April 16. WEDNESDAY OF HOLY WEEK.  Scripture: Read Luke 19:45-48   When the director read the account of the traders being expelled from the temple he opened up the subject of anger.  This resulted in a huge debate in all the families and is of course very relevant to family life. Opinions ranged from “I don’t think anger is ever OK” to “Anger is natural, you just have to learn to manage it.” The director said, ”Googling “Anger in the Bible” also shows that people have different opinions.  Some questions raised are, ”Is all anger sin and if so why are there references to God’s anger?   Is there such a thing as righteous or unrighteous anger or is it only to do with how we respond to the angry feelings that arise in us?  Can anger be loving or what is the loving thing to do when one is angry?   Could Jesus have been unloving in his act of chasing the traders out of the temple and also in the way he constantly criticized the scribes and Pharisees?  From another  extreme in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus told his disciples to “turn the other cheek.”

Discussion, sharing, action. Mrs Peters, a psychologist, contributed to the discussion saying  that anger is a natural physical reaction to an adverse situation that is not in itself wrong but needs to be managed properly and there are programmes that would be of enormous help in families where angry outbursts and abuse are only too common.   Maurice suggested that their family could make a poster and put up the passage from Ps 103:8,  “The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.”  But, he said, “Let’s make little post-its to change the words “The Lord” to “my dad,” or “my mom” or whoever.   Everyone agreed that was a great idea. 

Church teaching.  Scripture reveals anger and envy in man as consequences of original sin. Catechism of the Catholic Church 2259.  Anger is a desire for revenge. To desire vengeance in order to do evil to someone who should be punished is illicit, but it is praiseworthy to impose restitution “ to correct vices and maintain justice.” CCC 2302.