Traditional Catholic Teaching - FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Unless your justice abound more than that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

St. Matthew 5: 20.

The justice and piety of the scribes and Pharisees was false, because it sprang from a wrong motive. It was self-love, rather than a love of God, that made them practice virtue; for they hoped to win glory for themselves, and not for Him, by their goodness. True piety proceeds from a firm conviction that we are nothing in ourselves, but owe everything to God, and this knowledge leads us to sacrifice everything to Him, and do everything for love of Him.

Frequent consideration of His innumerable and generous benefits tends greatly to make us try to do right and lead a good life.

St. Augustine in his intense love of God exclaims with rapture: "I will praise Thee for having created me, when I was nothing; for having enlightened me, when I was in darkness; for having raised me to life, when I was dead, and for having nourished me from my childhood with Thy good gifts."

"I will praise Thee for having created me, when I was nothing." God created us in His goodness and love; our creation added nothing to His glory and happiness, but He called us into being that we might share His glory and happiness, and might rejoice with Him forever. This is why He bestowed upon man so many excellent faculties and tendencies, and, what is of infinitely more importance, this is why He elevated man to a state of sanctifying grace. "Thou hast crowned him with glory and honour," as the Psalmist exclaimed, overpowered by a sense of gratitude. By the redemption man recovered the grace lost in consequence of original sin, and this grace is given to each of us at baptism. God's grace is the crown that He gives us in this life, and we must control ourselves in order to preserve it; by self-control we show our gratitude for our creation and sanctification. If a Christian ceases to exercise self-control and becomes a slave to his passions and desires, he has thrown away the crown that God gave him, and shown himself most ungrateful.

Whenever we think of the benefits conferred upon us in our creation, redemption and sanctification, we should renew our resolution to aim at self-control, without which true virtue and justice are impossible.

"I will praise Thee for having enlightened me, when I was in darkness." It is useless to possess the gift of reason unless we use it to recognize truth. Truth is our highest good, for it alone throws light upon the road that leads through this transitory existence into the life where nothing passes away. If God had left our reason unaided, we should never have discovered this road; but He has enlightened us by means of the Light that He sent into the world. We owe Him most heartfelt thanks for the light of faith. True justice cannot exist without this light, and so it is a sacred duty to display our gratitude towards God by doing our best to preserve and increase our faith. To be indifferent in matters of faith is tantamount to being indifferent to virtue and justice.

"I will praise Thee for having raised me to life, when I was dead." St. Augustine was speaking of the death of sin. If we had remained thus dead, all the riches and glory of the world could have availed us nothing; and when God has raised anyone to life from the spiritual life of sin, it behooves him most carefully to avoid and shun all that leads to death. To act otherwise would be base ingratitude.

The justice of the scribes and Pharisees was false because it was only in appearance that they avoided sin; they aimed at concealing their real wickedness from the eyes of men, but cared very little whether their hearts were spiritually dead in God's sight.

Let us strive to avoid sin, not only for the sake of men, but before God. We shall never discharge our duty of gratitude towards Him as long as we are more anxious that men should not know our faults, than that God should not look down upon us with displeasure.

"I will praise Thee for having nourished me from my childhood with Thy good gifts." St. Augustine's words ought to fill us with shame for our habit of forgetting all the good things that God has lavished upon us from our birth onwards, and of grumbling at the troubles that He has sent us. If we were true Christians we should recognize the loving Hand of God even in our troubles. Complaints and discontent are evidence of great ingratitude towards Him.

There can be no real justice and piety where there is impatience, discontent and complaining at what God does. If we want to find out whether we serve Him in the right way, we need only ask ourselves whether we accept whatever He sends us with submissive and contented hearts. As long as we make no progress in acquiring a submissive and contented spirit, our justice is, to say the least, very doubtful.

God who created, redeemed, sanctified and enlightened us, and who raised us from the death of sin, must certainly always desire what is for our good. Therefore let us say with St. Augustine: – and I will praise Thee for having nourished me from my childhood with Thy good gifts."

It is easy enough to say these words, but we need God's grace if we are to utter them from the depths of our hearts, being determined that our feeling of gratitude shall manifest itself in a life of gratitude, a life characterized by self-control, faith, loving activity, submission and contentment. Let us implore almighty God to make us thoroughly perceive the infinite magnitude of His benefits, and also to make us really grateful, so that our hearts may be completely dedicated to Him in our gratitude. With fervent adoration let us pray with St. Augustine : "0 my God, reveal to me, wretched creature that I am, how much I ought to love Thee; speak, 0 Lord, loudly within my heart, and save me."

Open my eyes to Thy light, that I may see and know Thee, and confess Thee with my whole heart. 0 God, Thou art the life of my soul; through Thee I live, and without Thee I die; Thou art the light of my eyes; through Thee I see, and without Thee I am blind; Thou art the joy of my heart and the gladness of my spirit; make me love Thee with all my heart and all my soul, because Thou hast first loved me. Amen.

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