Your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High

12 SEPTEMBER (Lk 6,27-38)

The Old Testament sings admirably the mercy of man towards his brothers. Charity to the poor is an eternal memorial before our God. It produces an eternal harvest of goodness that comes to us directly from the Lord.
Praise the LORD! How blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who greatly delights in His commandments. His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, And his righteousness endures forever. Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous. It is well with the man who is gracious and lends; He will maintain his cause in judgment. For he will never be shaken; The righteous will be remembered forever. He will not fear evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. His heart is upheld, he will not fear, Until he looks with satisfaction on his adversaries. He has given freely to the poor, His righteousness endures forever; His horn will be exalted in honor. The wicked will see it and be vexed, He will gnash his teeth and melt away; The desire of the wicked will perish (Psalm 112 (111), 1-10).

The Old Testament already possesses also this truth. There is no party just for the selves, a party is sharing in the joy by all. This can happen if the person that possesses has, who might in no way ever possess, share in. A party lived in selfishness is the negation of the party itself. There is a party in order to live a moment of collective, shared and donated joy to our brothers.

Ezra read plainly from the book of the law of God, interpreting it so that all could understand what was read. Then (Nehemiah, that is, His Excellency, and) Ezra the priest-scribe (and the Levites who were instructing the people) said to all the people: “Today is holy to the Lord your God. Do not be sad, and do not weep”-for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law. He said further: “Go, eat rich foods and drink sweet drinks, and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared; for today is holy to our Lord. Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength!” (And the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Hush, for today is holy, and you must not be saddened.”) Then all the people went to eat and drink, to distribute portions, and to celebrate with great joy, for they understood the words that had been expounded to them (Ne 8,8-12).

The New Testament is an absolute novelty. In it not something is given, a person is given, we give ourselves entirely, our lives are offered to God for the redemption of many hearts. We deliver our lives to physical evil not to be infected by moral and spiritual evil. It is another world the one that Christ the Lord has revealed us.

“But to you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit (is) that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount. But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as (also) your Father is merciful. “Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.”

It is an unconditional love towards all, with the gift of our whole life the one that Jesus asks of us. God wants us in his total image and likeness. He wants us to show everybody, always, how great his mercy is. How immense his heart is. How infinite his love for all is. His is a love of crucifixion and gift of the entire life from the cross. You can love this way only in Him, with Him and for Him.

Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels and Saints teach us true charity.