Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

I am the good shepherd,
my sheep listen to my voice,
and they become
one flock and one fold.
.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 5,20-26

'For I tell you, if your uprightness does not surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of Heaven. 'You have heard how it was said to our ancestors, You shall not kill; and if anyone does kill he must answer for it before the court. But I say this to you, anyone who is angry with a brother will answer for it before the court; anyone who calls a brother "Fool" will answer for it before the Sanhedrin; and anyone who calls him "Traitor" will answer for it in hell fire. So then, if you are bringing your offering to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, go and be reconciled with your brother first, and then come back and present your offering. Come to terms with your opponent in good time while you are still on the way to the court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. In truth I tell you, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

God's righteousness saves, it does not condemn; it is to love without limits; it does not divide in equal measure as human justice. This new way of thinking about righteousness is needed to enter the kingdom of heaven. Jesus is not proposing a new case system or a new juridical procedure; he is proposing a new way of understanding relationships between people: it is love that makes them steady, strong and effective. In this love Law and justice are fulfilled. We have to move from negative precepts to the positivity of love without anything in exchange. For Jesus, as well as for his disciples, enemy do not exist. Gratuitous love, with no return, il the highest point of the Law and of discipleship. It has such great value that if it is missing, it requires to interrupt the supreme act of cult. "Mercy" is worth more than "sacrifice;" worship, that is relationship with God, cannot be separated from a relationship of love with men and women, especially with the poor. It is a specific dimension of the Gospel that should be never disattended. Jesus uses the example of a debt to pay or credit to give. And he urges his listeners to come to an agreement without needing the mediation of a judge. Brotherhood and love for others need to prevail in the life of the community of the disciples. He knows well that the egocentric instinct needs to be pushed back as it pushes us to satisfy always our "I", to put our own interests first and brings to the collapse of fraternal bonds. Jesus exhorts to grow love for others and give room to the primacy of reconciliation over indifference and conflict.