20170506 DESTROYING THE CHURCH THROUGH COMPROMISES
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 9:31-42 ©
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The churches
throughout Judaea, Galilee and Samaria were now left in peace, building
themselves up, living in the fear of the Lord, and filled with the consolation
of the Holy Spirit.
Peter
visited one place after another and eventually came to the saints living down
in Lydda. There he found a man called Aeneas, a paralytic who had been
bedridden for eight years. Peter said to him, ‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ cures you:
get up and fold up your sleeping mat.’ Aeneas got up immediately; everybody who
lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they were all converted to the Lord.
At Jaffa
there was a woman disciple called Tabitha, or Dorcas in Greek, who never tired
of doing good or giving in charity. But the time came when she got ill and
died, and they washed her and laid her out in a room upstairs. Lydda is not far
from Jaffa, so when the disciples heard that Peter was there, they sent two men
with an urgent message for him, ‘Come and visit us as soon as possible.’
Peter
went back with them straightaway, and on his arrival they took him to the
upstairs room, where all the widows stood round him in tears, showing him
tunics and other clothes Dorcas had made when she was with them. Peter sent
them all out of the room and knelt down and prayed. Then he turned to the dead
woman and said, ‘Tabitha, stand up.’ She opened her eyes, looked at Peter and
sat up. Peter helped her to her feet, then he called in the saints and widows
and showed them she was alive. The whole of Jaffa heard about it and many
believed in the Lord.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
115(116):12-17 ©
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How can I repay
the Lord for his goodness to me?
or
Alleluia!
How can I repay the
Lord
for his
goodness to me?
The cup of salvation
I will raise;
I will
call on the Lord’s name.
How can I repay
the Lord for his goodness to me?
or
Alleluia!
My vows to the Lord I
will fulfil
before
all his people.
O precious in the
eyes of the Lord
is the
death of his faithful.
How can I repay
the Lord for his goodness to me?
or
Alleluia!
Your servant, Lord,
your servant am I;
you have
loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving
sacrifice I make;
I will
call on the Lord’s name.
How can I repay
the Lord for his goodness to me?
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
We know that Christ
is truly risen from the dead:
have mercy on us,
triumphant King.
Alleluia!
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Or
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cf.Jn6:63,68
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your words are
spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message
of eternal life.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 6:60-69 ©
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After hearing his
doctrine many of the followers of Jesus said, ‘This is intolerable language.
How could anyone accept it?’ Jesus was aware that his followers were
complaining about it and said, ‘Does this upset you? What if you should see the
Son of Man ascend to where he was before?
‘It is the spirit
that gives life,
the flesh has nothing
to offer.
The words I have
spoken to you are spirit
and they are life.
‘But there are some
of you who do not believe.’ For Jesus knew from the outset those who did not
believe, and who it was that would betray him. He went on, ‘This is why I told
you that no one could come to me unless the Father allows him.’ After this,
many of his disciples left him and stopped going with him.
Then
Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘What about you, do you want to go away too?’ Simon
Peter answered, ‘Lord, who shall we go to? You have the message of eternal
life, and we believe; we know that you are the Holy One of God.’
DESTROYING
THE CHURCH THROUGH COMPROMISES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [
ACTS 9:31 –
42; PS 115:12-17;
JOHN 6:60 – 69 ]
We can empathize with the Jews after
listening to Jesus’ discourse on the Bread of life. Eating His body and
drinking His blood was something unthinkable for the Jews, for life is sacred
and it belongs to God alone. The book of Leviticus prohibits the
consumption of the blood of anyone, not even animals, much less a human
being. The Lord said, “I will set my face against that person who eats
blood, and will cut him off from among his people. For the life of the flesh is
in the blood.” (Lev 17:10
cf 11-14)
It was certainly against their culture and deep-seated religious beliefs to
accept this teaching from Jesus. They could accept many things Jesus
said, even though it was difficult, but this discourse on the reality of His
body and blood was just too scandalous even to mention. Hence, we read,
“After hearing Jesus, many of his followers said, ‘This is intolerable
language. How could anyone accept it?’ Jesus was aware that his followers were
complaining about it and said, ‘Does this upset you?’”
The truth is that the teachings of Jesus
is not as difficult to understand as it is to accept. The doctrines of
Christian faith, such as the incarnation, the resurrection and the efficacy of
the sacraments, are difficult to accept. The moral teachings of Christ
are even more intimidating. He asked us to go beyond human reasoning like
forgiveness, loving our enemies, the indissolubility of marriage, going the
extra mile in serving the people. In today’s time, it is the definition
of marriage between man and woman, the constitution of a family, bioethics
governing stem cell research that involves the destruction of embryos,
surrogate motherhood, in vitro fertilization and abortion. Many of our
contemporaries find the Church backward, intolerant and demand that we change
our doctrines to suit their wishes so that they can feel more accepted in the
Church. They want the Church to compromise and declare that what was wrong is
now right today.
