FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

THE FATHERS

ST EPHRAEM
Charity and forgiveness

Well did the Lord say that his burden is light, for what great burden is it to forgive a brother his offences against
us ? It is light, indeed nothing, that we should of our free will pardon, forget, and be ourselves at once held as just
before God. He has not commanded us to offer riches, calves or goats, nor even fasts or vigils, so that you cannot
say: I have no such things, I cannot do what he asks. Instead he commands what is light and easy: Forgive your
brother his faults against you, and I will at once forgive yours against me. You condone small offences, little debts,
a few pence; but I forgive you to the extent of six hundred talents of silver. You only pardon something, you do
not give away anything that is yours. I both grant you healing of soul, forgiveness and a kingdom.... If you will not
be reconciled to your brother how can you seek pardon from me ? I, your Lord, command and you do not listen to
me; you who are but a servant, how do you dare to come and offer sacrifices and gifts, prayers and first fruits,
when you are all the time cherishing rancour against your brother in your heart ? Just as you turn your face away
from your brother, so shall I turn my face away from you, from your prayers and gifts....

It remains to us therefore to hold nothing above charity; nothing is to be preferred before the possession of charity.
Let us have nothing against another, nor render evil for evil, nor let the
sun go down upon our anger. Rather let us forgive everything that is done against us and so procure for ourselves
that charity which covers a multitude of sins. For what profit is it to us to have all things and yet to be without this
life-giving charity ?
...
It is clear, therefore, that in no other way are you disciples of Christ except by the practice of true charity, for he
who hates his brother while he believes that he loves God is a liar and deceives himself....

Rare and wonderful thing this, that he who has true charity fulfils the whole of the law, for love is the fulfilling of
the law according to St Paul (Rom. 13. 10). There is nothing in heaven or
earth that can surpass the immense power of charity. It is the fulfilling of the law; it is perfect and certain
salvation.... Blessed the soul that is endowed with charity, that is not puffed up, that does not envy, hates no one at
any time, is not repelled by the poor, does not turn away from those in want or despise the widow, orphan or
stranger. He who has this charity does not merely love those who love him, but also those who hate him and afflict
him. To such a one the profits of charity increase in him day by day. His reward and crown is prepared for him
while the kingdom of heaven is bestowed on him as a gift. The very angels proclaim him blessed while the Powers
of heaven together praise him. The angels receive such a one with joy and gladness, the heavenly gates are opened
wide to him and through them he passes to be brought before the throne of God to be crowned by him and with
him he shall reign for ever.

ST JOHN CHRYSOSTOM
Charity and pardon

Charity, source of all virtue:

Charity is the mother of all good, the distinctive mark of his disciples, and the compendium of all that we have.
Therefore rightly does he tear out by the root enmity which destroys charity. Do not think that he is exaggerating
in what he says; first think of the evils which his laws correct and then praise him for his gentleness. God desires
nothing more than that we should be united and be in harmony one with another. Therefore, in himself and in his
disciples both of the Old and New Law, he praises this virtue and commandment and shows himself as the enemy
of those who break it. There is nothing which leads to evil so quickly as a lack of charity....

Charity worth more than sacrifices:

He says: If thou art bringing thy gift before the altar and rememberest there that thy brother has some ground of
complaint against thee, leave thy gift lying there before the altar, and go home; be reconciled with thy brother
first, and then come back to offer thy gift.... What goodness and kindness beyond compare! He does not care for
his own honour but for the good of our neighbour and by it he gives us to understand that even the former threats
do not come from enmity or the desire to punish, but from love. Can there be any phrases which show greater
meekness? Break off your adoration, he says, so that your charity may increase, because it is also a sacrifice to be
reconciled to thy brother.

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The need for such reconciliation:

Why does he command us to act in this way? To my way of thinking there are two reasons for it. First of all, he
wishes to show us how much he esteems charity, holding it as the greatest sacrifice, without which he will not
accept any other. Secondly, he wishes to show us the absolute necessity of reconciliation.... To bring about this
union he made all things; for this reason God became man and worked all those wonderful miracles.

