jesus: more than “mr. nice guy”? as published on...

Jesus: More Than Mr. Nice Guy?

JESUS: MORE THAN “MR. NICE GUY”?

as published on Divine Mercy Sunday, April 3, 2016, at www.spero.com by James M. Thunder* *The author majored in theology at the University of Notre Dame and holds a master’s degree in Religious Studies from the University of Virginia. He has been a regular contributor to Spero Forum since 2007.

Christ the Pantokrator (or, Christ in Majesty), North Apse, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C.

There is no doubt that we know, from the life, suffering (sometimes called “passion”) and

death of Jesus Christ, that God is a God of unbelievable love and mercy. Just as two reference points on this:

Pope Francis proclaimed the current year a Year of Mercy. (See his statement (formally a “bull of indiction”) “Face of Mercy,” April 11, 2015. (See Link #1 at end.)


During his homily at the Mass canonizing St. Mary Faustina Kowalska on April 30, 2000, Pope St. John Paul II proclaimed every “Second Sunday of Easter” on the liturgical calendar, that is, the Sunday after Easter, to be “Divine Mercy Sunday.” (See Link #2 at end.) But is Jesus more than a “Mr. Nice Guy” who showers each of us with mercy? There was

an early Christian heresy labeled Marcionism and, like many heresies, it reappears again and again. Marcionism rejected the mean, judgmental God of the Hebrew Scriptures (or “Old Testament”) in favor of the nice loving God of Jesus. In fact, it carried this view to perhaps its logical extreme by rejecting the Old Testament as canonical for Christians and denying that Yahweh was God. I say that the current views about Nice Guy Jesus bear a great deal of similarity to Marcionism because the current views reject any image of Jesus where He, like the God of the Old Testament, is judgmental. Those who hold these views reject accounts of Jesus upending tables, cursing fig trees, calling people to repent, commanding them to avoid lust in their hearts not just fornication with their bodies, and informing them that, if they don’t avoid sin, they will go to Hell. According to them, He didn’t say “Be perfect, as Your Heavenly Father is perfect,” (Matt. 5:48), but as Anthony Ensolen wrote on March 26, 2015, He must have said, “Be nice, even as your imaginary deity is nice.”

The current views on Jesus assert that being compassionate, being “nice,” is sufficient for

salvation, and that adherence to His commands is not necessary. Jesus makes no demands. He makes no judgments. According to these views, that have become pervasive over several decades, compassion trumps all moral analysis of good and evil, of right and wrong. Father, now Bishop, Robert Barron addressed this false notion in his January, 2015, essay, “Why Having a Heart of Gold Is Not What Christianity Is About.” (See Link #3 at end.)

An excellent example of these views of Jesus appeared in an interview posted online on

March 3, 2016, by AlterNet. The article is entitled, “Meet the Texas Abortion Provider Who Refuses to Cave in to Anti-Choice Extremists: A Brave Doctor Helps the Women Who Need It Most.” (See Link#4 at end.) The woman interviewed, Amy Hagstrom Miller, operates several abortion clinics as Whole Woman’s Health, in Texas, and she is a plaintiff in the pending U.S. Supreme Court case on the constitutionality of Texas regulations which treat clinics as ambulatory surgical centers and require abortionists to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. [See my article on this subject: “Joan Rivers, Outpatient Surgical Centers, and Admitting Privileges,” Spero Forum, Sept. 15, 2014, http://spectator.org/articles/60424/joan-riversoutpatient-surgical-centers-and-admitting-privileges.] Here is the pertinent question and answer:

Interviewer: Would you say that this work [of abortion] has a spiritual dimension for you? Hagstrom Miller: Absolutely. I was raised in a liberal Christian tradition, and I come to the work because of that background, not in spite of it. The Jesus that I was taught about would be holding the hands of women inside the clinic; he wouldn’t be screaming at them. Acting on Christian principles is holding the hands of people at difficult times in their lives, and being supportive and nonjudgmental and kind.


That is very much what we bring to the work. I don’t know how to say it more clearly than that. This mindset enables the new pro-abortion campaign to depict abortion as a positive good

with the Twitter hashtag #ShoutYourAbortion. See, e.g., Katie Yoder, “Actress Martha Plimpton Promotes New Campaign of Women Bragging About Their Abortions,” Oct. 15, 2015, LifeNews.com (see Link #5 at end).

