Reflections
Psalm 15: 2-3, 3-4, 4-5 (Read)
“One who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.”
holy mountain of God and live in the presence of the Lord.
And in a similar way, in Sunday's first reading,
Moses tells the Israelites how to take possession
of the promised land. (Deuteronomy 4:1)
The way forward for the Israelites and for us is twofold --
love God and love neighbor. If I truly love the Lord,
then my heart will not be far from Him, and I will keep
His commandments. If I love the Lord, He will remain
in me. How else would I expect my heart to remain pure?
When my heart is pure, I do no harm to my fellow man;
and I think the truth in my heart.
St James tells us to be doers of the Word; we are to
keep ourselves unstained by the world. (James 1:22, 27)
And Jesus reminds us in the Gospel that it all starts
from inside. It is within our hearts that evil thoughts
reside. The things that come out from within are
what defile us. (Mark 7:15, 20-23)
So, if I am right with the Lord and my heart is close
to Him, then I will not slander with my tongue,
nor take up a reproach against my neighbor.
Nor will I do harm economically to my neighbor.
If I do these things, as our psalmist says, I shall
never be disturbed, and I will live in the presence
of the Lord.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist says whoever thinks the truth in his heart will live in
the presence of the Lord. How do you go about preparing your heart
so that you are able to receive the Lord?
2. The verses of the Psalm remind us not to slander, nor to blame our
neighbor, nor to harm our fellow man, nor to hurt him economically.
Explain how you are motivated by your faith to become a doer of the Word.
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