Suy Niệm Tin Mừng thứ Năm Tuần 10 Thường Niên

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng thứ Năm Tuần 10 Thường Niên

Tin Mừng hôm nay cho chúng ta biết là nếu chúng ta là những người theo Chúa Giêsu, thì chúng ta cũng chưa chắc đã thực hành theo đúng như các điều luật viết trong sách luật của ông Môisen. Chúa Giêsu đã cảnh báo các môn đệ là những sự độc ác có thể gây ra do lòng tức giận Ngài khuyến khích họ nên tìm kiếm sự hòa giải với tất cả những ai mà chúng ta đã làm điều gì sai trái với họ hoặc những ai mà đã làm điều sai trái với chúng ta. Sự tức giận có thể gây ra tổn hại về sức khỏe và tinh thần của chúng ta. Chúng ta không nên cầm giữ, dồn nén bất cứ một sự oán giận nào trong lòng của chúng ta và tất cả những chuyện cũ đầy cay đắng không khoan dung trong tâm hồn của chúng ta. Chúa Giêsu đã dạy rõ ràng là chúng ta không nên sử dụng những từ ngữ, (kiểu chơi chữ) để gây hại, làm tổn thất tinh thần cho những người khác.

    Chúa Giêsu cho chúng ta biết là điều kiện cần thiết để đến với Ngài là chúng ta cần phải biết hòa thuận và kính trọng với mọi người chung quanh cho dù họ là bất cứ hạng nười nào. Nếu chúng ta nuôi dưỡng sự oán giận với người khác trong lòng thì chúng ta không xứng đáng để tiến tới gần bàn thờ của Thiên Chúa.

    Bổn phận đầu tiên của chúng ta là phải cố gắng hết sức để hòa giải với những người mà chúng ta đã làm họ mất lòng hay những người đã làm mất lòng chúng ta trước khi chúng ta bước đến trước bàn thờ để dâng lễ hay cầu nguyện. Và chỉ có được thế, thì chúng ta mới sẵn sàng được tâm hồn và xứng đáng dâng vật lễ của chúng ta lên Thiên Chúa một cách đẹp lòng Ngài. Và đấy là những gì có thể giúp chúng ta tìm thấy sự an bình trong ân sủng của Thiên Chúa.

    Qua bài Tin Mừng hôm nay Chúa muồn chúng ta hãy nhìn vào chính cuộc sống của chúng ta và thử xem coi chúng ta đã sống và giữ những điều mà Chúa Giêsu Kitô đã dạy. Chúng ta có ý thức và cư xử với mọi người trong tình thần hoà giải, thân thiện trong hoà bình? Hãy tự xét coi: chúng ta có cần phải xin lỗi ai đó trong cuộc sống của chúng ta? chúng ta đã có sự tha thứ cho người có lỗi với chính mình? Chúng ta có tìm kiếm hòa giải, cho dù chúng ta chỉ là một trong những nạn nhận bị người khác xúc phạm? Xin cho lời của Chúa trong bài Tin Mừng hôm nay, trở thành một cái nhiệt kế tình yêu hàng ngày của chúng ta đối với Thiên Chúa và đối với anh chị chung quanh chúng ta.

REFLECTION

In today's Gospel we hear about anger. We also hear that if we are to be followers of Jesus, it is not enough to follow the letter of the law. The disciples are warned against the evil that anger can bring and they are encouraged to seek reconciliation with anyone who has wronged them or whom they have wronged. Anger places our spiritual health in danger. There should be no holding on to old resentments that fill us with uncharitable bitterness. Jesus is clear about not using the power of words to inflict harm on those around us.

    Jesus set down an essential condition to come to him. We need to be at peace with our neighbor. Many of us have suffered because we have stopped speaking to each other, unwilling to reach out because of stubbornness or pride. If we harbor resentment towards another, we are told not approach the altar of God. Our first duty is to try to reconcile and then come to the altar. Only then are we ready to offer the gift of ourselves in a manner that is pleasing to God. This is what can help us to find peace that comes to us by God's grace.

    As we reflect on today's Gospel, let us look at our own lives and see if we are following Jesus' teaching. Are we consciously acting as peacemakers? Is there somebody in our lives to whom we need to give an apology? Is there somebody we still have not forgiven? Do we seek reconciliation, even when we are the one who was offended? May Jesus' teaching, in today's Gospel, become the thermometer of our daily love for God and for each other.

Thursday Week 10th in Ordinary Time

Opening Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, fill me with your faith, hope, and love. Open my mind to hear your word proclaimed. Inscribe it deeply on my heart so it is always with me.

