20250403 THE HEART OF DISAGREEMENT AND TENSION
03 April 2025, Thursday, 4th Week of Lent
First reading | Exodus 32:7-14 |
Moses pleads with the Lord his God to spare Israel
The Lord spoke to Moses, ‘Go down now, because your people whom you brought out of Egypt have apostatised. They have been quick to leave the way I marked out for them; they have made themselves a calf of molten metal and have worshipped it and offered it sacrifice. “Here is your God, Israel,” they have cried, “who brought you up from the land of Egypt!”’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘I can see how headstrong these people are! Leave me, now, my wrath shall blaze out against them and devour them; of you, however, I will make a great nation.’
But Moses pleaded with the Lord his God. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘why should your wrath blaze out against this people of yours whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with arm outstretched and mighty hand? Why let the Egyptians say, “Ah, it was in treachery that he brought them out, to do them to death in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth”? Leave your burning wrath; relent and do not bring this disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, your servants to whom by your own self you swore and made this promise: I will make your offspring as many as the stars of heaven, and all this land which I promised I will give to your descendants, and it shall be their heritage for ever.’
So the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 105(106):19-23 |
O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
They fashioned a calf at Horeb
and worshipped an image of metal,
exchanging the God who was their glory
for the image of a bull that eats grass.
O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
They forgot the God who was their saviour,
who had done such great things in Egypt,
such portents in the land of Ham,
such marvels at the Red Sea.
O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
For this he said he would destroy them,
but Moses, the man he had chosen,
stood in the breach before him,
to turn back his anger from destruction.
O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Jn6:63,68 |
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message of eternal life.
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Or: | Jn3:16 |
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son:
everyone who believes in him has eternal life.
Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!
Gospel | John 5:31-47 |
You place your hopes on Moses but Moses will be your accuser
Jesus said to the Jews:
‘Were I to testify on my own behalf,
my testimony would not be valid;
but there is another witness who can speak on my behalf,
and I know that his testimony is valid.
You sent messengers to John,
and he gave his testimony to the truth:
not that I depend on human testimony;
no, it is for your salvation that I speak of this.
John was a lamp alight and shining
and for a time you were content to enjoy the light that he gave.
But my testimony is greater than John’s:
the works my Father has given me to carry out,
these same works of mine testify
that the Father has sent me.
Besides, the Father who sent me
bears witness to me himself.
You have never heard his voice,
you have never seen his shape,
and his word finds no home in you
because you do not believe in the one he has sent.
‘You study the scriptures,
believing that in them you have eternal life;
now these same scriptures testify to me,
and yet you refuse to come to me for life!
As for human approval, this means nothing to me.
Besides, I know you too well: you have no love of God in you.
I have come in the name of my Father
and you refuse to accept me;
if someone else comes in his own name
you will accept him.
How can you believe,
since you look to one another for approval
and are not concerned
with the approval that comes from the one God?
Do not imagine that I am going to accuse you before the Father:
you place your hopes on Moses,
and Moses will be your accuser.
If you really believed him
you would believe me too,
since it was I that he was writing about;
but if you refuse to believe what he wrote,
how can you believe what I say?’
THE HEART OF DISAGREEMENT AND TENSION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [EXODUS 32:7-14; PS 106:19-23; JOHN 5:31-47]
The context of today’s gospel was Jesus’ implicit claim to be identical with God His Father. After healing the paralyzed man at the pool on the Sabbath, Jesus’ justification was that “‘My Father is still working, and I also am working.’ For this reason, the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the Sabbath, but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God.” (Jn 5:17f) But why should anyone believe Him? What evidence could Jesus cite to prove that His claims were verified?
Jesus was aware that any claim requires witnesses as it is obvious that no one can bear for himself. Jesus was fully aware of the Jewish legal procedure and the command of Moses that two or three witnesses are required to sustain charges against the accused. Jewish law was not based on the interrogation of the accused but the credibility of the witnesses. “A single witness shall not suffice to convict a person of any crime or wrongdoing in connection with any offense that may be committed. Only on the evidence of two or three witnesses shall a charge be sustained.” (Dt 19:15) This is particularly necessary when it involves a death penalty. “On the evidence of two or three witnesses the death sentence shall be executed; a person must not be put to death on the evidence of only one witness.” (Dt 17:6)
In situations where there was only one witness, then the court had to decide on the reliability of the witness. This is where the oath-taking became a norm and still a practice in many societies. Most oaths are taken with God as our witness, implying that if we lie, God would punish the person. Jesus, in appealing to His Father as a witness, implied that He was in some ways taking an oath. In the final analysis, how can we be assured that the witness could be relied on if not his past character and life? Isn’t this how lawyers seek to demolish the testimonies of witnesses by showing that they could not be believed because of their past record and history? Indeed, at the end of the day it is how credible the witnesses are.
