CCC Cross Reference:
Lv 19:2 2811; Lv 19:13 2434; Lv 19:15 1807; Lv 19:18 2055
Mt 25:31-46 544, 1033, 1373, 2447, 2831; Mt 25:31-36 2443; Mt 25:31 331, 671, 679, 1038; Mt 25:32 1038; Mt 25:36 1503; Mt 25:40 678, 1397, 1825, 1932, 2449; Mt 25:41 1034; Mt 25:45 598, 1825, 2463; Mt 25:46 1038
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Reading 1
Lv 19:1-2, 11-18
The LORD said to Moses,
“Speak to the whole assembly of the children of Israel and tell them:
Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy.
“You shall not steal.
You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another.
You shall not swear falsely by my name,
thus profaning the name of your God.
I am the Lord.
“You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor.
You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer.
You shall not curse the deaf,
or put a stumbling block in front of the blind,
but you shall fear your God.
I am the Lord.
“You shall not act dishonestly in rendering judgment.
Show neither partiality to the weak nor deference to the mighty,
but judge your fellow men justly.
You shall not go about spreading slander among your kin;
nor shall you stand by idly when your neighbor’s life is at stake.
I am the Lord.
“You shall not bear hatred for your brother in your heart.
Though you may have to reprove him,
do not incur sin because of him.
Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen.
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
I am the Lord.”
Responsorial Psalm
19:8, 9, 10, 15
R. (John 6:63b) Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The decree of the Lord is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;
The ordinances of the Lord are true,
all of them just.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
Let the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart
find favor before you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
R. Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
Gospel
Mt 25:31-46
Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him,
he will sit upon his glorious throne,
and all the nations will be assembled before him.
And he will separate them one from another,
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me,
naked and you clothed me,
ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.’
Then the righteous will answer him and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you drink?
When did we see you a stranger and welcome you,
or naked and clothe you?
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’
And the king will say to them in reply,
‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on his left,
‘Depart from me, you accursed,
into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food,
I was thirsty and you gave me no drink,
a stranger and you gave me no welcome,
naked and you gave me no clothing,
ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’
Then they will answer and say,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison,
and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you,
what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.’
And these will go off to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Leviticus 19:1 – 18
The Lord spoke to Moses; he said:
‘Speak to the whole community of the sons of Israel and say to them:
“Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.
“You must not steal nor deal deceitfully or fraudulently with your neighbor. You must not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God. I am the Lord. You must not exploit or rob your neighbor. You must not keep back the laborer’s wage until next morning. You must not curse the dumb, nor put an obstacle in the blind man’s way, but you must fear your God. I am the Lord.
“You must not be guilty of unjust verdicts. You must neither be partial to the little man nor overawed by the great; you must pass judgment on your neighbor according to justice. You must not slander your own people, and you must not jeopardize your neighbor’s life. I am the Lord. You must not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. You must openly tell him, your neighbor, of his offence; this way you will not take a sin upon yourself. You must not exact vengeance, nor must you bear a grudge against the children of your people. You must love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.”’
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 18(19):8-10,15
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,
it gives wisdom to the simple.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
they gladden the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
it gives light to the eyes.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The fear of the Lord is holy,
abiding for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are truth
and all of them just.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
May the spoken words of my mouth,
the thoughts of my heart,
win favour in your sight, O Lord,
my rescuer, my rock!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
Gospel Matthew 25:31 – 46
Jesus said, ‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, escorted by all the angels, then he will take his seat on his throne of glory. All the nations will be assembled before him and he will separate men one from another as the shepherd separates sheep from goats. He will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right hand, “Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Then the virtuous will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you; or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome; naked and clothe you; sick or in prison and go to see you?” And the King will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me”. Next he will say to those on his left hand, “Go away from me, with your curse upon you, to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you never gave me food; I was thirsty and you never gave me anything to drink; I was a stranger and you never made me welcome, naked and you never clothed me, sick and in prison and you never visited me.” Then it will be their turn to ask, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or naked, sick or in prison, and did not come to your help?” Then he will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me”. And they will go away to eternal punishment, and the virtuous to eternal life.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Monday of the 1st Week of Lent
From: Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18
Moral and Religious Duties
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[1] And the LORD said to Moses, [2] "Say to all the congregation of the people of Israel, You shall be holy; for I the LORD your God am holy.
