Rest a while

Three weeks shy of his twenty-fifth birthday, the French composer, George Bizet completed his opera, known in English as “The Pearl Fishers”.

Set in Ceylon, the opera centres around the competitive love two men have for the same woman.

The two men, one known as Nadir and the other Zurga, have been life-long friends, however this competitive love has forced them apart.

After a self-imposed absence, Nadir returns to the shores of Ceylon, where his friend Zurga has just been elected Fisher King. In a well-known aria, known in English as “from the depths of the Temple” the two men seek to recover and embrace their life-long friendship.

They sing:

NADIR
Your hand pushes my hand away!

ZURGA
Your hand pushes my hand away!

NADIR
From our hearts love seizes
And changes us into enemies!

ZURGA
No, let nothing separate us!

NADIR
No, nothing!

ZURGA and NADIR
Swear to stay friends!
Oh yes, let’s swear to stay friends!

The words in the aria may well be an echo of today’s Gospel, “but I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” ( Mtt. 5: 44).

Whenever, we choose to love our enemy, we exhibit something of the love of God.

Whenever we forgive instead of getting angry at one another, bless instead of cursing one another, tend one another’s wounds instead of rubbing salt into them, hearten instead of discouraging one another, give hope instead of driving one another to despair, hug instead of harassing one another, welcome instead of cold-shouldering one another, thank instead of criticizing one another, praise instead of maligning one another . . . in short, whenever we opt for and not against one another, we make God’s unconditional love visible.

God summons us to a radical way of living.

We are called to be more than just moral: God invites us to be virtuous.

We become virtuous by habitually choosing to do good.

Naturally, we are not perfect, however God calls us to reflect on how we live and to understand what has gone right and wrong for us. Such reflection can lead us to insight that will help us to live better – be virtuous – in the future.

Therefore, by reflecting on our experiences in the light of our faith, we grow in wisdom.

The author of today’s first reading, Sirach, affirms that God knows every human action; St Paul reminds us that God has many riches for those who love him; and Jesus, in Matthew’s Gospel says that he has come not to abolish but to fulfil the Law and the Prophets.

What we see clearly in the readings today is that there are repercussions, and consequences – good or bad – for all our actions.

Our challenge is to avoid the opportunities that do harm and to choose what directs us to God.

Sirach, the Psalmist, Paul and Jesus embraced this way of life; they are examples of how it is possible for us to become virtuous and wise. If we take to heart their messages from the readings this Sunday, we too, like them, will be true beacons of virtue – people of faith, hope and love.

If you have ever been to a circus or a carnival of one sort or another, you may well have walked passed what is known as a “distorting mirror”.

They are a popular attraction.

Instead of a normal plane mirror that reflects a perfect mirror image, distorting mirrors are curved mirrors, often using convex and concave sections to achieve the distorted effect. The result is you look much taller or shorter, much fatter or slimmer!

It is not you, however, there is enough of you to capture your attention, for you to pause, and, if there is none nearby, for you to pull a funny face and make the image of yourself more distorted still.

This image of the “distorting mirror” came to mind as I read this Sunday’s Gospel.

Just two Sunday’s ago we read from St. Matthew’s Gospel what are known as the Beatitudes, (Mtt. 5: 1 – 11). Often referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount”. The Sermon on the Mount is the very blueprint for the Christian lifestyle, and most scholars see it as the best summary of Jesus’ teaching.

If you have a New Testament that is in the form of columns, sitting in the column next to these wonderful blessings is today’s Gospel passage, and it is like you have walked past a “distorting mirror”.

 

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven…. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted…… The Beatitudes; we have heard them over and over.

Many organisations have what is known as a Mission Statement.

Persons of note (usually the ‘big wigs’) have some “retreat days” and together fashion out, what becomes known as the organisations or company’s ‘mission statement’.

A company uses a mission statement to explain, in simple and concise terms, its purpose(s) for being.

The statement is generally short, either a single sentence or a short paragraph.

The statement explains a company’s culture, values, and ethics. Mission statements are to motivate employees and reassure investors.

The sermon on the mount is the heart of the Gospel, and the Beatitudes are the heart of the sermon on the mount.

Here is to be seen the focused image of the Christian life.

Here is the Mission Statement as proclaimed by Jesus himself.

When I was a child, and at school, I, and those in class with me had to learn by heart the Ten Commandments. I could tell you what was commanded and forbidden by each of the ten commandments and what else was commanded and forbidden by each of them – even though I didn’t understand what many of the words meant.

I have no memory at all of having to learn the  Beatitudes.

I cannot remember being instructed to recite them by heart.

I never learned what was commanded, forbidden or even recommended by any of them.

I now suppose this is because it was so much easier to handle codified laws than deeper matters of the spirit.

It also had powerful ramifications for the theology I lived out of for many years of my life. The fact that this what was taught in the early formative years of my life I realise now had a profound effect on my approach to God!

One man went up a mountain and called out “thou shalt not . . . ., and I/we have been ‘shalt notting’ ever since.

Another man went up a mountain and shouted, “blessed” and we have, for centuries, been deaf to his calling!

[A little test for you: recite the ten commandments and see how many you get right; then do the same for the Beatitudes!]

In a way, the first Beatitude “Blessed are the poor in spirit”, contains all the rest.

One of Meister Eckhart’s most famous sermons is on this Beatitude.

He said that poverty of spirit is even more fundamental than love.

Strange saying for a Christian!

But what he meant was that without poverty of spirit, you cannot love as Christ loved.

The ego knows about love, but only self-love and love of one’s own circle (extended self-love).

It knows nothing of the spirit of Christ.