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THE NEW COVENANT IS ROOTED IN THE SPIRIT OF LOVE
Readings at Mass
First reading
|
2 Corinthians
3:4-11 ©
|
Before God, we are
confident of this through Christ: not that we are qualified in ourselves to
claim anything as our own work: all our qualifications come from God. He is the
one who has given us the qualifications to be the administrators of this new covenant,
which is not a covenant of written letters but of the Spirit: the written
letters bring death, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the administering of
death, in the written letters engraved on stones, was accompanied by such a
brightness that the Israelites could not bear looking at the face of Moses,
though it was a brightness that faded, then how much greater will be the
brightness that surrounds the administering of the Spirit! For if there was any
splendour in administering condemnation, there must be very much greater
splendour in administering justification. In fact, compared with this greater
splendour, the thing that used to have such splendour now seems to have none;
and if what was so temporary had any splendour, there must be much more in what
is going to last for ever.
Psalm
|
Psalm 98:5-9 ©
|
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
Exalt the Lord our
God;
bow down
before Zion, his footstool.
He the
Lord is holy.
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
Among his priests
were Aaron and Moses,
among
those who invoked his name was Samuel.
They
invoked the Lord and he answered.
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
To them he spoke in
the pillar of cloud.
They did
his will; they kept the law,
which he,
the Lord, had given.
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
O Lord our God, you
answered them.
For them
you were a God who forgives;
yet you
punished all their offences.
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
Exalt the Lord our
God;
bow down
before his holy mountain
for the
Lord our God is holy.
You are holy, O
Lord our God.
Gospel
Acclamation
|
Ps118:27
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Make me grasp the way
of your precepts,
and I will muse on
your wonders.
Alleluia!
Or
|
Ps24:4,5
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Teach me your paths,
my God,
make me walk in your
truth.
Alleluia!
Gospel
|
Matthew 5:17-19 ©
|
Jesus said to his
disciples, ‘Do not imagine that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to complete them. I tell you solemnly, till
heaven and earth disappear, not one dot, not one little stroke, shall disappear
from the Law until its purpose is achieved. Therefore, the man who infringes
even one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same
will be considered the least in the kingdom of heaven; but the man who keeps
them and teaches them will be considered great in the kingdom of heaven.’
THE
NEW COVENANT IS ROOTED IN THE SPIRIT OF LOVE
|
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: 2 COR 3:4-11;
MT 5:17-19
One of
the struggles in spiritual life is the apparent tension between observing the
laws and observing the spirit of the laws. At times, they seem to be in
opposition. Those who observe the laws are critical of those who do
not. Those who bend the laws in the name of love accuse those who observe
the laws strictly as being legalistic and lacking compassion. What, then,
is the biblical stand with respect to the walking by the laws or walking in the
Spirit?
In the
first reading, St Paul apparently denigrated the laws. He himself was a
rabbi and observed the laws scrupulously and persecuted those who did
not. But after his conversion experience, when he was saved by Christ’s
gracious love and mercy for him in spite of his past, he came to realize that justification
is not by the observance of the laws but through faith in God’s grace and
mercy. It is within this context that we can appreciate what he wrote in
the first reading, “He is the one who has given us the qualifications to be the
administrators of this new covenant, which is not a covenant of written letters
but of the Spirit: the written letters bring death, but the Spirit gives
life.”
Conversely,
in the gospel, Jesus reiterated the importance of observing the laws. He
said, “Do not imagine that I have come to abolish the Law or the
Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete them. I tell
you solemnly, till heaven and earth disappear, not one dot, not one little
stroke, shall disappear from the Law until its purpose is achieved.” Of course,
we must take into context the intent of the evangelist as he was writing for
the Jewish Christians who were expelled from the Synagogue after the
destruction of Jerusalem as they were accused of violating the Mosaic laws of
fasting and all the ritual requirements of Judaism. Regardless of the
motive of the evangelist, Jesus made it clear that not only must the laws be
observed. Rather, they must be observed not just externally but with the
right interior motive of love rather than compliance. If it were the latter, it
would only lead to pride and self-righteousness. If it were the former,
then it is rooted in gratitude and love.
In
truth, therefore, the Law and the Spirit are not conflicting ways to live a
life of perfection. Rather, they mutually complement each other in this
endeavor. The Law and traditions in themselves are partial fulfillment of
the law of love. They are means to the end which is love of God, neighbor
and self. They cannot save us unless they are seen as vehicles of a life of
charity. If the laws were given to the people of the Old Covenant, it was
because God wanted them to live a life of harmony, respect for each other and
compassion for the poor and the migrants. These laws help to govern
relationships whether with God or with others and self. They are
objective guidelines and principles for the regulation of community living.
