THE REAL ENEMIES OF THE CHURCH

20160101 THE REAL ENEMIES OF THE CHURCH

Readings at Mass

Colour: White.

First reading

1 John 2:22-28 ©

The man who denies that Jesus is the Christ –

he is the liar,

he is Antichrist;

and he is denying the Father as well as the Son,

because no one who has the Father can deny the Son,

and to acknowledge the Son is to have the Father as well.

Keep alive in yourselves what you were taught in the beginning:

as long as what you were taught in the beginning is alive in you,

you will live in the Son

and in the Father;

and what is promised to you by his own promise

is eternal life.

This is all that I am writing to you about the people who are trying to lead you astray.

But you have not lost the anointing that he gave you,

and you do not need anyone to teach you;

the anointing he gave teaches you everything;

you are anointed with truth, not with a lie,

and as it has taught you, so you must stay in him.

Live in Christ, then, my children,

so that if he appears, we may have full confidence,

and not turn from him in shame

at his coming.

Psalm

Psalm 97:1-4 ©

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Sing a new song to the Lord

  for he has worked wonders.

His right hand and his holy arm

  have brought salvation.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

The Lord has made known his salvation;

  has shown his justice to the nations.

He has remembered his truth and love

  for the house of Israel.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

All the ends of the earth have seen

  the salvation of our God.

Shout to the Lord, all the earth,

  ring out your joy.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Gospel Acclamation

Jn1:14,12

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us.

To all who received him he gave power to become children of God.

Alleluia!

Or

Heb1:1-2

Alleluia, alleluia!

At various times in the past

and in various different ways,

God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets;

but in our own time, the last days,

he has spoken to us through his Son.

Alleluia!

Or

Alleluia, alleluia!

A hallowed day has dawned upon us.

Come, you nations, worship the Lord,

for today a great light has shone down upon the earth.

Alleluia!

Gospel

John 1:19-28 ©

This is how John appeared as a witness. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ he not only declared, but he declared quite openly, ‘I am not the Christ.’ ‘Well then,’ they asked ‘are you Elijah?’ ‘I am not’ he said. ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ So they said to him, ‘Who are you? We must take back an answer to those who sent us. What have you to say about yourself?’ So John said, ‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied:

a voice that cries in the wilderness:

Make a straight way for the Lord.’

Now these men had been sent by the Pharisees, and they put this further question to him, ‘Why are you baptising if you are not the Christ, and not Elijah, and not the prophet?’ John replied, ‘I baptise with water; but there stands among you – unknown to you – the one who is coming after me; and I am not fit to undo his sandal-strap.’ This happened at Bethany, on the far side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.

THE REAL ENEMIES OF THE CHURCH

SCRIPTURE READINGS: 1 JOHN 2:22-28; JOHN 1:19-28

It is significant that St John in the first reading wrote of the anti-Christs in the last day to come, not as enemies from without but enemies from within!  Indeed, the real enemies of the Church are not those who oppose us from without.  They cannot do us harm so long as we stand united in faith, love and unity.   The real problem is that not only is Christianity divided but even within the Catholic Church there are so-called ‘good’ Catholics claiming to be the messiah of the Church but who are causing much confusion, disunity and division. St John wrote, “I am writing to you about the people who are trying to lead you astray.” 

Indeed, we are faced with two groups of anti-Christ within the Church.  There are the fundamentalist Catholics and Christians as well, who claim to have the purity of the faith.  They are intolerant of others who do not belong to their group.   Their views are not only conservative but narrow and exclusive.   They are not open to the legitimate growth of doctrines and traditions of the Church.   They fail to realize that doctrines and traditions grow with time but always in continuity with the deposit of faith.  They would even attack the legitimate authorities of the Church and accuse them of heresy and infidelity to the apostolic faith.  Unfortunately, today we have so much public criticism of the Holy Father, Pope Francis, not by non-Catholics, but by our own faithful, deriding and insinuating that he is the anti-Christ prophesied by some seers.

On the other hand, we have the other extreme group of Catholics who are liberal to the extent that they adulterate the Catholic Faith.   They are even more destructive in a very subtle manner.   They bring in all kinds of scientific theories, modern psychology, exotic religions, and impose them on the Catholic Faith.   This is illegitimate inculturation.  Their point of departure of faith is not from their personal faith in Christ or the faith of the apostles.  They seek to transform the Catholic Faith into another faith all together, through syncretism of sciences and other religions, so much so that we have a faith that contains half-truths and half-lies.  That is why it is so difficult to distinguish between what is authentically Catholic, rooted in the Catholic Tradition and scriptures, and a corruption of the apostolic faith.

The irony is that those who are confusing the faith of our naïve and simple Catholics are the theologians, philosophers, scientists and the intellectuals.  Their arguments are based on reason, not on faith.   Their hypothesis and novel theories often sound logical and attractive, and this accounts for their many followers and supporters.  Quite often, intellectual pride springs from the need to be popular and accepted.  We want to do things in a spectacular way to get attention, publicity and recognition.

This is so unlike John the Baptist in today’s gospel.  When asked repeatedly whether he was the Messiah, Elijah or the prophet promised by Moses, without hesitation and in absolute terms, he said, “I am not!   He did not seek to be popular or to be different for the sake of being different.   He was uncompromising in being true to God and the mission that God gave to him.  On the contrary, he said, “I baptise with water; but there stands among you –   unknown to you – the one who is coming after me; and I am not fit to undo his sandal strap.”   John the Baptist knew who he was and there was no need to pretend otherwise.  He could have deceived the crowd who were thinking that he was the Messiah or the prophet or Elijah.  Instead, he was contented to say, ‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied: a voice that cries in the wilderness.”   He could have confused the people who were waiting for the Messiah but he did not take advantage of the opportunity. 

