Do you want to be perfect? "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6:36)

Today's Gospel reading begins with an ending: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." This line ends the section on "Love of enemies" from Luke 6:27-36. If you were to read Matthew's parallel teaching (Matthew 5:43-48), you would see that Matthew ends the "Love of enemies" section with the admonition "Be perfect (Greek 'teleios'), just as your heavenly Father is perfect ('teleios')." "Teleios" as it is used in Matthew's version, does not mean "infallible" or "mistake-free." Instead, it has the sense of being "complete" or "fulfilled." You may be familiar with the word "telos" meaning "end" or "final aim" or "goal." The idea that Matthew suggests is that followers of Jesus should be "completed" or "fulfilled" in the practice of fulfilling the Law of Love. Jesus, who came not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it, transformed our whole reason for being. He taught us to engender love with mercy toward all. That is, Christians should love their enemies, not just their neighbors, even though we have a hard time just loving our neighbors sometimes. This is a total transformation of the former law of retaliation that taught us to love our neighbors but to hate our enemies. The New Law compels us to practice mercy even toward those who repel us, those we consider sinners or "unclean."

The New Covenant, the New Law of Love initiated by Jesus, is one that transforms hatred into mercy, that replaces retributive justice with restorative justice. Luke confirms this understanding by ending the section on "love of enemies" with the admonition to be "merciful" (Greek 'oiktirmon'), as God is merciful. By being "merciful," Luke suggests that followers of Jesus will be completed or fulfilled in their mission, as Jesus fulfilled his mission, by extending love and forgiveness to sinners, rather than meting out condemnation or proclaiming exclusion of sinners from the community. Christians' end, our goal, is to be merciful, as God is merciful toward us. That is, we are to be merciful without limits, seventy times seven times, yes, even merciful toward our enemies, even if they are unrepentant, and even if we are jealous that God has forgiven them and loves them just as God loves us. A little dose of God's perfection? God forgives sinners, forgives the people we disdain, and forgives us even though we often refuse to forgive others, or refuse to forgive ourselves. Our God "does not deal with us according to our sins," as the Psalmist says, but loves us into a new way of being. "Yours O Lord are compassion and forgiveness," Daniel says. That's Good News, the Gospel Truth!

Today's Good News is such a challenge for me. "Stop judging... Stop condemning…" Can I fast from my condemnation of others for just for one day? "Forgive… Give…" Can I fulfill my commitment to this New Covenant of Love, forgiveness, generosity and compassion that Jesus died to initiate, to bring about the reign of God for all people?

This is our mission, should we choose to accept it: If we want to be "perfect," or die trying, we have to start forgiving our enemies, and extending to them the flagrant, passionate, and immeasurable love and mercy of God. "Help us, O God our savior!"