The
real temptation of those who take the laws seriously and see them as ends in
themselves is that they become intolerant of others who are not able to observe
the laws or do not. They appoint themselves as the inquisitors and judge
of others. They can end up being overly ritualistic and legalistic.
The laws become more important than the person. The laws are applied blindly
without recognizing when this is done; more harm is caused to the person or
even to the community because no laws can fit perfectly in every
situation. The failure to bend the laws for the sake of charity causes
more division than unity. When achievements are glorified, then those who
perform the laws can boast of their merits. That is why they tend to be
proud and despise others. Pride is an even worse sin than those who
sinned and recognize their sinfulness in humility.
On the
other hand, those who cannot observe the laws because of human weakness, much
as they try and really try but fail again and again, end up condemning
themselves. They begin to hate themselves for being so useless and
sinful. Yet, it is not that they do not wish to overcome their sins, but
that they have lost their self-esteem and dignity because of the past
conditioning, the culture they were brought up in and the circumstances of
their broken lives because of hurts inflicted by their loved ones and
friends. The irony is that those who sin further are those who hate
themselves. It is not that they enjoy sinning and going against the laws
of God but that they are so weak emotionally and psychologically that no matter
how hard they try, they cannot overcome their human frailties. And by
condemning themselves and having others condemn them, they fall deeper into the
pit of sin. If we cannot truly love ourselves, how can we have the
capacity to love others! Loving others and reaching out to others
presupposes that we are able to love ourselves. It is unthinkable that
one can have true compassion for others if we do not have compassion for
ourselves.
So the
answer is always the principle of love! So long as everything is done in
the spirit of love, then love must prevail. Legalism always leads to punishment.
But therein lies the danger. Many who break the laws appeal to the
principle of love. This is where we can deceive ourselves. We place
ourselves beyond and above the laws. The important criterion we need to
ask ourselves is, when we apply this principle of love, does it benefit only
one person or a small group of people or the whole community? If
the application of the law of love becomes an injustice to the larger
community, then one wonders whether it is really an act of love. True love
unites, not divides. How true, even within our churches as the debate
continues to what extent must we observe the rubrics of liturgical
celebration! Could anyone honestly say that he has observed the rubrics
to the last detail, externally and more importantly, interiorly? On the
other hand, those who break the liturgical laws, are they truly doing out of
love and for the service of the people and in the promotion of unity?
Love, when it becomes purely subjective, is serving one’s narrow interests rather
than that of the common good.
The
truth is that although love must be the guiding and fundamental principle, the
laws are not actually against love. They are given to preserve love and
harmony, so that everyone is respected and given due justice. Without the
laws, love is blind and can only hurt us in the end. Without the laws,
love can actually cause more harm and division than unity. Because we are weak
and ignorant, the laws serve to guide us. In temptations, the laws
will strengthen us. In ignorance, the laws will keep us walking in the
truth. That is why the Church too has laws, liturgical and canon laws, for the
purpose of justice and charity. Therefore, only in exceptional and individual
cases, could the laws be waived for a greater good, as in the case of Jesus who
would occasionally break the Sabbath laws and traditions because a greater good
demands of it, especially when it comes to saving lives. Other than that,
Jesus would observe the Jewish laws like the rest of His fellow Jews.
In the
final analysis, those who truly obey the laws in spirit are those who keep the
laws and go beyond what the laws dictate. As Jesus said, “the man who
infringes even one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do
the same will be considered the least in the kingdom of heaven; but the man who
keeps them and teaches them will be considered great in the kingdom of heaven.”
So only those who go beyond the mere observance of the laws to the spirit and
keep both can truly be said to have observed the laws. Hence, it is not
sufficient to teach others to observe the laws but we must keep them
ourselves. We need to pray for prudence and discernment so that we
do not break the laws freely or take them lightly. On the other hand, we
must be prayerful enough to discern when we can exercise the spirit of the law
of love so that we are people of the Spirit. As St Paul wrote, “Before God, we
are confident of this through Christ: not that we are qualified in ourselves to
claim anything as our own work: all our qualifications come from God. He
is the one who has given us the qualifications to be the administrators of this
new covenant, which is not a covenant of written letters but of the Spirit.”
Do you
dare to claim, as St Paul did, that you are inspired by the Holy Spirit to act
contrary to the laws? Are you so sure that you are doing purely out of
love based on objectivity and not mere personal feelings? As St Paul
says, let us observe the fruits of the Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ
Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we
live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become
conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Gal 5:22-25)
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh
Roman
Catholic Archbishop of Singapore
©
All Rights Reserved
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