20140912 EFFECTIVE EVANGELIZATION REQUIRES FORMATION

First reading

1 Corinthians 9:16-19,22-27 ©

I do not boast of preaching the gospel, since it is a duty which has been laid on me; I should be punished if I did not preach it! If I had chosen this work myself, I might have been paid for it, but as I have not, it is a responsibility which has been put into my hands. Do you know what my reward is? It is this in my preaching, to be able to offer the Good News free, and not insist on the rights which the gospel gives me.

  So though I am not a slave of any man I have made myself the slave of everyone so as to win as many as I could. For the weak I made myself weak. I made myself all things to all men in order to save some at any cost; and I still do this, for the sake of the gospel, to have a share in its blessings.

  All the runners at the stadium are trying to win, but only one of them gets the prize. You must run in the same way, meaning to win. All the fighters at the games go into strict training; they do this just to win a wreath that will wither away, but we do it for a wreath that will never wither. That is how I run, intent on winning; that is how I fight, not beating the air. I treat my body hard and make it obey me, for, having been an announcer myself, I should not want to be disqualified.

Psalm            Psalm 83:3-6,12 ©

How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.

My soul is longing and yearning,

  is yearning for the courts of the Lord.

My heart and my soul ring out their joy

  to God, the living God.

How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.

The sparrow herself finds a home

  and the swallow a nest for her brood;

she lays her young by your altars,

  Lord of hosts, my king and my God.

How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.

They are happy, who dwell in your house,

  for ever singing your praise.

They are happy, whose strength is in you,

  in whose hearts are the roads to Zion.

How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.

For the Lord God is a rampart, a shield;

  he will give us his favour and glory.

The Lord will not refuse any good

  to those who walk without blame.

How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.

Gospel Acclamation           Ps147:12,15

Alleluia, alleluia!

O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!

He sends out his word to the earth.

Alleluia!

Or        Jn17:17

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your word is truth, O Lord:

consecrate us in the truth.

Alleluia!

Gospel           Luke 6:39-42 ©

Jesus told a parable to the disciples, ‘Can one blind man guide another? Surely both will fall into a pit? The disciple is not superior to his teacher; the fully trained disciple will always be like his teacher. Why do you observe the splinter in your brother’s eye and never notice the plank in your own? How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me take out the splinter that is in your eye,” when you cannot see the plank in your own? Hypocrite! Take the plank out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly enough to take out the splinter that is in your brother’s eye.’

EFFECTIVE EVANGELIZATION REQUIRES FORMATION

SCRIPTURE READINGS: 1 COR 9:16-19.22-27; LK 6:39-42
http://www.universalis.com/20140912/mass.htm

In this age of materialism and individualism, the world is desperately looking for meaning and for life.  For meaning, because materialism cannot fill the emptiness of the human heart, and for life, because man is afraid to die and he wants to preserve his life for as long as he could.  Such a situation is actually a double-edged sword.  Seen negatively, one cannot but lament the state of a godless and amoral society.  Yet, amidst the shadows, there is light, because it means a golden opportunity to bring God to a humanity thirsting for true meaning and life as well.

Indeed, we all know that so long as the world is without God, humanity cannot find happiness. The message of the responsorial psalm is timely, for the psalmist says, “How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God! My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. Blessed they who dwell in your house! Continually they praise you. Blessed the men whose strength you are! Their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.”  The heart cannot find rest and happiness until it rests in the Lord, or rather, when the Lord comes to take His place in our hearts.

In the light of this yearning for everlasting life and authentic love, we, who have encountered the Lord and are baptized in Him, are called to be missionary minded.  A Christian must be a missionary for Christ.  St Paul is conscious of this responsibility when he said, “I do not boast of preaching the gospel, since it is a duty which has been laid on me; I should be punished if I did not preach it! If I had chosen this work myself, I might have been paid for it, but as I have not, it is a responsibility which had been put into my hands.”  Why is it a duty imposed on us?  Truly if the Lord has given us the privilege of receiving the Good News, it is meant not just for ourselves, but for the sake of mission.  God did not choose us to be His children for ourselves alone, but in order that we be the light for all the nations to come to know Him.

