Readings for the Day:
Sermon:
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Original Manuscript:
In the Marvel film, Black Panther, there's a moment when T'Challa, the Black Panther, has to protect the kingdom of Wakanda from a very bad person. Spoiler Alert: in the midst of their fight, this villain receives a fatale blow.
Even in The midst of the fight, T'Challa has mercy on him. He takes this villain to a place where he can see the sunset on the kingdom of Wakanda for the first time. Then T'Challa says to the villain, "Maybe we can still heal you."
This villain has left T'Challa for dead, sent his family into exile, and set the entire country against each other. There is no reason for T'Challa to offer to save his life.
Yet T'Challa knows what this villain has gone through. It doesn't justify his actions, but there is a lot Wakanda owes to their enemy, and T'Challa knows that. T'Challa knows his motivations and that's why he takes mercy on him.
This is exactly the lesson we hear in the Gospel this evening. "Do not judge, and you will not be judged." We all have reasons behind our actions. We all have made mistakes. The question is not how to make each other pay for these things, the question is how do we help bring each other back from the brink.
"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you." That is what T'Challa did too. If we are really not going to judge others, if we really want to empathize and relate with one another, then we have to look past those things we dislike and look at what lies below the surface.
I often what the world would look like if we actually listened to Jesus. I wonder what would happen in the world if we focused a little less on enacting justice, or perhaps rather vengeance, and showed just a little more mercy to one another.