minds.  

By the way, here’s a momentous one: “Whoever divorces his wife – unless the marriage is unlawful – causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”  This stipulation has been misunderstood for centuries and continues to plague divorced Catholics.  To remarry, an annulment is required.  Consider that in Jesus’ time, a man could easily divorce his wife.  He simply needed to give her a bill of divorce.  The woman had no such option.  She was a victim of her husband’s desire for another women or his dissatisfaction with her.  

Jesus tried to change that attitude and give women some protection.  He insisted that if the man divorced his wife and then married another woman cast off by her husband, he committed adultery.  Moreover, the man was responsible for his discarded wife becoming an adulterer.  He was to blame, not her.  

Whoever cannot clear the high bar will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever jumps it will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Moreover, before us are life and death, good and evil, whichever we choose shall be given us.

Deacon David Pierce