20160518 LIVING A LIFE OF HAPPINESS FREED FROM FEAR AND ANXIETY
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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James 4:13-17 ©
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Here is the answer
for those of you who talk like this: ‘Today or tomorrow, we are off to this or
that town; we are going to spend a year there, trading, and make some money.’
You never
know what will happen tomorrow: you are no more than a mist that is here for a
little while and then disappears. The most you should ever say is: ‘If it is
the Lord’s will, we shall still be alive to do this or that.’ But how proud and
sure of yourselves you are now! Pride of this kind is always wicked. Everyone
who knows what is the right thing to do and doesn’t do it commits a sin.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
48:2-3,6-11 ©
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How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Hear this, all you
peoples,
give
heed, all who dwell in the world,
men both low and
high,
rich and
poor alike!
How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Why should I fear in
evil days
the
malice of the foes who surround me,
men who trust in
their wealth,
and boast
of the vastness of their riches?
How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
For no man can buy
his own ransom,
or pay a
price to God for his life.
The ransom of his
soul is beyond him.
He cannot
buy life without end,
nor avoid
coming to the grave.
How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
He knows that wise
men and fools must both perish
and leave
their wealth to others.
How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Jn14:6
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the
Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to
the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 9:38-40 ©
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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.’
LIVING
A LIFE OF HAPPINESS FREED FROM FEAR AND ANXIETY
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ JM 4:13-17; MK
9:38-40 ]
Man
lives in deep insecurity. From the beginning of time, since Adam
and Eve, we have always wanted to be in control. We do not want to live
in unpredictability. For this reason, we seek to control our lives,
including that of others. This is what St James said to the
Christians in his community. The rich, especially the businessmen,
thought they were in control of their lives. Similarly, the disciples in
today’s gospel also sought to control those who were outside their group.
John asked 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.”
Why do we seek control
over our lives and that of others? It boils down to reliance on oneself and insecurity with
our competitors. Often it is fear that drives us to strive to be better
than others; not because we want to improve ourselves. We want to be in
charge. The offspring of fear is ego and competition. As a consequence,
we become envious of others. If the disciples were not happy that others
were doing the same thing they were doing, it was because they did not want to
share their power with others. So it was out of envy that they
reacted. It was not because the man was doing something contrary to what
they were doing. They sought to prevent others from doing good simply
because they do not belong to their group. Fear that others will take
their rice bowl or popularity away drove them to hinder others from doing good.
Indeed, this is what St
James told his community. It has to do with pride and wanting to do things our way. “But
how proud and sure of yourselves you are now! Pride of this kind is
always wicked.” Ultimately, it is about power and security.
Jealousy and the need to be in control spring from the fear that one’s
happiness would be taken away if others are in control over us. So man
seeks power to control others. This power can come in the form of
healing, as in today’s gospel, or knowledge or skills. Power is
sought by the world today because man does not want to entrust his life to
God. He does not want to live a life that is unpredictable. So he
seeks to control his life. He is focused on himself and his interests.
But
this is the folly of the world. Life, in the final analysis,
is not within our control. This is what St James told his
people. “’Today or tomorrow, we are off to this or that town; we are going to
spend a year there, trading, and make some money.’ You never know what
will happen tomorrow: you are no more than a mist that is here for a
little while and then disappears.” Indeed, our state of life is
determined by God. We can propose but God disposes. Life remains
unpredictable. The psalmist reiterates this truth when he said, “Why
should I fear in evil days the malice of the foes who surround me, men who
trust in their wealth, and boast of the vastness of their riches? He knows that
wise men and fools must both perish and leave their wealth to others.”
Life and death are predestined by God. Man, regardless of his wealth and
status, cannot determine his fate. It would be foolish to think that his
life is made secure by his wealth and status in life. Before the reality
of death, we are equal. The psalmist echoes this truth too when he says, “For
no man can buy his own ransom, or pay a price to God for his life. The ransom
of his soul is beyond him. He cannot buy life without end, nor avoid coming to
the grave.”
