20151027
CHRISTIAN HOPE IN FUTURE GLORY IS GROUNDED IN THE
PRESENT
Readings at Mass
|
First reading
|
Romans 8:18-25 ©
|
I think that what we
suffer in this life can never be compared to the glory, as yet unrevealed,
which is waiting for us. The whole creation is eagerly waiting for God to
reveal his sons. It was not for any fault on the part of creation that it was
made unable to attain its purpose, it was made so by God; but creation still
retains the hope of being freed, like us, from its slavery to decadence, to
enjoy the same freedom and glory as the children of God. From the beginning
till now the entire creation, as we know, has been groaning in one great act of
giving birth; and not only creation, but all of us who possess the first-fruits
of the Spirit, we too groan inwardly as we wait for our bodies to be set free.
For we must be content to hope that we shall be saved – our salvation is
not in sight, we should not have to be hoping for it if it were – but, as
I say, we must hope to be saved since we are not saved yet – it is
something we must wait for with patience.
|
Psalm
|
Psalm 125:1-6 ©
|
What marvels the
Lord worked for us.
When the Lord delivered
Zion from bondage,
it seemed
like a dream.
Then was our mouth
filled with laughter,
on our
lips there were songs.
What marvels the
Lord worked for us.
The heathens
themselves said: ‘What marvels
the Lord
worked for them!’
What marvels the Lord
worked for us!
Indeed we
were glad.
What marvels the
Lord worked for us.
Deliver us, O Lord,
from our bondage
as
streams in dry land.
Those who are sowing
in tears
will sing
when they reap.
What marvels the
Lord worked for us.
They go out, they go
out, full of tears,
carrying
seed for the sowing:
they come back, they
come back, full of song,
carrying
their sheaves.
What marvels the
Lord worked for us.
|
Gospel
Acclamation
|
Jn15:15
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
I call you friends,
says the Lord,
because I have made
known to you
everything I have
learnt from my Father.
Alleluia!
|
Or
|
Mt11:25
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you,
Father,
Lord of heaven and
earth,
for revealing the
mysteries of the kingdom
to mere children.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
Luke 13:18-21 ©
|
Jesus said, ‘What is
the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? It is like a mustard
seed which a man took and threw into his garden: it grew and became a tree, and
the birds of the air sheltered in its branches.’
Another
thing he said, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God with? It is like the
yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was
leavened all through.’
|
CHRISTIAN HOPE IN FUTURE GLORY IS GROUNDED IN THE
PRESENT
|
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: ROM 8:18-25;
LK 13:18-21
How do
we live our lives meaningfully and purposefully? We want to make sense of
life and we all desire happiness. But it seems happiness is so
elusive. Indeed, how we respond to this life is intrinsically related to
our understanding of the past, present and the future. In this respect,
humanity has swung to extremes when it comes to living in the present and
future.
In the
past, people tended to live in the future. This was because people were
poor, suffering from wars and diseases. Life was always difficult
and so they could only hope for a better life in the future. This idea is
suggested in today’s first reading from St Paul. “I think that what we
suffer in this life can never be compared to the glory, as yet unrevealed,
which is waiting for us. The whole creation is eagerly waiting for God to
reveal his sons. It was not for any fault on the part of creation that it
was made unable to attain its purpose, it was made so by God; but creation
still retains the hope of being freed, like us, from its slavery to decadence,
to enjoy the same freedom and glory as the children of God.”
So
people are willing to suffer for the sake of the future and even sacrifice the
present for a better life. We can tolerate a broken marriage for the
future glory awaiting us. We are willing to die for our faith and for God
because of the guaranteed glory awaiting us. This explains why martyrs
and even religious fanatics are willing to die for their faith because they are
promised a better life. The reason why there are suicide bombers is
because they have been indoctrinated to believe that if they gave their lives
for their faith, they would be rewarded with a much better life in the
next. So it is this confidence in the future that many are only too
happy to give up this life of misery in exchange for a happier life in the next
world. Indeed, we can suffer so long as the reward waiting for us
is much better than that which we already have. This apocalyptic hope
gets stronger when the hope presented to us is even more glorious than what we
enjoy here and now. Such was the hope given by St Paul and reaffirmed by
the Lord in the gospel. The parables tell us that the future kingdom
would be unimaginable. This is the same hope given in the gospel.
It will be such a glorious future.