[11] "You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another. [12] And you shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.
[13] "You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night untiI the morning, [14] You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.
[15] "You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. [16] You shall not go up and down as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand forth against the your nelg our: I am the LORD.
[17] "You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason with your neighbor, lest you bear sin because of him. [18] You shall not take vengeance or bear any grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
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Commentary:
19:1-37. The holiness asked of the Israelites is much more than merely ritual holiness. As in 20:26, the exhortation made to them is based on the highest possible reason--the fact that the Lord is holy. The injunction to honor parents, as also the obligation to keep the sabbath and the prohibition on idolatry, are commandments of the Decalogue already spelt out in Exodus 20:3-4, 12; 21:15, 17. The rules about peace offerings were covered in Leviticus 7:11-15, and the rules to protect the weaker members of society are repeated on a number of occasions (cf. 23:22; Deut 24.19.22).
Verse 2 ("You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy": cf. also 20:26) and v. 18 ("you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord":cf. also 19:33-34) sum up the entire ethic of Leviticus and indeed of the whole Law of God. Jesus himself says this, as reported in Matthew 22:34-40 (parallel texts in Mk 12:28-31 and Luke 10:25-28): "When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?' And he said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets' " (Mt 22:34-40).
19:1-8. Our Lord refers to the criteria about perjury in his Sermon on the Mount, in which he rejects the prevalent abuse of swearing by holy things such as heaven, earth or the holy city for no good reason (cf. Mt 5:33-37). Jesus' teaching on this point is that all one need do is simply tell the truth, without any oath to back up one's words. St James reminds Christians of that same teaching (cf. Jas 5: 12). The blind and the deaf (v. 14) are to be respected out of fear of the Lord: any harm done them he regards as done to himself. Fraternal correction is a practice which Jesus will put on a higher plane (cf. Mt 18:15f). He does the same for love of neighbor. For one thing, one's neighbor is not just members of the Jewish people or sojourners in Judea: for Christ everyone we meet is our neighbor, irrespective of his religion or race. And it is not just a matter of loving others as oneself, but of loving them as Christ loved us (cf. Jn 15:12).
19:13. The social teaching of the Church, which is part of moral theology and is based on Revelation and on reason enlightened by faith, is summed up on the subject of the just wage by the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "A just wage is the legitimate fruit of work. To refuse or withhold it can be a grave injustice (cf Lev 19:13; Deut 24:14-15; Jas 5:4), In determining fair pay both the needs and the contributions of each person must be taken into account. 'Remuneration for work should guarantee man the opportunity to provide a dignified livelihood for himself and his family on the material, social, cultural and spiritual level, taking into account the role and the productivity of each, the state of the business, and the common good' ("Gaudium Et Spes", 67). Agreement between the parties is not sufficient to justify morally the amount to be received in wages" (no.2434).
19:15. "Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the 'virtue of religion'. Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. 'You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor' (Lev 19:15)" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1807).
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From: Matthew 25:31-46
The Last Judgment
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[31] "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. [32] Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and He will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, [33] and He will place the sheep at His right hand, but the goats at the left. [34] Then the King will say to those at His right hand, 'Come, O blessed of My Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; [35] for I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed Me, [36] I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you visited Me, I was in prison and you came to Me.' [37] Then the righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did we see Thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? [38] And when did we see Thee a stranger and welcome Thee, or naked and clothe Thee? [39] And when did we see Thee sick or in prison and visit Thee?' [40] And the King will answer them, 'Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of My brethren, you did it to Me.' [41] Then He will say to those at His left hand, Depart from Me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; [42] for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink, [43] I was a stranger and you did not welcome Me, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.' [44] Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see Thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to Thee?' [45] Then He will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to Me.' [46] And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
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Commentary:
31-46. The three parables (Matthew 24:42-51; 25:1-13; and 25:14-30) are completed by the announcement of a rigorous last judgment, a last act in a drama, in which all matters of justice are resolved. Christian tradition calls it the Last Judgment, to distinguish it from the "Particular Judgment" which everyone undergoes immediately after death. The sentence pronounced at the end of time will simply be a public, formal confirmation of that already passed on the good and the evil, the elect and the reprobate.