St Paul also stresses this need for reconciliation when he says, Let not the sun go down upon your anger.... During
the day there are many things which distract us and seek our attention; but at night, when we find ourselves alone
and thrown back upon ourselves the waves grow larger and the storm increases. That is why St Paul tries to get in
first by handing us over to darkness reconciled and at peace, so that the devil will not be able to take advantage of
the night to increase our anger and make it more deadly. Thus Christ himself permitted no delay, lest perhaps the
sacrifice should be put off from day to day and never accomplished. Well does he know that this evil needs an
urgent remedy; and just as a wise doctor prescribes not merely preventive medicine but also that which cures, so
Christ does both these things. By forbidding us to call another a fool he gives us a remedy which prevents
enmities arising; by commanding reconciliation he gives us a curative remedy for the evils which follow on
enmity.... There is nothing which does more to destroy our life than long delays in doing good. Indeed it is this
which causes us to lose everything more often than not.

ST CYPRIAN

Oppose hatred and vengeance with patience and love

Christian patience

For we have this virtue in common with God; from him patience has its beginning, from him come its dignity and
glory. The origin and greatness of patience proceed from God as its author. Man ought to love the thing which is
dear to God; the good which the divine majesty loves, that it commands. If God is our Lord and Father, then let us
imitate his patience, because it is fitting that servants should be obedient, no less than it is right that sons should
not be degenerate.

But what and how great is the patience of God?... Although revenge is in his power, he prefers to be patient for a
long time, bearing with us mercifully and putting off his wrath, so that, if it be possible, the long protracted evil
may at some time cease, and man, plunged in the contagion of error and sins, may, even though late, be converted
to God. As he himself says to us: Why do you choose death, men of Israel? Die who will, his death is none of my
contriving, says the Lord God; come back to me, and live (Ezech.18.31-32). And again: Come back to the Lord
your God; he is ever gracious and merciful, ever patient and rich in pardon; threatens he calamity, even now he is
ready to forgive ( Joel 2. 13.). Referring to this the apostle, calling sinners to repentance, says: Or is it that thou art
presuming on that abundant kindness of his, which bears with thee and waits for thee? Dost thou not know that
God's kindness is inviting thee to repent?...

And so that we may more fully understand that patience is a thing of God, and that whosoever is patient and meek
is an imitator of God, and the Father, when the Lord in his Gospel was giving us precepts for salvation and
instructing his disciples towards perfection, he says: You have heard that it was said to the men of old... (Mat. 5.
21 ff). He said that the children of God would thus become perfect. he showed that they were thus completed, and
taught that they were restored to a heavenly birth if the patience of God the Father dwells in us, if that divine
likeness which Adam had lost by sin be manifested and shine forth in all our actions. What a glory it is to become
like unto God!
Nor did Jesus Christ, our God and Lord, teach this in words only, but he fulfilled it also in his deeds. Because he
had said that he came down from heaven to do the will of His Father, so among the wonderful virtues which he
displayed he maintained the patience of the Father in his endurance. Finally, all his actions from his very birth are
characterized by patience. Coming down from heaven, the Son of God did not scorn to take on himself the flesh of
man and although he himself was not a sinner, he bore the sins of others. He suffers himself to become mortal so
that the guiltless may be put to death for the guilty's salvation. The Lord is baptized by his servant, and he who is
about to grant remission of sins, does not disdain to wash his body in the waters
of regeneration. He is hungry and suffers need that those who had been hungry for the word of grace may be fed
by the heavenly bread... He could bear Judas to the very last with long-suffering patience, could take meat with his
enemy, could know the foe in his own household and not point him out openly nor refuse his traitor's kiss.
Moreover in dealing with the Jews how great is his equanimity and patience, turning the unbeliever to the faith by
gentle persuasion, soothing the ungrateful by concessions, answering gently those who contradicted him, bearing

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with the proud in mercy, yielding with humility to his persecutors, wishing always to gather together the killers of
the prophets and those who had always been rebellious against God, even to the very last hour of his cross and
passion....

And after all these things he will receive his murderers if they will only be converted and come to him; and with a
saving patience he who is patient to preserve closes his church to none. His adversaries, his blasphemers, those
who were always enemies to his name, if they repent of their sins acknowledging the crimes they have committed,
he receives, not merely by giving them pardon for their sins, but also the reward of the heavenly kingdom....

