20160523 NEW BIRTH THROUGH FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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1 Peter 1:3-9 ©
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Blessed be God the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new
birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a
sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled
and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through
your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has been
prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you,
even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of
trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been
tested and proved like gold – only it is more precious than gold, which is
corruptible even though it bears testing by fire – and then you will have
praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet you love him; and still
without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it
cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which
your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
110:1-2,5-6,9-10 ©
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The Lord keeps his
covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
I will thank the Lord
with all my heart
in the
meeting of the just and their assembly.
Great are the works
of the Lord,
to be
pondered by all who love them.
The Lord keeps his
covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
He gives food to
those who fear him;
keeps his
covenant ever in mind.
He has shown his
might to his people
by giving
them the lands of the nations.
The Lord keeps his
covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
He has sent
deliverance to his people
and
established his covenant for ever.
Holy his
name, to be feared.
The Lord keeps his
covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
To fear the Lord is
the first stage of wisdom;
all who
do so prove themselves wise.
His praise shall last
for ever!
The Lord keeps his
covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.1Th2:13
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Accept God’s message
for what it really is:
God’s message, and
not some human thinking.
Alleluia!
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Or
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2Co8:9
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Jesus Christ was
rich,
but he became poor
for your sake,
to make you rich out
of his poverty.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 10:17-27 ©
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Jesus was setting out
on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him,
‘Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Why
do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments:
You must not kill; You must not commit adultery; You must not steal; You must
not bring false witness; You must not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’
And he said to him, ‘Master, I have kept all these from my earliest days.’
Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him, and he said, ‘There is one thing
you lack. Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and
you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ But his face fell at
these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth.
Jesus
looked round and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it is for those who have
riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ The disciples were astounded by these
words, but Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he said to them ‘how hard it is to
enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ They were more
astonished than ever. ‘In that case’ they said to one another ‘who can be
saved?’ Jesus gazed at them. ‘For men’ he said ‘it is impossible, but not for
God: because everything is possible for God.’
NEW
BIRTH THROUGH FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ 1 Peter 1:3–9;
Ps 110:1-2, 5-6, 9-10; Mark 10:17-27 ]
Many of us are not happy
with our life. Regardless of whether we are rich or poor, successful in
our career or jobless, sinful or righteous, we feel incomplete. Like the
rich man, we might have all we want and need, and yet we feel a lack in us.
How could it be when we have a wonderful family, sufficient in material needs
and a great career or business? We still feel empty. Then we look
at our spiritual life, we seem to be all right. Like the rich man, he had
fulfilled all that the Law required. We might feel that way too. We
attend mass regularly. We do our part in Church and even contribute to
the Church and to the poor. Of course for those who live a rebellious
life, angry with God, their fellowmen and do all kinds of immoral things, like
stealing, slandering, cheating and taking advantage of people including women
and children, they cannot expect to be at peace or be fulfilled even if they
managed to cheat and manipulate people.
What we need therefore is a
new life, a rebirth. This was the question that the rich man posed, “Good
master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” This old and current way
of life must give place to the new life that the Lord is giving to us. This is
what St Peter wrote, “Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
in his great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons.” This was
what the Lord wanted to offer to the rich man when He said, “Go and sell
everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure
in heaven; then come, follow me.” What does this new life and new birth
entail?
Firstly, it requires us to
have hope. St Peter told the early Christians, God, by “raising
Jesus Christ from the dead”, has given us “a sure hope and the promise of an
inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it
is being kept for you in the heavens.” The reason why many of us live
meaningless life without passion, zeal or motive, is because we have no hope
beyond this life. “If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are
of all men most to be pitied.” (1 Cor 15:19
) Yet this is the truth. Many people in the world,
because they do not believe in God or in eternal life, have nothing to live for
beyond this world. At the same time, they find this life rather
unfulfilling. Like the author of Ecclesiastes we might think that life is
all vanity. He wrote, “For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of
beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same
breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts; for all is
vanity. All go to one place; all are from the dust, and all turn to
dust again. Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the
spirit of the beast goes down to the earth? So I saw that there is
nothing better than that a man should enjoy his work, for that is his lot; who
can bring him to see what will be after him?” (Eccl 2:19-22
)
) Yet this is the truth. Many people in the world,
because they do not believe in God or in eternal life, have nothing to live for
beyond this world. At the same time, they find this life rather
unfulfilling. Like the author of Ecclesiastes we might think that life is
all vanity. He wrote, “For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of
beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same
breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts; for all is
vanity. All go to one place; all are from the dust, and all turn to
dust again. Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the
spirit of the beast goes down to the earth? So I saw that there is
nothing better than that a man should enjoy his work, for that is his lot; who
can bring him to see what will be after him?” (Eccl 2:19-22)
Christian hope is in the
eternal life that Christ has come to give to us. But what is the basis of
this hope? It is faith in Christ. This is what St Peter said,
“Through your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has
been prepared is revealed at the end of time.” This faith of course is
faith in Christ whom the Father raised from the dead. Only if we have
faith in Christ, can we can then be certain of the future of our life.
