20160210 MERCY IS ONLY GIVEN TO THOSE WHO ARE CONTRITE OF HEART
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Joel 2:12-18 ©
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‘Now, now – it
is the Lord who speaks –
come back to me with
all your heart,
fasting, weeping,
mourning.’
Let your hearts be
broken, not your garments torn,
turn to the Lord your
God again,
for he is all
tenderness and compassion,
slow to anger, rich
in graciousness,
and ready to relent.
Who knows if he will
not turn again, will not relent,
will not leave a blessing
as he passes,
oblation and libation
for the Lord your
God?
Sound the trumpet in
Zion!
Order a fast,
proclaim a solemn
assembly,
call the people
together,
summon the community,
assemble the elders,
gather the children,
even the infants at
the breast.
Let the bridegroom
leave his bedroom
and the bride her
alcove.
Between vestibule and
altar let the priests,
the ministers of the
Lord, lament.
Let them say,
‘Spare your people,
Lord!
Do not make your
heritage a thing of shame,
a byword for the
nations.
Why should it be said
among the nations,
“Where is their
God?”’
Then the Lord,
jealous on behalf of his land,
took pity on his
people.
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Psalm
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Psalm
50:3-6,12-14,17 ©
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Have mercy on us,
O Lord, for we have sinned.
Have mercy on me,
God, in your kindness.
In your
compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and
more from my guilt
and
cleanse me from my sin.
Have mercy on us,
O Lord, for we have sinned.
My offences truly I
know them;
my sin is
always before me
Against you, you
alone, have I sinned;
what is
evil in your sight I have done.
Have mercy on us,
O Lord, for we have sinned.
A pure heart create
for me, O God,
put a
steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away
from your presence,
nor
deprive me of your holy spirit.
Have mercy on us,
O Lord, for we have sinned.
Give me again the joy
of your help;
with a
spirit of fervour sustain me,
O Lord, open my lips
and my
mouth shall declare your praise.
Have mercy on us,
O Lord, for we have sinned.
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Second reading
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2 Corinthians
5:20-6:2 ©
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We are ambassadors
for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that
we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the
sinless one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God. As
his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to neglect the grace of God that
you have received. For he says: At the favourable time, I have listened to
you; on the day of salvation I came to your help. Well, now is the
favourable time; this is the day of salvation.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Ps50:12,14
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Praise to you, O
Christ, king of eternal glory!
A pure heart create
for me, O God,
and give me again the
joy of your help.
Praise to you, O
Christ, king of eternal glory!
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Or
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cf.Ps94:8
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Praise to you, O
Christ, king of eternal glory!
Harden not your
hearts today,
but listen to the
voice of the Lord.
Praise to you, O
Christ, king of eternal glory!
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Gospel
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Matthew
6:1-6,16-18 ©
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Jesus said to his
disciples:
‘Be
careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their notice; by
doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven. So when you
give alms, do not have it trumpeted before you; this is what the hypocrites do
in the synagogues and in the streets to win men’s admiration. I tell you
solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you give alms, your left hand
must not know what your right is doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and
your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.
‘And when
you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers
standing up in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them;
I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray, go to your
private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in
that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will
reward you.
‘When
you fast do not put on a gloomy look as the hypocrites do: they pull long faces
to let men know they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had their
reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that no
one will know you are fasting except your Father who sees all that is done in
secret; and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.’
MERCY
IS ONLY GIVEN TO THOSE WHO ARE CONTRITE OF HEART
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: Joel 2:12-18;
2 Cor 5:20 – 6:2;
Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
In the
first reading, the prophet, Joel was predicting the downfall of Judah and
the impending judgement of God if they did not repent. They would
have to face the punishment of God, suffering the plague of locusts which would
devastate the whole Kingdom. On another level, this prophecy also hints
at the invading enemy that would eventually take over Judah unless the people
repented and be united in the Lord. This, too, was the call of St Paul
when he exhorted his people, “We are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though
God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is:
be reconciled to God … For he says: At the favourable time, I have listened to
you; on the day of salvation I came to your help. Well, now is the favourable
time; this is the day of salvation.”
We are
in the Jubilee Year of Mercy. This is the same call of Pope Francis. God
is merciful to us. He is the Lord of compassion. As Joel said,
“he is all tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in graciousness, and
ready to relent.” St Paul begs us “not to neglect the grace of God that you
have received.” The season of Lent, which begins with the celebration of
Ash Wednesday, is a time of grace. God wants to renew His love and mercy
for us. He does not want us to harm ourselves. The call to
repentance is not to take away our joy and our happiness and freedom.
Rather, it is to give us true joy, lasting happiness and true freedom from our
sins, follies and hurts. The mercy and compassion of God is readily
available to all who come to Him as the prophet says, “Who knows if he will not
turn again, will not relent, will not leave a blessing as he passes, oblation
and libation for the Lord your God? … Then the Lord, jealous on behalf of
his land, took pity on his people.”
However,
to receive His mercy, we must come back to Him with a sincere and contrite heart.
