Righteousness

I hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day weekend.

We continue examining the verse from which we take our name:

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Mt. 6:33

What does it mean to seek righteousness? The dictionary tells us that being righteous means acting in accord with divine or moral law (Merriam Webster).

Laws we have in abundance. Leviticus is filled with them, many of which we find abhorrent today, such as stoning people for various offenses. From Moses we get the Ten Commandments, which have guided Christians and Jews for centuries.

You may recall the Scribe asking Jesus which was the greatest commandment (Mk. 12:28-34). Jesus responded by giving them two, the Great Commandments which Christ said were the foundation of all the laws and prophecies. The Scribe, who was a scholar of church law similar to today's canon law lawyers and experts, praised Christ's answer, seeing its truth. Jesus answered him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

We can surmise, then, that the kingdom we seek is comprised not solely of loving God and others. It brings us to the kingdom, but doesn't get us in. The Scribe, who recognized the Law of Love, had only come near to that kingdom. What more, then?

We believe the answer is found in the teaching of Jesus recorded in Matthew, chapter 25:31-46. There, Jesus speaks of the eternal Kingdom of God, the reward promised to the faithful. He instructs the people, explaining how God will divide the faithful who inherit the kingdom from the unfaithful who will not enter it (v. 34-:36): Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of 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; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ He continues, teaching that we do indeed minister to Him when we reach out to each other.

We take Christ at his word, then, and serve Love by serving others. Whether you call it social justice, righteousness, or simply compassion - we are at our most Christian when we offer help to those who need it.

Cradle Roman Catholics of a certain age may have learned the following Acts of Mercy in school. If you did, this will be a familiar list:

The Corporal Acts of Mercy, those which address the needs of the body, are to

feed the hungry
give drink to the thirsty
clothe the naked
shelter the homeless
visit the sick
ransom the captives
bury the dead.

When our loving obedience to God and compassion to those in need prompts us to reach out through personal service or financial support of those who serve, we believe we, too, are drawing near to the kingdom and righteousness we seek.

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We invite you to join us in praying for the relief of those who have lost so much to natural disasters, particularly those who have been impacted by Hurricane Isaac. Pray with us, too, that this year's hurricane season will see few hurricanes and that they may cause the least harm possible to those in their paths.

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