You have heard that it was said to those of old . . .

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."

- Matthew 5:27-37

In yesterday's reading, Jesus elaborated on the Law against murder. We are reading the Sermon on the Mount, and so far He has given us the Beatitudes, the teachings that His disciples are to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and then He began to build an understanding of the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets and His own teachings on righteousness (Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven). Beginning with the statute against murder in yesterday's reading, He spoke of reconciliation and the harsh words that provoke strife -- of anger without a cause. He said, "Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift."

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." In yesterday's reading, Jesus expanded on the statute against murder, and spoke of strife and anger without a cause. Today's reading turns to the Law against adultery. Lust here, explains my study bible, is not the natural mutual attraction between people. This is not about involuntary temptation, but rather a deliberate cultivation of a way of thinking. And we also have to remember the statute's emphasis on relationship: this is about coveting, and ultimately destroying relationship. Let us consider the fullness of what relationship is: here, to lust is to desire to possess or use -- and, we remember, it is about a deliberate cultivation of a mindset, not simply a natural impulse. My study bible says, "Sin does not come out of nature, but out of internal self-indulgence. He who feasts on lust within himself brings sin into his heart through his thoughts. (Thoughts which enter the mind involuntarily are temptations, not sins. They become sins only when they are held onto and entertained)."

"If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell." Even if we nurture such thoughts within ourselves to the point where they seem like an important part of who we are, it's better to cast out that which isn't good for us than to corrupt who we are. This example of the "right eye" tells us something about what we view and how we view the world around us. Do we covet (in this case, a man's adulterous coveting) in ways that are spiritually unhealthy? Even when something has become a habit, it's better to break away from it, to "pluck it out and cast it from you" than to allow that way of thinking and being in the world to grow and dominate ourselves, so that we become completely identified with it. Here Jesus begins to teach the nature of the self and our need to practice repentance, personal change. Even that which we hold dear about ourselves may need re-examining and letting go of.

"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery." Here, Jesus goes after the easy way divorce was obtained by a man in His time. It is an elaboration of His words about lust and coveting for a reason. He is talking about relationship, and ultimately His greatest concern which is love -- the relationships between people. Lust and coveting are simply about objects, property. Are we in a relationship simply for a material value? What is the purpose of marriage? Let us not forget the condition of women in the society of Jesus' time, and their dependence on marriage and family for their place in the society, well-being and survival. Note that His teaching is not absolute against divorce, but rather against its abuse in His time. My study bible notes, "Human freedom implies the possibility of sin; sin can separate husband and wife from each other, and ultimately from the body of Christ and from God Himself." So we understand that it is possible to abuse relationship in many ways, the sacrament of marriage -- and covenant with God, in many forms. But here He links lust after others with easy divorce, and the damage this does to relationship, to God's depth of promise of love and true bond between human beings; even what it is to be a whole and spiritually healthy human being.

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black." This teaching is about another kind of integrity, or being true to something. By what do we swear that makes our words false or true? By what can we swear to give us a true heart? Where does integrity come from? In some way, we can see again the emphasis here on relationship: who we are as people, honest or deceiving, really has to do with what is within us and how we relate or not to others. To swear, in this understanding, is to take something else to add value to our words. Instead, the value must be within us. It's also about a kind of appeal to lust or covetousness to add something to ourselves that isn't ours: we can't appropriate what doesn't belong to us. We must cultivate true value of ourselves, of what kind of person we are.

"But let your 'Yes' be 'yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one." My study bible says, "This is a well-known saying in the New Testament. Trust is secured not by an oath which exceeds Yes and No, but by inner integrity. Jesus teaches us to live in the simplicity of the present moment." And, we might add, in the truth of who we are. We are "good enough" in cultivating the humility of honesty. The emphasis here is on the real value of the heart that rests in His teachings.

In some sense, both teachings in today's reading -- regarding lust and its extension to divorce, and to swearing by that which is not ours nor a part of us -- have to do with a kind of covetousness for things we wish to add unto ourselves, but don't really belong to us at all. Jesus' teachings instead give us an emphasis on our own integrity as persons. We have the capability to "pluck out" the "right eye" that doesn't give us the right picture, doesn't see straight. In relationship to God, we can let go of limitation and behavior or ways of thinking that don't really define us well, that lead us on a path to destroy our true self-worth. To swear by things that aren't ours to swear by becomes a futile exercise in adding something to ourselves that has nothing to do with who we are. Instead, we are to cultivate an integrity of ourselves, and an understanding that our own simple "yes" and "no" are good enough, have worth and merit. In relationship, it is the same: barring real harm done to the marriage by one partner or both, we cultivate the integrity of that relationship. We don't look elsewhere to add to ourselves something dazzling, like a property we wish we had. The integrity and value lies in what can be cultivated in the inner life, through relationship God helps us to build: within ourselves, and with another person -- two hearts joined together, and all that each can bring to the relationship. So today, let us think about integrity, and what is "good enough" for God. How do we build that simplicity, honesty and integrity that God seeks of us? I think a clue is in Jesus' words about the "right eye." It depends on how we see things. Are we dazzled by an outward image of what we think we can add to ourselves? Or do we look within for the values God will give us, and accept to seek instead the way God sees? This is the hint of what He seeks for us, how we are to become like Him, in the image God has for each of us, and to grow in that image. This is true for our own hearts within ourselves, and for the relationships we cultivate and in which we grow, especially in sacrament. How do you turn to God for your integrity and inner life, the real life of the heart, and what it means to be a full person? What is it to be true to the person God calls you to be?