But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'  But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.  And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council.  But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.  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.  Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny."

- Matthew 5:21-26

We are currently reading through the Sermon on the Mount, chapters 5-7 of Matthew's Gospel (beginning with Monday's reading).  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught: "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.  I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.  For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.  Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven."

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'  But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.  And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council.  But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire."   Jesus cites the statutes in the Law against murder (Exodus 20:13, Deuteronomy 5:17).  But His purpose here is regarding what He has called the fulfillment of the Law, and a righteousness that exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees (see yesterday's reading, above).  There is a repeated formula He uses here, in saying "but I say to you."  My study bible calls it a statement of total, divine authority (7:29).   It notes that as the Creator of man and the Author of the Law, Christ can speak with this authority.  There is an anger that is not sinful (Psalm 4:4, Mark 3:5), but Jesus here speaks of what is a sinful anger, forbidding it and identifying it with murder.   The council is the supreme legal body of the Jews.  Hell (Gehenna in the Greek) is the final condition of those who resist God's grace.  Its image comes from the Valley of Hinnom, which was a place of forbidden religious practices (2 Chronicles 28:3, Jeremiah 32:35), which King Josiah ended (2 Kings 23:10).  By the time of Christ, this place had become a garbage dump which smoldered ceaselessly.  The word Raca is most likely Aramaic meaning "empty-headed," an insult.  Fool comes from a word in Greek that is the root of the English word "moron."  Both demean a person fundamentally.

"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."  To have peace with other believers is a requirement for worship (Mark 11:25).  There is a liturgical "kiss of peace" at the beginning of the eucharistic prayer (often called fellowship), which is a sign of reconciliation and forgiveness.  It is meant to prepare the faithful to offer the holy gifts at the altar (1 Corinthians 16:20, 1 Peter 5:14).

"Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny."  In Luke's Gospel, this teaching is found in the context of the end of the age (Luke 12:57-59).  Here it's in the context of reconciliation surrounding the Liturgy.  My study bible notes that delay in reconciliation allows for the spread of animosity and other evils (Ephesians 4:26-27).

Ultimately, Jesus is speaking here of a kind of righteousness that is all about right-relatedness.  He cites name-calling as akin to murder.  The particular insults Jesus cites here are those which verbally cut a person down, in effect the meaning of these words is simply to deny the full stature of personhood.  They're not a kind of communication that effectively describes disagreement nor complaint.  They don't even describe a defect of character or personality.   An offense like this is one that constitutes a breach of righteousness or right-relatedness.  We are encouraged by Christ to take up our own responsibility for reconciliation in such circumstances.  We're reminded that Christ Himself has plenty to say that is critical of the leadership.  He will also drive out the money-changers and animal sellers from the temple.  He doesn't hesitate to correct His disciples when necessary, even repeatedly (see Mark 9:33-37, 10:35-45), and even in ways that are stark in their expression of wrong-headedness (16:23).  But on no occasion does Jesus fully demean what it means to be a person when He challenges even the most malicious or mean-spirited attacks upon Him or His disciples.  We'd all do well to understand that a truthful confrontation aimed at reconciliation or an honest airing of grievances is something which must be separated from a demeaning insult.  Moreover, the greatest orator known to history, the Logos or Word Himself, is teaching us about the importance of words.  There is crucial significance to our communication.   If we choose to communicate in a certain way, Jesus teaches here, then we commit something akin to murder with our words.  Modern psychology enforces this perspective when we grow to understand the harsh effects of verbal abuse, longer-lasting and more deeply harmful in ways than even physical abuse.  (See, for example, this article or this one.)  Jesus' wisdom enforces for us the fact that verbal abuse cuts through fellowship and community.  It damages relationships by reducing or truncating peace, and is harmful to the community He desires among His faithful.  It is an important statement about peace that is couched in today's teaching by Jesus.  If we are to be peacemakers, we must consider seriously how we learn to communicate with others.  "Peace" is not something simple and it's not meant to be a facile band aid that covers up real problems.  To be a peacemaker is to learn how to reconcile in the faith of Christ, it is to move toward His peace, not to hide from problems that need resolving.  He teaches us, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God."  The Creator is Logos, or Word, One who creates with a word, and teaches us the appropriate use of the gift and power of language, of words.  The power of His peace is found in participation in the life He offers us, and our own discipleship and growth in just what that means in the fullness of our expression of His light.  It's not simple to learn His way, but we have Christ as our example of one who communicates in love and seeks what is best for us.  It is there we find the key to His peace.