The interview with the abortionist Amy Hagstrom Miller brings to mind two fairly recent images. The first is from early July 2015, when the head of Ecuador, Evo Morales, cheerfully and seriously presented Pope Francis with a syncretic crucifix/hammer-and-sickle. (“Syncretic” is a suitable word to describe this object since it means “an attempt to reconcile different or opposing principles or practices.”)

The second image the interview brings to mind is a picture that appeared in the print edition

of the New York Times on January 8, 2016, on page A14. The story was about the endorsement of Hillary Clinton by Planned Parenthood, the first time in its one hundred year history, of a candidate for president before nomination. The picture showed Richards in her New York office with a cross on a table. (The online version, which appeared on January 7, see Link#6) also shows a picture of Richards in her office, but shows a different view, one without the table in the background.)

Pope Francis addressed our use of the mercy and love of God to justify acts and omissions contrary to His will on October 19, 2014, at his talk at the close of the Synod on the Family (the first of two Synods a year apart) (see Link #7 at end), when he referred to it as a “temptation,” the temptation of “deceptive mercy”:

The temptation to a destructive tendency to goodness [Italian, buonismo; “do-goodism”], that in the name of a deceptive mercy binds the wounds without first curing them and


treating them; that treats the symptoms and not the causes and the roots. It is the temptation of the do-gooders, of the fearful, and also of the so-called progressives and liberals. In this milieu in which we live, we can forget the sin of presumption. The Catechism of the

Catholic Church, in Paragraph 2092, defined the sin as presuming “upon God’s almighty power or his mercy (hoping to obtain His forgiveness without conversion and glory without merit).” A person guilty of the sin of presumption is not engaged in a single act against God but is living a life that makes a moral life close to God in which one grows in habits of virtue unnecessary. Jesuit Father James V. Schall wrote on this topic in a February 2, 2016, article:

Mercy is the forgiveness of what need not or ought not to be forgiven. Indeed, mercy follows after, not before, both forgiveness and punishment. Mercy was never designed to minimize the heinousness of sins or to eliminate their possibility. It was meant to affirm their disorder. But their disorder did not prevent God from forgetting them to allow us to begin anew. Thus, God does not just “forgive” sins because He is merciful. He forgives them in the context of our realizing and acknowledging their disorder. Mercy is designed to encourage virtue, not to undermine it. What I want to do here in this article is to help ensure that we do not neglect the truth that

God, that Jesus, is a God of judgment. We need to be reminded of what are called, in the Catholic tradition, the “four last things”: death, judgment, hell and heaven. In the Nicene Creed, from the First Council of Nicaea, 325 A.D., that Catholics recite at every Sunday Mass, “I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ…He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead…

To help us to keep this other face of God from falling outside of our purview, to help you discover the Jesus you may not have heard of, I provide below excerpts from the Gospels1 with no commentary. I do not aim to be exhaustive. I rely principally on the Gospel According to St. Matthew2 and, again while not trying to be exhaustive, I make references to “parallel passages” from the other “Synoptic Gospels” of St. Mark and St. Luke. And, of course, I have some quotations from the Gospel According to St. John. I have grouped all of these excerpts under

1 I have used a translation into English from Douay-Rheims 1899. It is not copyrighted and using it allows this pamphlet to be free to you. Another advantage is that, when we use various translations, we read the Scriptures with new eyes. I have, however, altered some of the word forms into more modern English, such as “hear” for “heareth” and “you” for “thee,” and I’ve added quotation marks. I provide the full citation (Gospel, chapter, verse) so you can always go to a translation you customarily use. 2 In choosing to focus on the Gospel According to St. Matthew, I cannot help but to remember than an atheist Italian director made a highly regarded film in 1964 by the same name, and dedicated it to the recently deceased Pope John XXIII: “dedicato alla cara, lieta, familiare memoria di Giovanni XXIII” (“dedicated to the dear, joyous, familiar memory of Pope John XXIII”).


headings -- with each heading being an imperative that came from His lips. They are commands from Him that we must recognize our sins and we must change our behavior . . . or else!

