20161223 THE GRACIOUSNESS OF GOD AS THE BASIS FOR THE FUTURE
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Malachi
3:1-4,23-24 ©
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The Lord God says
this: Look, I am going to send my messenger to prepare a way before me. And the
Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his Temple; and the angel of the
covenant whom you are longing for, yes, he is coming, says the Lord of Hosts.
Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when
he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali. He will
take his seat as refiner and purifier; he will purify the sons of Levi and
refine them like gold and silver, and then they will make the offering to the
Lord as it should be made. The offering of Judah and Jerusalem will then be
welcomed by the Lord as in former days, as in the years of old.
Know that
I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before my day comes, that great and
terrible day. He shall turn the hearts of fathers towards their children and
the hearts of children towards their fathers, lest I come and strike the land
with a curse.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
24(25):4-5,8-9,10,14 ©
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Stand erect, hold
your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
Lord, make me know
your ways.
Lord,
teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your
truth, and teach me:
for you
are God my saviour.
Stand erect, hold
your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
The Lord is good and
upright.
He shows
the path to those who stray,
He guides the humble
in the right path,
He
teaches his way to the poor.
Stand erect, hold
your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
His ways are
faithfulness and love
for those
who keep his covenant and law.
The Lord’s friendship
is for those who revere him;
to them
he reveals his covenant.
Stand erect, hold
your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
King of the peoples
and
cornerstone of the Church,
come and save man,
whom you
made from the dust of the earth.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 1:57-66 ©
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The time came for
Elizabeth to have her child, and she gave birth to a son; and when her
neighbours and relations heard that the Lord had shown her so great a kindness,
they shared her joy.
Now
on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; they were going to call
him Zechariah after his father, but his mother spoke up. ‘No,’ she said ‘he is
to be called John.’ They said to her, ‘But no one in your family has that
name’, and made signs to his father to find out what he wanted him called. The
father asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And they were
all astonished. At that instant his power of speech returned and he spoke and
praised God. All their neighbours were filled with awe and the whole affair was
talked about throughout the hill country of Judaea. All those who heard of it
treasured it in their hearts. ‘What will this child turn out to be?’ they
wondered. And indeed the hand of the Lord was with him.
THE
GRACIOUSNESS OF GOD AS THE BASIS FOR THE FUTURE
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ Mal 3:1-4, 23-24; Luke 1:57-66 ]
Many today live without
much hope for the future. Their future is rather bleak, if not
hopeless. They are not in good health. They have financial woes and
debts to clear. In the family front, there is squabbling and cold war
among members of the family, including between parents. At work, there is
so much politics and worst of all, harassment and discrimination by colleagues
and superiors. They are picked at all the time and humiliated. In
studies, they are not doing well and are alone without any support. In such
situations, it is no wonder they feel like giving up. They are still in
the tunnel with no sign of light yet. An early death is what they expect
and hope. But God is not going to allow us to give up hope and life so
easily.
Today, the scripture
readings exhort us to believe in the future. There is a future for all of
us. Every birth is a sign of hope. Every child born means that God
is with us. Children give us hope for the future. What we cannot do, we hope
they will be able to do when they grow up. The folks of Zechariah
remarked, “What will this child turn out to be?’ they wondered. And indeed the
hand of the Lord was with him.” So long as there are children, the future
of humanity is secured. That is why when married couples choose not to
have any children, they are telling us that this world has no future. So
why bring children into this world and let them suffer? Many couples are
thus living just for today and for themselves because there is no future beyond
themselves.
Why is there no sense of
the future? Why this apathy? The self-centeredness of man and his egotism
makes him lose hope of the future. He is always thinking about himself
and he thinks he can do all things by his own power. When he comes to a
situation and finds that he is not so powerful after all, then he falls into
depression. A sickness can strike, business can collapse, family tragedy
can happen. When confronted with insurmountable obstacles, after giving
up on God, he has no one to turn to except death and destruction.
Gratitude is the
presupposition of hope. When we are grateful, we have happy memories of
past events in our lives. We remember all the good things the Lord has
done for us. Knowing God is gracious will spare us much anxiety for we
know He will bless us. So we have the example of Mary who in yesterday’s
gospel sang in thanksgiving for God’s mercy, not just towards her but towards
Israel as well. Today, Elizabeth too was filled with gratitude at God’s
benevolence. “Now on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child;
they were going to call him Zachariah after his father, but his mother spoke
up. ‘No,’ she said ‘he is to be called John.’”
