Matthew 5:38-45

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FuzzyBunny116

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38"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'a] 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

What does this mean? I can’t exactly reconcile it with even self-defense. Does it simply mean no revenge?
 
The only way to understand this passage is to put it into practice.

Then you will know.
 
Charity’s first acts are in the heart and the heart is moved. If the heart now moved, in it’s turn moves the body to outwardly express that movement of charity, the cheek is turned, the cloak is given, the second mile is walked, no one whos asks is refused, the light of Christ will shine in the darkness and this scripture is fulfilled.
 
What I’m saying is, is there anyway to reconcile this with anything other than total pacificism?
 
this passage isn’t about war or physical confrontations that may be required to protect our neighbor or loved ones. Since the struck cheek is the only example of physical confrontation and very unlike the others, I see it as a metaphore.

The cheek being struck is a metaphore for being insulted or possibly enduring blame without offering a defense.
 
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FuzzyBunny116:
What does this mean? I can’t exactly reconcile it with even self-defense. Does it simply mean no revenge?
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I think paragraphs 2264 and 2265 of The Catechism of the Catholic Church speak to the issue:

scborromeo.org/ccc/para/2264.htm

scborromeo.org/ccc/para/2265.htm
 
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FuzzyBunny116:
38"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'a] 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

What does this mean? I can’t exactly reconcile it with even self-defense. Does it simply mean no revenge?
Click to expand...
I think Benadam had it about right. A strike on the cheek, even a literal one, is not an assault on your life so much as it is a grave insult. This is not about giving up the basic right of self defense but rather not returning insult for insult. It is also about not being too attached to material possessions.

Consider Jesus response to Peter when Peter takes up a sword to “defend” Jesus when He is about to be arrested. Jesus says “whoever lives by the sword will sooner or later be destroyed by it.”

This line of reasoning is not about pacifism but about trust in God’s plan. Jesus knew he was going to die and accepted that part of the plan. God’s kingdom is not a thing to be brought about be someone picking up a weapon against someone else. It is brought about by people trusting in God.

The reasoning allows for the possibility that, if I am facing imminent death and my only option is to pick up a sword to defend myself, I am free to do that. I might not succeed in defending myself. And if I do succeed that time, I will be more likely to stay alive in the future if I can find a way to make peace with my attacker rather than depending on weapons to secure my survival. Eventually someone will have a better sword than I.

Making that peace can begin by not responding to an insult. Though some might consider it cowardly, the fact is “turning the other cheek” if done in the right spirit, is an act of enlightened self-interest.

peace

Jim
 
From A New Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture - *"The permission of the Mosaic law, which Jesus now abrogates, replacing imperfect justice by his fuller demands, was made in the context of a primitive society where men took the law into their own hands, before there was a central authority to deal with such injustices. **It is against personal vindictiveness *that Jesus now speaks out; he is not directly considering legal or police action."
 
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