20170214 INCLUSIVE
CHURCH FOR ALL
1st
Reading Nehemiah 8:2-6,8-10
2 Accordingly, on the
first day of the seventh month, the priest
Ezra brought the Law
before the assembly, consisting of men, women and all those old enough to
understand.
3 In the square in
front of the Water Gate, in the presence of the men and women, and of those old
enough to understand, he read from the book from dawn till noon; all the people
listened attentively to the Book of the Law.
4 The scribe Ezra stood on a wooden
dais erected for the purpose; beside him stood, on his right, Mattithiah,
Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah and Maaseiah; on his left, Pedaiah, Mishael,
Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
5 In full view of all
the people -- since he stood higher than them all -- Ezra opened the book; and
when he opened it, all the people stood up.
6 Then Ezra blessed Yahweh, the
great God, and all the people raised their hands and answered, 'Amen! Amen!';
then they bowed down and, face to the ground, prostrated themselves before
Yahweh.
8 Ezra read from the
book of the Law
of God, translating and giving the sense; so the reading was understood.
9 Then His Excellency
Nehemiah and the
priest-scribe Ezra
and the Levites
who were instructing the people said to all the people, 'Today is sacred to Yahweh
your God. Do not be mournful, do not weep.' For the people were all in tears as
they listened to the words of the Law.
10 He then said, 'You
may go; eat what is rich, drink what is sweet and send a helping to the man
who has nothing prepared. For today is sacred to our Lord. Do not be sad: the
joy of Yahweh
is your stronghold.'
Psalms 18:8-10,15
8 Smoke rose from his
nostrils, from his mouth devouring fire (coals were kindled at it).
9 He parted the
heavens and came down, a storm-cloud underneath his feet;
10 riding one of the
winged creatures, he flew, soaring on the wings of the wind.
15 The very springs
of ocean were exposed, the world's foundations were laid bare, at your roaring,
Yahweh, at the blast of breath from your nostrils!
2nd
Reading Ephesians 2:19-22
19 So you are no
longer aliens or foreign visitors; you are fellow-citizens with the holy people
of God
and part of God's household.
20 You are built upon
the foundations of the apostles
and prophets, and Christ
Jesus himself is the
cornerstone.
21 Every structure
knit together in him grows into a holy temple
in the Lord;
22 and you too, in
him, are being built up into a dwelling-place of God
in the Spirit.
Gospel Luke 19:1-10
1 He entered Jericho
and was going through the town
2 and suddenly a man
whose name was Zacchaeus made his appearance; he was one of the senior tax
collectors and a wealthy man.
3 He kept trying to
see which Jesus was, but
he was too short and could not see him for the crowd;
4 so he ran ahead and
climbed a sycamore tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus who was to pass that
way.
5 When Jesus reached the spot he
looked up and spoke to him, 'Zacchaeus, come down. Hurry, because I am to stay
at your house today.'
6 And he hurried down
and welcomed him joyfully.
7 They all complained
when they saw what was happening. 'He has gone to stay at a sinner's house,'
they said.
8 But Zacchaeus stood
his ground and said to the Lord, 'Look, sir, I am going to give half my property
to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody I will
pay him back four times the amount.'
9 And Jesus said to him, 'Today salvation
has come to this house, because this man
too is a son of Abraham;
10 for the Son of man
has come to seek out and save what was lost.'
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ Neh 8:2-4. 5-6. 8-10; Ps 18:8-10. 15; Eph 2:19-22; Lk 19:1-10 ]
As we gather to dedicate our restored
Cathedral this evening, we too can share the sentiments of the Israelites who
gathered to thank God for the rebuilding of the ruined wall of Jerusalem.
We read that “the people were all in tears as they listened to the words of the
Law.” Why were they in tears? This was because they could not
believe their eyes that God could be so merciful to them, to inspire the pagan
King of Persia not just to send his governor, Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem but
even provided them financial and logistic help. It was unthinkable that
such a thing was possible. But it happened and now the walls were
restored.
So too, the restoration of this Cathedral
was a very daunting task. This is because the Cathedral, being the Mother
Church, has no parishioners to support the renovation efforts, as her children
are all over Singapore. As such, the restoration of this Cathedral had to
depend largely on the generosity of Catholics all over Singapore, poor and
rich. If not the fact that the bulk of the funds came from the reserves
of our parishes and some big benefactors, we would never have been able to
collect enough to fund the restoration! For this we want to thank
God. Many also came forward to help by offering their professional advice
and services in all ways. Without these generous people and their love
for the mother Church, this Cathedral would have remained a dilapidated
structure, almost like the ruined walls of Jerusalem. Hence we cannot but
cry with joy for the work done and the completion of this restoration.
Yet, in spite of the
glory and magnificence of this Cathedral, the scripture reminds us that the
Church is not a building but an assembly of people who love God and give glory
to Him by their lives. The Church is in reality the Household of God,
made up of different members but all united in love in Christ because we all
share in His adopted sonship, making us all children of our Heavenly
Father. This is what St Paul tells us. “You are no longer aliens or
foreign visitors: you are citizens like all the saints, and part of God’s
household.”
Indeed, in Christ, all barriers have now
been broken. St Paul, writing to the Galatians said, “There is neither
Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor
female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal 3:28) The
Church therefore must be inclusive and not exclusive. The Church belongs
to all because God is our Father. Indeed, the Church must be careful not
to turn anyone away, for that is not what God wants. The Church belongs
to all, saints and sinners, rich and poor alike. The Church welcomes all
humanity, even those who do not believe in God or in Christ. The Good
News is offered to all without exception. Christ, by His death and
resurrection, has reconciled humanity into one. Love unites us all.