The truth is that these detractors do not have a real personal faith in Christ.  They do not know Jesus.   They do not know Christ.   Their faith is a pure intellectual faith.  Their theology is based simply on human speculation and reason.  It is rationalistic in approach.  Without a personal encounter with the Lord, without a real love for the Word of God, without being in union with Christ, rooted in Him, and a living and intimate relationship with Him, such theological reflections are pure speculation.  They have nothing to do with Jesus the Christ. but some figment of their imagination.  This is what the scriptures are saying.  They are not in Christ!  St John wrote, “Live in Christ, then, my children, so that if he appears, we may have full confidence, and not turn from him in shame at his coming.”

What does it mean to live in Christ?  It means that we must be in union with Him as the Head of the Church and with His body.   We know that we are in Christ only when we are in union with the Church.  That is why we must return to the apostolic faith.  St John urges us, “Keep alive in yourselves what you were taught in the beginning: as long as what you were taught in the beginning is alive in you, you will live in the Son and in the Father; and what is promised to you by his own promise is eternal life.”   Indeed, we must be watchful of novelties and alien ideas and theories that are subtly introduced into the faith of the Church. We must always check whether such theories are consistent with the faith passed on to us.

This apostolic faith is preserved in the Church which we call, “the deposit of faith” found in scripture and tradition, guided by the authoritative teachers of the Church, the Holy Father in union with the College of Bishops, the successors of the apostles. Although all Catholics are anointed in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth is present in a special way, an infallible manner, in the teaching of the magisterium.  This is the sure way that the authentic faith is preserved in the Church.  This is what St John wrote, “But you have not lost the anointing that he gave you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; the anointing he gave teaches you everything; you are anointed with truth, not with a lie, and as it has taught you, so you must stay in him.”  St Paul also wrote, “If I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth.” (1 Tim 3:15)  This is all the more necessary because in this digital age, there is so much information on cyberspace, and with the culture of relativism, many are no longer able to discern what truth is as everyone is claiming to know the truth.

As Catholics, we only submit to the teaching of the Holy Father and the Magisterium because they are given the gift of infallibility, being anointed in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth.  We do not submit to the theologians unless they are teaching in union with the Magisterium.  Those so called theologians who teach contrary to the faith as taught by the Magisterium are the new anti-Christs as they cause confusion, skepticism, loss of faith and division within the Church. They are not at the service of the Church but they are for themselves.

So the question we need to ask ourselves today is:  Do we truly know Christ in the flesh?  Have we encountered Him personally?   What knowledge do we have of Jesus and the Church?  What is the fundamental criterion of our faith in Christ?  St John wrote, “The man who denies that Jesus is the Christ – he is the liar; he is Antichrist; and he is denying the Father as well as the Son, because no one who has the Father can deny the Son, and to acknowledge the Son is to have the Father as well.”  Is this what we truly believe in our hearts and in our minds?  Are we truly convinced that He is the Son of God and the Son of Man?  Anything less than that will lead to all kinds of heresy.  That is why, the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God was celebrated yesterday, for our confession in  Mary as the Mother of God implies our confession in Christ who is the second person of the Holy Trinity, who is both God and man, without confusion, admixture, separation and division.  Our faith is in Jesus who is one divine person who is truly God and truly man. 

Thus, it is critical that our Catholics have no excuse for being ignorant about their faith, the doctrines of the Church and not cultivating a personal relationship with the Lord that is rooted in contemplation of the scriptures.  Unless we know Christ both personally and doctrinally, we will only give our own version of Christ and mislead those under our charge and our care.   Church leaders, lay or clerical, or religious, must always be forming themselves in the faith, for growth in faith is an ongoing process.  Formation does not stop after Confirmation, or after RCIA, or after seminary studies.  This is the reason why we inaugurated the Catholic Theological Institute of Singapore because we want every Catholic to be well formed in the authentic teaching of the Magisterium and not some books or courses that many read, unwittingly not knowing that such teachings are contrary to the faith of the Church.  Of course, the study of theology and scriptures does not end with the passing of exams or earning academic degrees, but it must lead to a deeper prayer life and intimacy with the Lord. 

In the final analysis, how do we know that we are not the traitors of Christ in our Church?  When we are in union with Christ and His Church, especially the Holy Father and the Bishops!   If we are not in communion with the Church, it is unlikely we are in communion with Christ since He is the Head of the Church.  He is the one who sent us the Holy Spirit and guaranteed that He will be with the Church until the end of time (cf Mt 28:20) and that no gates of hell will be able overcome it.  “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.” (Mt 16:18)

Consequently, we are doing a disfavor to the Church when we publicly criticize the Holy Father and Church authorities in public.  It only brings more division and disorder.  We allow our enemies to see our weaknesses and they will take advantage of our internal division. Calling the Holy Father, the anti-Christ, will not serve the purpose of the Church.   To deny his authority is to deny the Vicar appointed by Christ Himself.  They will lose credibility and not be able to lead the Church in unity.  Publicly deriding Church leaders will only cause more division.  It shows a lack of charity because truth must always be spoken in charity.   When charity is lacking, there is no truth, but only revenge and vindictiveness.

Truly, what counts at the end is not whether we are fundamentalists, progressives or moderates, but whether we are living the life of charity and love in Christ.  True faith will be manifested in right living, in truth and in love.  It will be shown in humility, gentleness, tolerance, forgiveness, mercy and compassion.  (Cf Gal 5:22)   True faith will lead to a deeper love of our Lord and a firm conviction of Him as our savior.  True faith will enable us always to live in faith, hope and love. Without faith, we will only live for ourselves and without hope in eternal life.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved