Not one ‘jot or tittle’ may be changed

Friends in Christ,

today Our Lord says that he has not come to abolish even one tiny smidgeon of the law. The Douay-Rheims says, ‘not one jot or one tittle’ of the law will be abolished. What does our Lord mean? After all, one of his complaints about the state of things, was the zillions of laws the Jewish scribes had created, that no one could really live.

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Christ could not mean here, all the Jewish dietary or ritual laws, because under the New Covenant we are not bound by these. So Jesus did not mean those laws.

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The word ‘law’ is used in a variety of ways by the scriptures. It can refer to the first 5 books of the bible, the Pentateuch, it can refer to all the multitude of  ritual and dietary laws, but it can also refer to the 10 commandments, and this is the Law to which Jesus refers. This law can not be changed, and one may not cut corners or only partially observe the commandments. Christ says this during his Sermon on the Mount, in which he is teaching us the true spirit of the 10 commandments.

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The commandments teach us to love God and to love neighbor. To have no other gods in our life – no dark corner of our heart controlled by sin, but our whole heart given to the Lord. Speaking always with respect of God, and worshipping him on the Lord’s day.

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Sadly people do not fulfill – not even close – these commands. ‘If you love me, keep my commandments,’ says the Lord. So we should urge people to go to Sunday Mass, to use God’s name with respect: ‘Hey! Why not say ‘Oh my goodness,’ instead of offending God.’

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Respect for parents – the 4^th commandment. I meet many elderly people who have been neglected by their children.

Then there’s the 5^th commandment: thou shalt not kill. How many by their vote, have put people in office who have not only continued, but have widely promoted abortion, or by our silence on this issue? But we are also commanded to avoid anger and hatred and arguing. And not to kill someone’s soul by bad example or failure to teach right and wrong.

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The 6^th commandment: enjoins us to live perfect purity. Faithful, pure, and wholesome in our relationships and with our bodies, which are temples of the Holy Spirit. Some people think that we can vote down God’s laws, or have the courts change God’s laws. Impossible.

One can draw a straight line from the sexual revolution of the 1960’s to the tragic vote in Ireland. But not one jot or tittle can be changed in God’s laws. Ever.

We are far from what Jesus is asking.

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The 7^th commandment means respecting other’s possessions and property. Of all crime, theft is probably the most common.

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The 8^th commandment: lies, calumny, backbiting, gossip.

The 9^th and 10^th: covetousness, lust, greed.

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We should teach those we know the commandments, and live them. Why?

Jesus says: Whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”