CT - Catholic Telegraph

To love God and our neighbor

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A), Exodus 22:20-26. (Lectionary 148, October 23, 2005)

This Sunday’s scripture passage is from the part of Exodus known as the Covenant Code. It is found in Exodus in chapters 21 to 23, immediately after God’s proclamation of the 10 commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai in chapter 20.

Scripture scholars tell us that the Covenant Code, in the form in which we have it now, comes from a later time than the 10 commandments, although its underpinnings are to be found in God’s basic contact with Moses on Mount Sinai.

The 10 commandments give God’s people the key demands of their relationship with Him. They constitute a summary. The more detailed and specific legislation by which the people were to live when they had settled down in the land God gave them would develop gradually as the years went by and would eventually be linked with the 10 commandments when Exodus was composed.

The directives of the Covenant Code are civil and penal legislation, laying down directives about how the people were to live together and establishing penalties for non-compliance. Their basic teaching is that God’s people were to strive to be like God.

The section of the Covenant Code that the lectionary gives us today deals with the treatment that was owed to the legally helpless, to the defenseless.

First we hear about aliens, the outsiders who did not enjoy the full spectrum of civil rights that full-fledged Israelites did. God says that these persons must be treated fairly. This fair treatment was to remind the Israelites of their own history, when they were aliens in Egypt.

Next, God speaks about widows and orphans. (Note that in the Bible, "orphans" generally means young persons who were without a father.) They were particularly vulnerable members of society because one’s standing in society as well as one’s economic resources depended on one’s association with the male head of the family. If there was no husband or no father, the widow or the orphan was basically defenseless, at the mercy of those around them. God is stern in His directives about how widows and orphans were to be treated: They are not to be wronged, and if they are wronged and cry out to God, God will punish the wrongdoer by depriving his wife and children of their husband and father. The way you treat others will be the way God treats you and yours.

Finally, we learn about the neighbor who is poor. The fact that the neighbor is poor and therefore not powerful does not mean we can treat the neighbor any way we please. It is wrong to impose harsh terms on the neighbor when the neighbor needs our help. Like the widows and the orphans, the poor neighbor can cry out to God, too, and God promises to hear him, "for I am compassionate."

This reading from Exodus fits in very nicely with the Gospel reading (Matthew 22:34-40). There Jesus gives the general rules of behavior for the law abiding Israelite: Love God and love your neighbor. In the Old Testament reading, we learn in greater detail what that involves. We learn that God has a soft spot in His heart for the defenseless, for those who have no potential of their own on which to rely. God wants His people to look out for those who are helpless because He, God, looks out for the helpless. Thus, those who would be godly must conduct themselves with care and compassion toward those in need.

There are numberless lessons in these two readings. One is that we human beings do not need to rely only on ourselves for what we need in this world. God assures us that we can look to Him for help and to our brothers and sisters as well. Another lesson is that being poor and defenseless is not a sin. Poor people are not poor because they are bad. Another lesson is that the vulnerable - aliens, widows and orphans, the poor — have the right to cry out in their need. It’s appropriate for them to make their needs known to God and to their fellow human beings. Still more: in these readings God teaches us that being holy, being godly, being religiously observant does not consist exclusively in carrying out religious practices like prayer and attendance at public worship. That’s part of loving God, to be sure, but only a part. Godliness also involves defending the defenseless and providing for the helpless. That’s how God treats His people, and that’s how God expects us to treat His people.

In sum, the greatest commandments are to love God and love our neighbor. Loving God demands loving our neighbor. Loving our neighbor demands caring for those who cannot care adequately for themselves.

For Reflection and Discussion.

How do these Exodus directives apply to us today?

How do the poor and the weak cry out in our society?



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	*Overtures* Reflection on the first readings of the Sunday liturgy By Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk To love God and our neighbor Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A), Exodus 22:20-26. (Lectionary 148, October 23, 2005) This Sunday’s scripture passage is from the part of Exodus known as the Covenant Code. It is found in Exodus in chapters 21 to 23, immediately after God’s proclamation of the 10 commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai in chapter 20. Scripture scholars tell us that the Covenant Code, in the form in which we have it now, comes from a later time than the 10 commandments, although its underpinnings are to be found in God’s basic contact with Moses on Mount Sinai. The 10 commandments give God’s people the key demands of their relationship with Him. They constitute a summary. The more detailed and specific legislation by which the people were to live when they had settled down in the land God gave them would develop gradually as the years went by and would eventually be linked with the 10 commandments when Exodus was composed. The directives of the Covenant Code are civil and penal legislation, laying down directives about how the people were to live together and establishing penalties for non-compliance. Their basic teaching is that God’s people were to strive to be like God. The section of the Covenant Code that the lectionary gives us today deals with the treatment that was owed to the legally helpless, to the defenseless. First we hear about aliens, the outsiders who did not enjoy the full spectrum of civil rights that full-fledged Israelites did. God says that these persons must be treated fairly. This fair treatment was to remind the Israelites of their own history, when they were aliens in Egypt. Next, God speaks about widows and orphans. (Note that in the Bible, "orphans" generally means young persons who were without a father.) They were particularly vulnerable members of society because one’s standing in society as well as one’s economic resources depended on one’s association with the male head of the family. If there was no husband or no father, the widow or the orphan was basically defenseless, at the mercy of those around them. God is stern in His directives about how widows and orphans were to be treated: They are not to be wronged, and if they are wronged and cry out to God, God will punish the wrongdoer by depriving his wife and children of their husband and father. The way you treat others will be the way God treats you and yours. Finally, we learn about the neighbor who is poor. The fact that the neighbor is poor and therefore not powerful does not mean we can treat the neighbor any way we please. It is wrong to impose harsh terms on the neighbor when the neighbor needs our help. Like the widows and the orphans, the poor neighbor can cry out to God, too, and God promises to hear him, "for I am compassionate." This reading from Exodus fits in very nicely with the Gospel reading (Matthew 22:34-40). There Jesus gives the general rules of behavior for the law abiding Israelite: Love God and love your neighbor. In the Old Testament reading, we learn in greater detail what that involves. We learn that God has a soft spot in His heart for the defenseless, for those who have no potential of their own on which to rely. God wants His people to look out for those who are helpless because He, God, looks out for the helpless. Thus, those who would be godly must conduct themselves with care and compassion toward those in need. There are numberless lessons in these two readings. One is that we human beings do not need to rely only on ourselves for what we need in this world. God assures us that we can look to Him for help and to our brothers and sisters as well. Another lesson is that being poor and defenseless is not a sin. Poor people are not poor because they are bad. Another lesson is that the vulnerable - aliens, widows and orphans, the poor — have the right to cry out in their need. It’s appropriate for them to make their needs known to God and to their fellow human beings. Still more: in these readings God teaches us that being holy, being godly, being religiously observant does not consist exclusively in carrying out religious practices like prayer and attendance at public worship. That’s part of loving God, to be sure, but only a part. Godliness also involves defending the defenseless and providing for the helpless. That’s how God treats His people, and that’s how God expects us to treat His people. In sum, the greatest commandments are to love God and love our neighbor. Loving God demands loving our neighbor. Loving our neighbor demands caring for those who cannot care adequately for themselves. For Reflection and Discussion.** How do these Exodus directives apply to us today? How do the poor and the weak cry out in our society?

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