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March 12, 2022Today’s Gospel reading reminds me of a story about an early Roman martyr sentenced to death in the Roman circus. After she had been wounded by a wild animal, she lay on the ground bleeding as she awaited the sword of a Roman centurion who was to put her to death. Before the centurion struck her, this woman reached out, removed his ring of office, dipped it in her blood, and replaced it on his finger. In her last moments on earth, this martyr used her energy to turn the symbol of this centurion’s office, the very thing that marked him as holding power in Rome, into a relic of her martyrdom and an instrument of God’s grace. This beautiful, glorious woman reached out in mercy and meekness to her persecutor and secured his salvation. For as the story ends, this centurion too became Christian, and he too was martyred.
I do not know the veracity of this story, but it illustrates perfectly what Christ spoke of. He asked us why we are so special, why we are any different from the pagans and the tax collectors. The martyr I spoke of was different from the pagans and tax collectors because she did love her persecutor. “You love each other; so what?” What about me? Do I love my enemies like I should? I have to say that I do not. If you are like me, you must pray daily to God that He will grant you the grace to have more charity even for your friends, much less your enemies. But this is grace the Lord desires for us to have, and this prayer is one He will answer. It may not be in the way we imagine or hope for, but He will answer it. As we begin our Lenten journey, let us pause and examine ourselves and beg mercy from the Lord that He might grant us the grace to love our enemies. Let us beg that we have a poverty of spirit and always see others as He sees them. In doing this, we prepare ourselves for His Passion and Resurrection that we anticipate fervently.
