20170518 ALL EMBRACING GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 15:7-21 ©
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After the discussion
had gone on a long time, Peter stood up and addressed the apostles and the
elders.
‘My
brothers,’ he said ‘you know perfectly well that in the early days God made his
choice among you: the pagans were to learn the Good News from me and so become
believers. In fact God, who can read everyone’s heart, showed his approval of
them by giving the Holy Spirit to them just as he had to us. God made no
distinction between them and us, since he purified their hearts by faith. It
would only provoke God’s anger now, surely, if you imposed on the disciples the
very burden that neither we nor our ancestors were strong enough to support?
Remember, we believe that we are saved in the same way as they are: through the
grace of the Lord Jesus.’
This
silenced the entire assembly, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul describing
the signs and wonders God had worked through them among the pagans.
When they
had finished it was James who spoke. ‘My brothers,’ he said ‘listen to me.
Simeon has described how God first arranged to enlist a people for his name out
of the pagans. This is entirely in harmony with the words of the prophets,
since the scriptures say:
After that I shall
return
and rebuild the
fallen House of David;
I shall rebuild it
from its ruins
and restore it.
Then the rest of
mankind,
all the pagans who
are consecrated to my name,
will look for the
Lord,
says the Lord who
made this known so long ago.
‘I rule, then, that
instead of making things more difficult for pagans who turn to God, we send
them a letter telling them merely to abstain from anything polluted by idols,
from fornication, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses
has always had his preachers in every town, and is read aloud in the synagogues
every sabbath.’
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
95(96):1-3,10 ©
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Proclaim the
wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
O sing a new song to
the Lord,
sing to
the Lord all the earth.
O sing to
the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim the
wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
Proclaim his help day
by day,
tell
among the nations his glory
and his
wonders among all the peoples.
Proclaim the
wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
Proclaim to the
nations: ‘God is king.’
The world
he made firm in its place;
he will
judge the peoples in fairness.
Proclaim the
wonders of the Lord among all the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ has risen, he
who created all things,
and has granted his
mercy to men.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Jn10:27
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The sheep that belong
to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they
follow me.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 15:9-11 ©
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Jesus said to his
disciples:
‘As the Father has
loved me,
so I have loved you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my
commandments
you will remain in my
love,
just as I have kept
my Father’s commandments
and remain in his
love.
I have told you this
so that my own joy
may be in you
and your joy be
complete.’
ALL
EMBRACING GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [
ACTS 15:7-21; PS 95:1-3,10; JOHN 15:9-11 ]
In any institution, society, culture or
religion, there are always established laws and traditions to guide the
community to live harmoniously. These laws could be fundamental universal
principles of life and love or specific guidelines pertaining to the common
good of a particular community, whereas customs refer to the way the values of
the community are mediated through signs and symbols. Whilst such
laws and traditions are good and necessary, they can also restrict our openness
to new developments. This was the case of the primitive Church struggling
to be faithful to the commandments of Jesus and yet faithful to their Jewish
traditions and customs. It is never easy when we have been so used
to a certain mindset, perspective, and presuppositions to think differently and
see things from a new light. The truth is that like them, our past
experiences, upbringing and conditioning have made us resistant to new
experiences and new challenges. We cannot break out of our narrow
perspective of understanding the will of God.
This is where we have forgotten about the
primacy of grace. We must never forget that where we are today is the
result of the grace of God. The forgetfulness of the Jews with regard to
their origin was the cause of their inability to think out of the box and to
see the new developments in a positive light. In the first place,
the Israelites were chosen by God to be His people purely by grace, not by
their efforts. They were elected by God to be His Chosen People although
they were slaves. Election is the free gift of God, not by
merit. To form them into a nation and a people, God gave them the
laws through Moses to guide them so that they could live in harmony with each
other and relate with the poor and the stranger. Those laws and customs were
necessary to preserve the community together.
What was done for the Israelites is
precisely what the Lord is doing now for the Gentiles. The Israelites
were chosen not for themselves but to bring the whole world back to God.
Quoting partially from Amos 9:11f,
St James explained to his brothers the prophesied entry of the Gentiles into
the Church. He said, “Simeon has described how God first arranged to
enlist a people for his name out of the pagans. This is entirely in
harmony with the words of the prophets, since the scriptures say: After that I
shall return and rebuild the fallen House of David; I shall rebuild it from its
ruins and restore it. Then the rest of mankind, all the pagans who are consecrated
to my name, will look for the Lord, says the Lord who made this known so long
ago.”
