20150927
UNITY IN THE BODY OF CHRIST: INTEGRATION AND
INCLUSIVITY
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Numbers 11:25-29
©
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The Lord came down in
the Cloud. He spoke with Moses, but took some of the spirit that was on him and
put it on the seventy elders. When the spirit came on them they prophesied, but
not again.
Two men
had stayed back in the camp; one was called Eldad and the other Medad. The
spirit came down on them; though they had not gone to the Tent, their names
were enrolled among the rest. These began to prophesy in the camp. The young
man ran to tell this to Moses, ‘Look,’ he said ‘Eldad and Medad are prophesying
in the camp.’ Then said Joshua the son of Nun, who had served Moses from his youth,
‘My Lord Moses, stop them!’ Moses answered him, ‘Are you jealous on my account?
If only the whole people of the Lord were prophets, and the Lord gave his
Spirit to them all!’
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Psalm
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Psalm
18:8,10,12-14 ©
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The precepts of
the Lord gladden the heart.
The law of the Lord
is perfect,
it
revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord
is to be trusted,
it gives
wisdom to the simple.
The precepts of
the Lord gladden the heart.
The fear of the Lord
is holy,
abiding
for ever.
The decrees of the
Lord are truth
and all
of them just.
The precepts of
the Lord gladden the heart.
So in them your
servant finds instruction;
great
reward is in their keeping.
But who can detect
all his errors?
From
hidden faults acquit me.
The precepts of
the Lord gladden the heart.
From presumption
restrain your servant
and let
it not rule me.
Then shall I be
blameless,
clean
from grave sin.
The precepts of
the Lord gladden the heart.
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Second reading
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James 5:1-6 ©
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An answer for the
rich. Start crying, weep for the miseries that are coming to you. Your wealth
is all rotting, your clothes are all eaten up by moths. All your gold and your
silver are corroding away, and the same corrosion will be your own sentence,
and eat into your body. It was a burning fire that you stored up as your
treasure for the last days. Labourers mowed your fields, and you cheated
them – listen to the wages that you kept back, calling out; realise that
the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. On earth
you have had a life of comfort and luxury; in the time of slaughter you went on
eating to your heart’s content. It was you who condemned the innocent and
killed them; they offered you no resistance.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Jn17:17
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is truth, O
Lord:
consecrate us in the
truth.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark
9:38-43,45,47-48 ©
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John said to Jesus, ‘Master,
we saw a man who is not one of us casting out devils in your name; and because
he was not one of us we tried to stop him.’ But Jesus said, ‘You must not stop
him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me.
Anyone who is not against us is for us.
‘If
anyone gives you a cup of water to drink just because you belong to Christ,
then I tell you solemnly, he will most certainly not lose his reward.
‘But
anyone who is an obstacle to bring down one of these little ones who have
faith, would be better thrown into the sea with a great millstone round his
neck. And if your hand should cause you to sin, cut it off; it is better for
you to enter into life crippled, than to have two hands and go to hell, into
the fire that cannot be put out. And if your foot should cause you to sin, cut
it off; it is better for you to enter into life lame, than to have two feet and
be thrown into hell. And if your eye should cause you to sin, tear it out; it
is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than to have
two eyes and be thrown into hell where their worm does not die nor their fire
go out.’
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UNITY IN THE BODY OF CHRIST: INTEGRATION AND INCLUSIVITY
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SCRIPTURE
READINGS: NBR 11:25 – 29; PS 18:8,
10, 12-14; JAMES 5:1 – 6;
MK 9:38 – 48
The
most obvious phenomenon in the world today is globalization. With technology,
science, easy communication and information availability, the world has become
a global village. This is why migration is becoming a norm as
people all over the world search for a better place to live. Some seek
for wealth, others for security, some for tranquility and peace; some for
better climate, etc. So migration is due to many reasons. All
of us are seeking for a better life.
Is
migration a boon or a bane to humanity? Positively, migration helps to
bring about globalization. Where once we did not know much about other
countries, their cultures and religions, we are now made aware of them.
With greater consciousness, there is also a greater appreciation and
understanding. With greater cooperation and mutual respect more could be
done for the development of the world and of humanity. As such, we can
imagine and hope that one day, humanity would be one big family united in love.
Indeed, isn’t this the hope of the Church whose mission is communion? Our
mission is to unite the whole world in love under one family of God.
However,
this remains a dream and a hope because we know that humanity remains divided
because of selfishness, fear and self-interests. Every country has
so called, “national interests.” In other words, it is the duty of the
nation to protect the interests of her citizens before all others. It is
natural for everyone to be defensive of their interests because of fear and selfishness.
Indeed, this protectionist mentality is everywhere. This happens also within
the Church and every parish community. So often, organizations compete
with each other and see each other as a threat instead of partner.
Within organizations, members fight over positions or insist on having their
way over others. Therefore, whilst the ideal is to build a family
of nations united in love and caring for each other, sins will prevent us from
attaining true unity and peace. This however should not prevent us from
working towards greater peace and unity, whether in our society or within the
parish community and the Church at large.
How,
then, can we promote and strengthen the human bond amongst all peoples,
especially among migrants themselves and with the citizens of the host country;
and members of organizations and inter-organizations within the parish?
