20150129 SHARING IN THE PRIESTHOOD OF CHRIST BY LEADING OTHERS TO
HIM
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Hebrews 10:19-25
©
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Through the blood of
Jesus we have the right to enter the sanctuary, by a new way which he has
opened for us, a living opening through the curtain, that is to say, his body.
And we have the supreme high priest over all the house of God. So as we go in,
let us be sincere in heart and filled with faith, our minds sprinkled and free
from any trace of bad conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us
keep firm in the hope we profess, because the one who made the promise is
faithful. Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and
good works. Do not stay away from the meetings of the community, as some do,
but encourage each other to go; the more so as you see the Day drawing near.
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Psalm
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Psalm 23:1-6 ©
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Such are the men
who seek your face, O Lord.
The Lord’s is the
earth and its fullness,
the world
and all its peoples.
It is he who set it
on the seas;
on the
waters he made it firm.
Such are the men
who seek your face, O Lord.
Who shall climb the
mountain of the Lord?
Who shall
stand in his holy place?
The man with clean
hands and pure heart,
who
desires not worthless things.
Such are the men
who seek your face, O Lord.
He shall receive
blessings from the Lord
and
reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who
seek him,
seek the
face of the God of Jacob.
Such are the men
who seek your face, O Lord.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Ph2:15-16
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Alleluia, alleluia!
You will shine in the
world like bright stars
because you are
offering it the word of life.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Ps118:105
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is a lamp
for my steps
and a light for my
path.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 4:21-25 ©
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Jesus said to his
disciples, ‘Would you bring in a lamp to put it under a tub or under the bed?
Surely you will put it on the lamp-stand? For there is nothing hidden but it
must be disclosed, nothing kept secret except to be brought to light. If anyone
has ears to hear, let him listen to this.’
He
also said to them, ‘Take notice of what you are hearing. The amount you measure
out is the amount you will be given – and more besides; for the man who
has will be given more; from the man who has not, even what he has will be
taken away.’
SHARING
IN THE PRIESTHOOD OF CHRIST BY LEADING OTHERS TO HIM
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: HEBREWS 10:19-25; MARK 4:21-25
After
reflecting on the theology of the priesthood of Christ, which surpasses all
others especially that of the Old Testament priesthood and sacrifices, what
then are the practical implications for us? Is our understanding
of Christ’s priesthood simply a doctrine, or have we come to grasp the full
meaning of Christ as the High Priest for us? Only by appreciating the
priesthood of Jesus, can we then work out the implications of our belief and in
our share of Christ’s priesthood.
To speak of Christ as
our High Priest means that it is only through Him that we can come to the
Father. As the
letter of Hebrews tells us, He is the way to enter into the Sanctuary of
God. “Through the blood of Jesus we have the right to enter the
sanctuary, by a new way which he has opened for us, a living opening through
the curtain, that is to say, his body.” Through Christ’s death on the
cross, we come to see the love of God for us and in Him we know that we are
loved and forgiven.
To appreciate the sacrifice
of Christ more deeply, we must link today’s reading with the offering of the
sacrifice on the Day of Atonement in the Old Testament. Unlike in the
Old Testament where the high priest entered the Holy of Holies, which was
hidden behind a veil, once a year on the Day of Atonement, Jesus had torn down
the curtain that separated us from God. We read that at the death of
Jesus, “the curtain of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom.” (Mt
27:51) Unlike the high priest who would sprinkle the blood towards
the place of the Ark of the Covenant signifying the flow of new blood and
thereby purifying the people of Israel, Jesus, by His death on the cross, pours
forth His precious blood and in that moment, “he gave up his spirit”.
Hence, through His death on the cross, He has purified our hearts by giving us
His Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit, we are brought into union with the
Father. This also explains why in receiving the Holy Eucharist, which is
the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and His body and blood, we receive the
Holy Spirit as well.
Having received the Holy
Spirit, we are now reconciled with God and in union with Him. We have
the confidence to approach God before His heavenly throne to ask for help.
With hearts free from guilt and self-condemnation, we can, as sons and
daughters of our Heavenly Father, come before Him knowing that He will hear our
prayers. Isn’t this what the psalmist is echoing when he says, “Lord,
this is the people that longs to see your face. Who can ascend the mountain of
the Lord? Or who may stand in his holy place? He whose hands are sinless,
whose heart is clean, who desires not what is vain.” Christ has purified
us not externally with His blood but through the giving up of His blood, His
Spirit is poured into our hearts.