Encountering Christ:

Live by Love: The Kingdom of Heaven will be a place of perfect justice and supreme peace. There will be no room for anger, hatred, or unforgiveness. This is why our righteousness, or in other words our virtue, must be greater than that of the scribes and Pharisees. They were interested in the letter of the Levitical law. But Christ’s “way” (John 14:6) is a new law of love (Romans 13:10). This law is inscribed in our hearts and accessed by our consciences (Romans 2:15). This new law goes beyond the letter of the law because love requires something more than just following the rules. It requires conversion of heart. Jeremiah foretold of how the law of the new covenant would change the hearts of people: “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord” (Jeremiah 31:33-34). May we seek to carry the law of Christ in our hearts and live by love, not just the letter of the law.

    Anger and Woundedness: Jesus was talking about real human circumstances in this Gospel passage: anger and unforgiveness. Anger is one of the seven deadly sins. We often become angry when we feel powerless to change an injustice (or perceived injustice). We seek to control a situation or a person’s response and cannot, causing us to lash out. Sometimes we try to quash our lashing out, but we only explode later. Repression is not the answer to reducing anger. Instead, we are wise to look interiorly for any root cause of our anger. Some childhood trauma or other deeply personal wounds can result in chronic anger. It can help to speak to a trusted priest or a counselor about what’s causing our anger. Proactively, we can strive to grow in the cardinal virtue of temperance, specifically meekness and self-control. And we can trust that Jesus will bless all of our efforts.

    Forgiveness Is Key: Seeking to forgive and reconcile, as Jesus suggests, is key to healing from old wounds. When we choose to forgive others from our hearts (Matthew 18:35), we can find true peace. In fact, through actively forgiving, we lay claim to peace. We take back what was lost, and we are restored. Anger often dissolves or melts when we choose to forgive. It is important to note that reconciliation and forgiveness are related, yet different actions. Forgiveness can be a one-way street; it takes only one person to forgive another. Reconciliation takes two people who are willing to forgive and work past hurts to rebuild a relationship. It is helpful to remember that we can never control what others think or do; we can control only ourselves. When reconciliation seems impossible, we must remember that nothing is impossible for God (Luke 1:37).

    Conversing with Christ: My Jesus, I praise and thank you because you know me and love me, no matter what. When I am stuck in an unhealthy pattern of thought or behavior, whatever it may be, I believe that you are there to help me. I am sorry for the times when I have expressed my anger in a sinful way. Please heal any wounds that cause patterns of sinfulness in me. Bless me with your grace and help me to know you and serve you obediently.

    Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will prayerfully consider whom you are calling me to forgive and make a choice of the will to forgive that person from my heart. If I feel that I cannot forgive fully in this moment, I will ask God the Father to forgive him or her for me: “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”

REFLECTION

We have always been told to put God first in our lives. But sometimes it seems that even in scripture, God homes second. Notice the order of things? Jesus said that before you make your offering to God, first be reconciled with someone who has something against you. That seems a bit odd. We have always been taught that God come first in a Christian's life. We do not give God the leftovers and scraps of our crops or flocks or money or time.

    When it comes to worship, our heart, mind, and soul should be focused only on God and on giving God honor and glory. God comes first, especially in worship. But Jesus is saying that there is at least one circumstance, even during worship, when God comes second. The circumstance is simple. When anger drives a wedge between you and someone else, it is more important for you to be reconciled with that person than for you to present your offering to God. Jesus says that reconciliation is more important than any offering.

    But what if we are the injured party? It works the same way. Either way, reconciliation between two people who are at odds with each other is more important to God than any amount of offering because reconciliation cuts off the path that leads to bitter anger and violence. This should not really surprise us. God is all about reconciliation and so is Jesus.

    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 before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. This is when God comes second.\\

REFLECTION

We have always been told to put God first in our lives. But sometimes it seems that even in scripture, God comes second. Notice the order of things? Jesus said that before you make your offering to God, first be reconciled with someone who has something against you. That seems a bit odd. We have always been taught that God come first in a Christian's life. We do not give God the leftovers and scraps of our crops or flocks or money or time. When it comes to worship, our heart, mind, and soul should be focused only on God and on giving God honor and glory. God comes first, especially in worship. But Jesus is saying that there is at least one circumstance, even during worship, when God comes second. The circumstance is simple. When anger drives a wedge between you and someone else, it is more important for you to be reconciled with that person than for you to present your offering to God. Jesus says that reconciliation is more important than any offering.

    But what if we are the injured party? It works the same way. Either way, reconciliation between two people who are at odds with each other is more important to God than any amount of offering because reconciliation cuts off the path that leads to bitter anger and violence. This should not really surprise us. God is all about reconciliation and so is Jesus. 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 before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. This is when God comes second.