Firstly,
on the side of the migrants, it is important for them to be sensitive to the
fears of the local citizens. Whilst it is not right, yet, it is natural
to be fearful that our rights or our privileges would be compromised. Not
all are ready to share their wealth with others. We can understand the
sentiments of Singaporeans who are not happy with the influx of migrant
workers, permanent residents and new citizens. We can appreciate the
anger and resentment of Singaporeans, especially when they are displaced from
the work force or unable to compete with the lesser demands and salaries of
foreign workers. In their suffering, someone has to be blamed.
However,
this is only one side of the picture. Unfortunately most people only see
and understand their own narrow perspective of the situation. They do not
have an overview of the place of migrants in society.
The
truth is that migrants not only share the wealth of the country, but they also
contribute to the wealth of the nation. Without their contribution, the
economy would not be able to expand, houses would not be built; restaurants
would not have waiters and waitresses, businesses would suffer. So
it is necessary to recognize the contribution of migrants to the country as the
bible asks of us. Migrants have much to share in terms of their
culture, religions and values. We have much to learn from them, just as
they have much to learn from us. As Jesus says in the gospel, the
man who tries to save his life will lose it, but the man who loses his life for
His sake will save it. Instead of blaming the migrants, we are called to
work with and learn from them so that we too can grow and become more
successful and competent. This is what Jesus instructed, “You must not
stop him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me.
Anyone who is not against us is for us.”
Secondly,
wealth and power is not everything. Some migrants only care to make money
for themselves. They can become unscrupulous and do anything to become
rich, sometimes even through cheating and fraud. This is what St James
warns us. “Start crying, weep for the miseries that are coming to you.
Your wealth is all rotting, your clothes are all eaten up by moths. All your
gold and your silver are corroding away, and the same corrosion will be your
own sentence, and eat into your body.” Beyond just acquiring wealth and
property, it is more important that we live meaningful lives in love and
service to the community we are in.
In the
same vein, those of us who are employers must not cheat the migrant workers who
are often at our mercy. St James warns unjust employers who do not treat
their workers with respect and most of all with justice. He said,
“Labourers mowed your fields, and you cheated them – listen to the wages
that you kept back, calling out; realise that the cries of the reapers have
reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.” Jesus said, “If anyone gives you
a cup of water to drink just because you belong to Christ, then I tell you
solemnly, he will most certainly not lose his reward.”
But at
the same time, we must be conscious that we do not become presumptuous of our
rights and thinking. Whilst condemning others, whether the migrants or
the citizens of the host country, we must not fall into the sin of
presumption. This is what the psalmist said, “From hidden faults acquit
me. From presumption restrain your servant and let it not rule me. Then shall I
be blameless, clean from grave sin.”
So what
is needed is to seek integration of migrants into our society. It is
important that migrants do not create ghettos or enclaves, alienating
themselves from the larger society. There is this need for immersion with
the larger community, otherwise such communities become potential forces for
misunderstanding and threaten the peaceful coexistence of the rest of the
members of the community. Migrants must bear in mind that in Rome, they
should do as the Romans do. Creating pressure groups will only divide the
nation. So it is the duty of migrants to learn the culture of the
host country and adapt accordingly and not impose their cultures on the rest of
the nation.
Yet, we
want to underscore that integration is not assimilation. We are not
saying that migrants must give up their cultures. Rather whilst retaining
their cultures, they must not just remain where they are but also embrace the
new cultures around them. In other words, their cultures need to be enriched
by the cultures of the host country. Similarly, citizens of the host
country could learn much from the cultures of the migrants and adopt those
values that are good for nation building, for strengthening of family life, and
universal values that help people to be respectful, caring, loving and united
in love and charity. When we learn from each other’s cultures and adopt what is
best, we will all be enriched by each other.
In the
final analysis, what we are seeking is inclusivity not exclusivity. No one
should be excluded from participating in the life of the community or in a
particular organization and most of all in the Church. We must respect
the distinctions and particular cultures and practices of the migrants but at
the same time, migrants need to respect the local cultures. It is in the
marrying of these cultures that a new and enriched culture is born.
Indeed, Christianity has always transcended cultures. She has always been
able to adapt the same message of the gospel that is unchanging to new
situations, new lands and cultures. Truth is always the same even though
it could be given different clothing. Hence, we must encourage everyone to
participate in the life of the nation and the Church. No one should be
marginalized simply because they are of different cultures. So long as we
have the same goal which is to build up the family of God, then we are all one
in Christ.
What is
said of the migrants in general must be applied to the parish community as
well. It is important that all organizations work together as one body of
Christ. The mission is communion and therefore we must accomplish this
mission in communion. No organization or members must be seen as a threat
to the other, rather all must work in union with each other for the greater
good of the community, contributing his or her particular resources or
skills. We must seek to build an inclusive parish where everyone
feels at home. But it must not rest here. The parish must be
inserted into the larger archdiocese, for we are but one Church. Just as all
organizations must be aligned with the parish’s direction, so too every parish
must be aligned with the archdiocese and not work in silos as if they are a
Church of their own. This is not even the case of the archdiocese.
We belong to the universal Church and therefore must be aligned with the Roman
Pontiff even though we retain our distinctive flavor as the Catholic Church in
Singapore. Only unity in diversity and inclusivity can ensure the unity
of the body of Christ.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh
Roman
Catholic Archbishop of Singapore
©
All Rights Reserved
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