20251227 PROCLAMATION OF CHRIST THROUGH LOVE AND FELLOWSHIP
27 December 2025, Saturday, St John, Apostle, Evangelist
First reading | 1 John 1:1-4 |
The Word, who is life - this is our subject
Something which has existed since the beginning,
that we have heard,
and we have seen with our own eyes;
that we have watched
and touched with our hands:
the Word, who is life –
this is our subject.
That life was made visible:
we saw it and we are giving our testimony,
telling you of the eternal life
which was with the Father and has been made visible to us.
What we have seen and heard
we are telling you
so that you too may be in union with us,
as we are in union
with the Father
and with his Son Jesus Christ.
We are writing this to you to make our own joy complete.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 96(97):1-2,5-6,11-12 |
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
The Lord is king, let earth rejoice,
let all the coastlands be glad.
Cloud and darkness are his raiment;
his throne, justice and right.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
The mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
The skies proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
Light shines forth for the just
and joy for the upright of heart.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord;
give glory to his holy name.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Te Deum |
Alleluia, alleluia!
We praise you, O God,
we acknowledge you to be the Lord.
The glorious company of the apostles praise you, O Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel | John 20:2-8 |
The other disciple saw, and he believed
On the first day of the week Mary of Magdala came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved. ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb’ she said ‘and we don’t know where they have put him.’
So Peter set out with the other disciple to go to the tomb. They ran together, but the other disciple, running faster than Peter, reached the tomb first; he bent down and saw the linen cloths lying on the ground, but did not go in. Simon Peter who was following now came up, went right into the tomb, saw the linen cloths on the ground, and also the cloth that had been over his head; this was not with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in; he saw and he believed.
PROCLAMATION OF CHRIST THROUGH LOVE AND FELLOWSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 Jn 1:1-4; Ps 97:1-2,5-6,11-12; Jn 20:2-8]
How do we come to see the infant child as our Saviour and the Son of God? He is so vulnerable and innocent. He looked like any other child. He grew up as a child and young man in obscurity, away from the eyes of the public. We have no record of whether He was impactful to His neighbours, except for the incident when He was lost in the Temple conversing with the religious leaders. So what is it that can help a person come to faith in Jesus as the Messiah?
God reveals Himself as love in Jesus. In the baby Jesus, God emptied Himself of His divinity to assume our humanity. He came to share with us our humanity in every way except sin. He went through the same struggles as every human person. He shared our pain, our poverty, hunger, persecution, being misunderstood, betrayal, false accusation and judgment, and, most of all, being put to death for a crime He did not commit. “God is love” is the message of Christmas. His birth anticipates the kind of life Jesus would live and the death He would eventually endure for us all. Indeed, the love of God at Christmas is celebrated only in hindsight by the Church, on account of Jesus’ death for us on the cross and the new life given to us through the Resurrection.
Today we celebrate the Feast of St John, the beloved disciple of the Lord. His feast comes after the Feast of St Stephen. The latter testified to God’s love by his death, but John testified to God’s love by his life. Both are martyrs of love, whether they lived or died. St John’s fundamental message is that Jesus is the love of God in person. This is reflected in his Gospel and in all his letters. He sums up the Incarnation, Passion, and death of Jesus as God loving the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son for the salvation of all.
John was touched by the personal love of Christ. This is what he wrote in his letter: “That life was made visible; we saw it and we are giving our testimony, telling you of the eternal life which was with the Father and has been made visible to us. What we have seen and heard we are telling you, so that you too may be in union with us, as we are in union with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. We are writing this to you to make our own joy complete.”
He could write this because he was among the first disciples of our Lord who stayed with Him and came to believe in Him. He was one of the three disciples in the inner circle. He was with Jesus in all the critical moments of His life. He was there at the Transfiguration and during His Passion. He was the one who leaned on the breast of the Lord during the Last Supper. He stood with Mary at the foot of the cross. In today’s Gospel, he was the one who reached the tomb, saw the linen cloths, and believed. John knew the heart of Jesus. John loved the Lord.