Consequently, the Church exists first and
foremost for her members. The Church as mother, has the role of nurturing
members of the family, particularly the young. This is the task of all
mothers. So as mother Church, she is concerned about the faith of her
children. As mother, she gives birth to new members and continues to
nurture them particularly through the Word of God and the sacraments. We
read in today’s first reading how Ezra, the scribe, proclaimed and preached the
Word of God to the people so that they could be enlightened and walk the way of
the Lord.
But the Church is also for sinners, not
just for saints. The Church exists for sinners who seek to find fullness
of life. No matter how great a sinner we may be, no one is beyond
salvation. In His ministry, Jesus fellowshiped with prostitutes and tax
collectors. Of course, we know that tax-collectors were most hated by the
Jews because they collaborated with the Roman authorities in collecting taxes
that were used not just for political activities but for the building of pagan
temples. Most of all, they were profiteering by overcharging their fellow
Jews as well. Zacchaeus was not only a tax-collector but a senior tax
collector.
Catholics must be careful not to fall
into self-righteousness and hypocrisy by complaining like the scribes and
Pharisees, “He has gone to stay at a sinner’s house.” Let us not forget that we
are sinners as well and no better than others. We all need conversion of
heart; not just those whom we deem to be sinners. This was partially why
the Israelites cried after hearing the Word of God read and explained to them.
“For the people were all in tears as they listened to the words of the Law.”
This was because they came to realize how far they were from living the laws of
God; and that the destruction of the Temple was principally due to their
sinfulness and turning away from God.
The Church is not a matter of right
liturgy and solemn worship if our worship of God is not translated to works of
charity. Indeed, we cannot call ourselves the Church, the People of God,
unless we love all men as Jesus did because the Heavenly Father gives the rain
to all alike. The Church has a preferential option for the poor,
the marginalized and the suffering. It is not enough to keep the celebration of
God’s love to ourselves but we are called to share our joy with others.
Hence, in the first reading, the people were instructed to “go, eat the fat,
drink the sweet wine, and send a portion to the man who has nothing prepared
ready.” The proclamation of the gospel is not just words and doctrines
but a sharing with the poor, the hungry and those in need. The Church
cannot ever neglect her commitment to alleviating suffering in the world in all
its forms. That is why the Church’s works of charity is equal in
importance to the worship of God. Jesus makes it clear that we must love
the Lord with all our heart, soul and strength; and to love our neighbor as
ourselves. The Eucharist we celebrate is the love of God and we must
extend this love in our hearts to our brothers and sisters. For
this reason, we have installed the statue of the homeless Jesus in our garden
to remind us of our obligation towards the poor. In this cathedral too,
we are supplying food to the hungry every Sunday afternoon, and we have
reserved a special fund just to help the poor.
But the poor today are not simply the
materially poor. This might be so in many poor and underdeveloped
countries. In Singapore, we still have those who are materially poor but
the majority are poor in love, poor in meaning and purpose. Many who are
rich and successful live empty, lonely and meaningless lives. Life has no
meaning when we do not have a purpose. When we have made enough money to
see us through in this life, money becomes useless. It is just a
number. How much money do we need for food, clothing, accommodation, transport
and medical care? We cannot take the money with us anywhere. Those
of us who have millions of dollars will never be able to use all of it for
ourselves. They would be left for someone else to use. So many of
us are like Zacchaeus. We are successful and have everything we need and
more. But food and pleasure cannot give us real happiness in life unless
our soul and spirit are quenched. The yearning of the soul and the hunger
of the heart can only be quenched by love, the love of God and love of our neighbours.
Only love that is lasting, God’s love, can fulfill our hunger.
Indeed, for those of us who have found
God like Zacchaeus, our lives would be transformed. Ezra told the people,
“For this day is sacred to our Lord. Do not be sad: the joy of the Lord is your
stronghold.” With the joy of God in our hearts, we need no longer cling
to the things of this world. If our happiness is dependent on just having
pleasure in life, we are no better than an animal. Ultimately, we live
for meaning, and a purpose; not just for this life but for a life beyond.
Only living for something beyond can give us passion and hope beyond this
world. Thus, when Zacchaeus found the Lord, he was so filled with joy,
peace and love because for once, he knew he was loved unconditionally. When
we have love, we no longer cling to earthly things. This is not to say
that money and things are not important but they are no longer ends in
themselves but a means to promote love and joy through our sharing with
others. In turn, we are filled with the joy and love of God.
So as we celebrate this dedication
service today, let us give thanks to God. Let us pay attention to the
Word of God like the Israelites did. When Ezra opened the book “all the
people raised their hands and answered, ‘Amen! Amen!’; then they bowed down
and, face to the ground, prostrated themselves before the Lord.” Let it not be
just an external expression of our faith in God but a commitment to living out
the Word of God in our lives. With the psalmist we say, “Your words are spirit,
Lord, and they are life. The law of the Lord is perfect, it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted; it gives wisdom to the simple. The
precepts of the Lord are right, they gladden the heart. The command of the Lord
is clear; it gives light to the eyes.”
In this way, we are as St Paul says,
“part of a building that has the apostles and prophets for its foundations, and
Christ Jesus himself for its main cornerstone. As every structure is aligned on
him, all grow into one holy temple in the Lord; and you too, in him, are being
built into a house where God lives, in the Spirit.” As we align ourselves
with the Lord and build our lives on Him, we will truly become the living
Temple of God so that through us, others can encounter God in our love and
humble, selfless service to all, regardless of race, language or religion.
Written by The Most
Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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