But
this attitude towards the future will only make people accuse us of
escapism. This is what Karl Marx and the atheistic humanists were against
as they felt that people were making use of religion as opium. Instead of
assuming responsibility for changing their pitiable and unjust situation, they
were resigned to the oppressive structures of society. Hence, reacting to
such a pacifist or negative view of the world, the atheistic humanists
advocated that the power to change the world lies in man. We are gods or
supermen, as Nietzsche said, and we have the inherent power to transform the
world. This Enlightenment period, cumbered with the Industrial
revolution, sought to change the world through reason, science and technology.
Today,
we are at the other end of the spectrum. The modern contemporary
generation does not live for the future or in the future. They only care
about today. This is an age of consumerism. This is an age of
immediate gratification. I must have it now. I must enjoy all that
I can, for tomorrow I will be no more. There is no future but only the
present. There is no life hereafter but only this life. We are here
now, but we are not sure about tomorrow. So let us enjoy all we can now.
This explains why some groups are promoting free sex and even infidelity in
marriage. We must enjoy all we can before we die.
How did
we come to this stage? Why have people lost hope in the future?
This is because the future is not real. We see sufferings and despair in
this world. In spite of technology, men are equally unhappy. We
rely on the power of science and technology to change lives. But they
cannot solve all the problems. Life is materially better but not
necessarily more meaningful. We might have all the luxuries in this world, yet
our world is still broken. We have no purpose, no meaning and no will to
live. The question of the future after life on earth is not
resolved. A materialistic life will end in nihilism as all that we do
have no purpose. This atrophy is the result of materialism and
secularization.
Bewildered
by such a state, some have gone back to the past. They idolize and
worship the good old days. There is a certain attempt to mystify the
past. Indeed, the extreme conservatives and those who want to bring
back the glory of the past are seeking refuge in nostalgia, in the baby
Jesus. Such an approach is no better than escapism because it means
retrogression. The present is in continuity with the past but we are not
prisoners of the past. We need to move on and develop.
Consequently,
we need to balance these extreme perspectives. Our hope in the future
must always be based on present realities. As St Paul says, “From the
beginning till now the entire creation, as we know, has been groaning in one
great act of giving birth; and not only creation, but all of us who possess the
first-fruits of the Spirit, we too groan inwardly as we wait for our bodies to
be set free.” If it were not a foretaste then we are just day
dreaming and merely entertaining a fanciful wish. But precisely,
Christian Hope means that the future is already at hand and experienced here
and now when we live the life of Christ. We already have a
foretaste of this future in the sacraments and especially in our relationship
with the Lord.
Christian
hope tells us that the future is unimaginable because the future is not simply
the work of man but the power of God. This is what both the parables seek
to remind us. The future is the intervention of God in history and
purely the work of grace, as in the mustard seed and the yeast in the
flour. Therefore the outcome is beyond any human expectations and is not
brought about by human effort alone. It is not man who will construct the
future but God will transform it by grace. The responsorial psalm repeats
this theme, “What marvels The Lord works for us. When the Lord delivered
Zion from bondage, it seemed like a dream. Then was our mouth filled with
laughter, on our lips there were songs.” Like the Israelites, we should not be
surprised that God can do the impossible just when we have given up all hope.
So what
is the implication for us in Christian life as a result of the hope before
us? It means that on our part, with confidence in the future, we
must allow the Spirit in us to transform the world. We will not know what
the future is like. But we must be that yeast that transforms the
world. Of course, it will not be in our power but by the grace of
God. Cooperating with His grace, we will share in the joys of the
future now and totally and fully at the end of time. This is possible
because when we reflect on the past, namely, the passion and death of our Lord,
we are assured of His love. Through His resurrection, we have been given a
share of the Spirit, His love in our hearts. With His love in us, we are
called to give meaning and purpose to creation. We are called to make use
of creation for the glory of God and to serve humanity, since creation is
perfected when it is used for what it is made for. Creation finds its
purpose in man when man uses it for the glory of God and for His growth and
happiness. Let us therefore, in view of the future glory awaiting all of
us, not live in the past or in the future, but from the future for
the present. In this way, we will live life here and now, not partially
but fully in the end, as St Paul says, “For we must be content to hope that we
shall be saved – our salvation is not in sight, we should not have to be hoping
for it if it were – but, as I say, we must hope to be saved since we are not
saved yet – it is something we must wait for with patience.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh
Roman
Catholic Archbishop of Singapore
© All Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment