20141011 A TRANSCULTURAL FAITH IS ROOTED IN
CHRIST
First
reading
Galatians
3:22-29 ©
Scripture
makes no exceptions when it says that sin is master everywhere. In this way the
promise can only be given through faith in Jesus Christ and can only be given
to those who have this faith.
Before faith came, we were allowed no freedom
by the Law; we were being looked after till faith was revealed. The Law was to
be our guardian until the Christ came and we could be justified by faith. Now
that that time has come we are no longer under that guardian, and you are, all
of you, sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. All baptised in Christ, you
have all clothed yourselves in Christ, and there are no more distinctions
between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one
in Christ Jesus. Merely by belonging to Christ you are the posterity of
Abraham, the heirs he was promised.
Psalm Psalm 104:2-7 ©
The
Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or
Alleluia!
O
sing to the Lord, sing his praise;
tell all his wonderful works!
Be
proud of his holy name,
let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice.
The
Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or
Alleluia!
Consider
the Lord and his strength;
constantly seek his face.
Remember
the wonders he has done,
his miracles, the judgements he spoke.
The
Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or
Alleluia!
O
children of Abraham, his servant,
O sons of the Jacob he chose.
He,
the Lord, is our God:
his judgements prevail in all the earth.
The
Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel
Acclamation Jn14:23
Alleluia,
alleluia!
If
anyone loves me he will keep my word,
and
my Father will love him,
and
we shall come to him.
Alleluia!
Or Lk11:28
Alleluia,
alleluia!
Happy
are those
who
hear the word of God
and
keep it.
Alleluia!
Gospel Luke 11:27-28 ©
As
Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Happy the
womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’ But he replied, ‘Still happier
those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
A
TRANSCULTURAL FAITH IS ROOTED IN CHRIST
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: GAL 3:22-29; LK 11:27-28
http://www.universalis.com/20141011/mass.htm
A survey was once conducted
by a Malaysian newspaper on how the Malays in Malaysia viewed their
identity. The results showed they saw themselves first as Muslims,
then as Malays and only then as Malaysians.
What about us
Catholics? How do we view our identity? Do we see ourselves
as Catholics, then our race and our nationality? Well the scripture
readings today seem to promote this approach to our identity. St Paul
emphatically states that “there are no more distinctions between Jew and Greek,
slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”
In the same vein, when someone praised the mother of Jesus saying, “Happy the
womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!” Jesus replied, “Still happier
those who hear the word of God and keep it!” In these words, Jesus
relegates the importance of a physical relationship to one that is lower than
that of a spiritual relationship. Indeed, in another text of the gospel,
Jesus declared that whoever does the will of God is “my mother, brothers and
sisters.”
Hence, the spiritual
family takes precedence over the physical family. As such we
can conclude that Jesus is surely teaching us to go beyond mere physical
relationship and attachment, regardless whether it is to race or nationality,
to that of a spiritual relationship. Racial and nationalist boundaries
are created by man for the sake of protectionism and survival. In the
eyes of God, we are all His children and He loves us all. But will such
an emphasis put us on the same level as that of the Muslims? Will others
be threatened by our preference to be called Catholics rather than by our race
or nationality?
The truth is that whilst
the spiritual relationship is certainly above the physical relationship, Catholic
teaching does not disdain the realities of culture. Indeed, in St
Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he said, “Before faith came, we were allowed no
freedom by the Law; we were being looked after till faith was revealed. The Law
was to be our guardian until the Christ came and we could be justified by
faith. Now that that time has come we are no longer under that guardian, and
you are, all of you, sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Later in the same letter St
Paul speaks of the coming of the Son being born to a woman in the fullness
of time and born under the law. This is a clear reiteration of the
historical and cultural reality of faith. For faith to be transmitted,
cultures are inevitable. Jesus Himself, the Messiah and Saviour, came to
this earth through a particular culture and race. He was born of a woman,
namely Mary, who was a member of the Jewish race and faith.
At the same time, we must
remember the historicity and limitations of cultures. The latter
are necessary insofar as they help us to transmit values and traditions.
However, after the coming of Christ, Christians must now go beyond their
present cultures and embrace the universal values as taught by Christ in the
gospel. Cultures or Laws are mere pedagogy for us to prepare ourselves for the
full reception of the faith. In truth, Christian faith and the gospel of
Jesus Christ must purify and refine our human cultures, even if they do share some
values of the gospel. Regardless of what cultures we share, the gospel
cuts across all cultures insofar as it mediates values that are true, noble and
eternal. Indeed, regardless of what cultures or religions we adopt, it is
clear that sin is the cause of our division, within and without. St Paul
wrote, “Scripture makes no exceptions when it says that sin is master
everywhere. In this way the promise can only be given through faith in Jesus
Christ and can only be given to those who have this faith.”
As Catholics therefore, we
cannot deny that cultures are the necessary medium for the transmission of
faith and the expression of faith. Our faith is an incarnated faith.
We cannot speak of transmitting faith in a vacuum. That being so,
inculturation of faith is a clear necessity, not an option! We must
embrace all cultures and appreciate the different cultures of peoples in the
world. Christian faith is not so narrow-minded to impose one culture on
its followers. The Catholic Church is Catholic because she embraces all
cultures and unites all these cultures in Christ and elevates them to a higher
level of truth. We must make a distinction between culture and faith, the
former is a vehicle to express faith whereas the latter is universal in truth.
So whilst we say that faith
is inculturated, we must in the same breath say that faith must be
transcultural. That is to say, we must be able to transcend all
cultures and be comfortable with all cultures and be able to express our faith
in whichever culture we are in. In this way, Christian identity, although
distinctly rooted in Christ, cuts across all racial, religious and political
boundaries. What binds us as Christians is not the culture we have
but rather our common sonship in Christ. It is this conviction that in
Christ we are all one in Him, and that we have a common Father, that all other
differences are secondary. Because we have God as our Father, Jesus as
our brother, we are all brothers and sisters in Him. Hence, St Paul
declares, “merely by belonging to Christ you are the posterity of Abraham, the
heirs he was promised.”
To belong to Christ as the
gospel reminds us, is not simply accepting our sonship in Christ but also living
out this spiritual relationship by doing the will of God. Mary is our great
model of unity and a woman whose faith is transcultural, because she hears the
word of God and keeps it. Rightly so, she is the mother of the
Church, the mother of all Christians, because her family includes all those who
do the will of God and live out the gospel life. Mary’s greatness does
not lie so much in her divine motherhood but her blessedness, and blessings
stem from her receptivity to the Word of God which takes flesh in her at the
incarnation. Anyone who does the will of the Father, that is, anyone who
lives in truth and in love is in union with Jesus and therefore is a member of
the family of God, explicitly or implicitly, consciously or unconsciously.
Truly, unless we follow
this principle, the new humanity of love and unity cannot be
achieved. Only when men truly love God and renounce violence and
discrimination because of race, religion, culture and nationality can there be
true peace and unity in the world. Christian Faith is in a position to be
the gospel of unity and the instrument of unity of the human race only because
in Christ we are all brothers and sisters living out the love of God in us.
Rooted in God’s unconditional and everlasting love for us, we can feel
confident of His love even when we, out of weakness, fail in observing the
laws. And because of our own failings and the experience of being
forgiven and loved, we can extend the same compassion and tolerance to our
fellowmen who fail us as well.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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