31-33. In the Prophets and in the Book of Revelation the Messiah is depicted on a throne, like a judge. This is how Jesus will come at the end of the world, to judge the living and the dead.
The Last Judgment is a truth spelled out in the very earliest credal statements of the Church and dogma of faith solemnly defined by Benedict XII in the Constitution "Benedictus Deus" (29 January 1336).
35-46. All the various things listed in this passage (giving people food and drink, clothing them, visiting them) become works of Christian charity when the person doing them sees Christ in these "least" of His brethren.
Here we can see the seriousness of sins of omission. Failure to do something which one should do means leaving Christ unattended.
"We must learn to recognize Christ when He comes out to meet us in our brothers, the people around us. No human life is ever isolated. It is bound up with other lives. No man or woman is a single verse; we all make up one divine poem which God writes with the cooperation of our freedom" St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 111).
We will be judged on the degree and quality of our love (cf. St. John of the Cross, "Spiritual Sentences and Maxims", 57). Our Lord will ask us to account not only for the evil we have done but also for the good we have omitted. We can see that sins of omission are a very serious matter and that the basis of love of neighbor is Christ's presence in the least of our brothers and sisters.
St. Teresa of Avila writes: "Here the Lord asks only two things of us: love for His Majesty and love of our neighbor. It is for these two virtues that we must strive, and if we attain them perfectly we are doing His will [...]. The surest sign that we are keeping these two commandments is, I think, that we should really be loving our neighbor; for we cannot be sure if we are loving God, although we may have good reasons for believing that we are, but we can know quite well if we are loving our neighbor. And be certain that, the farther advanced you find you are in this, the greater the love you will have for God; for so dearly does His Majesty love us that He will reward our love for our neighbor by increasing the love which we bear to Himself, and that in a thousand ways: this I cannot doubt" ("Interior Castle", V, 3).
This parable clearly shows that Christianity cannot be reduced to a kind of agency for "doing good". Service of our neighbor acquires supernatural value when it is done out of love for Christ, when we see Christ in the person in need. This is why St. Paul asserts that "if I give away all I have...but have not love, I gain nothing" (1 Corinthians 13:3). Any interpretation of Jesus' teaching on the Last Judgment would be wide of the mark if it gave it a materialistic meaning or confused mere philanthropy with genuine Christian charity.
40-45. In describing the exigencies of Christian charity which gives meaning to "social aid", the Second Vatican Council says: "Wishing to come to topics that are practical and of some urgency, the Council lays stress on respect for the human person: everyone should look upon his neighbor (without any exception) as another self, bearing in mind, above all, his life and the means necessary for living it in a dignified way, 'lest he follow the example of the rich man who ignored Lazarus, the poor man' (cf. Luke 16:18-31).
"Today there is an inescapable duty to make ourselves the neighbor of every man, no matter who he is, and if we meet him, to come to his aid in a positive way, whether he is an aged person abandoned by all, a foreign worker despised without reason, a refugee, an illegitimate child wrongly suffering for a sin he did not commit, or a starving human being who awakens our conscience by calling to mind the words of Christ: 'As you did it to one of the least of these My breth- ren, you did it to Me.'" ("Gaudium Et Spes," 27).
46. The eternal punishment of the reprobate and the eternal reward of the elect are a dogma of faith solemnly defined by the Magisterium of the Church in the Fourth Lateran Council (1215): "He [Christ] will come at the end of the world; He will judge the living and the dead; and He will reward all, both the lost and the elect, according to their works. And all these will rise with their own bodies which they now have so that they may receive according to their works, whether good or bad; the wicked, a perpetual punishment with the devil; the good, eternal glory with Christ."
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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