Drive-Through Morality

Drive-Through Morality

Gospel for the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Matthew 5.17-37


Every day we are faced with choices. There are the everyday routine choices of what to eat, what to wear, what route to take to work and so forth.
We are also faced every day with choices to act morally- is what I say or do today going to be an act of creation and love, or of hate and destruction, in my life, in the lives of who I encounter, and in my life in God?

So many choices. And often, we make decisions about our moral life as if we are going to a drive-through (or "thru" as it is misspelled at McDonald's. Don't get me started...)

What I mean is we can easily believe and follow certain teachings of the Church, and then neglect or outright refused to accept others. Then we go further by teaching our children, our friends, and our students our version of the what it means to be a Catholic. We run the danger of giving half-truths about our faith, especially about our morality.

 This is nothing new, but we'll come back to this.

Hearing today's Gospel from Matthew at Mass this morning got me thinking about what it must have been like to be a devout Jew during the time of Christ. So many laws, and so many interpreters of the law! It's no surprise when we hear Jesus being questioned about the Law- which was the most important? Which ones should be ignored? How should we interpret the Law? Can we get rid of some of it?

So again, Jesus surprised, and no doubt disturbed, some of the disciples when he showed his absolute love for the Law. For it was in the Law that the people could learn to encounter and love their God. It was not about legal wrangling and making excuses. It was about LOVE. Living the moral life is simply living in God's love. Totally and without excuse.

So we hear Jesus say that it's not enough to refrain from murder- you must avoid anger, insult and slander.

It's not enough to avoid adultery- you must also break free from lustful thoughts.

And don't expect that your offerings at the altar are pleasing to God if you haven't reconciled with those who have "something against you".

It reminds me of how the Catechism of the Catholic Church breaks open the whole of our Christian morality by showing its roots in the Ten Commandments.

Here's and example of what I mean. Far too often, we think, "hey I'm OK, I'm not breaking the commandments". And although we may not have. for example, physically killed anyone, how many times have we killed someone's spirit with cruel sarcasm, gossip or innuendo? 

Maybe as Lenten project this year, you could read, and pray with, Part Three of The Catechism entitled "Life in Christ". It's a really great help in shedding light into some of our dark corners.

It will also curb our propensity to pick and choose a drive-through morality. 
I'm not saying that we should not listened to our conscience, but if we are to be true to ourselves, we need to have an informed conscience.
That means that if we disagree with something that the Church teaches on morality, we must find out exactly what it does teach. Go to the source, not the media's interpretations of what the Church teaches. 
And don't forget to ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom and discernment.

Because a drive-through morality is not the "righteousness" that Jesus refers to when he says:
"Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matt 5.20

For this week
Is there a particular moral teaching of the Church with which you struggle? Go to the Catechism and read what it says about it. And read Chapter Three article 1 on "The Moral Law". It will help give you the "big picture" on our Catholic Christian morality.