THE CALL TO QUENCH THE HUNGER OF HUMANITY

20150726 THE CALL TO QUENCH THE HUNGER OF HUMANITY

Readings at Mass

First reading

2 Kings 4:42-44 ©

A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing Elisha, the man of God, bread from the first-fruits, twenty barley loaves and fresh grain in the ear.’ ‘Give it to the people to eat’, Elisha said. But his servant replied, ‘How can I serve this to a hundred men?’ ‘Give it to the people to eat’ he insisted ‘for the Lord says this, “They will eat and have some left over.”’ He served them; they ate and had some left over, as the Lord had said.

Psalm

Psalm 144:10-11,15-18 ©

You open wide your hand, O Lord, and grant our desires.

All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,

  and your friends shall repeat their blessing.

They shall speak of the glory of your reign

  and declare your might, O God.

You open wide your hand, O Lord, and grant our desires.

The eyes of all creatures look to you

  and you give them their food in due time.

You open wide your hand,

  grant the desires of all who live.

You open wide your hand, O Lord, and grant our desires.

The Lord is just in all his ways

  and loving in all his deeds.

He is close to all who call him,

  who call on him from their hearts.

You open wide your hand, O Lord, and grant our desires.

Second reading

Ephesians 4:1-6 ©

I, the prisoner in the Lord, implore you to lead a life worthy of your vocation. Bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all.

Gospel Acclamation

cf.Jn6:63,68

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;

you have the message of eternal life.

Alleluia!

Or

Lk7:16

Alleluia, alleluia!

A great prophet has appeared among us;

God has visited his people.

Alleluia!

Gospel

John 6:1-15 ©

Jesus went off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee – or of Tiberias – and a large crowd followed him, impressed by the signs he gave by curing the sick. Jesus climbed the hillside, and sat down there with his disciples. It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover.

  Looking up, Jesus saw the crowds approaching and said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?’ He only said this to test Philip; he himself knew exactly what he was going to do. Philip answered, ‘Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each.’ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said, ‘There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Make the people sit down.’ There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and gave them out to all who were sitting ready; he then did the same with the fish, giving out as much as was wanted. When they had eaten enough he said to the disciples, ‘Pick up the pieces left over, so that nothing gets wasted.’ So they picked them up, and filled twelve hampers with scraps left over from the meal of five barley loaves. The people, seeing this sign that he had given, said, ‘This really is the prophet who is to come into the world.’ Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, escaped back to the hills by himself.

THE CALL TO QUENCH THE HUNGER OF HUMANITY

SCRIPTURE READINGS:  2 KINGS 2:42-44; PS 144:10-11,15-18; EP 4:1-6; JOHN 6:1-15

We are living in such a critical stage in world history.  If we study the trends of the world, especially in the West, it looks as if humanity is on the brink of despair and hopelessness.  With the rise of secularism and the loss of faith in God and in religions, many have nothing to hope for beyond this world.  All that we live for, work for and built have no lasting significance.  More likely than not, the years of sweat and tears building will be undone in the next generation.  In such a situation, one wonders about the meaning of human work and achievements when everything eventually comes to naught.

This explains why those without faith are restless, helpless and desperate.  They come to a rude awakening that they have only this life to live.  Hence, they need to get as much as they can out of this life because like actors on the stage, they will pass by and then be no more.  The consequence is materialism and consumerism.  They want to enjoy as much as they can.  They seek to grab all they can; living as if there is no tomorrow.  Why would such people without a future worry about the future of humanity?  Since there is no future for them, there is no future for humanity.  The result is that everyone lives for himself.

Indeed, without faith in God, in the next life and in the future, there are no values by which we can found our life.  Relativism makes everything dependent on the subject.  No values can last and no values are worth keeping.  It is a life of pragmatism.  We seek what appears to be good for us, not what is true and lasting.  When life, love and what we do is not based on truth but on personal preferences, our lives have no foundation.  There is no way to inculcate values since values presume truth.  Since truth cannot be found according to the relativists, then we are condemned to live in ignorance and error.

There are so many people in the world, seeking for fullness of life, meaning, truth and authentic relationships.  Those who are materially rich are often spiritually poor.  They do not have true friendships.  Loneliness is the new sickness of affluent countries like Singapore.  When you are no longer active, you will find yourself without friends and influence.  No one will pay attention to you anymore.  Worse still if you are immobile.  You will be living in a beautiful prison you have built for yourself.  The residents in the house will be you, the domestic helper and a dog named Boo!   Indeed, the rich do not know the joy of being poor, of simplicity in lifestyle.  They suffer from a poverty of heart and meaning.  They do not understand the joy of giving and sharing.

Those who are materially poor often feel the absence of God and the lack of divine mercy in their lives.  They feel that God does not care.  As a consequence, they take things into their own hands and use immoral ways to acquire wealth and power.  Those who are sick and ill are seeking for consolation and relief.  So, as in the time of Jesus, people would then seek God. But when God is not found and their illnesses are incurable, they fall into depression, resentment and anger.

