Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany

February 23, 2025

Lucas 6:27-38

Rev. Neli Miranda 

Today’s Gospel continues Jesus’ teachings addressed to a large crowd of disciples gathered on a plain, as we heard last Sunday. He speaks to a multitude of impoverished, needy people whom he calls “blessed”—a term traditionally reserved for those who possessed material wealth and high social status. However, Jesus subverts this conventional understanding by declaring his disciples blessed, stating, “. . .yours is the Kingdom of God”. This radical statement affirms the dignity of his followers and establishes the foundation for a new community, the community of the Kingdom of God.

Jesus and his first followers faced enemies, those in positions of power who dominated and oppressed the people, persecuting and murdering all those who cried out for justice, beginning with Jesus himself.  Amidst this reality, marked by violence and hostility, Jesus urges the new community to live in a transformative way: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (6,27-28). 

Jesus’ teachings transcend revenge and violence as he teaches his disciples to use alternative ways to stop the spiral of violence: “If anyone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. And from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and of anyone who takes away your goods do not ask them again” (6,29-30).

In Jesus’ time, those in a position of authority had the “power” to slap others and take away their possessions, so it was usual for Roman soldiers and officials, tax collectors, landowners and creditors to abuse people with impunity. Landowners and creditors, for instance, exploited and abused the poor and indebted, dispossessing them of their property and even enslaving them. A creditor could legally collect payment by taking a debtor’s clothes. Within the family sphere, the patriarchal structure granted a father the power to abuse and slap his wife, children, and his slaves. These injustices were enabled within a violent system, especially prevalent under the Roman occupation and the complicity of Jewish authorities. Slapping someone or taking their coat and other possessions, then, was a practice of those who abused the power granted them by the system.

Slapping someone was not only an act of physical aggression but also a form of humiliation and a reminder of authority. When Jesus teaches about turning the other cheek, it is not an invitation for further blows, but rather an act of nonviolent resistance that denies the aggressor the power to humiliate. By turning the other cheek, the victim refuses to be humiliated, affirming equality, and breaks the cycle of violence. Jesus does not teach us passivity or violence but a third way: active, nonviolent resistance which disarms the offender without replicating on his own terms.

Furthermore, what does Jesus mean when he says, “And from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold your shirt”? This means shaming the aggressor for their abusing attitude! Only the poor were at risk of being deprived of their clothes due to debt. The coat, an outer garment, served as a blanket at night and the tunic or shirt was an undergarment or underwear. Thus, giving the tunic or shirt meant that a person was left naked in public, exposing the creditor’s injustice. It was a nonviolent protest that shamed the oppressor and revealed the system’s inhumanity.

Some have interpreted Jesus’ teachings as promoting passivity in the face of injustice. However, Jesus actually calls for breaking the cycle of violence. Love and kindness towards enemies, practiced in a creative way, are the wedges that nonviolently disrupt this cycle. Instead of promoting retaliation—the “eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” mentality—Jesus offers a nonviolent alternative, which resonates with Mahatma Gandhi’s observation that “an eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind”. Jesus’ teachings emphasize the transformative power of love and nonviolence in the face of aggression and injustice.

Sisters and brothers, today, how do we respond to those who aggress against us and to the abusers who threaten to take away what rightfully belongs to us, including the necessities we need to survive? How do we embody Jesus’ third way of active, nonviolent resistance in the face of injustice today? What are the ways in which we can turn the other cheek to our aggressors? As many of us may have learned, seen or experienced, responding in the aggressor’s own terms perpetuates a cycle of violence; yet, Jesus teaches us another way. Our genuine, nonviolent response not only reaffirms our human dignity but can also result in our aggressor’s conversion.  Our daily actions of love and kindness are those small wedges that gradually stop the wheel of injustice.

Jesus concludes this section by saying, “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (6,31). Instead of treating others as they treat us, Jesus teaches us to treat others as we would like to be treated.  What a radical way for us as disciples of Jesus to promote love, justice, and peace.

In the final verses, Jesus calls to transform conventional social interactions, which are often rooted in self-interest and convenience—an “I love you because you love me” mentality. He teaches us to love our enemies and do good to all people without expecting anything in return. This radical love is the mark of true discipleship and identifies us as children of God, the Most High who is kind to all, even to the ungrateful and wicked. Jesus concludes with the imperative, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (6,36). Let us embrace this radical love and become children of the Most High. Amen.