February 28 

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Saturday, February 28, Lent I

MATTHEW 5:43-48

This may be the most difficult of my teachings, but you must forgive your enemies.

Prayerthoughts
a. This has been called “the unique” doctrine of the Christian, to love one’s enemies. In general, do I “love” those who disagree with my way of thinking, even though they disagree with me and would never “love” me?

b. There are a number of believers in God, especially in special circumstances such as war, who still believe that they should do harm to enemies. I should pray for them as well.

c. “Pray for those who persecute you.” Generally, I do not have persecutors as such, but I should think in terms of the early Christians or those who are persecuted in our world.   Would I have the thought to pray for them?

d. The reasoning behind loving everyone is that God created everyone. I should look at all creation as God’s gift. I should take the time to praise our God for God's creation.

e. I should think in terms of doing “more” than merely acknowledging people. I should “love” them. Studying my actions with others, say yesterday, did I show that I truly accepted them as people that I “loved”?

f. Jesus tells me to be perfect as God is. As a human, obviously I cannot accomplish that, but do I come close to it in the way I speak, act and think?

g. My prayerthoughts…
 

Today, I will read Deuteronomy 26:16-19 and write an important thought from it.

 

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

LOVE OF ENEMIES


+ This particular Gospel is from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount in Matthew’s Gospel that he begins with treating six different moral principles

- the last one is “love of enemies”

- it was the law of Moses in the Book of Leviticus that the Hebrew people had to love members of their own national or religious group

- here Jesus gives a totally new directive

- that no religious leader had ever spoken before


+ It is based on the reasoning that Jesus gives:

- God makes the sun rise on good and bad alike, rain falls on the just and unjust

- when God’s love and care for all people are taken as the standard

- the disciples of Jesus cannot limit their love

- as Jesus says: the disciples’ perfection reflects and is measured by God’s perfection


+ The God of the Old Testament was a strict God of justice

- and the Hebrew people had thought in terms of God hating the enemies of Israel

- Jesus changed all of that

- in the first reading from the Hebrew Scriptures’ Book of Deuteronomy, the Israelites are promised to be a people peculiarly God’s own, but they are called to walk in God’s ways and hearken to God’s voice

- and God’s voice in the New Testament, in the Gospels, in particular, is the voice of Jesus

- who teaches in no uncertain terms one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult, of all moral doctrines—love your enemies


+ Love of enemies is not an easy doctrine for any Christian, and we know how difficult it is because everyone of us has relationships with others, and sometimes those relationships are not the best

- it is not our place to talk about any global problem of hatred of country for country, and so forth

- we have to think about our own small involvement with Jesus’ words

- we know what we feel toward those who dislike us

- we know what we want to do with those who hurt us or our families

- we know what our past has been

- often choosing to “hurt” in some way those whom we call enemies

- whether it be in talking them down, or some type of revenge

- but Jesus says quite plainly that we must love our enemies


+ Perhaps we should spend a couple of moments in meditation today

- and determine the people that we really do not like, the people that we would categorize as “enemies”

- and then do something on behalf of them, at least praying for them. 







 

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Daylight" -- Maroon 5

WE'LL BE ON OUR OWN



The Gospel


John 13:33

Jesus said, "I will be with you only a little while longer, and then I will go to the one who sent me. You will look for me but not find me, and where I am you cannot come."

 

Gospelthink: When I die, I will of course not be with you, but I will be with you all the days of your life. Do I act every day like the Lord is with me?

 

"Here I am waiting; I’ll have to leave soon; why am I holding on? We knew this day would come, we knew it all along, how did it come so fast? This is our last night but it’s late, and I’m trying not to sleep ‘cause I know when I wake, I will have to slip away. And when the daylight comes, I’ll have to go, but tonight I’m gonna hold you so close ‘cause in the daylight we’ll be on our own."

[Note: the video to the song "Daylight" is unique, and good for study in its own right. Adam Levine of Maroon 5 says of the video: "As different as we all are, there are common themes that bring us together, inspire and show everyone what is important today. With this video, we’ll present the world today and beyond, creating more than just a music video."]

The man in Maroon 5's song "Daylight" is about to leave the relationship, and he is enjoying the presence of his friend one final night. The parting seems to be a "healthy" one in the sense that both of them are choosing to leave the relationship and begin a new life.

Jesus knew that his time on earth was only temporary. In John's Gospel, he knew that he was God, and knew that his task on earth would come to an end somehow, some way. Understanding that he was accomplishing his goal of the redemption of humankind, he told his disciples that he had to go back to his Father. In a sense, he was "beginning again," by returning to his Father. His disciples, on the other hand, were in a real sense beginning again, since they had to prepare to carry out their Master's wishes in the Kingdom on earth.

In our travel-oriented, work-necessitated world, we have become very mobile, and consequently, we will often move several times during the course of our lives. Every move involves a parting of relationships that have been formed. Sometimes those relationships will continue, but more than likely, they will cease. There is pain involved in parting with friends, especially in love relationships as in the song; even when we enter new phases of our lives like entering college, or a new job, or getting married, there will be some discomfort.

But the good thing about leaving a situation is that we can look forward to a new beginning. We can be thankful for the past and the good friends that we have made, and we may indeed come back every now and then. But in order to grow, we must move on. There are always new things in front of us and we must experience those things in order to be completely mature.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, your Son left our earth in order to be with you after his work of redemption. May we learn from him the value of appreciating the past and beginning again. Be with us, we pray. 


+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: At times we must leave the situation we are in and choose to begin again.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. In the Gospel, how do you think Jesus felt about leaving his disciples?
2. Jesus' disciples could not follow Jesus when he rose from the dead, but they were to follow him eventually. Such is our hope as well. What is the most important characteristic that we must develop in order to insure our following of Jesus?
3. Text analysis: "Why am I holding on."  In general, why do people want to "hold on" to the past?
4. Analysis: Why does it seem like "time" passes quickly at times, and drags at times? In your life right now, is time passing quickly or slowly? Why?
5. Analysis: The song implies some type of physical love involvement in their relationship. Why do people often define love in a physical way? Is it a good way to show love? Yes or no and why?
6. Analysis: "We'll be on our own." The song implies that both of the people must leave in some way. What is the best way to prepare for a friend's permanent departure?
7. Obtain a copy of the video of the song, and study the different parts of it. What is most striking about the video?
8. When is a parting from a relationship "unhealthy."
9. What are some reasons why a couple should break their love relationship?
10. Life on earth is "temporary." What conclusion should be drawn from the fact that we all will die?
11. What are some things that can make parting with friends a little less difficult?
12. What is necessary in order to "begin again" in life?
13. The meditation says that we must always experience new things in order to mature. Do you think that the statement is always true? Yes or no and why?
14. What does the song "Daylight" teach young people?