THE VICTORY OF THE MARTYRS

20161123 THE VICTORY OF THE MARTYRS

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading

Apocalypse 15:1-4 ©

What I, John, saw in heaven was a great and wonderful sign: seven angels were bringing the seven plagues that are the last of all, because they exhaust the anger of God. I seemed to see a glass lake suffused with fire, and standing by the lake of glass, those who had fought against the beast and won, and against his statue and the number which is his name. They all had harps from God, and they were singing the hymn of Moses, the servant of God, and of the Lamb:

‘How great and wonderful are all your works,

Lord God Almighty;

just and true are all your ways,

King of nations.

Who would not revere and praise your name, O Lord?

You alone are holy,

and all the pagans will come and adore you

for the many acts of justice you have shown.’

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 97(98):1-3,7-9 ©

How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty.

Sing a new song to the Lord

  for he has worked wonders.

His right hand and his holy arm

  have brought salvation.

How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty.

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.

How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty.

Let the sea and all within it, thunder;

  the world, and all its peoples.

Let the rivers clap their hands

  and the hills ring out their joy

  at the presence of the Lord.

How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty.

For the Lord comes,

  he comes to rule the earth.

He will rule the world with justice

  and the peoples with fairness.

How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty.

Gospel Acclamation

Lk21:36

Alleluia, alleluia!

Stay awake, praying at all times

for the strength to stand with confidence

before the Son of Man.

Alleluia!

Or

Rv2:10

Alleluia, alleluia!

Even if you have to die, says the Lord,

keep faithful, and I will give you

the crown of life.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Luke 21:12-19 ©

Jesus said: Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name – and that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your endurance will win you your lives.’

THE VICTORY OF THE MARTYRS

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [  REVELATION 15:1-4; LUKE 21:12-19   ]

The way of the world is to promise us the sky and all the pleasures of life that satisfy our ego and the flesh.  Indeed, the world entices us to what are pleasurable: food, sex, glory, power and comfort.  They assure us of security in this world.  But that precisely is the way Satan also tempts us.  Just like in the temptation of Jesus, he promises us glory, wealth and power.   But one thing the world and Satan does not tell us is the fullness of the truth. Satan is called the Father of lies.  “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (Jn 8:4)  The devil deludes us into believing that we can be happy and fulfilled by living a sensual and self-centered life.  On the contrary, one who lives a life of selfishness, self-centeredness filled with pride, anger and envy, enslaved by gluttony, greed, lust and sloth cannot be happy or be fulfilled.

Sometimes, even the Church in some ways is like this.  We invite non-believers to be baptized.  We tell them all about the benefits of being a Christian but we do not warn them about the trials ahead of them.  So they get baptized and then come to realize that the Church is not so perfect after all, that there are so many difficult and wounded people in Church.  Those who are involved in Church ministry know how challenging it is to get the members to work together.  Sad to say, we see division, competition, backbiting and politics fought in the spiritual world as well, just like in the corporate world.  So too sometimes in the promotion of priestly and religious vocations, the joys of the religious vocation is presented but they never tell you the truth about the demands, the sacrifices, the trials in the ministry, the struggles of living a life of celibacy, poverty, obedience and loneliness even in community life.  Then when these people are ordained or professed, they get a rude awakening to the reality of the imperfections of priests and religious.

But Jesus tells us the truth, plainly and bluntly.  He does not simply show us the crown but the thorns as well.  He is candid to the point of being blunt.  He told the disciples in the gospel, “Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name.”   In another place, He said, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”  (Mt 16:24f)

Indeed, we will be persecuted, rejected and ostracized when we become the disciples of the Lord.  There will be times when the rulers and the authorities cannot stand our guts for speaking the truth, especially when there is injustice and oppression.  There will be situations when in speaking for the marginalized or the truth, we will be persecuted and threatened even with our lives.  In some cases, even family members ostracize us because we have chosen Christ over the family’s religion.  Most surprising of all, even the Christian community persecutes us when we seek to do the right thing in Church or in our organization because their vested interests are compromised.  So from within and without we will face the trials and sufferings of being a Christian; the trials that Jesus went through in His ministry, passion and death.