It is patience which both commands us to God and keeps us united with him; which assuages anger, bridles the
tongue, governs the mind, guards peace, rules over discipline, breaks the force of lust, represses the violence of
pride, extinguishes the fire of enmity, checks the power of riches, eases the needs of the poor.... It makes men
humble in adversity, brave in time of sorrow, gentle towards wrongs and insults. It teaches us to pardon those who
wrong us, resists temptations, suffers persecutions, perfects martyrs. It is patience which fortifies firmly the very
foundations of our faith.

ST GREGORY THE GREAT

Let us consider how great a sin is that of anger, through which, when we cease to be mild, the meekness of the
divine image is lost in us. Through anger wisdom is lost too, so that we no longer know what we do or in what
manner we should do it . . . because it takes away the light of the mind, confusing it and stirring it up.... Through
anger justice is abandoned, for it is written: The anger of man worketh not the justice of God. When the mind is
thrown into disorder this blunts the judgements of reason so that whatever our anger may suggest is considered to
be right....

There are two ways by which anger can be subdued and made to abandon its hold on the mind. The first way is
this; a cautious mind considers well before it begins to do anything, the possible affronts it is liable to meet
and, mindful of the insults offered to our Redeemer, prepares itself for contradictions. Should these indeed come
its way, then the more prudently it is armed beforehand the more courageously it meets them. For one caught
unprepared by adversity is like a man caught asleep by his enemy; he is slain the more easily because the enemy is
striking a man who is unresisting. So before taking any action the mind should carefully dwell upon the opposition
it may meet with, that, bearing this in mind at all times and confronting it with the breastplate of patience, it may
through caution both overcome what it
meets and count as a blessing that which it does not meet.
The second way of keeping our peace of mind is this; when we think of the faults of others we should also
reflect upon our own sins, by which we have done harm to others. For when we look at our own frailty it
moves us to forgive the ills that are done to us by others. For he will bear patiently with those who injure him who
remembers that there may be much in his own conduct which demands patience in others. It is as though fire were
extinguished with water when, should anger surge up in us, each one recalls to mind his own faults; for a man who
remembers that he has himself committed sins against God and his neighbour is ashamed not to spare others.

But we should note carefully that, while one kind of anger rises from a lack of patience, another is caused by zeal.
One comes from an evil source, the other from one which is good.... Of this anger the psalmist says, Be angry and
sin not. This they interpret wrongly who would have us angry only with ourselves and not with our neighbours
when they commit evil. For if we are commanded to love our neighbours as ourselves, it follows that we are to be
angry with them for their offences as we are with ourselves for our own.... Anger that comes from evil sources
blinds the mind, while that which comes from zeal opens our eyes.... For this zeal for justice in a short while
opens our eyes to a wider vision of tranquillity of soul.... But when the spirit is roused by zeal we should be
careful to see to it that this very anger which is used as a servant of virtue should not end up by dominating the
mind nor rule it as a mistress, but like a handmaid ever ready to serve, it should never depart from its place, being
subjected to reason.... Because of this it is all the more imperative that he who is moved by zeal for justice should
be careful to see to it that his anger never pass beyond the control of the mind,
so that, in punishing evil, he should always be careful as to the time and the measure of his anger, controlling the
indignation of his mind by using it with precise care. He must be careful to restrain his indignation and subject
the warmth of his own feelings to the rule of moderation and courtesy. The more he is master of himself the
more he is fit to judge the punishment which should be meted out to another. For since he is to correct the faults of
those who do wrong, let him first enlarge his own viewpoint through forbearance and let him judge the affair by
rising above his own feeling of resentment, lest through being provoked immoderately by his own zeal for what is
right he may himself deviate far from what is right.

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True Piety:

After giving examples of the false piety of the Pharisees ( the rigid observance of the laws of tithes, the Sabbath
observance, etc.) he goes on to point out that there are similar examples to be found in modern life. Here is a man
who has a daily rule of life, special times laid down for spiritual reading and other exercises of piety. But listen to
his conversation or see him when he has been injured and you will soon see that he is malicious, vain, impossible
with his fellow man, ready to judge them at once without trail, slow to forgive, etc. Or another case, a women who
is the first to join pious associations, aspires to the heights of sanctity, but who in her own home life has little or
no consideration for her husband or children, careless about her obligations to her servants, proud, bad-tempered,
etc. Woe to you, he says to the Pharisees, and also to the Christians who are unworthy of the name and religion
they profess. Not merely those who live in vice and abandon God , but also those who pretend to serve him
faithfully yet ignore the very foundations of that service.

