1. Reflect upon the Sermon on the Mount assignments. What did you discover? In your questionnaire, did your responses show a moral person? Did these show a Christian person?

Before reading the article on the Sermon on the Mount, I forgot just how extensive this passage from the New Testament is. Too often I associate it solely with the Beatitudes, but it is so much more! For me- as I'm sure it is for many others- Jesus pretty much sums up Catholicism in this passage. It includes the role of Jesus, the role of the disciples (something for us to strive towards), "the Golden Rule," and how to practice our Faith. Not only does Jesus set the standards for his followers (both then and today), but he also radically alters the existing standards of society with his speech centering on the phrases, "You have hear it said... But I say to you." Although the standards of modern-day society are different from those of when Jesus was preaching, the same principle still exists: being a Christian means we must go against the unethical norms society gives us- even if it involves suffering. Reflecting on questions concerning my morality, I'd say my overall response shows I'm a moral person. Many of the questions I answered morally, but there were also several of the responses that were immoral (such as when I gave the cold-shoulder to the person I was angry with). At the same time, though, I took into account that sometime after committing the acts I realized what I did was wrong and sought forgiveness. In this way I believe I am entirely Christian person. Yes, we are to strive for perfection and unity with God, but God recognizes how hard it is for us to achieve this. What counts is that we try, and that when we do make mistakes we recognize them, seek to fix them, and ask for forgiveness. In order to move towards God, though, we need guidance- guidance that is given to us by Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount.

2. Two major ideas I want to remember and why I want to remember them:

One major idea I want to remember comes from William J. O'Malley's "The Moral Practice of Jesus." In the article O'Malley discusses Jesus and forgiveness, and a key idea for me was when he said: "But perhaps the root sin is the last in (Jesus's) list: 'an obtuse spirit,' the narcissism that refuses to admit one did wrong and the inertia that finds it too much effort and embarrassment to go back to the first wrong turn and start over." I completely see how this could be perceived as the root sin. In order to receive God's forgiveness we have to want it, to want to be with Him; if we have so much pride that we refuse to acknowledge our faults, then there is no way for us to move towards God. On a basic level, an "obtuse spirit" is really the only thing separating us from Jesus. All other sins- if we are truly sorry for them- are forgiven. This is the sin of not wanting to be forgiven, though, so therefore it stands that we won't be forgiven should we hold onto an "obtuse spirit." The fact that this sin may be the one that separates us from Jesus just goes to show how forgiving he is.

Another idea I want to remember is also a concept that O'Malley addresses: "Contrast the relative rareness of Jesus speaking about hell or judgment with the profusion of times in the Gospels when he both spoke and acted as one come to heal and to forgive, and you come away with a picture of Christian moral pracitce far different from what many Christians have come to expect." I agree; so often it seems that people (including me) worry too much about what we're doing wrong or even do good things out of fear of the punishment we will receive if we don't, that we forget just how forgiving Jesus is. According to O'Malley, in the Gospels Jesus mentions hell only ten times and judgment on fifteen- out of almost 4,000 verses. It is essential that we grasp the fact that, if we are truly sorry, Jesus will forgive us! It is a simple fact and easy to understand, but for some reason I have trouble getting it into my head. Too often I think I overlook the fact that Jesus wants to forgive me, and (in the words of O'Malley) "there is also no doubt that, according to Jesus, being forgiven ought to be a great deal easier than we fear."

3. One image that captures the chapter for me:

4. One significant question I have from this chapter, whether intellectual or personal, with a possible answer:

A question I had from this section concerned one the Precepts of the Church. The third precept states that Catholics should receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season. Because the Eucharist is so essential to Catholics, as it is Jesus's body and blood we are taking into ourselves, why are we required to receive the sacrament more often than just once?

I wasn't having luck finding any answers to this question on the Internet, so I started to reflect on it myself. A possible reason for the Church only requiring Catholics to obtain Eucharist once a year may be so the rest of the year we may make our own choice to receive God. Were the Church to make it mandatory for one to receive Eucharist every weekend, the sacrament might start to seem more like another rule than a meaningful gift from God. By not making it mandatory, we are allowed to receive the Eucharist when we ourselves feel ready for and worthy of it. By giving us the freedom of how often we receive the body and blood of Christ, receiving it becomes our own personal decision to move closer and embrace God, not something Church authority is making us do.