The “Parable” of the Sheep and the Goats: A Challenge to Christian Ethics

Abstract

A HE began his panorama of the spread of Christianity throughout the Roman empire, Adolf Harnack quoted Mt 25:35-36: 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 in prison and you came to me As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me, and wrote: These words of Jesus have shone so brilliantly for many generations in his Church and exerted so powerful an influence that one may further describe the Christian preaching as the preaching of love and charity. The portrayal of the last judgment in Mt 25:31-46, where this saying appears, is one of those texts which has inspired and challenged generations of Christians. It has recently been called a summary of the gospel and is one of the most widely cited biblical passages across confessional and even religious boundaries. The classic interpretation emerges directly from the text. When the Son of Man comes in his glory, he will judge all peoples. The criterion of judgment will be works of charity and mercy shown toward the marginal, the poor and the suffering of the world, the least of Jesus' brothers and sisters, who generally throughout Christian history have been equated with suffering Christians or members of one's ecclesial community.