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From: Sirach 15:15-20

Free Will

[15] If you will, you can keep the commandments,
and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice.
[16] He has placed before you fire and water:
stretch out your hand for whichever you wish.
[17] Before a man are life and death,
and whichever he chooses will be given to him.
[18] For great is the wisdom of the Lord;
he is mighty in power and sees everything;
[19] his eyes are on those who fear him,
and he knows every deed of man.
[20] He has not commanded any one to be ungodly,
and he has not given any one permission to sin.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

15:11-20. The teacher of Israel stops to provide a few maxims about human free-
dom and responsibility. Verse 14 sums them up when it makes free will part of
man’s make-up, a gift God bestowed on him when he created him: “God willed
that man should ‘be left in the hand of his own counsel’ (Sir 15:14) so that he
might of his own accord seek his creator and freely attain his full and blessed
perfection by cleaving to him” (Vatican II, “Gaudium et spes”, 17); or, in the words
of a Father of the Church: “The soul shows its majesty and excellence [...] by its
self-control and freedom, when it is governed by its own will.

This action resembles nothing so much as the activity of a king [...]. Human na-
ture was created to rule over all other creatures through its likeness to the king
of the universe, and was made as a living image, which partakes of the dignity
and name of the Archetype” (St Gregory of Nyssa, “De hominis opificio”, 4).

But, along with free will, the Lord also gave man the commandments (v. 15). The
Law of God does not coerce human freedom, because it does not restrain man’s
ability to choose, but it does show him how to make best use of his free will. The
commandments of the Lord protect true freedom. Bl. John Paul II spells this out:
“Man’s ‘genuine moral autonomy’ in no way means the rejection but rather the ac-
ceptance of the moral law, of God’s command: ‘The Lord God gave this command
to the man ... ‘ (Gen 2:16). ‘Human freedom and God’s law meet and are called
to intersect’, in the sense of man’s free obedience to God and of God’s complete-
ly gratuitous benevolence towards man” (“Veritatis splendor”, 41).

Although on occasions temptation can make it difficult to make decisions, man
is always in a position to opt for good or evil: “Temptations can be overcome, sins
can be avoided, because together with the commandments the Lord gives us the
possibility of keeping them: ‘His eyes are on those who fear him, and he knows
every deed of man. He has not commanded any one to be ungodly, and he has
not given any one permission to sin’ (Sir 15:19-20). Keeping God’s law in particu-
lar situations can be difficult, extremely difficult, but it is never impossible. This is
the constant teaching of the Church’s tradition, and was expressed by the Coun-
cil of Trent: ‘But no one, however much justified, ought to consider himself exempt
from the observance of the commandments, nor should he employ that rash state-
ment, forbidden by the Fathers under anathema, that the commandments of God
are impossible of observance by one who is justified. For God does not command
the impossible, but in commanding he admonishes you to do what you can and
to pray for what you cannot, and he gives his aid to enable you. His command-
ments are not burdensome (cf. 1 Jn 5:3); his yoke is easy and his burden light
(cf. Mt 11:30)’” ( “Veritatis splendor”, 102).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: 1 Corinthians 2:6-10

Divine wisdom

[6] Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of
this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. [7] But we im-
part a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for
our glorification. [8] None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had,
they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. [9] But, as it is written,
“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man conceived,
what God has prepared for those who love him,”
[10] God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches every-
thing, even the depths of God.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

6-8. After showing that the wisdom of the world serves no purpose and that
people need to submit to the cross of Christ, the Apostle teaches that the Gospel
is not contrary to reason; only, the wisdom it holds is much more profound, it is
divine wisdom. This is the wisdom he spreads “among the mature”, the “perfect”,
that is, those Christians who are well established in the faith, as distinct from the
“babes” referred to in 3:1, who still have need of brilliant arguments. These mature
Christians St Paul is referring to are not an inner core of privileged people, for all
the baptized are called to attain full knowledge of the Son of God (cf. Eph 4:11-16).

This wisdom is completely foreign to this world, this age, and its rulers, that is,
those who are responsible for the evil in the world: there is a reference here both
to those who directly caused our Lord’s death (the Sanhedrin, Herod, Pilate: cf. v.
8), and to the devil and the fallen angels, as can be seen from similar New Testa-
ment references (cf. Lk 4:6; Jn 12:31; Eph 2:2).

