Saturday of the First Week of Lent
“You have heard that it was said, you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.” (Today’s Gospel from Matthew)
G. K. Chesterton once wrote that, “The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people.” Today’s gospel emphasizes the importance of loving our enemies. As we all know, this is easier said than done. We have all experienced people who are hard to love. We all have enemies, even if we don’t realize it. Our enemies aren’t always obvious. They don’t have to be out to harm us or seeking our downfall. In fact, it is much more common for us to encounter little enemies in our lives. Like the little enemy of the annoying coworker, or the monk blowing his nose next to you in choir. The people we don’t realize are our enemies are sometimes the hardest to love, but we should show them mercy anyway, because they help us to grow in holiness.
Reflection by Br. Augustine Kroeze, OSB
Posted in Articles for Lent, Daily Reflections