From the Gospel: Life of another kind – Fr Stefan Attard

Sixth Sunday of ordinary time. Today’s readings: Sirach 15:15-20; 1 Corinthians 2:6-10; Matthew 5:17-37

Having to comment on today’s gospel makes me feel like a little boy who has just been brought to Disneyland and who, rapidly viewing all the thrilling forms of entertainment the place has to offer, stands speechless and gobsmacked.

A sentence from the Master is enough to keep you thinking for days, let alone such a long section of the famous Sermon on the Mount. Having been provoked by someone’s words and uncertain he had understood them correctly, the actor Denzel Washington once featured in a film saying he was slow in uptake. May this not be the case with us today.

Simply said, the Sermon on the Mount is nothing short of a game changer. It leaves no space for mediocrity, half measures, or complacency. It calls for the highest virtues and for a truly noble character. The Lord’s words pierce right to the spirit and the heart – for him, it is not just a matter of one’s outer actions, but rather of one’s inner thoughts and intentions which ultimately define a person. In other words, the very desire to sin is tantamount to sinning, even if this were a private matter. Indeed, sin...