I did not include references to the scribes and Pharisees because it is all too easy for us to escape Jesus’ harsh words by thinking that we are not filled with religious scruples like the scribes and Pharisees or that we are in some other way better than the scribes and Pharisees. I should add that Our Lord warned us of this very problem when He told us to beware the obstacle (“log”, He said) in our vision (Matt. 7:3) and when He told the parable of the publican who boasted while the tax collector pled for mercy (Luke 18:9-14). He told that parable, as St. Luke specifically wrote, “to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else.”

I also did not include Jesus’s statements where He says, “Believe in Me, and live” because it is too easy for us to think that belief in Jesus does not require any change of behavior. Acknowledging the Lordship of Jesus is no more a license to persist in sin than relying on St. Augustine’s oft-quoted phrase “Love, and do what you will” is. (St. Augustine, Sermon on 1 John 4:4-12) Let me suggest this thought experiment to you. After the conversation Jesus had with the Samaritan woman by the well (John 4:4-43), after she realized that He knew everything (including sins) she had ever done in her life, after she called all the townspeople to Him, after the townspeople proclaimed Him the Savior of the World, after Jesus spent a couple of days visiting with the townspeople, including her and the man with whom she was cohabiting, do you suppose that she changed her life?

The headings are listed immediately below. They are not in any order. The numbers are used merely to identify them. 1. Do Penance 2. Repent 3. Sin No More 4. Be Merciful; Forgive 5. Keep the Commandments 6. Do More Than What the Law Commands 7. Open Your Eyes and Your Ears 8. Do Not Postpone 9. Keep the Word of God 10. Do Not Deny Me 11. Love One Another 12. Bear Good Fruit 13. Don’t Publicize Your Goodness 14. Fear, and Avoid, Hell 15. Take Up Your Cross


GOSPEL PASSAGES

Laurent de La Hyre, “Christ the Judge” (c. 1650)

1. DO PENANCE Jesus began to preach, and to say: “Do penance, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 4:17) Then began He to upbraid the cities wherein were done the most of His miracles, for that they had not done penance. “Woe to you, Corozain, woe to you, Bethsaida: for if in Tyre and Sidon had been wrought the miracles that been wrought in you, they had long ago done penance in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment, than for you. And you, Capharnaum, shall you be exalted up to heaven? You shall go down even unto hell. For if in Sodom had been wrought the miracles that have been wrought in you, perhaps it had remained unto this day. But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day judgment, than for you.” (Matt. 11:20-24) “They that are whole, need not the physician: but they that are sick. I came not to call the just, but sinners to penance.” (Luke 5:31-32) (Parallel: Matt. 9:12-13) “The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they did penance at the preaching of Jonas. And behold a greater than Jonas is here. The queen of the south shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold a greater than Solomon is here.” (Matt. 12: 41-42) (Luke 11:31)


[Describing the Twelve:] Going forth they preached that men should do penance. (Mark 6:12)

2. REPENT “Amen I say to you, that the publicans and the harlots shall go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of justice, and you did not believe him. But the publicans and the harlots believed him: but you, seeing it, did not even afterwards repent, that you might believe him. (Matt. 21:32)

3. SIN NO MORE [To the woman allegedly caught in adultery:] “Go, and now sin no more.” (John 8:11) [To the man by the pool whom Jesus had cured instantaneously after he had been unable to walk for 38 years:] “Behold thou art made whole: sin no more, lest some worse thing happen to thee. (John 5:14)

4. BE MERCIFUL; FORGIVE “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” (from the Beatitudes) (Matt. 5: 7) (Parallel: Luke 6:20) “If you will forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father will forgive you also your offences. But if you will not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your offences.” (from the Lord’s Prayer, or Our Father) (Matt. 6:14-15) Then came Peter unto Him and said: “Lord, how often shall my brother offend against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?” Jesus saith to him: “I say not to you, till seven times; but till seventy times seven times.” (Matt. 18:21-22) (Parallel: Luke 17:4) “The kingdom of heaven likened to a king, who would take an account of his servants. And when he had begun to take the account, one was brought to him, that owed him ten thousand talents. And as he had not wherewith to pay it, his lord commanded that he should be sold, and his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. But that servant falling down, besought him, saying: ‘Have patience with me, and I will you all.’ And the lord of that servant being moved with pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. But when that servant was gone out, he found one of his fellow servants that owed him an hundred pence: and laying hold of him, throttled him, saying: ‘Pay what you owe.’ And his fellow servant falling down, besought him, saying: ‘Have patience with me, and I will you all.’ And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he paid the debt. Now his fellow servants seeing what was done, were very much grieved, and they came and told their lord all that was done. Then his lord called him; and said to him: ‘You wicked servant, I forgave you all the debt, because you besought me: Should not you then have had