Hence, the Lord said to the Jews, “Were I to testify on my own behalf, my testimony would not be valid; but there is another witness who can speak on my behalf, and I know that his testimony is valid.” He called upon John the Baptist, the prophet to be His witness. The people knew that John was a true prophet who spoke the truth which he received from the Father. Yet they rejected him, especially the religious and political leaders. Whilst the synoptic gospels suggest that John the Baptist’s death was due to Herodias, Josephus, the historian said that Herod had him put in prison because he feared that John could start a rebellion for he had many followers. As a consequence, they rejected the witness of John the Baptist. Since they rejected him, Jesus provided another witness, namely His works.
Jesus said, “my testimony is greater than John’s: the works my Father has given me to carry out, these same works of mine testify that the Father has sent me.” Jesus in the gospel had taught, “You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.” (Mt 7:16f) Indeed, judging by the fruits we will come to know the state of the tree. The works of Jesus are the works of God as He said. “Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished.” (Jn 5:19f) This is why those who have seen Him have seen the Father. (Jn 14:8-11)
Thirdly, Jesus said that the Father was His witness. “But besides, the Father who sent me bears witness to me himself. You have never heard his voice, you have never seen his shape, and his word finds no home in you because you do not believe in the one he has sent.” How did the Father bear witness to Him? Most likely, from the works that He did. But the greatest evidence for us is the Father’s endorsement of His life, works and words by raising Him from the dead through the Holy Spirit. That the Father would raise a criminal from the dead is the best proof that Jesus was truly who He claimed to be.
Fourthly, Jesus said that the scriptures testified for Him. “You study the scriptures, believing that in them you have eternal life; now these same scriptures testify to me and yet you refuse to come to me for life!” From the Christian perspective as understood by Christ, all scriptures, especially the Old Testament, must be read as referring to Christ. Indeed, as the Lord told the disciples at Emmaus, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” (Lk 24:27) Old Testament finds fulfilment in the New. The Old Testament foreshadows the New Testament. They would be going against what Moses told them when he said, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name.” (Dt 18:18f)
Consequently, rejecting the witness of the scriptures would result in being condemned by Moses. “Do not imagine that I am going to accuse you before the Father: you place your hopes on Moses, and Moses will be your accuser. If you really believed him, you would believe me too, since it was I that he was writing about but if you refuse to believe what he wrote, how can you believe what I say?” Jesus was using their own criterion to justify why they should believe in Him. For the Jews, it was unthinkable that Moses would be the one accusing them. On the contrary as we have read in the first reading, it was Moses who always interceded for the people when they got into trouble with the Lord. When they turned to the Golden Calf, it was Moses who interceded on their behalf for forgiveness. So, it came as a shock to them when the Lord said to them that Moses would accuse them before God.
In view of these evidence put forward, Christians cannot but proclaim the uniqueness of Christ as Saviour of the world. He is proclaimed as the Son of God, divine and human. If Jesus were from God, then we must accept His word as it really is, God’s word and not some human thinking. (1 Th 2:13) We have no excuse because we too have not just the witnesses mentioned by our Lord but we have more. We have the hindsight of the passion and the resurrection. We have the testimonies of believers of the last two thousand years who have encountered the Lord and His saving grace. We have the scriptures, the guidance of the Church, and theological reflection since the early Church. In addition, we have the promise of guidance by the Holy Spirit who leads us to the fullness of truth. (cf Jn 14:26; 15:26; 16:12-15). This is why Christians hold no apology for proclaiming Christ as Saviour of the world.
However, in a world of relativism and multi-religious climate, such a claim would be challenged in many ways. Christianity has often been seen as an intolerant religion and triumphalistic. This leads to direct confrontation with other religious claims. This is where Christians, whilst not denying our claims of who Jesus is, must also be humble and sensitive to the faith claims of others. We do not want to say anything that would insult their beliefs as well. So, whilst we can continue to proclaim our faith in Jesus as the Son of God and the Universal Saviour of the world, we have no right to put down others’ religious convictions. Rather, for the sake of ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue, we must be courteous and polite. As St Peter told the Christians, “in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” (1 Pt 3:15f) By our love and good works, we demonstrate our living faith in Christ in our lives.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
