5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
08th February 2026
Lectionary Readings: Is 58:7-10; Ps 112:4-5, 6-7, 8-9; 1 Cor 2:1-5; Matt 5:13-16
The readings for this 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time teach us about the practicality and demands of God’s Word. And with the human person as the reference point for the Word’s realization, the poor are placed as the measure of this practice. The Prophet Isaiah (58:7-10) warns us about the centrality of the poor as a reference for justice before God. One could say that God is found in the poor: “Share your bread with the hungry, welcome the homeless poor into your house, clothe the naked when you see them…”Along the same lines, we see that the Torah repeatedly commands care for the poor: “Do not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother” (Deuteronomy 15:7); “When you reap the harvest… you shall leave some for the poor and the foreigner” (Leviticus 19:9-10); “Whoever oppresses the poor insults their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honours Him” (Proverbs 14:13). “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord” (Proverbs 19:17).
These requirements/laws create a social system of protection, guaranteeing food and dignity to those in need. And the understanding that underpins this requirement is to be just and to do justice (tzedakah). In Judaism, charity is called tzedakah, which literally means justice, not just kindness. In this sense, we understand what Paul teaches in his letter 1 Corinthians 13, and in the end, he concludes: “The greatest of all virtues is charity”.
Jewish tradition understands this to mean that “whoever ignores the poor is as if they were ignoring the divine presence”. This idea is taught in the Talmud when it says: “Whoever closes their eyes to charity is as if they practice idolatry (עובד עבודה זרה)” (TB Baba Batra 10a). Rashi (1040-1105) comments on this statement from the Talmud, saying: “It is as if they practice idolatry—for they deny the Holy One, blessed be He, since they do not believe that God observes them and that He gave them this wealth to distribute it to the poor”.
Today’s Gospel (Mt 5:13-16) places two very significant symbols in Jesus’ mouth, symbols that remain relevant to the Biblical tradition and that continue to be relevant to the Judaeo-Christian tradition: salt and light. The first image is salt: ccc, that is, as a presence that gives a sense of sustainability, that gives meaning to the world. Or as Paul says: “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt” (Col 4:6). In this case, salt symbolizes witness, moral example, and positive influence in the world. Or as Mark teaches: “Have salt in yourselves” (Mk 9:50). He wants to teach that salt symbolizes preserving true faith and preventing moral corruption. However, since we must always consider all the Scriptures that preceded the writings of the New Testament, the source from which it drew the teachings that follow, we read in Leviticus that “you shall not omit the salt of the covenant of your God from all your offering” (Lev 2:13). What does the ‘salt of the covenant‘ mentioned in this verse mean? The ‘salt of the covenant’ refers to the bond between God and Israel. Rashi explains that, “just as salt preserves food from spoilage, the covenant with God endures forever. This concept originates from the time when God made a ‘covenant of salt‘ with King David and his descendants (see II Chronicles 13:5), symbolizing permanence.
The second image from today’s Gospel is light: “You are the light of the world”. Just as salt must be seen, so must light, or rather, it means that God must be seen and known. We know that in the Torah, the first thing God creates is light: “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). This shows that light represents order, life, and the beginning of everything. Light also symbolizes divine presence, truth, and protection: “The Lord is my light and my salvation” (Psalm 27:1). But we learn that the Torah is compared to light: “The commandment is a lamp, and the Torah is a light” (Proverbs 6:23). That is, the Torah illuminates the moral and spiritual path of the person.
When Jesus, in today’s reading, affirms: “You are the light of the world”, he is calling his followers to be bearers of God’s presence in their way of being before the world. However, this mission is understood in the sense of what Isaiah said at the beginning: “Share your bread with the hungry, welcome the homeless poor into your house, clothe the naked when you see them…” In fact, the entire Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), which before being a beautiful poem, the images given to be salt and light in the world, are deeply connected with the text of Isaiah and with the teachings of the Jewish tradition, as we saw before, for Jesus himself concludes his maxim in Matthew 25:35ff saying: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you saw a worm”.
How to teach the Talmud cited above: “Whoever closes their eyes to charity is as if they practice idolatry (עובד עבודה זרה)”. This is doing tzedakah (starting with the poor). Otherwise, confirming Jesus’ words, it will be salt without flavor and a light that does not shine.
This week’s Sunday Liturgy Commentary was prepared by
Elio Passeto, NDS, Jerusalem–Israel, Director
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