‘When you are offering your gift at the altar … first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift’ (Matthew 5: 23-24) … the Cross of Nails on the altar in the ruins at Coventry symbolises the Ministry of Reconciliation at Coventry Cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)Patrick Comerford
Lent began last week on Ash Wednesday, and this week began with the First Sunday in Lent (Lent I).
The Jewish holiday of Purim begins last night (13 March) and ends at nightfall tonight (14 March). Meanwhile this morning, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:
1, today’s Gospel reading;
2, a short reflection;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Matthew 5: 20-26 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 20 ‘For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
21 ‘You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not murder”; and “whoever murders shall be liable to judgement.” 22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgement; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, “You fool”, you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.’
Today’s Reflection:
The Gospel reading at the Eucharist today (Matthew 5: 20-26) is part of the Sermon on the Mount, and serves to define the righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and the Pharisees (verse 20). In verses 21-48, Christ outlines a number of commandments from the Mosaic law that were central to rabbinical teachings at the time, and identifies the impossible ideals that transcend this law – ideals that had to be performed rightly if someone was to “enter the kingdom of heaven” (verse 20).
In this section (verses 20-26), Christ first examines the sixth commandment, with particular reference to anger, linking inward malevolence to the outward act of murder (verses 21-26). It is a closely-written, tightly-packed passage, laden with meaning, and I have decided to look at in detail this morning.
Verse 21:
Ἠκούσατε (ekousate): ‘you have heard’ – in the sense of you understand, you know very well, that it was said long ago that …
Τοῖς ἀρχαίοις (tois archaíois), ‘to those of ancient times,’ to the people long ago, to the old ones, to the ancients.
Οὐ φονεύσεις (ou phoneúseis): ‘you shall not murder’ – the future tense functions as an imperative. The sense is murder, or assassination, rather than killing.
ὃς δ’ ἂν (os d’ an): ‘and whoever’ … forming an indefinite relative clause.
Τῇ κρίσει (ti krísei): ‘[will be subject] to judgment’ – the word used hear is crisis, subject to crisis. Making the point between right and wrong, between good and evil, is a crisis moment that leads to judgment, whether it is the local or district court (see Deuteronomy 16: 18) or divine judgment.
Verse 22:
ἐγὼ δὲ λέγω ὑμῖν (ego de lego imin): ‘but I say to you.’ The Biblical prophets would say: ‘Thus says the Lord.’ But Christ says: ‘But I say to you.’
Τῷ συνεδρίῳ (to synedrío): the Sanhedrin was the full council of priests, elders and scribes, with seventy members. It is worth noticing the ascending order of courts, from the local court to the Sanhedrin, to the heavenly court, and the descending scale of offences, from anger down to verbal abuse, reinforcing a righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and the Pharisees?
πᾶς ὁ ὀργιζόμενος (pas o orgizómenos): ‘everyone being angry’ – everyone who is angry, everyone who gives vent to anger.
τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ (to adelpho aftou): ‘with the brother of him’ … not merely his brother in a family sense, but his ‘brother man,’ his ‘fellow human being.’
Ῥακά (Raká): This is an obscure term of abuse that is lost in the translation ‘insult’ but that may mean ‘empty-head’ or ‘brainless idiot.’ How many of us find it difficult to ‘tolerate fools gladly’? And how many of us confuse that with letting those we cannot tolerate know that we consider them fools?
If so, then we are warned against it not once but twice, with the use of the word Μωρέ (Moré), ‘you fool,’ or ‘foolish,’ ‘stupid,’ which is the use of an adjective as a noun.
εἰς τὴν γέενναν τοῦ πυρός (eis tin Géennan tou pyros) – ‘into the Gehenna of fire.’ Gehenna, the place of wailing, was the rubbish tip outside Jerusalem that was constantly burning, smothered with the smoke and the smell from dead corpses, human and animal.
Two mini-parables (verses 23-26):
Saint Matthew now links two illustrations, applications, or short parables, two similes or metaphors, with the earlier saying in verse 20 about the exceeding righteousness expected of the sixth commandment (verses 23-26). They are often read as two short parables about reconciliation, with situations in which reconciliation replaces hatred. They are parables not about my own rancour, but about the rancour I have provoked in others. It is not enough that I should control my own temper; I must not provoke others to anger either.
