“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” Mt 5:43-45

With everything that has happened during this past week, the words of Jesus spoken to us above should slow us down and give us all pause. It was just last year when our Holy Father Francis gave us the Jubilee Year of Mercy and I can only reflect on how quickly we have moved on and forgotten the works of mercy. And it is here that I wish to begin. God invites us to be community and to grow in mercy and love. We could all quote for pages biblical citations (see below) and teachings of peace from our Catholic tradition and while we may, as a Church, not always lived up to the ideals, we are still called to the perfection of love and mercy our Heavenly Father offers to us.
“There’s a bit of nobility in the worst of human beings because all are made in God’s image, and the image can never be completely effaced or lost…No matter how desperate the case, no matter how ignoble the character, theirs is the unshakable condition that there is always hope!” (P 118 from “Light in the Darkness: The Teachings of Fr. James Keller, M.M. and the Christophers” presented by Fr. Jonathan Morris) The reality of this quote from Fr. Keller echoes strongly the truth of Jesus’ words from the Gospel of Matthew. No matter how vile an ideology, how heinous the action of a person we believe that there is the real hope of redemption. It is the greater respect of life where we see and know the dignity of God’s creative love in each and every person.
As Christians this is our duty, to seek the very best in our sisters and brothers as the foundation of all relationships. My first true understanding of this was, as a young man, seeing the photo of Pope John Paul II sitting in prayer and reconciliation with his would be assassin, Mehmet Ali Ağca. The great saint seeking the best and the holy from the person who wished him dead. Is this not the command Jesus shares above…to love and pray for even those we call enemies.
How are we called to confront sin and violence. St. Padre Pio is quoted as saying, “The rosary is the weapon of our times.” It is the weapon of our time because especially in the Sorrowful Mysteries we walk through the hatred and violence Jesus took upon his cross so we may understand what the great saints of peace, like St. John Paul II, lived in their heart. The prayer of the rosary calls us to become the words we pray. St. Louis de Montfort shared this wisdom on praying the rosary, “People who say Our Lord’s Prayer carefully, weighing every word and meditating upon it, may indeed call themselves blessed for they find therein everything that they need or can wish for.” (p 39 “The Secret of the Rosary”)
Ultimately in the Christian life we discover and become more Christ-like when we walk with him and allow the presence of Jesus to heal the wounds of sin which we all hold. St. Gregory of Nyssa understands this, “Since we possess Christ who is peace, we must put an end to this enmity and live as we believe he lived. He broke down the separating wall, uniting what was divided, bringing about peace by reconciling in his single person those who disagreed. In the same way, we must be reconciled not only with those who attack us from outside, but also with those who stir up dissension within flesh then will no longer be opposed to the spirit nor the spirit to the flesh.” (St. Gregory of Nyssa)
The internal and eternal peace is trusting in goodness and hopefulness which discovers the holiness of God’s divine presence in our soul and in each and every person. “Now peace is defined as harmony among those who are divided. When, therefore, we end that civil war within our nature and cultivate peace within ourselves, we become peace. By this peace we demonstrate that the name of Christ, which we bear, is authentic and appropriate.” (St. Gregory of Nyssa) Harmony is never sameness but rather it is the gift of musical joy that is produced when the master musician is touching each string to draw out the beauty and truth of the note we are each called to contribute in joyful love. To allow our Master to hold us, to touch us and to draw forth from us the note of peace, the note of beauty, the note of mercy and love is to allow ourself to be with the Master in trusting love and care for those around us.
Our Lady Queen of Peace, pray for us.
God Bless
Fr. Mark
ps. As I was finishing this note, the news of the terrible violence in Barcelona Spain came across the news. More than ever, pray for peace, justice and God’s grace to reign in the hearts of all.

Just a few quotes from Sacred Scripture to place in prayer in the coming days, weeks, months and years.

 

He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing. So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.”You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name. (Deut 10:18-20)

 

Hear, O Israel!* The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength. Take to heart these words which I command you today. Keep repeating them to your children. Recite them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. (Deut 6:4-7)

 

Finally, all of you, be of one mind, sympathetic, loving toward one another, compassionate, humble. Do not return evil for evil, or insult for insult; but, on the contrary, a blessing, because to this you were called, that you might inherit a blessing. For: “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep the tongue from evil and the lips from speaking deceit, must turn from evil and do good, seek peace and follow after it. (1 Peter 3:8-11)
And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: “God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for [someone] to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ [Jesus] will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. To him be dominion forever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:5-11)