However, for us Christians, we know our ultimate calling in life.  St Paul makes it clear, “There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, through all and within all.”   Indeed, Christ is our hope in life.  We all share in the same hope and calling in life, which is to be with God “who is Father of all, through all and within all.”  As Christians, we know that the fullness of life is to be with God.  Through Christ, we come to know the Father who gives us the Spirit of His Son.  Through our baptism in the name of the Holy Trinity, we share in the life and love of God.

Hence, we live for a purpose, and not just for this life but for the fullness of life after death.  For a Christian, his life is lived in such a way that it is already a participation in the life of God.  We are motivated to do good only because of the love of God in us.  We seek to give ourselves to others in service and love, according to the charisms we are blessed with, and the vocation we have been given in life so that we can serve God through the service of our fellowmen.  In this way, we who have received the gift of faith and life freely from God, want to impart this life to others, especially those who have not yet known Him.

Truly, we are reminded by St Paul of our fundamental vocation as a Christian when he wrote, “I, the prisoner in the Lord, implore you to lead a life worthy of your vocation.”  Having received our Christian calling, we are called to be servants of Christ.  St Paul was happy to be called to be a prisoner in the Lord for the sake of the spread of the gospel.    What does it mean to live up to our Christian vocation?  We are called to invite others to share the life of Christ.

How can we invite others to share in our life if not to reach out to them?

Right from the outset, it must be said that the Good News is not just words but primarily actions.   We are called to announce the gospel to the world through words and deeds as Jesus did. It concerns the love and mercy of God for humanity.  Jesus preached to them the love of the Father and then demonstrated this love by His works of healing and miracles.  So we are called to feed the poor and heal the sick.  This was what the prophet told the man who brought food to him.  “Give it to the people to eat.”  Similarly, Jesus also instructed the disciples to do the same.  He said to Philip, “‘where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?” Indeed, as Christians it is our responsibility to feed His sheep.  There is an intimate relationship between the celebration of the Eucharist and care for the poor.

But some of us are diffident or, worse still, indifferent!  We feel inadequate because we feel we do not have sufficient talents to contribute to the work of evangelization.  We feel we have nothing to give.  Yet the gospel makes it clear that regardless whether it is twenty barley loaves or five loaves, the Lord can multiply and feed a hundred or even 5000 people.  For God, nothing is impossible.  It is a question of whether we want to surrender the little we have to Him.  The responsorial psalm speaks of God’s desire and power to feed His creatures.  “You open wide your hand, O Lord, and grant our desires.”  Our God is a loving and merciful God who cares for all who trust and love Him.

When the Lord took the five loaves and two fish in His hands and gave thanks to His Father, they had more than enough to feed everyone.  Our God is a generous God and He has the power to transform not just the bread and fish but the hearts of people who came to listen to Him.  So in faith, we are called to surrender whatever we have to the Lord and He will work miracles in our lives.  The only thing required of us is faith and confidence in Him and total self-surrender.  So lacking talents is no excuse for not evangelizing. What is important is that we are willing to surrender them to the Lord.

Some might excuse themselves saying that they are too young.  Significantly, it was the boy who offered his five loaves and two fish. We are never too young to evangelize.  We need not wait till we get a PhD in theology to evangelize.  All of us, according to our calling and charisms and age, can surely radiate God in our lives through our faith, good examples and testimonies of what God has done for us in our lives.  There is nothing like personal testimonies of His love at work in our lives.   Or else, all we need is to simply live a lifestyle that is positive, generous, caring and giving.  When we live a life of joy and love, we cannot but attract others to the Lord.  So age is no barrier to giving life and hope to others.

Finally, what is important for us as Church is that we accomplish this mission together in unity and love.  Unless they see us as loving, joyful and forgiving people, they will not be attracted to believe in Christ.  St Paul says, “Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together.”  We need to recognize and appreciate that there are different talents and gifts but they are all to be used for the service of the Church.  There is one mission but diversity of vocations to serve the Church and the mission.  Often it is scandals and division within the Christian community that makes us less credible in our witnessing.  When there is so much infighting, politics, resentment and anger in our hearts, especially when we are in service, we can never proclaim the love of Christ effectively.   We need to collaborate together as one Church.  The Church does not belong to the priest, not even the bishop.  You are equally responsible for the growth and holiness of the Church.

Hence, today we are asked to answer the call to be ambassadors for Christ.  This is our common vocation as Christians.  So it is equally important to be the Good News ourselves in living a virtuous life of love, compassion and forgiveness.  Like Elisha, we must show ourselves to be men of God.  We are ambassadors of Christ in the world.  As ambassadors, the proclamation of the Good News must always be accompanied by works of mercy and charity.  We are called to enlighten and form others in the truth.  Like Jesus, we must proclaim the truth of the Good News to humanity.   In this way, we give hope to humanity.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh

Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore

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