“Secret and hidden”: a reference to the content of divine wisdom and to its revela-
tion. It means the same as God’s plan of salvation, which extends to all men —
including the Gentiles (cf. Eph 3:6-8) and, in some way, to all creation (Eph 1:10);
man can never completely grasp its meaning, just as he can never totally under-
stand God; however, this secret and hidden wisdom can be known by means of
Revelation (cf. Lk 8:10; Col 1:26), which we are given in Christ (cf. Rom 16:25-26;
Eph 1:8-10; 3:3-7; Col 1:26-27), even though we can only fully grasp it in heaven.
There are, therefore, three ways of looking at this wisdom-mystery-salvation: it is
part of God’s plans from all eternity; it is manifested in Revelation and especially
in Jesus Christ, who died and is risen; we attain it partially in this life and fully in
heaven.

“Lord of glory”: here St Paul attributes to Christ on the cross a title which the Old
Testament reserved for God alone (cf. Ex 24:15; 40:34; Is 42:8), thereby making
it clear that Jesus Christ is God, equal to the Father.

9. These words of Isaiah 64:2-3 sum up the content of God’s plan — all those
gifts which man’s mind cannot grasp (cf. Eph 3:19) and which God has had ready
from all eternity for those who love him. These gifts are nothing less than God’s
love for men.

Because these gifts are only fully attained in the next life, Christian tradition sees
in these words a description of heaven: “How blessed, how marvellous, are the
gifts of God. Some of them, indeed, already lie within our comprehension – the
life that knows no death, the shining splendour of righteousness, truth in freedom,
trusting faith, the holiness of chastity. But what of the things that God has pre-
pared for those who hope in him? Only the Creator and Father of eternity knows
them. Let us strive earnestly to be counted among those who wait patiently in
order to earn a share in his promised gifts” (St Clement of Rome, “First Letter to
the Corinthians”, 35).

And the “Pius V Catechism”, for its part, teaches that “With this truth, the minds
of the faithful should be deeply impressed — that the happiness of the saints is
full to overflowing of all those pleasures which can be enjoyed or even desired in
this life, whether they have to do with the powers of the mind or of the perfection
of the body; although this must be in a manner more exalted than, to use the Ap-
ostle’s words, eye has seen, ear heard, or the heart of man conceived” (I, 13, 12).

10-12. “God has revealed to us through the Spirit”: meaning the Holy Spirit, the
third person of the Blessed Trinity, “which is from God” (v. 12) and knows the very
depths of God (vv. 10-11). These words reveal to us the divinity of the Holy Spirit;
knowing a person implies having intimacy with him; the Holy Spirit knows the
depths of God because by nature he is God, equal to the Father and the Son (cf.
Mt 11:25). “The Holy Spirit is equally God with the Father and the Son, equally
omnipotent and eternal, infinitely perfect, the supreme good, infinitely wise, and
of the same nature as the Father and the Son [. . .]. Scripture also attributes to
him the power to sanctify, to vivify, to search the depths of God, to speak through
the Prophets, and to be present in all places — all of which can be attributed to
God alone” (”St Pius V Catechism”, I, 9, 4).

Jesus had told his Apostles that “when the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you
into all truth” (Jn 16:13); and on the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit did open their
minds to understand the truth revealed by Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit also
acted in St Paul, so that he had the same knowledge of Revelation as the other
Apostles (cf. Gal 2:1-10). The same Spirit continues to act in the Church: “The
Holy Spirit, who is the spirit of truth, because he proceeds from the Father,
eternal Truth, and the Son, substantial truth, receives from each of them, along
with his essence, all truth, which he then communicates to the Church, helping
never to err” (Leo XIII, “Divinum illud munus”, 7).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Matthew 5:17-37

Jesus and His Teaching, the Fulfillment of the Law

(Jesus said to His disciples,) [17] “Think not that I have come to abolish the law
and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them. [18] For tru-
ly I say to you, till Heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass
from the law until all is accomplished. [19] Whoever then relaxes one of the least
of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the King-
dom of Heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in
the Kingdom of Heaven.”

[20] “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and
Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

[21] “You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not kill; and
whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.’ [22] But I say to you that every one who
is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother
shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be liable to the
hell of fire. [23] So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember
that your brother has something against you, [24] leave your gift there before the
altar and go; first to be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your
gift. [25] Make friends quickly with your accuser, while you are going with him to
court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard,
and you be put in prison; [26] truly, I say to you, you will never get out till you
have paid the last penny.