This calling of the Gentiles into the
Church was also an act of grace. God wanted to complete the work of
redemption by extending the salvation He gave to the Jews to all the
nations. This explains why at Pentecost all the nations were gathered in
Jerusalem. “Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in
Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered,
because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.” (Acts 2:5f) This was
effectively carried out by the inclusion of Cornelius, his relatives and
friends when they received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues even before
they were baptized. (Acts 10:44-46) In
other words, they received the same gift of the Holy Spirit outside the laws
and customs of the Christian community. This made St Peter remark, “Can
anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy
Spirit just as we have?” (Acts 10:47) The
answer is obvious. Who can prevent the Holy Spirit from acting, blowing
and filling where He likes? The grace of God is beyond human
control. In the New Covenant, the Holy Spirit dispensed the Gentiles from
observing the dietary laws of the Jews and the requirement of circumcision in
order to belong to the People of God. It was valid then when Israel was
forming itself to be a nation but not now.
This precisely was the basis of Peter’s
argument for accepting the Gentiles into the Church without requiring them to
observe the Jewish laws and customs. He said, “God, who can read
everyone’s heart, showed his approval of them by giving the Holy Spirit to them
just as he had to us. God made no distinction between them and us, since
he purified their hearts by faith. It would only provoke God’s anger now,
surely, if you imposed on the disciples the very burden that neither we nor our
ancestors were strong enough to support? Remember, we believe that we are
saved in the same way as they are: through the grace of the Lord Jesus.”
The Holy Spirit cannot be constrained by laws. Jesus said to the
Nicodemus, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but
you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone
who is born of the Spirit.” (Jn 3:8)
As such, Peter “ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.”
(Acts 10:48)
We too must be open to the workings of
the Holy Spirit and rely on grace alone. To be open to grace is to be
open to new ways of allowing the Spirit to work beyond the narrow confines of
the institution. God is stretching us to think out of the box. He
wants to give us new opportunities for growth. What was given in the past
was meant for the people in their days. Some of the specific laws
and customs were valid according to their circumstances and time.
Absolute and universal laws are the only laws that do not change with time.
Otherwise, we need to make a distinction between cultural laws and fundamental
laws. The former can change with time since culture evolves. But
primary laws are the same at any place, epoch and situation. So we must
be courageous in seeing new challenges as stepping stones to grow and expand.
If there is one unchanging law for all,
it is the law of love. Jesus said to His disciples, “As the Father has
loved me, so I have loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my
commandments you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s
commandments and remain in his love.” All other laws are applications of
the one law of love of God and of neighbor. There is no need to add
unnecessary burdens to believers as the early Church came to realize.
This is no denying that commandments and laws are needed for any
community. But love is always dynamic and creative. Love adapts to
new circumstances. All other specific laws must serve the one law of
love. The laws should give concrete directions on how to act for
both the individual and the community. Even the Church updates her
Canonical Laws when they are outdated and no longer serve justice.
It is this same love that calls also for
sensitivity and mutual respect. It is significant that the ruling of the
Council was reduced to the barest minimum. “I rule, then, that instead of
making things more difficult for pagans who turn to God, we send them a letter
telling them merely to abstain from anything polluted by idols, from
fornication, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses
has always had his preachers in every town, and is read aloud in the synagogues
every Sabbath.” So it was not a question of right or wrong but out of
respect and sensitivity to the Jewish Christians who were steeped in the Jewish
tradition and the Mosaic Laws. Life is not a matter of right or wrong, or
even of logic, but of the heart and human sentiment. So the Gentile
Christians were asked to respect the customs of the Jewish Christians at least
in what were held to be scandalous for them, like eating blood of animals, or
food offered to idols, or blood marriage.
Indeed, today, we are called to imitate
the love that exists between the Father and Jesus. Love is always receptive,
open and accommodating. It is this mutual love between the Father and the
Son that causes them to always exist for each other and in each other.
This is the joy Jesus comes to give us. He wants us to share the joy of
His love with His Father as well. By entering into His all-embracing
love, we too can be gracious towards others, not exclusive but inclusive; not
demanding but accommodating, not inward-looking but always reaching out.
With the Holy Spirit, we can embrace all of humanity in love.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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