St. Paul the Apostle

This week's Gospel is all about the Law. It starts with the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, which contains Jesus's teaching about loving your enemies, as well as the Beatitudes. We may never have given any thought as to why Jesus gave these teachings on the side of a mountain, but the time and place matter if we are to truly understand how radical Jesus's message was in his time.

Today’s gospel urges us to treasure forgiveness’ life-force. Jesus reveals to us the process on how forgiveness becomes a reconciling way of life; he said: “… if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”