But Jesus also reassures us that our sufferings will not be in vain.  The challenges of life are meant to be seen as “your opportunity to bear witness.”  Negatively, they may seem to be obstacles but in truth, they are grace moments to reveal to others the love and mercy of God.  Hence, we should not be too disillusioned or troubled when we face the trials of the apostolate.  Rather, we must thank God and deal with these oppositions creatively and proactively so that we can bring good out of evil, truth out of falsehood, love out of hatred, and life out of death.

Most of all, Jesus also assures us of His divine assistance.  He said, “Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your endurance will win you your lives.”  We are not alone in our struggles to be faithful to Christ.  He will send us the Holy Spirit to give us the courage and the strength to endure all our trials.  The Lord never asks us to do something without supplying us the necessary talents or graces to accomplish them.  The Lord assures us of a definite victory over sin and death.

Indeed, when we look at the history of the Church, particularly the primitive Church, this was what the Lord did.  The apostles and disciples of Jesus were very much persecuted, especially in the first 300 years of existence until the conversion of the Roman Emperor, Constantine.   Until then, Christianity was outlawed as a religion.  Initially, the Christians were persecuted by the Jews and then the Romans.  Yet, as we read in the first reading, many Christians chose martyrdom over their lives.  They chose Christ before their families.  Such was the courageous display of fidelity to the gospel even unto death.

The irony we read in the book of Revelation is that their death is their victory.  By dying for Christ, they won victory over death.  “Standing by the lake of glass, those who had fought against the beast and won, and against his statue and the number which is his name”, the martyrs witnessed the destruction of their enemies who were judged and condemned.  Those who opposed the Lord were thrown down into the glass lake of fire.  It is a symbol of punishment.   They on their part were repeating the triumphant song of Moses that the Israelites sang when they defeated the Egyptians who were in pursuit of them.  “They all had harps from God, and they were singing the hymn of Moses, the servant of God, and of the Lamb:  ‘How great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are all your ways, King of nations.’”

Yet in their rejoicing, no one claimed any credit.  The victory was not due to their strength but the power and might of God.  “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to thy name give glory, for the sake of thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness!”  (Ps 115:1)  The psalmist says, “Sing a new song to the Lord for he has worked wonders. His right hand and his holy arm have brought salvation.”   On the contrary, they were absorbed in the praise of God, rejoicing in His wonderful love and power.  “Who would not revere and praise your name, O Lord? You alone are holy, and all the pagans will come and adore you for the many acts of justice you have shown.”  Contemplating on His justice and the salvation God had won for them, they were filled with great joy and gratitude.

Truly, this is what heaven is like when everyone is focused on giving glory and praise to God and no longer thinking of himself or herself.  Heaven is to see God face to face and consists of perfect praise and thanksgiving.  When man rests in God, his heart is at peace, for no creature and nothing on earth can satisfy the heart of man save for the love of God.  Only in contemplating His glory, is our intellect quenched and satisfied.   This accounts for why the things of this world are always passing and the happiness cannot be sustained.  But what outlasts the pleasures of life is love, everlasting love.   With the joy of God in our hearts, we will share with each other the joys of Christ.  And all will rejoice with each other so that in sharing and rejoicing together, our joys and happiness increases.

In the light of what is ahead of us, we must therefore endure the trials of life.  We must think of the blessed life waiting for us when we will finally fulfill all our desires.  We should not fear death but if we live a good life, death is the gateway to fullness of life.  We should be happy for our loved ones who returned to the Lord for they are now rejoicing forever in praise and thanksgiving to God.  It is they who have already won the victory but we are the ones that are still struggling.  But Jesus promised us, “Your endurance will win you your lives.”

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