“So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Matthew 5:48
Reflection
Jesus tells his disciples that they must love their enemies and pray for the people who persecute them. The Father lets rain fall on good and bad people. Greeting only your brothers and sisters is not any better than the pagans, who do the same; in the same way, Jesus tells them to be perfect like their heavenly Father.
Jesus is calling us to rise above pettiness and grow in virtue – praying for those who persecute us, greeting everyone, not just those we like. We must strive to love everyone we encounter, even among our differences. Jesus tells us to be perfect, and even though we have concupiscence and cannot truly be perfect, we can work on becoming more Christlike every day. How is God calling you to perfection today?
Saint of the Day
Blessed Daniel Brottier: 1876 – 1936
| “There has to be a minimum of well-being and comfort if these young people are to grow up without bitterness. Otherwise they will later on sow the seeds of revolt and anarchy in society.” Blessed Daniel Brottier |
The Healing Word 