20161216 GOD REVEALS HIMSELF TO US WHEN WE LIVE THE LIFE OF CHRIST
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Isaiah
56:1-3,6-8 ©
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Thus says the Lord:
Have a care for justice, act with integrity, for soon my salvation will come
and my integrity be manifest.
Blessed
is the man who does this and the son of man who clings to it: observing the
sabbath, not profaning it, and keeping his hand from every evil deed.
Let no
foreigner who has attached himself to the Lord say, ‘The Lord will surely
exclude me from his people.’ Let no eunuch say, ‘And I, I am a dried-up tree.’
Foreigners
who have attached themselves to the Lord to serve him and to love his name and
be his servants – all who observe the sabbath, not profaning it, and cling
to my covenant – these I will bring to my holy mountain. I will make them
joyful in my house of prayer. Their holocausts and their sacrifices will be
accepted on my altar, for my house will be called a house of prayer for all the
peoples.
It is the
Lord who speaks, who gathers the outcasts of Israel: there are others will
gather besides those already gathered.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
66(67):2-3,5,7-8 ©
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Let the peoples
praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you.
O God, be gracious
and bless us
and let
your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be
known upon earth
and all
nations learn your saving help.
Let the peoples
praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you.
Let the nations be
glad and exult
for you
rule the world with justice.
With fairness you
rule the peoples,
you guide
the nations on earth.
Let the peoples
praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you.
The earth has yielded
its fruit
for God,
our God, has blessed us.
May God still give us
his blessing
till the
ends of the earth revere him.
Let the peoples
praise you, O God, let all the peoples praise you.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Ps84:8
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Let us see, O Lord,
your mercy
and give us your
saving help.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Come, Lord, with your
peace
that we may rejoice
in your presence with sincerity of heart.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 5:33-36 ©
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Jesus said to the
Jews:
‘You sent messengers
to John,
and he gave his
testimony to the truth:
not that I depend on
human testimony;
no, it is for your
salvation that I speak of this.
John was a lamp
alight and shining
and for a time you
were content to enjoy the light that he gave.
But my testimony is
greater than John’s:
the works my Father
has given me to carry out,
these same works of
mine testify
that the Father has
sent me.’
GOD
REVEALS HIMSELF TO US WHEN WE LIVE THE LIFE OF CHRIST
Christmas
is around the corner. Everywhere there is this festive mood of joy and
celebration. Is this just a social celebration, a time to have fun,
food and merry making? What is the basis of this joy if not the
anticipation of Christ’s coming into our lives? With His coming, there is
this expectation of peace and joy. With His coming, there is this
certainty of hope for the future, for humanity and life after death.
The Good News of today’s
first reading is that this peace and joy is given to all, not just to the
People of God but to all people of goodwill. “Let no foreigner who has attached
himself to the Lord say, ‘The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.’ Let
no eunuch say, ‘And I, I am a dried-up tree.’ Foreigners who have
attached themselves to the Lord to serve him and to love his name and be his
servants, these I will bring to my holy mountain.”
Indeed,
what is required for us to enter into the joy and peace of Christ is not just through
merry making, which of course is one of the ways the Lord allows joy and love
to enter into our lives, but more importantly, the joy and peace must first
come from within us before we can share it with others. Otherwise, what
we see in many Christmas gatherings and parties and celebrations are merely
external. The people seem to be happy and joyful, but deep in their
hearts, there are suspicions, fears, resentment, anger and hatred.
If we want to have a truly
joyful celebration, we need to put our lives in order first. This peace
must come from within us so that it can radiate it to others. The prophet
says, “Have a care for justice, act with integrity, for soon my salvation will
come and my integrity be manifest. Blessed is the man who does this and
the son of man who clings to it: observing the Sabbath, not profaning it, and
keeping his hand from every evil deed.” In other words, we must be
sincere to what we believe. If we say that Jesus is the Way, the Truth
and the Life, then we must be ready to follow Him and not the values of the
world.