[27] “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ [28] But I
say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed
adultery with her in his heart. [29] If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out
and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your
whole body be thrown into hell. [30] And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut
it off and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that
your whole body go into hell.

[31] “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of
divorce.’ [32] But I say to you that every one who divorces his wife, except on the
ground of unchastity, makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries a divorced
woman commits adultery.”

[33] “Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not swear
falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ [34] But I say to you,
Do not swear at all, either by Heaven, for it is the throne of God, [35] or by the
earth, for it is His footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
[36] And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
[37] Let what you say be simply, ‘yes’ or ‘no’; anything more than this comes from
evil.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

17-19. In this passage Jesus stresses the perennial value of the Old Testament.
It is the word of God; because it has a divine authority it deserves total respect.
The Old Law enjoined precepts of a moral, legal and liturgical type. Its moral pre-
cepts still hold good in the New Testament because they are for the most part
specific divine-positive promulgations of the natural law. However, our Lord gives
them greater weight and meaning. But the legal and liturgical precepts of the Old
Law were laid down by God for a specific stage in salvation history, that is, up to
the coming of Christ; Christians are not obliged to observe them (cf. “Summa
Theologiae”, I-II, q. 108, a. 3 ad 3).

The law promulgated through Moses and explained by the prophets was God’s
gift to His people, a kind of anticipation of the definitive Law which the Christ or
Messiah would lay down. Thus, as the Council of Trent defined, Jesus not only
“was given to men as a redeemer in whom they are to trust, but also as a law-
giver whom they are to obey” (”De Iustificatione”, can. 21).

20. “Righteousness”: see the note on Matthew 5:6 (see below). This verse clari-
fies the meaning of the preceding verses. The scribes and Pharisees had distor-
ted the spirit of the Law, putting the whole emphasis on its external, ritual obser-
vance. For them exact and hyper-detailed but external fulfillment of the precepts
of the Law was a guarantee of a person’s salvation: “If I fulfill this I am righteous,
I am holy and God is duty bound to save me.” For someone with this approach
to sanctification it is really not God who saves: man saves himself through exter-
nal works of the Law. That this approach is quite mistaken is obvious from what
Christ says here; in effect what He is saying is: to enter the Kingdom of God the
notion of righteousness or salvation developed by the scribes and Pharisees
must be rejected. In other words, justification or sanctification is a grace from
God; man’s role is one of cooperating with that grace by being faithful to it. Else-
where Jesus gives the same teaching in an even clearer way (cf. Luke 18: 9-14,
the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector). It was also the origin of one
of St. Paul’s great battles with the “Judaizers” (see Galatians 3 and Romans 2-
5).

21. Verses 21-26 gives us a concrete example of the way that Jesus Christ
brought the Law of Moses to its fulfillment, by explaining the deeper meaning of
the commandments of that Law.

22. By speaking in the first person (”but I say to you”) Jesus shows that His au-
thority is above that of Moses and the prophets; that is to say, He has divine au-
thority. No mere man could claim such authority.

“Insults”: practically all translations of this passage transcribe the original Arama-
ic word, “raca” (cf. RSV note below). It is not an easy word to translate. It means
“foolish, stupid, crazy”. The Jews used it to indicate utter contempt; often, instead
of verbal abuse they would show their feelings by spitting on the ground.

“Fool” translates an ever stronger term of abuse than “raca” — implying that a per-
son has lost all moral and religious sense, to the point of apostasy.

In this passage our Lord points to three faults which we commit against charity,
moving from internal irritation to showing total contempt. St. Augustine comments
that three degrees of faults and punishments are to be noted. The first is the fault
of feeling angry; to this corresponds the punishment of “judgment”. The second
is that of passing an insulting remark, which merits the punishment of “the coun-
cil”. The third arises when anger quite blinds us: this is punished by “the hell of
fire” (cf. “De Serm. Dom. in Monte”, II, 9).

“The hell of fire”: literally, “Gehenna of fire”, meaning, in the Jewish language of
the time, eternal punishment.

This shows the gravity of external sins against charity—gossip, backbiting, calum-
ny, etc. However, we should remember that these sins stem from the heart; our
Lord focuses our attention, first, on internal sins—resentment, hatred, etc.— to
make us realize that that is where the root lies and that it is important to nip an-
ger in the bud.

