Jesus’ teaching that we must love our enemies and pray even for those who harm us was truly radical when he first said it, and it remains just as challenging today. We are familiar with the teaching, but living it is difficult, to say the least. Indeed, only the workings of grace can bring about such love within us.

Yet, this teaching is more relevant than ever. We live in turbulent and troubled times, where anger and recriminations seem to abound. We are often absorbed in our own little worlds and can often see others as obstacles to our personal success. Indeed, many of us struggle to love even those who love us, let alone our enemies (Matthew 5:46-47).

Jesus offers the ultimate example of love for enemies. He gave his life to reconcile even those who sought his harm, praying on the cross for those who were in the process of murdering him (Luke 23:34). He is the perfect image of the Father’s love, who showers his blessings on the good and the bad alike (Matthew 5:45).

How can we respond to Jesus’ call to ‘be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect’ (Matthew 5:48)? Strangely enough, we can only ever imperfectly express the perfect love of the Father. Yet, by lifting our hearts to God and contemplating the mercy shown to us in Christ, we can begin to love even those we find difficult to love. We must remember that love is not merely a feeling, but a decision to pursue the good of the other, even at great personal cost.

by Fr Michael Grace