RESTORING LOST GLORY AND FORTUNES

20150925 RESTORING LOST GLORY AND FORTUNES

Readings at Mass

First reading

Haggai 1:15-2:9 ©

In the second year of King Darius, on the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the word of the Lord was addressed through the prophet Haggai, as follows, ‘You are to speak to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, the high commissioner of Judah, to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people. Say this, “Who is there left among you that saw this Temple in its former glory? And how does it look to you now? Does it seem nothing to you? But take courage now, Zerubbabel – it is the Lord who speaks. Courage, High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak! Courage, all you people of the country! – it is the Lord who speaks. To work! I am with you – it is the Lord of Hosts who speaks– and my spirit remains among you. Do not be afraid! For the Lord of Hosts says this: A little while now, and I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all the nations and the treasures of all the nations shall flow in, and I will fill this Temple with glory, says the Lord of Hosts. Mine is the silver, mine the gold! – it is the Lord of Hosts who speaks. The new glory of this Temple is going to surpass the old, says the Lord of Hosts, and in this place I will give peace – it is the Lord of Hosts who speaks.”’

Psalm

Psalm 42:1-4 ©

Hope in God; I will praise him still, my saviour and my God.

Defend me, O God, and plead my cause

  against a godless nation.

From deceitful and cunning men

  rescue me, O God.

Hope in God; I will praise him still, my saviour and my God.

Since you, O God, are my stronghold,

  why have you rejected me?

Why do I go mourning

  oppressed by the foe?

Hope in God; I will praise him still, my saviour and my God.

O send forth your light and your truth;

  let these be my guide.

Let them bring me to your holy mountain,

  to the place where you dwell.

Hope in God; I will praise him still, my saviour and my God.

And I will come to the altar of God,

  the God of my joy.

My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,

  O God, my God.

Hope in God; I will praise him still, my saviour and my God.

Gospel Acclamation

cf.Ep1:17,18

Alleluia, alleluia!

May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

enlighten the eyes of our mind,

so that we can see what hope his call holds for us.

Alleluia!

Or

Mk10:45

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Son of Man came to serve

and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Luke 9:18-22 ©

One day when Jesus was praying alone in the presence of his disciples he put this question to them, ‘Who do the crowds say I am?’ And they answered, ‘John the Baptist; others Elijah; and others say one of the ancient prophets come back to life.’ ‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’ It was Peter who spoke up. ‘The Christ of God’ he said. But he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone anything about this.

  ‘The Son of Man’ he said ‘is destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and to be put to death, and to be raised up on the third day.’

RESTORING LOST GLORY AND FORTUNES

SCRIPTURE READINGS: HAG 1:15-2:9; LK 9:18-22

When we look at our lives, some of us cannot but feel depressed when we see how much we have deteriorated, what we were then and what we are now.  Some of us cannot help feeling sad when we reminisce that once we were ‘somebody’ at work, or in society, when we were used to being served and receiving all the adulation from our subordinates and those who depended on us for a living.  But today, we are just ‘nobody’, stripped of our office, power and wealth, reduced to a state where no one actually bothers much about us. Some of us were wealthy, living a good life but now, because of business failure or retrenchment, we have to eat humble pie and downgrade from living in landed property to a HDB apartment.  Finally, perhaps the most devastating feeling is to know that we are no longer young and strong, when we could then work long hours and perform well.  As age catches up, we find ourselves easily tired and can no longer remember things as well as before, or capable of thinking as profoundly and creatively.  Truly, if we are in such a situation, we cannot but feel discouraged.

This was the case of the Jews in exile.  They too became rather discouraged when they saw the state of the Temple.  It was in ruins.  It was a most pathetic sight, so much so the prophet asked, “Who is there left among you that saw this Temple in its former glory? And how does it look to you now?  Does it seem nothing to you?”  Obviously those who remembered the First Temple would have been disheartened.  Indeed some of us too, when we compare the state of our present lives with our past, are inclined to condemn ourselves and give up.  We say to ourselves that we cannot ever pick ourselves up.  We feel defeated and think that it is impossible to restore our lost fortunes and recover all that we had owned.  When our life is in a mess like that of the ruined Temple, it is difficult to imagine that we can ever live normal and happy lives again.