What does it take to be an apostle for Christ?  It entails more than just preaching the Good News, but to live out the Good News in our lives.  Hence, before we can be His ambassador, we must first be trained in discipleship.  St Paul compared our spiritual preparation with that of sportsmen.  “All the fighters at the games go into strict training; they do this just to win a wreath that will wither away, but we do it for a wreath that will never wither.  That is how I run, intent on winning; that is how I fight, not beating the air.  I treat my body hard and make it obey me, for, having been an announcer myself, I should not want to be disqualified.”  If, for the sake of an earthly goal, many are willing to make sacrifices, how much more, for the sake of everlasting life, should we be willing to invest our time, energy and resources to grow in holiness, in virtues and in love!  For the sake of physical beauty, many of us are willing to go through a strict regime of dieting and exercise, but for the sake of spiritual growth, why is it that not many are willing to do their spiritual exercises or to fast?  That is why St Paul challenges us today, to give ourselves utterly for the sake of the gospel, the reward of which is incomparable.

But we must go beyond discipleship to formation for mission.  Why is formation so essential for the work of mission?  Jesus in today’s parable has this to teach us when He said, “Can one blind man guide another?  Surely both will fall into a pit?”  If we ourselves are spiritually blind, if we do not know Jesus, or the joy of living a life of holiness and integrity, we will not be able to share this good news with others, since “the disciple is not superior to his teacher; the fully trained disciple will always be like his teacher.”   So if we want to be like the master, we must be fully trained to think and act like Jesus. 

Unfortunately, not many of our Catholics take seriously the need for ongoing spiritual and doctrinal formation in their spiritual life.  They would enroll for all kinds of courses and attend seminars to hone their corporate and secular skills, but not when it comes to the proclamation of the gospel.  How can the Church ever come to maturity if our lay people remain infantile in their faith, both with respect to prayer life, doctrinal and biblical knowledge? It is not surprising therefore that we have not produced many mature Christian leaders who are both theologically knowledgeable and spiritually mature, even though we have many helpers who, out of good-will, try to help in the administrative aspects of the Church.  But we need Catholics who are able and willing to not only offer such indirect or support services in the spread of the gospel, but to teach and catechize our people as well.

However, we cannot restrict the Christian mission to service within the Church.  We need to reach beyond the boundaries of the Church.   We need mature Catholics who are well instructed in their faith, are living authentic Christian lives and infused with the gospel values, to be present in the world, to make Christ known and loved in the workplace and in society.  Without incarnating the gospel in the lives of our people, we would have failed to proclaim the gospel to all of humanity.  Can we say that our Catholics are making a difference in their work place or in their role in society?  Are non-Catholics impressed or edified by the way our Catholics contribute to the development of humanity, society and the economy?  St Paul also warns us that we might find ourselves, the announcers of the Good News, disqualified from the kingdom, as we do not live the gospel we preach.

Finally, to be an effective evangelizer we must learn how to inculturate the gospel in everyday life.  Knowing the faith is one thing, but to transmit the faith in everyday life situations and in the language that the world can understand, is equally a great challenge.  St Paul tells us of this need to make sense of the gospel in a world that might not be able to understand what we are saying.  He said, “…though I am not a slave of any man I have made myself the slave of everyone so as to win as many as I could.  I made myself all things to all men in order to save some at any cost; and I still do this, for the sake of the gospel, to have a share in its blessing.”  If we are not able to identify with the struggles of our fellowmen, we will not be able to give them hope and inspiration.  We must seek to transmit the message in such a way that our contemporaries can sync with us.  The message of the gospel is perennial and must address the concerns and aspiration of every human person. Not only does the message need inculturation, but the mode of transmission must also include modern means of mass media communication as well.

If we are responsible in fulfilling our role as Christians in society and therefore partaking in the mission of the Church, then we will find great joy and meaning in life.  To know that we have made a difference in the lives of our people and contributed to the greater good of society, would give us peace within ourselves.  This was how St Paul felt when he shared with us the joy of his ministry.  “Do you know what my reward is? It is this: in my preaching, to be able to offer the Good News free, and not insist on the rights which the gospel gives me.”  Freely received, freely give, is what the Lord asks of us.  The joy of touching hearts and transforming lives is so great that it is worth all the sacrifices to be made for the spread of the gospel.

WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV WILLIAM GOH


ARCHBISHOP OF SINGAPORE
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