20150207 FINDING PEACE IN CHRIST
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Hebrews
13:15-17,20-21 ©
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Through Christ, let
us offer God an unending sacrifice of praise, a verbal sacrifice that is
offered every time we acknowledge his name. Keep doing good works and sharing
your resources, for these are sacrifices that please God.
Obey your
leaders and do as they tell you, because they must give an account of the way
they look after your souls; make this a joy for them to do, and not a
grief – you yourselves would be the losers. I pray that the God of peace,
who brought our Lord Jesus back from the dead to become the great Shepherd of
the sheep by the blood that sealed an eternal covenant, may make you ready to
do his will in any kind of good action; and turn us all into whatever is
acceptable to himself through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever,
Amen.
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Psalm
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Psalm 22:1-6 ©
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The Lord is my
shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
The Lord is my
shepherd;
there is
nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are
the pastures
where he
gives me repose.
Near restful waters
he leads me,
to revive
my drooping spirit.
The Lord is my
shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
He guides me along
the right path;
he is
true to his name.
If I should walk in
the valley of darkness
no evil
would I fear.
You are there with
your crook and your staff;
with
these you give me comfort.
The Lord is my
shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
You have prepared a
banquet for me
in the
sight of my foes.
My head you have
anointed with oil;
my cup is
overflowing.
The Lord is my
shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
Surely goodness and
kindness shall follow me
all the
days of my life.
In the Lord’s own
house shall I dwell
for ever
and ever.
The Lord is my
shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jn10:27
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The sheep that belong
to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they
follow me.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 6:30-34 ©
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The
apostles rejoined Jesus and told him all they had done and taught. Then he said
to them, ‘You must come away to some lonely place all by yourselves and rest
for a while’; for there were so many coming and going that the apostles had no
time even to eat. So they went off in a boat to a lonely place where they could
be by themselves. But people saw them going, and many could guess where; and
from every town they all hurried to the place on foot and reached it before
them. So as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them
because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he set himself to teach
them at some length.
FINDING
PEACE IN CHRIST
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: HEBREWS 13:15-21; MARK 6:30 – 34
“I pray
that the God of peace ….” This is one prayer that we pray both for
ourselves and for others. We are all seeking for peace.
This is what many of us are lacking at home, in the offices and in society at
large. But most of us lack peace in our hearts, peace with God and with
ourselves, not just with our fellowmen.
How can we find peace? What is peace anyway?
Peace is very much connected with rest. When a person returns to the
Lord, we pray, “Eternal rest, grant to him O Lord. May he rest in
peace!“ So peace seems to be intrinsically related with rest. But
this rest is not a physical rest; it is the rest of the soul. That
is why this rest is very much connected with the Sabbath rest that the author
of the letter to the Hebrews referred to earlier. (cf Heb 4:9-11) Just as
God rested on the seventh day, He wants us to share in His rest as well.
But there can be no rest
until we rest in Him. Isn’t this what the scripture reading is
speaking about? God, who is the Good Shepherd comes to give us rest and
this is affirmed by the psalmist who prays, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall
not want. In verdant pastures he gives me repose.” St Peter called Jesus
the Shepherd and Guardian of our souls (cf 1 Peter 2:25), since the author of
Hebrews declared that “the God of peace, who brought our Lord Jesus back from
the dead” made Him “the great Shepherd of the sheep by the blood that sealed an
eternal covenant.” Not surprisingly, Jesus Himself in the gospel said,
“Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”
(Mt 11:28)
So Jesus is the Way to
find true rest for the soul. Peace must ultimately come from our
relationship with Him. That is why, Jesus advised us through the apostles
of the need to rest with Him and in Him, especially if we are very busy in the
ministry or in our vocation, whether in the church, at home or in the
world. “He said to them, ‘You must come away to some lonely place all by
yourselves and rest for a while’; for there were so many coming and going that
the apostles had no time even to eat.” Indeed, not only do we need time
for personal prayer every day, but occasionally in a year, we need to withdraw
for a few days of retreat so that we can be recharged and renewed.
Retreats are necessary to give rest to our souls, direction for our minds.
Intimacy with the Lord is
the source of our strength. We can be sure that Jesus is totally available for us if we are
available to Him. Accordingly, we need to make time for Jesus.
After all, don’t we find time with people whom we love and those who are
important to us? So don’t give that silly excuse that “we have no time
and we are very busy.” Even if you were the President or Prime Minister
and your children are sick or in trouble, won’t you have time to attend to
them? If you are sick today, won’t you have time to visit the
doctor? Surely, we would rearrange our priorities and schedules for those
whom we love and those who are important to us. Now, what could be
more important than spending time with Jesus?