The message of today’s scripture readings is to give those of us in such a despondent situation hope.  God can work miracles in our lives beyond our expectations and imagination. We only need to believe Him.  In the Israelites’ state of discouragement, God dispatched the prophet Haggai to give them hope also.  “But take courage now, Zerubbabel – it is the Lord who speaks.  Courage, High Priest Joshua son of Zehozadak! Courage, all you people of the country! – it is the Lord who speaks. ”

Similarly, the psalmist teaches us to trust in God in the face of our problems.   He, too, was struggling against the attacks of “deceitful and impious man.”  And even though he felt the absence of God, he still invites us to “Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.”   In his desolation, he could still, in confidence, cry out to God to seek justice for him, for God is His strength.  At the end of his prayer, he believed that he would “go in to the altar of God, the God of my gladness and joy; then will I give you thanks upon the harp, O God, my God!”

This is because, as the prophet declared, God is ultimately in charge.  He announced the restoration of a greater temple. He said, “Do not be afraid! For the Lord of hosts says this:  A little while now, and I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.  I will shake all the nations and the treasures of all the nations shall flow in, and I will fill this Temple with glory, says the Lord of hosts.  Mine is the silver, mine the gold! It is the Lord of hosts who speaks.  The new glory of this Temple is going to surpass the old, says the Lord of hosts, and in this place I will give peace – it is the Lord of hosts who speaks.”  God will deliver His judgment eventually.  Indeed, God is greater than we can imagine.  He will surpass what He did before.  Even when we, in our limited perspective, feel that our best efforts seem to produce meager results, or that all our sacrifices seem to be done in vain, God knows how all things will finally end.  He is in control of our destiny.  Our task is to do all that we can and leave the rest to Him.

Yet, history also shows that Haggai’s prophecy of a more glorious temple, although not fulfilled in his time, was realized by Herod the Great when he rebuilt the Temple on a much grander scale.  Although the Second Temple was rebuilt in the chaotic aftermath of the Babylonian exile, it was just a pale shadow of the First Temple constructed by King Solomon at the height of Israel’s glorious achievements. But the real Temple that was rebuilt goes beyond the physical Temple. The Temple of Jerusalem was but a foreshadowing of Jesus who is the Temple of God.  In the plan of God, the fuller meaning of the prophecy refers to Christ, the New People of God.  In St John’s gospel, Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”  “They replied, ’It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?’ But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.”  (Jn 2:19-23)

Jesus is the New Temple of God and the place of God’s presence to us.  He is the Emmanuel because God lives in Him and in Him, we see God.  This truth is reiterated in today’s gospel when St Peter declared Jesus as the “The Christ of God.”  St Peter identified the Messiah as the fulfillment of the Old Testament hopes.  However, immediately following the confession of faith, Jesus gave them “strict orders not to tell anyone anything about this.’The Son of Man’ he said ‘is destined to suffer grievously, to be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes and to be put to death, and to be raised up on the third day.’”  By so doing, Jesus prophesied His imminent passion and resurrection, through which we will be saved.  At the same time, it is a clear reminder that the Messiah and His kingdom would not be a political or physical one but a spiritual one.  He did not come to use force and might to establish a political kingdom, as was the popular expectation even of His disciples, but to establish the reign of God in the hearts of every man.

Faith in Christ as the Son of God must also be the basis of the foundation of our faith today.  In situations when we feel hopeless, discouraged and fearful, we must find strength in the passion and the resurrection of the Lord.  We too must be ready to undergo suffering to enjoy the new life.  This faith presupposes that, like St Peter, we know who the Lord is.  Only this immoveable faith can help us withstand the trials and challenges of life, a faith that even the underworld cannot overcome.

So let us be open to the Holy Spirit.  Let us take heed of what God said to the Prophet, which is realized for us even more fully because His Spirit now lives in us by virtue of our baptism.  He said, “To work! I am with you – it is the Lord of hosts who speaks – and my spirit remains among you. Do not be afraid!”  God’s Spirit is with us.  We are not going to do all these alone.  We will fail but His Spirit is with us to make all things possible.  If the Spirit could raise Jesus from the dead, He too can raise us to a new life in Him and restore all that we have lost.  All we need is to continue to work with God by cooperating with His grace, whether the work assigned to us is at home, in the office or in the Church.  Like the Israelites, when faced with discouragement, we must apply all our energy into building the city of God in this world.  With God in us, we can accomplish all things through and in Him.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh

Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore

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