Christian hope in the future life with Christ is not based on some wishful
thinking and vain hope. Rather it is rooted in the fact that Christ is
raised and therefore we will be raised in Him. Our confidence in the
resurrection after death and the fullness of life with God is founded on the
fact of the resurrected Lord. In Christ’s resurrection, we have a preview
of the kind of life that is in store for us. Like Christ, we will enter
into the Father’s kingdom and share in the life of His Father. That is
why baptism makes us sons and daughters of God. Baptism is already a
foretaste of this resurrected life that is to come.
It is this faith in Christ
that makes it possible for us to persevere in hope. St John says,
“Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be,
but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as
he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is
pure.” (1 Jb 3:2f
) If the early Christians were ready to suffer
persecution and rejection, it was because, as St Peter said, “you are sure of
the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your
souls.” Indeed, he said, “This is a cause of great joy for you, even
though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of
trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been
tested and proved like gold – only it is more precious than gold, which is
corruptible even though it bears testing by fire – and then you will have
praise and glory and honour.”
) If the early Christians were ready to suffer
persecution and rejection, it was because, as St Peter said, “you are sure of
the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your
souls.” Indeed, he said, “This is a cause of great joy for you, even
though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of
trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been
tested and proved like gold – only it is more precious than gold, which is
corruptible even though it bears testing by fire – and then you will have
praise and glory and honour.”
Faith in Christ enables us
to place our total trust in Him without counting the cost. St Paul said,
“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to
make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brethren, I do
not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I do, forgetting what
lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward
the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 3:12-14
) The rich man was invited to follow Jesus by giving up
all his riches; unfortunately, he was not ready to take the leap of
faith. We read “But his face fell at these words and he went away sad,
for he was a man of great wealth.” Jesus then used this occasion to
illustrate how those of us who are self-sufficient, full of ourselves, whether
in pride, self-reliance or in wealth or intellect, will find ourselves outside
the kingdom of God. This is because we are not ready to trust God and
allow His power to work in our lives. Hence, Jesus remarked, “how hard it
is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the
eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” But if
we have faith in Christ then nothing is impossible to overcome, no trials and
no difficulties. Jesus said, “For, it is impossible, but not for God:
because everything is possible for God.”
) The rich man was invited to follow Jesus by giving up
all his riches; unfortunately, he was not ready to take the leap of
faith. We read “But his face fell at these words and he went away sad,
for he was a man of great wealth.” Jesus then used this occasion to
illustrate how those of us who are self-sufficient, full of ourselves, whether
in pride, self-reliance or in wealth or intellect, will find ourselves outside
the kingdom of God. This is because we are not ready to trust God and
allow His power to work in our lives. Hence, Jesus remarked, “how hard it
is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the
eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” But if
we have faith in Christ then nothing is impossible to overcome, no trials and
no difficulties. Jesus said, “For, it is impossible, but not for God:
because everything is possible for God.”
If we want this faith to
grow, then we need to open ourselves to the love of God. This is what St
Peter is exhorting us when he told the persecuted Christians, “You did not see
him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled
with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe.”
If the rich man was not happy it was because he did not have a
relationship with God. It was simply a matter of fulfilling the
obligations of the Law. He was also rich but he was not ready to give
away his riches to the poor so that he could experience the joy of loving,
being identified with them in their poverty. He was rich in the things of
this world but poor in the capacity to love. This explains the lack in
him. What he needed was to fill his life with the love of God and the
love of his fellowmen. Without love, no matter how successful we are in
life, we cannot be happy. It is meaningful relationships and love that
give us joy and happiness in life.
Hence, if we want our faith
in Christ to grow and if we want to trust in Him more, then we need to love Him
more and more. Love presupposes trust and reinforces trust. Do we
dare to love? This is the question we need to ask. Love is
the answer to all the questions of life and the mysteries of life.
This explains why love is the heart of the theological virtues of faith, hope
and charity. It is love that makes faith possible. It is faith that
gives birth to hope. When we love, we want to continue to have
faith in that person even if he has failed us or been a failure in
life. By having confidence in someone who has been a failure, we
give them hope. With hope, they will be able to redeem themselves.
This too is the way the Lord deals with us. He loves us unconditionally
by His death on the cross; and through the grace of His passion, He makes faith
in Him possible. It is this faith that gives us a certain and endless
hope in Him because of His resurrection. When there is love, we will be
able to conquer all things in life. “No, in all these things we are more
than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither
death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things
to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all
creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our
Lord.” (Rom 8:38
)
)
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