Thursday 13 June 2024

Today is Thursday 13 June, the feast of St Anthony of Padua, in the 10th week of Ordinary Time. O Lord, my heart is not proud. As I enter into prayer now, can I put aside for a moment my pride, any sense of self-importance I may have and place myself humbly into the hands of my God, who knows all my faults and failings and loves me still? O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor haughty my eyes. I have not gone after things too great, nor marvels beyond me. Truly I have set my soul in silence and peace; at rest, as a child in its mother’s arms, so is my soul. Today’s reading is from the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew 5:20-26 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ‘You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not murder”; and “whoever murders shall be liable to judgement.” But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgement; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, “You fool”, you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. There is a high chance that most of us have thought of someone else as “a fool” over the course of our lifetime. These words of Jesus are not intended to make us all feel guilty. They are meant rather to encourage us not to judge others. Ponder for a moment if there is anyone who has anything against you. Thinking about that person, did you feel the temptation to judge them? How did you deal with it? Now consider, is there any way that you can reach out in reconciliation towards anyone who has anything against you? If there is someone you need to make your peace with, but you can’t think of any way, ask God to enlighten you and suggest something. In the light of all this, and maybe thinking about that person, listen to the reading again. Can you ask God now for the grace to hold back from judging, and to live in peace and harmony with others? Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.