When John the Baptist was
born, Zechariah, who had been silent all this while as he was struck dumb,
opened his lips to pronounce God’s graciousness. He asked “for a
writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John’. And they were all astonished. At
that instant, his power of speech returned and he spoke and praised God.”
What a significant reminder for all that God is gracious. This memory is
more important than remembering his family line. Zechariah and his wife
were not bothered whether their family line would become extinct with the death
of their only son. For them, the fact that they could conceive a child at
their old age and barren too, means that their future is now totally in the hands
of God. It is not in their hands. They knew that only God can
determine their future. Hence, there was no need to insist that the child
takes on the name of Zechariah to continue the past. Rather, with the
name, John, “God is gracious”, it means there will always be a future.
God will look after them. God who is gracious will ensure their
survival and continuity. And so indeed, they are remembered forever in
humanity and in the scriptures.
God too has been gracious
to us in so many ways. Have we forgotten the many times when the Lord was
gracious to us and helped us again and again? Before you count your woes
and lose focus, count your blessings and you will see sufferings in the context
of blessings and joys. We all have our trials and challenges in
life. But we have received far more, countless blessings and gifts from
the Lord. He has given us life and relatively good health. We have
a comfortable shelter and we are not living under the heat of the sun, like the
refugees. We have more than enough food to sustain and enjoy as well.
Indeed, the Lord is always
gracious even when we forget His goodness, like the Israelites who returned
from exile in today’s first reading. They never learnt from their history and
the lessons that history had taught them. In a short time, they lost
faith in God and continued with their sinful life. Many were not serious
in their worship of God. They forgot so quickly how gracious God was to them,
that whenever they cried, the Lord heard them. In spite of our incorrigibility,
when we sin, the Lord continues to send us prophets and messengers to free us
from sin and lead us to repentance. “Know that I am going to send you
Elijah the prophet before my day comes, that great and terrible day. He shall
turn the hearts of fathers towards their children and the hearts of children
towards their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse.”
Most of all, Christ gives Himself to us not just in the sacraments but
especially in the Eucharist.
If there is no gratitude in
our hearts, it is simply because there is no real repentance or conviction that
our sins are hurting us deeply and our loved ones, slowly but surely.
Many take the sacrament of reconciliation for granted. During Advent and
Lent, many go for the Penitential service but very few are really prepared for
confession. They did not take time to reflect on their actions, do a
proper examen so that they can learn and recognize their mistakes and
weaknesses. Because self-awareness is not there, there can be no true
conversion of heart and mind. A superficial encounter with Christ in the
sacrament of reconciliation can hardly change lives. We need to reflect
on His love and mercy, especially at the birth of our Lord to understand and
appreciate the utter sacrifice and love of God for us. This will help us
to avoid taking God’s grace for granted, given at the price of His Son’s life.
The Lord is near. The
psalmist exhorts us, “Stand erect, hold your heads high, because your
liberation is near at hand.” He is coming again and again, not just
in the past. “Look, I am going to send my messenger to prepare a
way before me. And the Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his Temple; and
the angel of the covenant whom you are longing for, yes, he is coming, says the
Lord of host.” God is gracious. He comes in the future. He
comes here and now whenever we open our eyes to recognize Him in our fellowmen
and in every event of our lives; He enters into our heart whenever we are open
to His love and mercy. Let us welcome the Lord into our lives. “Who will
be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when he
appears? For his is like the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali. He will
take his sear as the refiner and the purifier; he will purify the sons of Levi
and refine them like gold and silver, and then they will make the offering to
the Lord as it should be made.” Let us not resist His coming if we
want to find hope for the future.
We are ready to welcome the
Lord if we listen to His word, and live accordingly. With the psalmist, we pray
“Lord, make me know your ways. Lord, teach me your paths. Make me walk in your
truth, and teach me: for you are God my saviour. The Lord is good and
upright. He shows the path to those who stray, He guides the humble in the
right path, He teaches his way to the poor. His ways are faithfulness and
love for those who keep his covenant and law. The Lord’s friendship is for
those who revere him; to them he reveals his covenant.” So take courage.
He is near. He is here in our hearts. Come let us adore Him, the
King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and
the end for all time belongs to Him, forever and ever.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights
Reserved
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