Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A
February 19, 2017
Gospel: Mt 5:38-48
Jesus said to his disciples: "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 (1)
to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the
other one as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic (2),
hand over your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one
mile, go for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your
back on one who wants to borrow.
"You have heard that it was said, You shall love
your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those
who persecute (3)
you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun
rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the
unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do
not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what
is unusual about that? Do not the pagans (4) do the same? So be perfect, just as
your heavenly Father is perfect."
http://www.usccb.org
The difficult words
(1)Resistance is the force used to fight back or protect against
something.
(2)A tunic is
like a robe without sleeves.
(3)To persecute
means to treat someone badly.
(4)Pagans are
those who worship false gods, or no god at all.
This week’s spotlight
Love yourself
Leviticus 19:18 says: "You shall love your
neighbor as yourself. "Some people think they are better than others, and
perhaps love themselves too much. To really love others, however; we must love
ourselves. Loving yourself means caring for your health, having compassion on
your faults and flaws, and trusting in God's perfect love for you.
You are the temple of God
Saint Paul reminds us that God lives in us: our bodies
are temples of the Holy Spirit! Just as we respect the church as God's house,
so must we respect our bodies and the bodies of others. Certain activities
don't belong in a church, and certain behaviors don't belong in us. We must
care for our bodies, clothing them modestly, and protecting them from abuse and
careless damage. Our bodies are good. We can use them to praise God, and to
serve the needs of those who are suffering.
Reflection
Love like the sunshine
Jesus teaches something incredible in today’s Gospel,
something that no one else has ever taught. He tells us to love our enemies,
and to pray for those who hurt us. This is a difficult teaching. When someone
hits us, we usually want to hit right back. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Jesus isn’t saying that we should be wimps who let others abuse us. He’s
inviting us to love like God. Like the sun that shines on everything, we can
love everyone. Like the rain that falls on the good and the bad, we can love
even those who don’t love us back. This is the perfect love of the Father, and
the Father wants to give us his power to love.
Discussion questions
1.What does Jesus teach you to do to someone who hits you?
2.According to Jesus how should we deal with our enemies?
3.What is the point that Jesus want to tell us through the Gospel today?
After
receiving Holy Communion,
you can say this prayer silently to yourself. If you
have not yet
received your First Communion, you can still say this prayer because of your desire to
receive Jesus.
Father, through Jesus, in
communion with the whole Church, I thank you for coming into my heart. Make
me a beautiful temple for you to dwell in. Let me carry your love wherever I
go.
This week…
Remember you are God's temple
Saint Paul reminds us that the Holy
Spirit dwells in us. We are called to be holy in everything we do. Each time
you look in a mirror this week, take a moment to remember that you are God's
temple.
Love your enemies
It's easy to love those who love
us back. Jesus calls us to something more - to love even our enemies.This week,
reach out to someone who has been difficult to love, or to someone who always
seems to get left out of the group.
Word search
Source: usccb.org
- Magnifikid - sermons4kids.com – rclblectionary.com
–usccb.org/bible/readings-audio.cfm