compassion also on your fellow servant, even as I had compassion on you?’ And his lord being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. So also shall my heavenly Father do to you, if you do not forgive every one his brother from your hearts.” (Matt. 18:23-35).

5. KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS “He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:19) “Master, which is the greatest commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him: “You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with your whole soul, and with your whole mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. And the second is like to this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole law and the prophets.” (Matt. 22:36-40) And behold one came and said to Him, “Good master, what good shall I do that I may have life everlasting?” He said, “. . . If you will enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to Him, “Which?” And Jesus said, “You shall do no murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness.” (Matt. 19:16, 18) “The things which proceed out of the mouth, come forth from the heart, and those things defile a man. For from the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies. These are the things that defile a man.” (Matt. 15:18-20) (Parallel: Mark 7:15-23) [The Parable of the Good Samaritan:] A certain lawyer stood up, tempting Him, and saying, “Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?” “He said to him, “What is written in the law? How readest thou?” He answering, said, “You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with your whole soul, and with all your strength, and with all our mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” And He said to him, “You have answered right; this do, and you shall live.” But he, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus: “And who is my neighbor?” And Jesus answering, said, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, who also stripped him, and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead. And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by. In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by. But a certain Samaritan being on his journey, came near him; and seeing him, was moved with compassion. And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And the next day he took out two pence, and gave to the host, and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatsoever you shall spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay you.’ Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to him that fell among the robbers?” He said,


“He that showed mercy to him.” And Jesus said to him, “God, and do you in like manner.” (Luke 10: 25-37)

6. DO MORE THAN WHAT THE LAW COMMANDS “But I say to you, that whosoever is angry with his brother, shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, ‘Raca!’, shall be in danger of the council. And whosoever shall say, ‘You Fool!’, shall be in danger of hellfire. If therefore you offer your gift at the altar, and there you remember that your brother has anything against you; Leave there your offering before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to your brother: and then coming you offer your gift.” (Matt. 5:22-24) “You have heard that it was said of them of old: ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you, that whosoever shall look on a woman to lust after her, has already committed adultery with her in his heart. And if your right eye scandalize you, pluck it out and cast it from you. For it is expedient for you that one of your members should perish, rather than that your whole body be cast into hell. And if your right hand scandalize you, cut it off, and cast it from you: for it is expedient for you that one of your members should perish, rather than that your whole body be cast into hell.” (Matt. 5:27-30)

Fra Angelico, “Christ the Judge” (1447)


“You have heard that it has been said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you not to resist evil: but if one strike you on your right cheek, turn to him also the other: And if a man will contend with you in judgment, and take away your coat, let go your cloak also unto him. And whosoever will force you one mile, go with him other two. Give to him that asks of you and from him that would borrow of you turn not away. You have heard that it has been said, ‘Thou shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you: that you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven, Who makes His sun to rise upon the good, and band, and rains upon the just and the unjust. For if you love them that love you, what reward shall you have? Do not even the publicans do this? And if you salute your brethren only, what do you more? Do not also the heathens this? Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matt. 5:38-48) “Which of you having a servant plowing, or feeding cattle, will say to him, when he is come from the field: ‘Immediately, go, sit down to meat.’ And will not rather say to him: ‘Make ready my supper, and gird yourself, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterwards you shall eat and drink’? Do you thank that servant, for doing the things which he was commanded? I think not. So you also, when you shall have done all these things that are commanded you, say: ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done that which we ought to do.” (Matt. 17:7-10) “I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall render an account for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned.” (Matt. 12:36-37) “I say to you that hear: Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you. Bless them that curse you, and pray for them that calumniate you. And to him that strikes you on the one cheek, offer also the other. And him that takes away from you your cloak, forbid not to take your coat also. Give to every one that ask you, and of him that takes away your goods, ask them not again [for more]. And as you would that men should do to you, do you also to them in like manner. And if you love them that love you, what thanks are to you? For sinners also love those that love them. And if you do good to them who do good to you, what thanks are to you? For sinners also do this. And if you lend to them of whom you hope to receive, what thanks are to you? For sinners also lend to sinners, for to receive as much. But love you your enemies: do good, and lend, hoping for nothing thereby: and your reward shall be great, and you shall be the sons of the Highest…” (Luke 6:25-35)