The first mini-parable (verses 23-24):
The first parable (verses 23-24) encourages me to deal with an offence I have caused to another before approaching God in prayer.
I ought to – I must – sort out the problems I have created with others before coming into the presence of God. The parable reinforces the directive in the previous verses (verses 21-22).
Verse 23:
Προσφέρῃς τὸ δῶρόν σου ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον (prosphéris to dorón sou epi to thoosiasteerion): ‘if you might bring your gift to the altar.’ The ‘you’ here is singular, so this teaching has particular application, and not merely general application.
θυσιαστήριον is the altar for slaying and burning of victims. It refers to the altar of whole burnt offerings that stood in the court of the priests in the Temple in Jerusalem, to the altar of incense that stood in the sanctuary or the Holy Place, but also any other altar or place of solemn act of sacrifice.
ἔχει τι κατὰ σοῦ (echei ti kata sou): ‘has something against you.’ This phrase might be compared with Mark 11: 25, but while Mark speaks of a situation where the worshipper has something against another, or a brother, Matthew talks of a brother who has something against the worshipper.
Verse 24:
The worshipper has already arrived in the Temple; we might consider this happening when we have already arrived in Church, prepared to be present at or even preside at the Eucharist. The peace in our Eucharistic celebration is not marginal, it is a compelling part, bridging the gap between receiving Christ in the word proclaimed and receiving Christ in the sacrament.
The second mini-parable (verses 25-26):
The second mini-parable (verses 25-26) encourages me to deal with someone who thinks I have offended them before it gets to court, teaches the importance of always being ready and anxious to take the first step towards healing a quarrel with others who are close to me.
ἴσθι εὐνοῶν τῷ ἀντιδίκῳ σου ταχὺ (isthi efnoun to antidiko sou tachi): ‘Be well disposed to the opponent of you quickly,’ or ‘come to terms quickly,’ ‘settle matters while there is still time.’ Do it on the road, while you are both on your way, settle before you reach the steps of the courthouse.
Verse 26:
ἀμὴν λέγω σοι (Amen légo soi): ‘Amen, I say to you.’ I find the translation ‘Truly I tell you’ lacks the dramatic and dynamic impact of ‘Amen, I say to you.’
τὸν ἔσχατον κοδράντην (ton eschaton kodrántin): ‘the last penny.’ The King James Version says ‘the last farthing.’ A kodrantes is a small coin worth one half of an Attic chalcus or two lepta. It is worth less than 2% of the day’s wages of an agricultural labourer.
Today’s Prayers (Friday 14 March 2025):
The theme this week in ‘Pray With the World Church’, the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is ‘The Church and Unity.’ This theme was introduced on Sunday with reflections by the Right Revd Dr Royce M Victor, Bishop in the Diocese of Malabar, Church of South India.
The USPG Prayer Diary today (Friday 14 March 2025) invites us to pray:
Father God, we pray for the work of all organisations and charities seeking to work with all faiths and none – may they continue to show how this is an example of tolerance and love.
The Collect:
Almighty God,
whose Son Jesus Christ fasted forty days in the wilderness,
and was tempted as we are, yet without sin:
give us grace to discipline ourselves in obedience to your Spirit;
and, as you know our weakness,
so may we know your power to save;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post-Communion Prayer:
Lord God,
you have renewed us with the living bread from heaven;
by it you nourish our faith,
increase our hope,
and strengthen our love:
teach us always to hunger for him who is the true and living bread,
and enable us to live by every word
that proceeds from out of your mouth;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Additional Collect:
Heavenly Father,
your Son battled with the powers of darkness,
and grew closer to you in the desert:
help us to use these days to grow in wisdom and prayer
that we may witness to your saving love
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Yesterday’s Reflection
Continued Tomorrow
Old 1, 5 and 10 lepta postage stamps from Greece … a ‘kodrantes’ was a small coin worth one half of an Attic chalcus or two leptaScripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
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