Love always opens us to faith, as in the case of Mary Magdalene. She was devoted to the Lord throughout her life. She was present at the death of Jesus and was the first to visit Him at the tomb. Because of her love and devotion to the Lord, she saw the risen Lord before all others. Yet we might accuse her of being emotional and imagining things. This is often the scepticism of the world when someone shares his or her religious experience of God. We listen with doubt because we think it is merely a figment of a person’s imagination. Of course, it is always possible, even among those of us who believe in God, to be deluded. We must therefore be discerning and not jump to the conclusion that every testimony of a deep encounter with God is real.
Hence, modernism and a sceptical world seek proofs and reasons. This is a valid approach, but it is not the complete way. It is right that we establish the historical basis of the Gospel and the origins of Christianity, but faith is more than bare proof alone. Christianity is certainly grounded in historical signs, yet it requires the eyes of faith to see beyond the facts. Historical facts can show us what happened, but they cannot lead us to the heart of a person. We need faith and trust. Many also saw the historical Lord but did not believe, even after witnessing miracles, like the religious leaders who put Him to death.
We need to combine both reason and faith in coming to know Christ. Love precedes truth. Love helps us to see more; it makes us more receptive to the whole person. Through love, we see the heart of a person and perceive goodness that those without love cannot see. When there is love, it covers a multitude of sins. Very often, when there is no love, we focus only on judging a person’s weaknesses. When there is love, we no longer judge a person externally but consider the person’s situation, circumstances, potential, and motives. This is why, when we journey with someone and try to understand where he or she is coming from, we become more compassionate and encouraging.
What about us who have not seen the historical Lord? How do we love Him? Love begins with trust. When there is no trust, no love is possible. Indeed, many relationships break down because of a lack of trust. Therefore, we need to be receptive to what we have heard through the testimony of others. This is why St John wrote to his Christian community, saying, “Something which has existed since the beginning, that we have heard, and we have seen with our own eyes; that we have watched and touched with our hands: the Word, who is life–this is our subject.” Thus, we need to open our hearts to His love as proclaimed to us if we want to celebrate Christmas meaningfully.
How, then, can we gain trust? Through sincere love and care for our brothers and sisters. We come to faith and love through genuine fellowship. This is what St John wrote: “That life was made visible: we saw it and we are giving our testimony, telling you of the eternal life which was with the Father and has been made visible to us. What we have seen and heard we are telling you, so that you too may be in union with us, as we are in union with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. We are writing this to you to make our own joy complete.” So, the way to proclaim Christ is to show our love and open hearts to our testimony, especially for those who have not seen Him historically.
We remember the tragedy of St Thomas, who was not with the community when Jesus appeared and almost missed seeing the Risen Lord, if not for Christ’s patience with him. St Thomas was unable to bring himself to be with the community. Perhaps he felt deeply disillusioned and could not forgive himself, like the rest of the apostles. They would have been troubled by their lack of courage in standing up for their Master. They were too ashamed to face the Lord. Or perhaps they thought the Lord would not forgive them for their betrayals in His moment of deepest need.
For this reason, we need to be a more welcoming and inclusive Church, without compromising the truth that Jesus has taught us. The proclamation of truth without love will not attract those who are struggling in their lives. Their self-interest, prejudice, and fear will prevent them from opening themselves to the truth. They will find ways and excuses to justify themselves. They will try to rationalise everything and end up rejecting the Gospel or selectively choosing only those parts that agree with them. Just because we know the truth does not mean that we are able to live it. In reality, they are not believing in the Word of God but in themselves, since they judge the Word rather than submit to the judgment of the Word of God.
However, if we show them love–which concretely means accepting them as they are, embracing them without conditions–they will learn to trust us. We may not agree with their values or lifestyle, but we must meet them where they are. Let us never forget the law of gradualness, as taught by St John Paul II. We are all journeying toward the fullness of truth. We are all learning to live the Gospel as it has been taught to us. None of us is perfect in faithfulness to the Gospel, but we acknowledge our inadequacy even as we strive to grow in love and in truth. Through fellowship with those who walk in the light, we too will eventually come to know the light and walk in it ourselves.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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