Jesus said, “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 with him. 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.”

It was a clever fraud that Christof and the creators of the television show known as “The Truman Show” perpetrated. They actually created a television soap opera out of a person’s life, running it full-time, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The problem was that Truman Burbank, the star of the show, did not know it. It was the ultimate form of using someone for another’s benefit, the ultimate form of sin against another.

Jesus had much to say about how to love other people. The Gospels are full of situations in which it is clear that other people are important and cannot be treated as less. His classic statement comes in what we have come to call the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is teaching primarily about anger, but as he speaks, he places the idea of the treatment of others higher than even worship of God: “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.” Incredibly, in Jesus’ mind, being good to others is more important than acknowledging God’s presence in public worship.

One of the more insidious sins that people fall into is the sin of using other people. People hurt others by making them the butt of jokes or by laughing at their circumstances. They use others to make themselves look better or to help their own situations. When people use another person in order to better their own positions in life, it is wrong. It is time that we understand completely the saying that we must love people and use things, and not love things and use people.                        

THOUGHT
PRAYER

Good and gracious God, you have given us the teaching through your Son of the importance of loving other people. Help us see the value of others, and keep us always from the sin of using others for our own benefit. Be with us, we pray. 

Questions, comments? Let me know. Email Fr. Mike

©2007 Capuchin Province of Mid-America
Fr. Mike Scully is a member of the Capuchin Province of Mid-America