VER. 20. Of the Scribes and of the Pharisees. The Scribes were the doctors of the law of Moses; the Pharisees
were a precise set of men, making profession of a more exact observance of the law: and upon that account greatly
esteemed among the people. -See how necessary it is, not only to believe, but to keep all the commandments, even
the very least. -Our Saviour makes this solemn declaration at the opening of his mission, to show to what a height
of perfection he calls us. Aquin.--"Your justice." It is our justice when given us by God. Aug. in Ps. xxx. 1. de spir.
& lit. e. ix. So that Christians are truly just, and have in themselves inherent justice, by observing God's
commandments, without which justice of works, no man can be saved. Aug. de fide & oper. e. xvi. Whereby we
see salvation, justice and justification, do not come by faith only, or imputation of Christ's justice.

VER. 21. Shall be liable to the judgment. That is, shall deserve to be punished by that lesser tribunal among the
Jews, called the judgment, which took cognizance of such crimes. --Among the Jews at the time of Christ, there
were three sorts of tribunals: the first composed of three judges to try smaller causes, as theft; there was one in
each town: the second of twenty-three judges, who judged criminal causes, and had the power of condemning
to death. This was called the Little Sanhedrim, and of this it is supposed Jesus Christ speaks: the third, or Great
Sanhedrim of seventy-two judges, who decided on the most momentous affairs, relating to religion, the king,
the high priest, and the state in general. It is this last that is designed under the name of council in the next verse.

VER. 22. Whosoever is angry with his brother. In almost all Greek copies and MSS, (eg in English, the King
James Version) we now read angry without a cause: yet S. Jerom. who corrected the Latin of the New Testament
from the best copies in his time, tells us that these words, without a cause, were only found in some Greek copies,
and not in the true ones. It seems at first to have been placed in the margin for an interpretation only, and by some
transcribers afterwards taken into the text. This as well as many other places may convince us, that the Latin
Vulgate (or in Eng. The Douay Rheims Version) is many times to be preferred to our present Greek copies.--Raca.
S. Augustin thinks this was no significant word, but only a kind of interjection expressing a motion of anger.
Others take it for a Syro-Chaldaic word, signifying a light, foolish man, though not so injurious as to call another a
fool.--Shall be guilty of the council: that is, shall deserve to be punished by the highest court of judicature, called
the council, or Sanhedrim, consisting of seventy-two persons, where the highest causes were tried and judged, and
which was at Jerusalem.--Thou fool; this was a most provoking injury, when uttered with contempt, spite, or
malice.--Shall be in danger of hellfire. Lit. according to the Greek, shall deserve to be cast into the Gehenna of
fire. Gehenna was the valley of Hinnom, near to Jerusalem, where the worshippers of the idol Moloch used to
burn their children, sacrificed to that idol. In that place was a perpetual fire, on which account it is made use of by
our Saviour (as it hath been ever since), to express the fire and punishments of hell. --Here is a plain difference
between sin and sin; some mortal, that lead to hell; some venial, and less punished.

VER. 23. He commands us to leave unfinished any work we may have begun, though in its own nature most
acceptable to God, in order to go and be reconciled to our brother; because God will have mercy and not sacrifice.
Thus he in a manner seems to prefer the love of our neighbour to the love of himself.

VER. 24. Leave thy offering. This is not to be understood, as if a man were always bound to go to the person
offended; but it is to signify, that a man is bound in his heart and mind to be reconciled, to forgive every one, and
seek peace with all men. --Beware of coming to the Communion Rail, or to any sacrament, without charity. Be
first reconciled to your brother, and much more to the Catholic Church, which is the whole brotherhood of
Christian men. Heb. xiii. 1.

VER. 25. & 26. Agree whilst you are in the way, or wayfaring men, i. e. in this life, lest you be cast into prison, i.
e. according to SS. Cyprian, Ambrose, and Origen, into purgatory; according to S. Augustine, into hell, in which,

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as the debt is to be paid to inflexible justice, it can never be acquitted, and of course no release can be hoped for
from that prison.