Today’s Scripture Readings

Gospel Reading

NRSV

‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax-collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Judaism describes the religious life as halakah, which means walking. This is what we find in the Book of Deuteronomy where Moses speaks of walking in God’s way. This implies a journey from one place to another. The religious life, for the Bible, is not static but dynamic. The real God asks us to move, not to stay where and as we are. In fact, we have to move if we are to leave the desert behind and come home to the garden.

Jesus too calls us to move, to keep walking, because we haven’t yet reached our goal. The goal is the kind of enemy-love we see in God, who loves not just those who love him but everyone without exception. In that sense, our true goal is to be like God.

The Gospel speaks of being perfect. But the word translated “perfect” (Greek teleios) means complete. In other words, we are to be complete in the sense of reaching the goal of our journey and becoming complete like God. That’s why, through this Lent, we keep walking towards our goal.