The moral value of Matthew’s depiction of Sermon on the Mount has stood as a timeless testament to the teachings of Jesus, offering profoundly helpful and inspiring guidance in terms of living the good life. I have found Matthew’s rendition to be a majestic but rightfully austere primer on what it means to live in the world as a righteous citizen of a greater community; Jesus’ moral teachings offering a universal and cosmopolitan message for the redemption of man over folly and vice. Verily, it would be a tall order to speak of entirely how the Sermon has influenced my thought process, the breadth of its impact exceeding this assignment’s parameters, thus I must contend to speak of one particular aphorism which has served my conscience the most in steering me toward a moral life.
Matthew 5:33-37 serves as a warning against false oath taking, warning us against vowing by the power of heaven (“for it is God’s throne”), the structures of earth (“for it is [God’s] footstool”), by Jerusalem (“for it is the city of [Solomon]”), or by your own mind’s conviction (“for you cannot make even one hair white or black”). I believe that this aphorism offers succinct advice in terms of staying on the path of truth, for the mortal man cannot know the future (James 4:14), or the mind of God (Romans 8:28), and if he ventures to make vows may find ego and vanity (“this comes from the evil one”) instead of covenant with the divine. It is enough, suggests Jesus, to “Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’.” In this manner a man can speak the simple truth while not positing knowledge of things within the mind of God or His schema of fate. Man is prone to make vows without a true understanding of the consequences, as he lacks divine foresight and prudence, thus to guard the soul he must contend to wield humility instead of arrogance, sparing himself from the sinful transgressions of dishonest speech, content to speak truthfully of his heart in the moment but to refrain from judging the future. This to me is a crucial realization of the divine mystery and a core moral belief, responsible for safeguarding my soul from the seductions of evil.