I find it amusing that many
of our Catholics are even challenging the truth of the Bible when they disagree
with the moral teachings of Christ. Instead, their point of reference is
what the world thinks and how they feel, not what Jesus said or instructed us
to do. To them the Word of God is just a human word, a human opinion that
they can discard or accept, depending on whether they agree with
it. This was the case of the Jewish leaders in the gospel. They
heard the testimony of John the Baptist with regard to the coming of the
Messiah. St John the Baptist testified to Christ as the Lamb of God and
the light of the world. “Jesus said to the Jews: ‘You sent messengers to
John, and he gave his testimony to the truth: not that I depend on human
testimony; no, it is for your salvation that I speak of this. John was a
lamp alight and shining and for a time you were content to enjoy the light that
he gave.” Yet, many refused to accept Jesus. So too, many who call
themselves Catholics and Christians, choose to live lives and adopt lifestyles
that are contrary to the gospel life. Although we have many Catholics, we
do not have many Catholic “Christians”.
Secondly, if we want to
experience the peace, we must seek to enter into the heart of
Christ. There can be no peace unless we live a life of
justice. We must be fair and honest in the way we conduct
ourselves. Cheating people, abusing them, discriminating them and causing
them harm, ultimately takes away our peace. Our conscience will haunt us
and we create unnecessary enemies. This is why the prophet Isaiah reminds
us to be just to our fellow brothers and sisters. Without justice, there
can be no peace in the world. If there is so much fighting it is because
of injustices and oppression. Peace is the fruit of justice.
Thirdly, if we want to
enter into the joy of Christ at Christmas, then we must commit ourselves to a
life of compassion. If the Church encourages us to reach out to the poor
during Advent and Christmas, it is because Christ, the Son of God, the King of
Kings, stripped Himself of His majesty and glory, accepted to be born in a
stable and emptied Himself so as to be one with us in our suffering. The
secret of Jesus’ joy and passion for life is His passion for us. In
giving us life, love and hope, He sees the joy, the peace and freedom in our
faces. Jesus comes to show us the face of His Father. If we want to
partake in the joy of Jesus, we must be courageous in reaching out and caring for
the elderly, the sick, the lonely, the troubled and the poor. Find
time to bring out your elderly or the lonely to see the Christmas lights or for
a meal. Pay a visit to the sick and give a listening ear to the
troubled. In reaching out to them, we receive the joy of Christ from
them. The irony is that Christ comes to us in and through the poor!
By being born in a stable in Bethlehem, He continues to touch our hearts today.
Today, we are called to
imitate the examples of Christ and John the Baptist. John was true to
himself. He did not pretend to be the Messiah or the light, even though
he was very popular and some thought he was the one. John the
Baptist refuted such suggestions in no uncertain terms. He was contented
to be the voice of the bridegroom. He was contented to be just the
forerunner. Jesus similarly was contented to be the Son of the
Father. He was clear that His role was to lead us to His Father. In
whatever He did, He was to make the Father’s mercy and love present. In
plain words, He said, “the works my Father has given me to carry out, these
same works of mine testify that the Father has sent me.” Jesus and
John the Baptist were people who were true to themselves and their vocation in
life. They sought to lead people to God through their words and life.
Today,
we must no longer just claim that Christ is our Saviour but we need to live out
our claims. It is not enough to say Christ has come to bring us peace if we are
not people of peace. The psalmist invites us to make our life a praise
and glory to God simply because God shows Himself to be worthy of praise as He
continues to bless us. “Let the peoples praise you, O God, let all the
peoples praise you. O God, be gracious and bless us and let your face
shed its light upon us. So will your ways be known upon earth and all
nations learn your saving help. Let the nations be glad and exult for you
rule the world with justice. With fairness you rule the peoples,
you guide the nations on earth.” So may our lives be a blessing to
others around us, our family members and colleagues and friends. Is your
life a curse to others? Check yourself! Are you a blessing to
everyone you meet each day or a pain? From now on, make your life a
blessing to the Church, your family, your office and society.
So let us begin by putting
our life in order. Let us renew our relationship with the Lord and
make peace with Him in the Sacrament of reconciliation. If you have not
done so, please do not delay any longer. The Lord wants to give you peace
and joy within you so that in turn you will have the capacity to share with
others, especially to forgive your enemies. But do not celebrate this
Sacrament hastily without due preparation. Take time for this Sacrament
by giving time to prayer and reflection on your life. Advent is a
time to be quiet, to be contemplative before making merry. Otherwise,
when Christmas time comes, there will only be empty noise, not the refrains and
sound of true joy that comes from within our hearts filled with God’s love,
peace and joy. If you are still rushing and doing many things to
prepare for Christmas except to prepare your hearts, then when Christ comes,
His peace and joy will not stay with you. So please cease your restless
activities and spend some time in recollection, prayer and contemplation.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights
Reserved
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