(Leviticus 19: 1-2, 11-18 / Psalm 19: 8-10, 15 / Matthew 25: 31-46)
Both the old testament reading and the gospel reading today, spell out very clearly, how God expects us to treat our fellow man. God asked Moses to speak to the people of Israel and tell them very clearly, what specific things they were doing wrong. He addressed each one of their sinful actions, one by one, to clarify which kind of behaviors are sinful and to warn them not to conduct themselves in this manner any more. He understood the need to address the people as a whole, so everyone was clear about how God expected them to act. No one could use the excuse they didn’t know what was wrong because God made sure they were all told exactly, what kinds of behaviors was sinful. No one felt like they were being picked on as individuals because this was explained to everyone at the same time.
Our priests in the Catholic church would do well to follow God’s example, too. Sometimes people need to have it spelled out to them exactly what sin is, especially because of the moral relativism that is so prevalent in our world today. We as a society, have lost a sense of what sin is. We need to be clearly informed as to what is, and is not, a sin in how we live our daily lives. It would greatly be of service to God’s people if more of our priests would speak up and address serious subjects that affect our daily lives, too. Like domestic violence, abuse, addictions, pornography, abortion, etc. These sins are not usually addressed openly and honestly during the homily at our Sunday masses, for our entire parish to hear. If they were, there would be less relativism that exists in our families and the communities we live in. We need clear guidance from our pastors at church because where else will most of us hear it, if not from them?
Jesus Christ in today’s gospel, also does not have a problem in very clearly spelling out what we will be judged by. He addresses specifically how we are to treat one another and what actions are good and which ones are evil. Jesus never mentions what we feel about him, or what we feel about each other, he only mentions what we do. This may come as a surprise to a lot of people who believe that feelings are what makes a good Christian. Feelings fluctuate, but our true feelings and deepest beliefs about our love for God and our love for each other, is found in our actions. Our actions speak louder than our words.