23-24. Here our Lord deals with certain Jewish practices of His time, and in doing
so gives us perennial moral teaching of the highest order. Christians, of course,
do not follow these Jewish ritual practices; to keep our Lord’s commandment we
have ways and means given us by Christ Himself. Specifically, in the New and
definitive Covenant founded by Christ, being reconciled involves going to the Sa-
crament of Penance. In this Sacrament the faithful “obtain pardon from God’s
mercy for the offense committed against Him, and are, at the same time, recon-
ciled with the Church which they have wounded by their sins” (”Lumen Gentium”,
11).

In the New Testament, the greatest of all offerings is the Eucharist. Although one
has a duty to go to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation, an essential
condition before receiving Holy Communion is that one be in the state of grace.

It is not our Lord’s intention here to give love of neighbor priority over love of God.
There is an order of charity: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul and with all your strength. This is the great and first command-
ment” (Matthew 22:37-38). Love of one’s neighbor, which is the second command-
ment in order of importance (cf. Matthew 22:39), derives its meaning from the first.
Brotherhood without parenthood is inconceivable. An offense against charity is,
above all, an offense against God.

[The note on Matthew 5:6 states:

6. The notion of righteousness (or justice) in Holy Scripture is an essentially re-
ligious one (cf. notes on Matthew 1:19 and 3:15; Romans 1:17; 1:18-32; 3:21-22
and 24). A righteous person is one who sincerely strives to do the Will of God,
which is discovered in the commandments, in one’s duties of state in life and
through one’s life of prayer. Thus, righteousness, in the language of the Bible,
is the same as what nowadays is usually called “holiness” (1 John 2:29; 3:7-10;
Revelations 22:11; Genesis 15:6; Deuteronomy 9:4).]

27-30. This refers to a sinful glance at any woman, be she married or not. Our
Lord fills out the precepts of the Old Law, where only adultery and the coveting
of one’s neighbor’s wife were considered sinful.

“Lustfully”: feeling is one thing, consenting another. Consent presupposes that
one realizes the evil of these actions (looking, imagining, having impure thoughts)
and freely engages in them.

Prohibition of vices always implies a positive aspect—the contrary virtue. Holy pu-
rity, like every other virtue, is something eminently positive; it derives from the
First Commandment and is also directed to it: “You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).
“Purity is a consequence of the love that prompts us to commit to Christ our soul
and body, our faculties and senses. It is not something negative; it is a joyful affir-
mation” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 5). This virtue demands that we
use all the resources available to us, to the point of heroism if necessary.

“Right eye”, “right hand”, refers to whatever we value most. Our Lord lays it on
the line and is not exaggerating. He obviously does not mean that we should phy-
sically mutilate ourselves, but that we should fight hard without making any con-
cessions, being ready to sacrifice anything which clearly could put us in the way
of offending God. Jesus’ graphic words particularly warn us about one of the most
common occasions of sin, reminding us of how careful we need to be guarding
our sight. King David, by indulging his curiosity, went on to commit adultery and
crime. He later wept over his sins and led a holy life in the presence of God (cf.
2 Samuel 11 and 12).

“The eyes! Through them many iniquities enter the soul. So many experiences
like David’s!—If you guard your sight you will have assured the guard of your heart:
(St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 183).

Among the ascetical methods of protecting the virtue of holy purity are: frequent
Confession and Communion; devotion to our Lady; a spirit of prayer and mortifi-
cation; guarding of the senses; flight from occasions of sin; and striving to avoid
idleness by always being engaged in doing useful things. There are two further
means which are particularly relevant today: “Decorum and modesty are younger
brothers of purity” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 128). Decorum and modesty are a
sign of good taste, of respect for others and of human and Christian dignity. To
act in accord with this teaching of our Lord, the Christian has to row against the
current in a paganized environment and bring his influence for good to bear on it.

“There is need for a crusade of manliness and purity to counteract and undo the
savage work of those who think that man is a beast. And that crusade is a mat-
ter for you” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 121).

31-32. The Law of Moses (Deuteronomy 24:1), which was laid down in ancient
times, had tolerated divorce due to the hardness of heart of the early Hebrews.
But it had not specified clearly the grounds on which divorce might be obtained.
The rabbis worked out different sorts of interpretations, depending on which
school they belonged to — solutions ranging from very lax to quite rigid. In all ca-
ses, only husband could repudiate wife, not vice-versa. A woman’s inferior posi-
tion was eased somewhat by the device of a written document whereby the hus-
band freed the repudiated woman to marry again if she wished. Against these
rabbinical interpretations, Jesus re-establishes the original indissolubility of mar-
riage as God instituted it (Genesis 1:27; 2:24; cf. Matthew 19:4-6; Ephesians 1:
31; 1 Corinthians 7:10).