7. OPEN YOUR EYES AND YOUR EARS “He that has ears, let him hear.” (Matt. 11:15, 13:9, 13:43)


“When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning: ‘Today there will be a storm, for the sky is red and lowering.’ You know then how to discern the face of the sky: and can you not know the signs of the times?” (Matt. 16:2-3) (Parallel: Luke 12:56) “And nobody puts a piece of raw cloth unto an old garment. For it takes away the fullness thereof from the garment, and there is made a greater rent. Neither do they put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the wineskins break, and the wine runs out, and the wineskins perish. But new wine they put into new wineskins: and both are preserved. (Matt. 9:16-17) (Parallel Mark 2:21, Luke 5:36) “But into whatsoever city you enter, and they receive you not, going forth into the streets thereof, say: ‘Even the very dust of your city that cleaveth to us, we wipe off against you. Yet know this, that the kingdom of God is at hand.’ I say to you, it shall be more tolerable at that day for Sodom, than for that city. Woe to thee, Corozain, woe to thee, Bethsaida. For if in Tyre and Sidon had been wrought the mighty works that have been wrought in you, they would have done penance long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgement, than for you. And thou, Capharnaum, which are exalted unto heaven, you shall be thrust down to hell. (Luke 10:10-15) (Parallel: Matt. 10:14-15) “The heart of this people is grown gross, and with their ears they have been dull of hearing, and their eyes they have shut: lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.” (Matt. 13:15) “Amen I say to you, unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 18:3) (Parallel: Mark 10:15) “There was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who lay at [a rich man’s] gate, full of sores. Desiring to be filled with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table, and no one did give him; moreover the dogs came, and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom. And the rich man also died: and he was buried in hell. And lifting up his eyes when he was in torments, he saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried, and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, to cool my tongue: for I am tormented in this flame.’ And Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that you did receive good things in your lifetime, and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted; and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you, there is fixed a great chasm: so that they who would pass from hence to you, cannot, nor from thence come hither.’ And he said, “Then, father, I beseech you, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, That he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torments.’ And Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ But he said, ‘No, father Abraham: but if one went to them from the dead, they will do penance.’ And he said to him, ‘If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe, if one rise again from the dead.’”


“Having eyes, see you not? And having ears, hear you not? Neither do you remember. When I broke the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took you up?” They say to Him, “Twelve.” “When also the seven loaves among four thousand, how many baskets of fragments took you up?” And they say to Him, “Seven.” And He said to them, “How do you not yet understand?” (Mark 8:18-21)

8. DO NOT POSTPONE “And as in the days of Noah, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, even til that day in which Noah entered into the ark. And they knew not till the flood came, and took them away; so also shall the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two shall be in the field: one shall be taken, and one shall be left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill: one shlal be taken, and one shall be left. Watch you therefore, because you know not what hour your Lord will come. But know you this, that if the goodman of the house knew at what hour the thief would come, he would certainly watch, and would not suffer his house to be broken open. Wherefore be you also ready, because at what hour you know not the Son of Man will come. (Matt. 24:37-44) (Parallel: Luke 17:26-35) Another of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.” (Matt. 8:21-22)

9. KEEP THE WORD OF GOD “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever keeps My word will never see death.” (John 8:51) “Blessed are they who hear the word of God, and keep it.” (Luke 11:28) “Not every one that says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that does the will of My Father Who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven… Every one therefore that hears these My words, and does them, shall be likened to a wise man that built his house upon a rock, And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded on a rock. And every one that hears these My words, and does them not, shall be like a foolish man that built his house upon the sand, And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall thereof. (Matt. 7:21-27) As He was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold His mother and His brethren stood without, seeking to speak to Him. And one said unto Him, “Behold Your mother and your brethren stand without, seeking You.” But He answering him that told him, said, “Who is My mother, and who are My brethren?” And stretching forth His hand towards His disciples, He said, “Behold My mother and My brethren. For whosoever shall do the will of My Father, that is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister, and mother.” (Matt. 12:46-50) (Parallel Mark 3:31, Luke 8:19)