So it is not surprising that many are
walking out of the Church today. Logically they cannot accept the
arguments of the Church with regard to moral issues. Science has many
different views and people cannot agree on any issue today. Indeed, it is
sad that many with same-sex orientation have left the Church, so too the
divorcees, because they cannot accept the Church’s teaching regarding their
state of life. So people leave the Church for different reasons.
Most leave because they cannot accept the teachings of Christ and the
scriptures. Well, what can we do? Even Jesus could not do
anything. They are free to reject the Lord or to embrace Him in
faith. He said, “But there are some of you who do not believe.’ For Jesus
knew from the outset those who did not believe, and who it was that would
betray him.”
Indeed, in the final analysis, it is not
so much whether we agree on the teachings of Christ and His Church, as to
whether we have faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
St Peter’s faith was firm even though others were scandalized. When the
Lord queried the Twelve, “‘What about you, do you want to go away too?’ Simon
Peter answered, ‘Lord, who shall we go to? You have the message of eternal
life, and we believe; we know that you are the Holy One of God.’” It is
faith in Christ that determines our acceptance of His teachings. Peter’s
loyalty was based on his love and commitment to the Lord. For Peter,
Jesus was everything and so there was no question of finding another one other
than the Lord. There were many things he could not understand but Peter
knew the Lord and he trusted Him. Faith therefore goes beyond
logic. Faith demands a personal relationship. For the love of
someone, we would die for that person, regardless how much we do not understand
him or her. When we love, we are faithful to the person, regardless how
much we disagree with what he or she does. Love helps us to accept the
person, forgive the person, understand the person. This is why we cannot
rationalize when a person falls in love, either with God or with another
person. No amount of logic can change the person’s mind because the heart
is with the other.
Hence, faith needs the grace of God, just
like love. We fall in love without reason. This is what the Lord
says, “’This is why I told you that no one could come to me unless the Father
allows him’. After this, many of his disciples left him and stopped going with
him.” The truth is that the Lord is drawing us to Him in many
ways. The question is whether we are docile, humble and receptive to His
grace that is given to us. There are signs of His identity as the Son of
the Living God.
The primary sign is the resurrection of
our Lord. This fact is attested by more than 500 of the disciples
of Christ who had seen Him after His death. St Paul wrote, “For I delivered to
you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins
in accordance with the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on
the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to
Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brethren
at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then
he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely
born, he appeared also to me.” (1 Cor 15:3-8) This
is the ultimate claim of Jesus because no one can rise from the dead, least of
all, a sinner and a condemned criminal. This glorification of Himself after His
death was foreshadowed by the Lord when He challenged them, “What if you should
see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before?” Both the resurrection
and the ascension portray the glorification of Jesus and His return to His
former glory, which is that of the Eternal Son of the Father, the Second Person
of the Holy Trinity.
But for us who have not seen Him
personally, there is still another way to verify His resurrection through the
miracles that the early Church performed in the name of Jesus and in the power
of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, we read of St Peter performing two miracles
in the first reading. He healed Aeneas of his paralysis. He
was “bedridden for eight years. Peter said to him, ‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ cures
you: get up and fold up your sleeping mat’. Aeneas got up immediately;
everybody who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they were all converted to
the Lord.” It is significant that Peter never said, “I heal you or simply
get up!” But he healed in the name of the Risen Lord and in the power of
the Holy Spirit. This too was the usual way the apostles worked miracles,
always in Jesus’ name and not on their own strength. So, too, in the
raising of Dorcas. We read that “Peter sent them all out of the room and
knelt down and prayed. Then he turned to the dead woman and said, ‘Tabitha,
stand up’. She opened her eyes, looked at Peter and sat up. Peter helped her to
her feet, then he called in the saints and widows and showed them she was
alive.” All miracles are performed through prayers invoking the name of the
Risen Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit. When we give ourselves to
the Lord and believe in His power, He can do great things in and through us.
Consequently, being renewed in the Holy
Spirit is another concrete way of encountering the Risen Lord, for Jesus said,
“It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh has nothing to offer. The words I
have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” Indeed, that was how
the early Church grew. We read that “the churches throughout Judaea,
Galilee and Samaria were now left in peace, building themselves up, living in
the fear of the Lord, and filled with the consolation of the Holy Spirit.”
We too must rely on the power of God and the grace of the Holy
Spirit. Living “in the fear of the Lord”, that is living a righteous life
and in reverence for His name is the way by which we can stand firm in the
midst of changing times and false compromises in the truths. We must not fall
into the trap of the dictatorship of relativism but hold fast to the teachings
of our Lord found in the scriptures and taught by the Church’s magisterium.
This is the only adequate response to
such a great love that the Lord has shown to us. With the psalmist we say, “How
can I repay the Lord for his goodness to me? The cup of salvation I will raise;
I will call on the Lord’s name. My vows to the Lord I will
fulfil before all his people. O precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death
of his faithful. Your servant, Lord, your servant am I; you have
loosened my bonds. A thanksgiving sacrifice I make; I will call on the
Lord’s name.” Our thanksgiving sacrifice is to be faithful to His Word
till the end.
Written by The Most
Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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