[The RSVCE carries a note which reads “unchastity”: The Greek word used here
appears to refer to marriages which were not legally marriages, because they
were within the forbidden degrees of consanguinity (Leviticus 18:6-16) or contrac-
ted with a Gentile. The phrase “except on the ground of unchastity” does not oc-
cur in the parallel passage in Luke 16:18. See also Matthew 19:9 (Mark 10: 11-
12), and especially 1 Corinthians 7:10-11, which shows that the prohibition is un-
conditional.] The phrase, “except on the ground of unchastity”, should not be ta-
ken as indicating an exception to the principle of absolute indissolubility of ma-
rriage which Jesus has just re-established. It is almost certain that the phrase re-
fers to unions accepted as marriage among some pagan people, but prohibited
as incestuous in the Mosaic Law (cf. Leviticus 18) and in rabbinical tradition. The
reference, then, is to unions radically invalid because of some impediment. When
persons in this position were converted to the True Faith, it was not that their un-
ion could be dissolved; it was declared that they had never in fact been joined in
true marriage. Therefore, this phrase does not do against the indissolubility of
marriage, but rather reaffirms it.

On the basis of Jesus’ teaching and guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church has ru-
led that in the specially grave case of adultery it is permissible for a married cou-
ple to separate, but without the marriage bond being dissolved; therefore, neither
party may contract a new marriage.

The indissolubility of marriage was unhesitatingly taught by the Church from the
very beginning; she demanded practical and legal recognition of this doctrine, ex-
pounded with full authority by Jesus (Matthew 19:3-9; Mark 10:1-12; Luke 16: 18)
and by the Apostles (1 Corinthians 6:16; 7:10-11; 39; Romans 7:2-3; Ephesians
5:31f).

Here, for example, are just a few texts from the Magisterium on this subject:
“Three blessings are ascribed to matrimony [...]. The third is the indissolubility
of matrimony — indissoluble because it signifies the indivisible union of Christ
with the Church. Although a separation from bed may be permitted by reason
of marital infidelity, nevertheless it is not permitted to contract another matrimo-
ny since the bond of a marriage lawfully contracted is perpetual” (Council of Flo-
rence, “Pro Armeniis”).

33-37. The Law of Moses absolutely prohibited perjury or violation of oaths (Exo-
dus 20:7; Numbers 30:3; Deuteronomy 23:22). In Christ’s time, the making of
sworn statements was so frequent and the casuistry surrounding them so intri-
cate that the practice was being grossly abused. Some rabbinical documents of
the time show that oaths were taken for quite unimportant reasons. Parallel to
this abuse of oath-taking there arose no less ridiculous abuses to justify non-ful-
fillment of oaths. All this meant great disrespect for the name of God. However,
we do know from Sacred Scripture that oath-taking is lawful and good in certain
circumstances: “If you swear, ‘As the Lord lives’, in truth, in justice, and in up-
rightness, then nations shall bless themselves in Him, and in Him shall they glo-
ry (Jeremiah 4:2).

Jesus here lays down the criterion which His disciples must apply in this connec-
tion. It is based on re-establishing, among married people, mutual trust, nobility
and sincerity. The devil is “the father of lies” (John 8:44). Therefore, Christ’s
Church must teach that human relationships cannot be based on deceit and in-
sincerity. God is truth, and the children of the Kingdom must, therefore, base mu-
tual relationships on truth. Jesus concludes by praising sincerity. Throughout His
teaching He identifies hypocrisy as one of the main vices to be combatted (cf.,
e.g., Matthew 23:13-32), and sincerity as one of the finest virtues (cf. John 1:47).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Readings at Mass

First reading

Ecclesiasticus 15:16-21 ©

If you wish, you can keep the commandments,

to behave faithfully is within your power.

He has set fire and water before you;

put out your hand to whichever you prefer.

Man has life and death before him;

whichever a man likes better will be given him.

For vast is the wisdom of the Lord;

he is almighty and all-seeing.

His eyes are on those who fear him,

he notes every action of man.

He never commanded anyone to be godless,

he has given no one permission to sin.

Psalm

Psalm 118:1-2,4-5,17-18,33-34 ©