To explain the present, we also need to look at the past. We know that if we live our lives forward, we understand them backward. So to discover why things have turned out the way they have, we make a journey into the past in an effort to uncover the origin of it all. All great cultures and religions have a sacred story that describes the beginning of the world. Most of these stories are a variation on a simple theme: in the beginning, it was good, but then it got worse! To account for the order and disorder of their own world, the ancient storytellers and writers told tales of the beginning. That is genesis, the story of the beginning.

We all have priorities in life. Roughly defined, a priority is a belief or action that takes precedence over other beliefs or actions. As we grow and learn through our lives, we learn what priorities are held in our communities, our families, and ultimately, which ones we are to adopt in the living of our individual lives. The power of priorities helps us to clarify the choices we must make to define how we conduct our lives. For the most part, most of us have adopted the priorities established in the culture and society in which we live. Accordingly, some follow the paths of success determined by the definitions of such priorities, attempting to become living exemplars of these values.

On this day, we have a very interesting reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew. What Jesus is teaching in this discourse is both harsh and amazing. First, he tells his disciples, “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Scribes and the Pharisees, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 5:20). When reading this passage, it is good to remember that, in the time of Jesus, the Scribes and Pharisees were known for being very religious people.

Life is preeminent because, “It is impossible to further the common good without defending the Right to Life, upon which all other inalienable rights are founded,” as Pope St. John Paul (the Great) teaches in his Gospel of Life. Pope Francis and the U.S. Bishops echo this teaching as well. The word “preeminent” has a Latin origin and means outstanding, to stand out, or above all else. Basic logic dictates that not all issues are equal. According to (future Doctor of the Church) Pope Benedict XVI, it’s simply the three non-negotiables of (1) life above all, then (2) natural marriage, and (3) religious freedom, followed by all other negotiable common goods of society. God is preeminent above all, the family is preeminent in society, and life is preeminent every day!