“A certain man had two sons; and coming to the first, he said, ‘Son, go work today in my vineyard.’ And he answering, said, ‘I will not.’ But afterwards, being moved into repentance, he went. And coming to the other, he said in like manner. And he answering, said, ‘I go, Sir,’ and he went not. Which of the two did the father’s will? They said to him, ‘The first.’” Jesus said to them, “Amen I say to you, that the publicans and harlots shall go into the kingdom of God before you.” (Matt. 21:28-31)

Giotto, “Last Judgment” (1306) Fresco in Cappella Scrovegni, Padua, Italy


10. DO NOT DENY ME [After Jesus had been arrested and was on trial:] When they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were sitting about it, Peter was in the midst of them. When a certain servant maid had been sitting at the light, and had earnestly beheld him, she said, “This man also was with him.” But he denied Him, saying, “Woman, I know Him not.” And after a little while, another seeing him, said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “O man, I am not.” And after a space, as it were of one hour, another certain man affirmed, saying, “Of a truth, this man was also with Him; for he is also a Galilean.” And Peter said, “Man, I know not what you say.” And immediately, as he was yet speaking, the cock crew. And the Lord turning looked on Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, as he had said, “Before the cock crow, you shall deny me thrive.” And Peter going out, wept bitterly. (Luke 22:55-62) (Parallel: Matt. 26:69-75, Mark 15:66-72, John 18:15-18, 25-27) “For he that shall be ashamed of Me, and of My words, in this adulterous and sinful generation: the Son of Man also will be ashamed of him, when He shall come in the glory of His Father with the holy angels. (Mark 8:38)

11. LOVE ONE ANOTHER

“Love one another, as I have loved you. By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love one for another.” (John 13:34-35) “He that hath My commandments, and keeps them; he is that loves Me.” (John 14:21) “This is My commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you.” (John 15:11)

12. BEAR GOOD FRUIT “Every tree that brings not forth good fruit, shall be cut down, and shall be cast into the fire.” (Matt. 7:19) “By the fruit the tree is known. O generation of vipers, how can you speak good things, whereas you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of a good treasure brings forth good things: and an evil man out of an evil treasure brings forth evil things.” (Matt. 12:33-34) (Parallel: Luke 6:43-45) “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose is savor, wherewhith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing any more but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men.” (Matt. 5:13)


And seeing a certain fig tree by the wayside, He came to it, and found nothing on it but leaves only, and He said to it, “May no fruit grow on you henceforward forever. And immediately the fig tree withered away.” (Matt. 21:19) (Parallel Mark 11:13, 20-21) “For what does it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his own soul? Or what exchange shall a man give for his soul? For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels: and then will He render to every man according to his works.” (Matt. 16:26-27) (Parallel Mark 8:36, Luke 9:25) “And when the Son of Man shall come in His majesty, and all the angels with him, then shall He sit upon the seat of His majesty. And all nations shall be gathered together before Him, and He shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats: And He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on His left. Then shall the king say to them that shall be on His right hand: ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took Me in: Naked, and you covered Me: sick, and you visited Me: I was in prison, and you came to Me. Then shall the just answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and fed You; thirsty, and gave You drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and took You in? or naked, and covered You? Or when did we see You sick or in prison, and came to You? And the king answering, shall say to them, ‘Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these my lease brethren, you did it to Me.’ Then He shall say to them also that shall be on His left hand: ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into everylasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave Me not to eat: I was thirsty, and you gave Me not to drink. I was a stranger, and you took Me not in: naked, and you covered Me not: sick and in prison, and you did not visit Me. Then they also shall answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to You? Then He shall answer them, saying, ‘Amen I say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to Me.’ And these shall go into everlasting punishment: but the just, into life everlasting.” (Matt. 25:31-46) [To Zacchaeus, a rich tax collector:] “This day I must abide in your house.” And he made haste and came down [from a tree]; and received Him with joy. And when all saw it, they murmured, saying, that he was gone to be a guest with a man that was a sinner. But Zacchaeus standing, said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have wronged any man of any thing, I restore him fourfold.” Jesus said to him, “This day is salvation come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:5-10) “They that have done good things, shall come forth unto the resurrection of life; but they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:29)


13. DON’T PUBLICIZE YOUR GOODNESS “Take heed that you do not your justice before men, to be seen them them: otherwise you shall not have a reward of your Father Who is in heaven. Therefore when you do an almsdeed, sound not a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you do alms, let not your left hand know what your right hand does. That your alms may be in secret, and your Father Who sees in secret will repay you. And when you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, that love to stand and pray in the synagogues and corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. But you when you shall pray, enter into your chamber, and having shut the door, pray to your Father in secret: and your Father Who sees in secret will repay you. And when you are praying, speak not much, as the heathens. For they think that in their much speaking they may be heard. (Matt. 6:1-7)

14. FEAR, AND AVOID, HELL “Fear you not them that kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matt. 10:28) (Parallel Luke 12:4) “The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man that sowed good seeds in his field. But while men were asleep, his enemy came and oversowed cockle among the wheat and went his way. And when the blade was sprung up, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared also the cockle. And the servants of the goodman of the house coming said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Whence then has it cockle?’ And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ And the servants said to him, ‘Will you that we go and gather it up?’ And he said, ‘No, lest perhaps gathering up the cockle, you root up the wheat also together with it. Suffer both to grow until the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘Gather up first the cockle, and bind it into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather you into my barn.’’ . . . The harvest is the end of the world. And the reapers are the angels. Even as cockle therefore is gathered up, and burnt with fire: so shall it be at the end of the world. The Son of Man shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all scandals, and them that work iniquity. And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt. 13:24-30, 39-42) “The kingdom of heaven is like to a net cast into the sea, and gathering together of all kind of fishes. Which, when it was filled, they drew out, and sitting by the shore, they chose out the good into vessels, but the bad they cast forth. So shall it be at the end of the world. The angels shall go out, and separate the wicked from among the just. And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt. 13:47-50) “He that shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in Me, it were better for him that a millstone should be hanged around his neck, and that he should be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of scandals. For it must needs be that scandals come: but nevertheless


woe to that man by whom the scandal comes. And if your hand, or your foot scandalize you, cut if off, and cast it from yourself. It is better for you to go into life maimed or lame, than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire. And if your eye scandalizes you, pluck it out, and cast it from yourself. It is better for you having one eye to enter into life, than having two eyes to be cast into hellfire.” (Matt. 18:6-9) (Parallel Mark 9:46)

15. TAKE UP YOUR CROSS “He that takes not up his cross, and follows Me, is not worthy of Me.” (Matt. 10:38) (Parallel Matt. 16:24-25)

16. BE A SERVANT He rose from supper, and laying aside His garments, and having taken a towel, girded Himself. After that, He put water into a basin, and began to wash the feet of the disciples, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded… Then after He had washed their feet, and taken His garments, sitting down again, He said to them, “Know you what I have done to you? You call me Master, and Lord; and you say well, for so I am. If then I being your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that, as I have done to you, so you do also.” (John 13:4-5, 12-15) Links #1 Pope Francis: https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_letters/documents/papa-francesco_bolla_20150411_misericordiae-vultus.html) #2 Pope St. John Paul II: http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/homilies/2000/documents/hf_jp-ii_hom_20000430_faustina.html #3: Bishop Barron: https://zenit.org/articles/why-having-a-heart-of-gold-is-not-what-christianity-is-about/ #4: Interview of Amy Hagstrom Miller, http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/meet-texas-abortion-provider-who-refuses-cave-anti-choice-extremists #5: LifeNews: http://www.lifenews.com/2015/10/23/actress-martha-plimpton-promotes-new-campaign-of-women-bragging-about-their-abortions/ #6: N.Y. Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first‐draft/2016/01/07/planned‐

parenthood‐in‐its‐first‐primary‐endorsement‐backs‐hillary‐clinton/?_r=0 #7: Pope Francis: http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/pope-francis-address-to-the-synod-fathers

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