The first reading sets the theme for the entire liturgy of the word: "be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy" (Lev. 19:2). What comes as a command in the book of Leviticus, in the writings of Paul has become a reality: we are holy. Since that moment we professed our faith in Jesus and got united to His death, burial, and resurrection in the sacrament of baptism, we have become the temple of God because the Spirit of God dwells in us (1 Cor. 3:16-17).
Both the first reading and the Gospel explain to us the meaning of being holy. We need to look into our hearts first. Do we find hatred and desire to take revenge there? Do we cherish a grudge against someone (Lev. 19:17)? Hatred, revenge, and grudge are absent from the Heart of God. Our Holy God is "merciful and gracious", He pardons all our iniquities and has compassion on us (Ps. 103:3-4,8,13). The compassionate heart of God is beautifully captured in Jesus' statement that our heavenly Father "makes HIS sun rise on the bad and the good, and cause rain to fall on the just and the unjust" (Matt. 5:45). We are called to imitate this attitude.
Today’s Gospel teaches how to show our holiness and how to imitate our Father's perfection. "Do not resist the evil" (Matt. 5:39). This is one of those shocking advice that our Lord gives us. Instead of resisting we are told to offer the right cheek, give tunic together with our cloak, and to go two miles instead of one (Matt. 5:39-41). Is it not an irresponsible attitude? Are we not taught to fight evil, to eradicate evil at all cost? "An eye for an eye" is a just rule, but two eyes are lost in the process. Jesus offers a better solution. Perhaps turning the other cheek will lead your enemy to embarrassment and repentance. Perhaps when you hand over your tunic with your cloak, you will free your enemy's attachment to material possession. Finally, perhaps after two miles of walking together, you will turn your enemy into a friend. "Do not resist the evil", but let your heavenly Father deliver you from the evil (Matt. 6:13).
"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matt. 5:44). It is natural to love those who love us and hate our enemies. But Jesus demands something else: love and pray for our enemies. What is the motivation behind these imperatives? "So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:45). To help us grasp the meaning of this command, Jesus tells us to look at the sun and rain. They both do not discriminate between the good and the bad. Light and water are essential to life and so are love and prayer. And so here, we stumble upon a surprising revelation: the human heart is called to ‘learn’ from the cosmos. The bad and the unjust can be compared to dark and parched land in need of the sun and rain - they need love and prayer. Love the way the sun shines on the bad and the good and rain falls on the righteous and the unrighteous. Love without discriminating.
"You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matt. 5:48). How is it possible? By going beyond what the tax-collectors and the Gentiles do loving only those who love us and greeting only those who greet us (Matt. 5:46-47). Being perfect means pursuing the goal set for us by our heavenly Father - to transform dark and dry human hearts through the light of love and rain of prayer. By giving this direction to our lives, we become foolish in the eyes of the world but wise in God's wisdom (1 Cor. 3: 18-19).