This is what the
prophet was telling his people. “Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks – come
back to me with all your heart, fasting, weeping, mourning. Let your hearts be
broken not your garments torn, turn to the Lord your God again.” The call
to enter into the mercy of God is preceded by repentance of heart.
It calls for true sorrow for our sins and for living a life that hurts us and
our loved ones. Sin always is a lack of love and causes sorrow and
misery. We all know that because of our greed, lust, anger, negligence
and sloth, we have caused others to suffer. Thus, as Joel reminds us, we
need to lament sincerely for our wrong doings. “Between vestibule and
altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, lament. Let them say, ‘Spare
your people, Lord! Do not make your heritage a thing of shame, a byword for the
nations, “Where is their God?”‘
This
is what the Lord is also reminding us in today’s gospel of the dangers of
external display without a corresponding change of heart. Rending our garments is not
sufficient to receive God’s grace. Receiving ashes on our foreheads alone
does not make us holy. Indeed, we can even perform the three pillars of
the Lenten exercises, namely, prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and yet it will not
do us any good. He told the disciples, “Be careful not to parade your
good deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this you will lose all
reward from your Father in heaven.” Indeed, we must not do things
to impress others because it shows the lack of genuine sorrow and love.
That we want people’s attention means that we only reinforce the sin of pride
and egotism in us. Perhaps, we can cheat the world by appearing to
be good but certainly not for long because they will see through us. We
can pray seven times a day, fast and give alms, but when they see our
lifestyles, the way we talk and act, they will immediately know that we are
hypocrites. Even if the world cannot see, God sees through us and He
knows that our heart is not for Him but for ourselves.
How,
then, can we develop a contrite and sincere heart of repentance? Firstly,
we need to pray. But
as Jesus advised us, “when you pray go to your private room and, when you have
shut the door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father
who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.” This is not to say
that we should not join in community prayers, but we need time to be alone with
the Lord, meditating and contemplating on His Word, doing a thorough examen
every day, examining where we have failed to love God and give glory to Him;
and when we have failed to recognize Him in our daily life. Without
self-awareness through prayer, we cannot grow in holiness. I believe that
many people are hardly aware of their true selves. They sincerely think
that they are quite holy and very good but they are blind to their faults and
defensive when their weaknesses are highlighted. As a result, they never
grow in virtues and in holiness. Although they can pray the whole day, be
active in church, teach and preach the Word of God, yet their lives are
anything but that of the life of Christ, lacking in generosity and compassion.
We must pray with the psalmist, “My offences truly I know them; my sin is
always before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned; what is evil in your
sight I have done.”
Secondly,
we need to fast. This is by no means an easy exercise. For some, they are not able to
fast because they will feel giddy and unable to work or do anything. Yet,
if we fast according to our ability, since fasting has different degrees, from
forgoing food altogether to fasting on bread and water, or half-meals, we can
reap some graces from this exercise. It teaches us to discipline the body
so that we can discipline our mind and spirit. It helps us to
identify with the pain and suffering of Christ so that we can appreciate His
sufferings more and how much He loves us. “For our sake God made the sinless
one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God.” Fasting
is also a sure way to express our deep sincerity in desiring the grace of
conversion and holiness. Anyone who is willing to pay a price for what he
wants dearly will find it. Success is not for the faint hearted, so
too is holiness! Above all, fasting reminds us to depend on God alone as
Jesus said, “Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from
the mouth of God.” (Mt 4:4)
Thirdly,
to grow in sincerity of heart, we need to give alms. Helping the poor, reaching out to them,
attending to the sick, feeling and empathizing with the wounded and the weak;
being with the distress and broken hearted, help us to share the joy and mercy
of God who comes to be with us. In giving alms, we learn to
appreciate what we have and the sufferings of humanity so that we will go
beyond our suffering. The reason why we complain so much is because each
one of us magnifies our sufferings, privation and woes as if our crosses are
the biggest and the most difficult in this world. There are many more who
are suffering, so we are not alone. Through reaching out to the poor and
suffering in all its different dimensions, we become grateful and more willing
to share what we have with others. By so doing, we become compassionate,
loving and able to let go of our own pains and our things as well.
For
us as Catholics, we are fortunate that we need not take this journey alone. The whole Church, together with
the catechumens preparing for their baptism, is going through this
journey. When we travel together, finding support and encouragement
from each other, we can better enter into this state of repentance and
prayer. This was why Joel urged the whole nation to repent and fast
together. He said, “Sound a trumpet in Zion! Order a fast, proclaim a
solemn assembly, call the people together, summon the community, assemble the
elders, gather the children, even the infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom
leave his bedroom and the bride her alcove. Between vestibule and altar let the
priests, the ministers of the Lord, lament.” This is the same call of the
Church today as we begin the season of Lent. During Mass, at the
imposition of ashes, the priests says, “Repent and believe in the gospel” or
“Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.” Truly, let us
realize the shortness of life. Let us not deprive ourselves of the grace
of God that has been given to us. Let us receive God’s mercy as we enter
into the spirit of Lent, the spirit of repentance through prayer, fasting and
almsgiving.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore
© All Rights Reserved
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