Pray for those who persecute you
20 FEBRUARY (Mt 5,43-48)
The Old Testament knows meekness before those who persecute on the part of the persecuted through King David. With great vision of faith he let himself be insulted and harassed without any reaction and prohibiting any reaction from others.
As David was approaching Bahurim, a man named Shimei, the son of Gera of the same clan as Saul’s family, was coming out of the place, cursing as he came. He threw stones at David and at all the king’s officers, even though all the soldiers, including the royal guard, were on David’s right and on his left. Shimei was saying as he cursed: “Away, away, you murderous and wicked man! The Lord has requited you for all the bloodshed in the family of Saul, in whose stead you became king, and the Lord has given over the kingdom to your son Absalom. And now you suffer ruin because you are a murderer.” Abishai, son of Zeruiah, said to the king: “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over, please, and lop off his head.” But the king replied: “What business is it of mine or of yours, sons of Zeruiah, that he curses? Suppose the Lord has told him to curse David; who then will dare to say, ‘Why are you doing this?'” Then the king said to Abishai and to all his servants: “If my own son, who came forth from my loins, is seeking my life, how much more might this Benjaminite do so! Let him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him to. Perhaps the Lord will look upon my affliction and make it up to me with benefits for the curses he is uttering this day.” David and his men continued on the road, while Shimei kept abreast of them on the hillside, all the while cursing and throwing stones and dirt as he went. The king and all the soldiers with him arrived at the Jordan tired out, and stopped there for a rest (2Sam 16,5-14).
The Old Testament knows the good to be done to enemies. It is asked to give them water to drink and bread so that they can be fed. This precept is also known.
If your enemy be hungry, give him food to eat, if he be thirsty, give him to drink; For live coals you will heap on his head, and the Lord will vindicate you (Pr 25,21-22).
The Old Testament does not yet know love pure, in all equal to that of Christ Jesus for the enemy nor prayer for those who persecute. For Jesus loving the enemies is offering his life to the Father for their salvation and redemption. This Jesus did on the cross: He loved his enemies, that is the man and every man. He prayed so that the Father forgave their sin. This love and prayer save and redeem the world. With this commandment, Jesus brings the law of love to the summit of spiritual perfection. In these two commandments – love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you – is revealed the summit of his divine and human charity. The Crucifix is these two commandments. He loves putting into practice the law of Proverbs: he gave the bread of his body to us, hungry enemies of God. He gave the water of his blood and the Holy Spirit, always to us, thirsty of God, truth, light, love, justice and holiness. He made himself for us bread and water, blood and tree of the Holy Spirit. This is the immensity of his love for us. No one might ever go beyond.
“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, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Who wants to love in truth he must be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect. Who wants to know how perfect the Heavenly Father is, has only one model to look at: Christ Crucified. The Crucified is the absolute, unsurpassed perfection of the love of the Father for us. Whoever beholds Him gradually learns how to love. Who looks away from him might never learn how to love. He lacks the Master and model. This truth must be applied in full to the Christian. He is the visible model in history and the master of the love of Christ. If the world looks at a Christian and does not see in him the crucified love of Jesus, never might he learn how to love. He lacks the visibility of true love. The Christian must not teach how to love, he must always show it from his cross.
Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels and Saints make us visible love of Jesus.