20150303 HOLINESS IS GROWING IN INTEGRITY THROUGH SELF-AWARENESS
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Isaiah
1:10,16-20 ©
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Hear the word of the
Lord,
you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the command
of our God,
you people of
Gomorrah.
‘Wash, make
yourselves clean.
Take your wrong-doing
out of my sight.
Cease to do evil.
Learn to do good,
search for justice,
help the oppressed,
be just to the
orphan,
plead for the widow.
‘Come now, let us
talk this over,
says the Lord.
Though your sins are
like scarlet,
they shall be as
white as snow;
though they are red
as crimson,
they shall be like
wool.
‘If you are willing
to obey,
you shall eat the
good things of the earth.
But if you persist in
rebellion,
the sword shall eat
you instead.’
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Psalm
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Psalm
49:8-9,16-17,21,23 ©
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I will show God’s
salvation to the upright.
‘I find no fault with
your sacrifices,
your
offerings are always before me.
I do not ask more
bullocks from your farms,
nor goats
from among your herds.
I will show God’s
salvation to the upright.
‘But how
can you recite my commandments
and take
my covenant on your lips,
you who despise my
law
and throw
my words to the winds,
I will show God’s
salvation to the upright.
‘You do this, and
should I keep silence?
Do you
think that I am like you?
A sacrifice of
thanksgiving honours me
and I
will show God’s salvation to the upright.’
I will show God’s
salvation to the upright.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Mt4:17
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Glory and praise to
you, O Christ!
Repent, says the
Lord,
for the kingdom of
heaven is close at hand.
Glory and praise to
you, O Christ!
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Or
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Ezk18:31
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Glory and praise to
you, O Christ!
Shake off all your
sins – it is the Lord who speaks –
and make yourselves a
new heart and a new spirit.
Glory and praise to
you, O Christ!
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Gospel
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Matthew 23:1-12 ©
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Addressing the people
and his disciples Jesus said, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees occupy the chair
of Moses. You must therefore do what they tell you and listen to what they say;
but do not be guided by what they do: since they do not practise what they
preach. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but will
they lift a finger to move them? Not they! Everything they do is done to
attract attention, like wearing broader phylacteries and longer tassels, like
wanting to take the place of honour at banquets and the front seats in the
synagogues, being greeted obsequiously in the market squares and having people
call them Rabbi.
‘You,
however, must not allow yourselves to be called Rabbi, since you have only one
master, and you are all brothers. You must call no one on earth your father,
since you have only one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor must you allow
yourselves to be called teachers, for you have only one Teacher, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant. Anyone who exalts himself will be
humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be exalted.’
HOLINESS
IS GROWING IN INTEGRITY THROUGH SELF-AWARENESS
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: ISA 1:10, 16-20; MT 23:1-12
In the
gospel, Jesus made it clear that there is only one Master, one Father and
one Teacher, the Christ. Indeed, there is no other. We are only
servants of the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Hence, Jesus concludes
by teaching us that “the greatest among you must be your servant. Anyone who
exalts himself will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will exalted.”
Truly,
as priests and Christians, it is a great honour to be His servant by
representing Him to others. Whether as priests or baptized
Christians, the vocation to be His messenger in person to others is a noble
calling, filling us with deep gratitude. Yet at the same time, it makes
us tremble and sad because we often fail so miserably in being His image and
likeness. Yes, we can identify ourselves with the political leaders of
Israel condemned in the first reading and the religious leaders reprimanded by
Jesus in the gospel.
Like
the scribes and the Pharisees who “occupy the chair of Moses”, we know the
right things to say. As priests we can preach eloquent sermons and
teach sound moral principles, yet, often we are unable to live what we
preach. As parents and leaders too, we would tell our children or our
subordinates what to do and what not to do, yet in our own lives, we act
contrary to the rules we set for others. Yes, as Jesus remarked, “You
must therefore do what they tell you and listen to what they say; but do not be
guided by what they do: since they do not practise what they preach. They tie
up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but will they lift a finger
to move them? Not they!”
Not
only do we fail to live up to the truths which we expound, but we also do
the right things with the wrong intentions, or at least not so noble motives.
How often have we conducted ourselves properly in public and show ourselves to
be exemplary or philanthropic, but all for the sake of glory and honour?
Like the religious leaders who did everything to “attract attention, like
wearing broader phylacteries and longer tassels, like wanting to take the place
of honour at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues, being greeted
obsequiously in the market squares and having people call them Rabbi”, we, too,
seek honour, recognition and approval from people.
