Would you steal from God? Do you think stealing from God would bring blessings to you? I think most people very quickly come to the conclusion that that is not a great idea. But hold that thought and we will return to it in a moment.

One way to understand a culture is to explore how it governs its appetite for revenge. A desire for revenge is part of the human condition. What is revenge? "The action of inflicting hurt or harm on someone for an injury or wrong suffered at their hands."

The Scriptures are clear when it comes to revenge. "Vengeance is mine," says the lord. We find this in both Deuteronomy 32:35 and Romans 12:19-21.

So, let me ask you again, would you steal from God?

Blessed André Grasset didn’t think it wise. Instead, he chose to follow Jesus’ teaching: “If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.” (Matthew 5:39)

André was born in Montreal, Canada, in 1758. Raised in a devout Catholic family, André's faith journey led him to Paris, where he was ordained a priest in 1783. That was four years before the French Revolution started, and the Church found itself in a time of intense persecution.

Priests across France were pressured to pledge allegiance to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, effectively placing them under state control rather than the Pope’s. André refused. Soldiers of the Revolution threw him in a convent-turned-prison, along with 95 other priests. 

During this time you might have expected André to curse the Revolution, but instead he stood as a figure of calm. He turned the other cheek from the insults of the guards, and focused on uniting his brethren. It worked. When the guards brought the declaration to them for their last chance to sign, all 96 priests refused. Blessed André Grasset and his fellow priests were killed the same day.

Over and over throughout the Gospel, Jesus counsels us about how to treat people who offend us, harm us, persecute us. Turning the other cheek is just the first step. The next is to pray for them. The step after that is to do good to them. And the step after that is to love them. Our appetite for revenge prevents us from praying for them, doing good to them, and loving them.

Will you take that first step with someone that has harmed you, and turn the other cheek?



Feast Day: September 2

Feast Day Shared By: Saint Zenon

Beatified: October 17, 1926

Beatified By: Pope Pius XI