The people are told, in the First Reading: "You shall be holy" (Num 19: 2). The people, who are in Hebrew Qahal YHWH (the gathered/assembly of the LORD) are not told to be popular, successful, prosperous, politically correct, kind, woke or any other worldly quality. They are to be holy. What is the motivation for this? The Scripture continues: "... for I the Lord your God am holy." (Num 19: 2) We as ekklesia (Gk: the gathering/congregation), that is Church, are heirs to the promises of Israel and to its mission: "And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise." (Gal 3: 29) The key to living out this holiness is to be found in the Sermon on the Mount. That is to : "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Mtt 5: 48) This perfection is expressed in forbearance, generosity, mercy and love. It is a love that surpasses human categories because it is informed by the nature of God Himself. If we are to bear the name of Christian then we are to become like Christ. To become come like Christ means, in turn, to be like the Father for: "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." (Jn 14: 9) Saint Paul, writing to the Romans, interpreted the teaching of love in this way: "Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet': and any other commandment, are summed up by this word, 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' Love does no wrong to a neighbour, therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law." (Rm 13: 8-10)
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