Most of
all, behind all our so called religious and good works, quite often, these
could be a cover up for our failure to love and for our dishonest living.
Prophet Isaiah condemned the political leaders because they were cheating the
poor, oppressing the helpless, orphans and widows. Yet, they pretended
that they were right with God by offering sacrifices, burnt offerings of bulls
and goats, to God. But as God spoke through the psalmist, He despises
such sacrifices. In dismay, God said to such insincere leaders, “Why do
you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth, though you
hate discipline and cast my words behind you?”
Don’t we, too, try to
mitigate our deceitful way of living by giving charity to the poor or helping in the Church?
Employers ill-treat their workers or domestic helpers but try to soothe their
conscience by serving God and their fellowmen in other ways. We can even
serve at the Altar and volunteer at charitable organizations, making ourselves
look decent and good people, but in our hidden life, we cheat and lie. It
is not uncommon for those who cheated in their earlier days in life to
compensate for the sins of their past life by doing good works, helping the
poor and serving them, now that they are older and know that they do not have
much time left. In itself it is a good way to show remorse for the lack
of justice and compassion in our lives. But there are others who, whilst
doing good, continue to perpetuate sins against justice in their own lives.
When we live a life without
integrity, the resultant feeling in our hearts is one of division and
restlessness. As preachers, teachers and superiors, we cannot
preach or teach with conviction or faith to those under our charge if there is
incongruity between what we say and what we do. In truth, people can see
that we do not walk the talk even though they do not tell us. As a
result, we become less effective in our ministry, for we cannot truly represent
God in our very being. We lack the moral authority to tell others what they
must do when we ourselves are not even striving to put into practice what we
teach. And so we know that what we say is a lie. There is a lack of
peace and joy within ourselves. So, too, for us as leaders, we lack the
authority to mentor and inspire those under our charge. They distrust us
and are suspicious of us, for they know that we care more for ourselves than
for them.
The real crisis in the
world today is the crisis in leadership. This is the true cause of
confusion in the world. Today, many people no longer trust those in
authority, whether political or even religious authority. In the days of
old, those in authority, be they corporate leaders, politicians or religious,
were held in great regard and respected by the common people. Today, many
are so cynical about those who take up political office, for they see them as
serving their own interests, rather than the interests of the people.
Similarly, too, those in religion are also losing their moral authority,
because of scandals and because they live a life of inner contradiction, a dichotomy
between the gospel they proclaim and the lifestyles they live. Gone are
the days when we were so inspired by priests and religious. Today, many are
just tolerating the weaknesses of their priests. However, for those
priests and religious, as well as lay leaders in charge of ministry and
organizations who live exemplary lives, matching their teaching and leadership
with a holy life according to the gospel values, they are respected not because
of the office or position they hold but mostly because of the moral authority
they exert on others.
Hence, if we want to grow
in true holiness, then we must be determined in wanting to live a holistic
and integrated life. We must begin by acknowledging the lack of inner
peace and joy in our hearts. Then we must pray for the courage and
humility to enter deeper into our motives for what we do. Jesus reminds
us that if we want to grow in holiness, then we need to go beyond the virtues
of the scribes and Pharisees. We must confess our sins and ask for forgiveness
as Isaiah asks of us. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as
white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
Of course, we must complement our repentance with prayer, fasting and
almsgiving. Most of all, we must implore God’s grace to live a righteous
and holy life, for without His grace, we can never live such a life.
Holiness, in the final
analysis, means living a life of integrity and authenticity. Being true to ourselves means
not to behave hypocritically as Jesus cautions us, to be more than who we
really are, even as leaders or persons in authority. We must know our
place in life, which is that of servants of our Lord and servants of His
people. Thus, we must remember that unless we turn to Jesus our Master
and Teacher, we cannot find the grace to be true images of His Father as He was
for us. Only He is the Teacher and the Master because He is totally
faithful to Himself. For Jesus, the person is the Word, the message is
identified with the person. There is no dichotomy between Jesus and the
Word He proclaims. So let us turn to Jesus, the Word of God, and the Holy
Spirit, our inner teacher, to inspire us to become more like Jesus and be
configured in Him.
Yes, if we live
authentic lives, then we will see the power of God at work in our lives, as
the psalmist says, “To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
If you are willing to obey, you shall eat the good things of the earth. But if
you persist in rebellion, the sword shall eat you instead.” And again,
the psalmist says, “He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to
him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.” When we
live truly integrated lives, we will shine before man, not because we walk
around as if we are gods but because in us, they see the joy, love and peace
that radiates from within, reflecting our true identity as sons and daughters
of God.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV
WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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