What do we do during
such time with Jesus?
We read that “the apostles rejoined Jesus and told him all they had done and
taught.” To find rest, it is necessary that we spend time talking to
Jesus about our life, what we are doing, the joys and sorrows, the challenges
and the difficulties. We must seek the Lord’s counsel and
encouragement for the journey of life. That is what Jesus does when we
talk to Him and listen to Him. We read in the gospel that this was what
He did. “So as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity
on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he set himself to
teach them at some length.” Yes, Jesus fed them with the Word of God and
then the Bread of Life, the Eucharist, through the miracle of the loaves and
the miracles of healing and deliverance. It must be noted that “he
set himself to teach them at some length.” Jesus was not a mere miracle
worker, a humanitarian fanatic, but His purpose of healing and teaching was to
lead the people to His Father’s love.
What does Jesus teach us
about finding rest? What
does it mean to come to Jesus? Once again, we take note that after
assuring us that we will find rest in Him, He added, “Take my yoke upon you and
learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for
your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Mt
11:29f) In other words, we can find rest not simply by resting in Him but
being enlightened by Him and most of all, entering into the Heart of the Good
Shepherd. When we begin to feel like Him as we feel with Him; and when we
begin to think like Him as we think with Him, even in our trials and struggles,
we will find peace, knowing that we have done what God expects of us and what
is right.
Indeed, rest, as the author
tells us, implies that we are “ready to do his will in any kind of good action;
and turn us all into whatever is acceptable to himself through Jesus Christ.”
True rest can only come from a clear conscience. When we do
the right thing, there will be peace within us, even if others are not happy
with what we do, so long we do everything for their sake and for their
interests and not ours. As shepherds of Christ, we must always follow our
conscience, making decisions that are good for our subordinates children,
family or colleagues and those organizations where we assume leadership.
To do the right thing is to do the just thing. Justice is the
prerequisite of peace. There can be no peace without justice, seen in the
way we relate with our fellowmen. Justice means to be in right relationship
with God, with our brothers and sisters and with ourselves.
Indeed, only because we are
true shepherds, can we then command obedience from our subordinates. The
author of Hebrews reminds us that peace comes from obedience to legitimate
authority. ”Obey your leaders and do as they tell you, because they
must give an account of the way they look after your souls; make this a joy for
them to do, and not a grief – you yourselves would be the losers.” Peace
therefore requires good relationship between us and our leaders, civil,
political and religious leaders. Obedience is given ultimately for
the good of the community. We must see the common good of the
community before our individual preference, always putting the greater good of
the community before ours.
Without rendering
obedience to those shepherds placed over us, the family would be divided, the organization would be fragmented
by different opinions and all of us would be losers in the end. We must
remember that in a pluralistic society, we can never agree on anything
fully. Without authority, we would be left to false compromises.
Truth however cannot be compromised. Those in authority must have the
courage to exercise authority in truth and in love.
This also means that before
leaders can ever exercise authority, leaders must be under a higher authority,
namely, God Himself. We are reminded of what St Peter told the
Sanhedrin when they were forbidden to preach about the Crucified and Risen
Lord. He said, “Obedience to God comes before obedience to man.”
(Acts 4:19) So it behooves us to obey God and His holy will if we are
called to be shepherds in the name of Jesus. The Lord Himself was obedient to
the Father even unto death on the cross. That is why those who cannot obey
cannot lead as well. If appointed into office or when they assume
authority, they become tyrants and dictators. No one is above
obedience! Not even the Bishop! He has to obey the Pope and the Pope is
under the obedience of Christ, the Head of the Church.
Of course, leaders must
earn obedience from those under their charge by showing themselves as true
shepherds, sincerely seeking the interests of those under their care and
not their self-interest. Like a true shepherd, he exercises authority
even by sacrificing his popularity, putting the interest of his sheep before
himself, his rest, his convenience, to the extent of sharing the suffering of
Christ on the cross. This way of loving requires tremendous sacrifice on
our part, whether as shepherds or as sheep. A leader must be ready
to face opposition from his desire to serve truth and love and be ready to
sacrifice his personal agenda and selfish interests.
If we follow this path
to peace as suggested by the scripture readings, we will certainly find rest, the rest of God, because not only is
our conscience clear but we know that God is glorified in all we do and
say. What we worship becomes a reality in relationships.
Union with God brings about reconciliation with others. At the end of the
day, truth and love will prevail over falsehood and selfishness. The
former brings everlasting peace, the latter superficial and illusory peace.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV
WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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