Homily for Sunday, 23 February 2014

7th Sunday in Ordinary Time 

Homily preached at St. Basil's Church, Toronto, ON, Canada  

Readings of the day: Leviticus 19:1-2, 17-18; Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 8, 10, 12-13; 1 Corinthians 3:16-23; Matthew 5:38-48 

If you were to identify a positive attribute about yourself, what would it be? Are you a person of deep faith; cheerful; generous; hard-working; intelligent; creative; artistic; an attentive listener; an articulate speaker, for example?

How, then, would you describe God? Perhaps our readings today can help us to answer this question. Does anyone remember the words used to describe God in today’s readings? We hear “holy” used to describe God in our first reading, from Leviticus. The Psalm includes “kind… merciful… gracious… slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love” among terms that describe God. Jesus says in our Gospel reading that God our “heavenly Father is perfect,” and he invites us to “be perfect” as our God is perfect.

But only one word is used in our readings today to describe both us and God. Does anyone remember what word this is? We and God, as well as “God’s temple” that we are according to Paul in our second reading, are holy. Now for the difficult question: What does it mean for both God and us to be holy?

Holiness is not primarily a description of actions we do but of who we are. We are holy‒ all of us have been created as holy by God‒ and, from our being holy, we are capable of doing actions in keeping with our holiness. Let me take this thought a step further: Based on our holiness with which God has created us, we have a responsibility to act in a manner that is holy.

There are two main ways to approach our responsibility to “be holy as “the LORD [our] God [is] holy” or any other responsibility: We can carry out our responsibility reluctantly, by doing the bare minimum for which we are responsible, or we can freely and creatively go beyond our minimal obligations.

In truth, we would not be gathered here to worship God were we not fundamentally holy. Likewise, the first hearers of Leviticus, of St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, and of Matthew’s Gospel had a sense of God’s and their own holiness and the responsibility‒ or covenant‒ to which their holiness called them. It would have been no surprise, then, for Leviticus to say, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” or that Jesus would make this commandment, along with loving God, central to following him; to living as he lived; to living as holy people live.

Jesus takes for granted that we, God’s people, are holy, and he invites and challenges us in today’s Gospel reading to act more fully in keeping with our holiness.

And so “you have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’” If someone is to be harmed or shamed in a dispute, at least have laws in place that lessen the harm or shame that can be caused another person legally. But Jesus says to us, “Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.” In other words, do not harm or shame another person by our words and actions at all; the other person, even if she or he does evil or is disagreeable, is holy as we are all holy.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But Jesus says to us, “Love your enemies.” If we have enemies at all, Jesus says, we are not yet conscious enough that the person we call “enemy”; the person we hate, fear, or shun; the person who holds different political views or a different vision of Church from us is as holy as we are all holy.

To recognize our own holiness is easy compared to recognizing the holiness of others. Yet Jesus calls us to this responsibility of our faith in him: to recognize the holiness of others, especially those we less immediately view as holy.

“This is too much to ask; too idealistic; impossible,” some said in Jesus’ time and some continue to say in our time. Jesus does not deny that love for enemy and for neighbour alike is difficult. This, I think, is part of what Jesus means by “go… the second mile… Give your cloak as well” as your coat. But if, on the one hand, we dismiss Jesus’ invitation to Christian responsibility to recognize others’ holiness as we do our own, or if we accept it only reluctantly, we are defeated already.

On the other hand, if we freely and creatively accept our responsibility, with the help of God’s grace, to love in a way that recognizes the holiness of all people, especially those whose holiness is not readily apparent, Jesus promises us that our joy will be greater than if we were to continue to live in a world of us versus the other; neighbour versus enemy.

The free and creative acceptance of our invitation from Jesus; our responsibility as Christians to recognize others’ and our own holiness is possible. I have seen this in action right here at St. Basil’s Church. When I was here at St. Basil’s as a children’s sacramental catechist and assisted with the Children’s Liturgy of the Word and RCIA, I was constantly inspired by ways in which you show that we are a people that is holy as God is holy. Children and adults alike would often relate to me the joy with which they serve other people.

Some of us minister to the sick. Others ensure that the homeless are fed and sheltered. Others lead devotional and prayer groups. Still others work in peer support or resolution of conflict, building peace in our parish; our schools; our workplaces; our community; our homes; our world. Many people here are engaged in a great variety of ministries; some less visibly and regularly, others more so.

We have it in us to “be holy” as God is “holy.” God has created every one of us as holy. With holiness comes responsibility, and with living our responsibility to recognize and to show forth God’s and our holiness in acts of service comes great joy. Jesus promises us this joy, and we are already living and active witnesses to Jesus’ promise.