In the light of what He has
done for us, the author reminds us to “keep firm in the hope we profess,
because the one who made the promise is faithful.” Because of His
death for us and His once and for all perfect sacrifice on the cross, we know
for certain the love of God for us. God shows His fidelity to us by dying
on the cross for us. By so doing, He reaffirms that His love for us is
irrevocable. Quite often the devil wants us to feel unworthy so that we
would keep ourselves from God. The trick of the Devil is to make us sin
and then accuse us so that we feel condemned, not just before God or men but
before our own eyes. Satan wants us to hate ourselves so that we will
fall into despair like Judas. He does not want us to believe that God is
merciful and that He will forgive us our sins the moment we turn to Him.
When our conscience condemns us, we will not be able to open ourselves to the
love of God. But now with His death, we can stand firm on our hope and on
the promise of God.
We who have received the
grace of forgiveness and the Holy Spirit at baptism must now be the priests of
Jesus Christ by leading others to Him who is the throne of mercy.
The gospel commands us to be the light of Christ in the world. “Jesus said to
his disciples, ‘Would you bring in a lamp to put it under a tub or under the
bed? Surely you will put it on the lamp-stand?” In the same vein, since
Jesus is our Eternal High Priest, we must proclaim Christ to the world.
As His priests, we must be the bridge for others to come to Christ. How
do we do this?
As Christians, we must
support each other in
our faith. Knowing how weak we are in faith and how easily we are
tempted to stray from our Lord, we must, as the author reminds us, “be
concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works.” We
cannot be individualistic in the way we practice our faith. God wants all men
to be saved and therefore we must be as much concerned about the faith of our
brothers and sisters as much as our own. We are our brother’s keeper in
faith. In fact, we influence each other for better or for worse.
When we are not concerned about the faith of our brothers and sisters, our
faith invariably also weakens. When we take care of the faith of our
fellow Christians, we will also be strengthened in faith.
Indeed, it is important, as
the author reminds us, “to stir a response in love and good works.”
We need to encourage each other in our spiritual life, and in works of
compassion and mercy. How can we empower each other in our spiritual life
if not by being affirming and encouraging? It is important that we
proactively invite others to join us in whichever ministry we are in. We
must offer support to those who are just beginning to serve in the Church.
Most of all, we must
come together more often as Christians to support each other, not just morally
but in worship as well. Hence, the author warns us, “Do not stay away
from the meetings of the community, as some do, but encourage each other to go;
the more so as you see the Day drawing near.” We must invite fellow
Christians to come for worship regularly and for formation talks so that they
can grow in faith. We are called to be Church. No Christian can
develop his or her spiritual life alone without the Church. It is through
the support of each other that we grow in faith. When was the last time
you invited someone to join you for worship or for a spiritual talk?
To think that we can do
without the Church simply because we see failures in our fellow Catholics or
even among Church leaders would be a great mistake. By alienating
ourselves from the Church, we will eventually also lose Jesus as well.
For how can faith grow without being fed by the Church, especially the
Eucharist and the Word of God? How can we grow strong in our faith if we
do not meet up with others who can share their testimonies of what God is doing
in their lives?
Of course, none of us is
perfect and that is why we need each other. We are all at different
levels of spiritual growth. To absent ourselves from Christian
fellowship, whether at worship or meetings, is to deprive ourselves of the
blessings of God coming through them. Cut off from the body of Christ, we
are left with only the Head. Christ wants to come to us, whole and
entire, Head and body. More often than not, those who cut
themselves off from fellow Christians are themselves sinners, self-righteous
and intolerant of others. It boils down to pride. However if we
recognize that we are all weak and sinners, we can then help each other to be
purified in love and faith. Christian love is precisely to love and edify
those who are weak so that they can be strong.
So let us live out the
priesthood of Christ by pointing others to Jesus. Failure to exercise our
priesthood would cause us to lose Christ as well, for Jesus warns us, “Take
notice of what you are hearing. The amount you measure out is the amount you
will be given – and more besides; for the man who has will be given more; from
the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” Only by giving
the faith away, can we retain what we have and more. By keeping the faith
to ourselves, hiding under the tub or bed, we will lose that little faith we
have.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV
WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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