Rather
than filling our lives with anxiety and fear, we must depend on the Lord’s
providence. We are called to surrender our lives to the Lord, to do
what we can and leave the future to Him. St James wrote, “The most you
should ever say is: ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we shall still be alive to
do this or that.’” Indeed, we are called to place our trust not in the
securities of this world but in God alone. All we need to do each day is
to cooperate with His will. It is in doing His will day after day that we
will find peace and joy. If we simply do His will, we can be sure that
somehow the Lord will look after us. And even when it is time for
us to go, we will depart this world happily, knowing what is in store for us in
the future.
The
responsorial psalm exhorts us to be poor in spirit. “How happy are the
poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Hear this, all you
peoples, give heed, all who dwell in the world, men both low and high, rich and
poor alike!” In other words, we must live a life of faith in total
dependence on God’s divine providence. To be poor in Spirit is to seek
the things that are above. Life and happiness is more than food and
drink. It is love, peace and joy in the kingdom of God. (Rom 14:17) So we
must seek what is above, beyond the ordinary things of this earth.
We must seek for meaning, love and peace.
So
instead of worrying too much about our future, we only have to live fully in
the present. Concretely, it means that we must accept our lot and be contented.
The author of Ecclesiastes says, “I know there is no happiness for man
except in pleasure and enjoyment while he lives. And when man eats and drinks
and finds happiness in his work, this is a gift from God.” (3:12f) “I
see there is no happiness for man but to be happy in his work, for this is the
lot assigned him.” (3:22) “This, then, is my conclusion: the right
happiness for man is to eat and drink and be content with all the work he has
to do under the sun, during the few days God has given him to live, since this
is the lot assigned him. And whenever God gives a man riches and property, with
the ability to enjoy them and to find contentment in his work, this is a gift
from God. He will not need to brood, at least, over the duration of his life so
long as God keeps his heart occupied with joy.” (5:18-20) Indeed,
if only we learn to enjoy what we already have, both our gifts and our work, we
will live quite happily. So long as we have good health, a shelter and a
bed and gainful work to do, we will be happy in life. Craving for more
and worrying ourselves to death will only lead us to jealousy and envy.
This does not mean that
we live without goals, carelessly or irresponsibly. Nay, we must do the best. Be
faithful to our vocation and we will live in peace with a clear
conscience. We can have our plans but be open to surprises. Trust
in God’s wisdom. He knows what is best for us. Man proposes but God
disposes. So we should have our ideals in our minds, but even if we do
not attain them, trust in God’s wisdom and His plans for us. Let us be
ready to change course and accept both success and failures from the
Lord. There is a reason for everything. For those who trust Him,
even failures and adversities are means by which we can become happier and more
fulfilled. So let us take things in our stride.
Finally,
we must cooperate with those who are doing good, regardless of who they
are. “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.’” It is important for us to work with those people of other
faiths and people of goodwill. It is the Lord’s will that all will be
saved by His love. It is not important which channel His love will come
through. What is important is that we continue His work of healing and
restoration. It is for this reason that Catholics are called to work with
people of goodwill in restoring justice, equality and peace to all of
humanity. The values we work for are universal truths that protect the
dignity of every individual from the time of conception till death.
We can therefore rejoice with those of other religions and all those in
government and non-governmental organizations that work for the dignity and the
rights of the individual, ensuring justice, equality and the good of all.
“Everyone who knows what is the right thing to do and doesn’t do it commits a
sin.”
Let me
conclude with a story of the Sorrow Tree. There was a group of
people who were boasting about how much they suffer in life and therefore
entitled to complain to God and to everyone. So the master gathered them
together around a tree. Each person was asked to hang one’s unhappiness
and sorrows and sufferings on a branch of the great Tree of Sorrows.
After dangling their miseries on one of the branches, they were asked to walk
slowly around the Tree. Each one was then asked to search for a set of
sufferings that he or she prefers to those that he or she has hung up on the
tree. In the end, each one freely chose to reclaim his or her sorrows
rather than those of another. Each of them left the Tree of Sorrows wiser
than when he or she arrived.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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