20170810
LIVING OUT THE EUCHARIST IN A LIFE OF CHARITY
AND SELF-SACRIFICE
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Red.
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First reading
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2 Corinthians 9:6-10 ©
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Do not forget: thin sowing means thin reaping; the more you sow,
the more you reap. Each one should give what he has decided in his own mind,
not grudgingly or because he is made to, for God loves a cheerful
giver. And there is no limit to the blessings which God can send
you – he will make sure that you will always have all you need for
yourselves in every possible circumstance, and still have something to spare
for all sorts of good works. As scripture says: He was free in
almsgiving, and gave to the poor: his good deeds will never be forgotten.
The one who
provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide you with all the
seed you want and make the harvest of your good deeds a larger one.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 111(112):1-2,5-9 ©
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Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
Happy the man who fears the Lord,
who takes delight in all his commands.
His sons will be powerful on earth;
the children of the upright are blessed.
Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
The good man takes pity and lends,
he conducts his affairs with honour.
The just man will never waver:
he will be remembered for ever.
Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
He has no fear of evil news;
with a firm heart he trusts in the Lord.
With a steadfast heart he will not fear;
he will see the downfall of his foes.
Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
Open-handed, he gives to the poor;
his justice stands firm for ever.
His head will be raised in glory.
Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jn8:12bc
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
anyone who follows me will have the light of life.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 12:24-26 ©
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Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I tell you, most solemnly,
unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies,
it remains only a single grain;
but if it dies,
it yields a rich harvest.
Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world
will keep it for the eternal life.
If a man serves me, he must follow me,
wherever I am, my servant will be there too.
If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.’
LIVING OUT THE EUCHARIST IN A LIFE OF CHARITY AND SELF-SACRIFICE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 2 COR 9:6-10; JN 12:24-26 ]
Today we
celebrate the Feast of St Lawrence, deacon and martyr. That today’s
celebration is accorded a second class feast which is normally reserved for
Mary and the apostles means that the Church wants to give due importance to St
Lawrence. It is therefore imperative for us to understand the mind of the
Church if we want to reap the fruits from today’s commemoration. Perhaps,
the importance of St Lawrence lies in the fact that he has imitated Christ both
in his life and in his death. But more importantly, it is his living
out the Eucharist that gives significance to this feast.
Indeed, we are
told that when St Lawrence was the administrator of the Church of Rome under
Pope Sixtus II, the Emperor Valerian was then persecuting the Church.
Soon after the Pope was martyred, Lawrence was called before the prefect of
Rome. He was ordered to hand over all the treasures of the Church to
Rome. Without any resistance, Lawrence asked leave from the Prefect for a
few days to collect the treasures. On that appointed day, he appeared
before the Prefect bringing with him the “treasures” that he has
gathered. He told the Prefect, “Here are the treasures of the Church,
the poor people of Rome.” The prefect was incensed and had him
grilled. Legend says that when he was half-way through being grilled, he
light-heartedly requested that he be turned over as one side was already well
done.
Where did St
Lawrence get the strength to love the poor in Christ in such a manner? The truth is that
Lawrence truly understood the relationship between the Eucharist and the body
of Christ. He did not simply celebrate the Eucharist but he lived it out in his
commitment to the poor. He knows that the body of Christ is not just the
Eucharist that we receive but the Church. He would have remembered the words
of Jesus in the gospel “Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of
the least of these, you did not do for me.” (Mt 25:45)
More than that, he was even willing to die for the poor. Lawrence lived
out today’s gospel passage totally. Like the wheat grain, he died and
yielded a rich harvest. He knew that to serve Jesus is to follow Him even
to the cross.
All of us too
are called to serve the poor. Of course, there are different kinds of poverty.
There is no one who is not poor. We can be poor in wealth, in health, in
virtues, in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Most of all, we are poor in
different degrees when it comes to forgiving, not just those who hurt us but
ourselves as well. Following the example of St Lawrence, we are called to
serve the poor, in reaching out and caring for them, and the poorest people
today are those who lack love in their lives.
So how
can we be servants of the poor? The apostles said, “It would
not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait
on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are
known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility
over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the
word.” (Acts 6:2-4)
Lay people like the deacons, are appointed to help the priests attend to the
administration of the Church and serve the physically and materially
poor. But whether as priests, deacons or lay, we share the same mission
of serving the poor in Christ, each in his own particular way. The Good
News cannot be proclaimed merely in words but more importantly in deeds.
Unfortunately, very
often, in serving the poor, we lack the generosity and commitment of St
Lawrence. This lack of capacity to give to the poor is due to our
lack of personal relationship with the Lord. If we do not produce the
fruits of the Spirit as mentioned by St Paul (Gal 5:22),
it is simply because we do not love nor understand the Eucharist
sufficiently. We have forgotten the link between the Eucharist and the
poor. We do not produce the fruits of the Eucharist in our daily life. We
are grudging and calculative when it comes to serving the Church, our friends
and even our loved ones. If we cannot even love selflessly our loved
ones, how we can expect to love others who are strangers. We are not
willing to sacrifice ourselves for the good of others. We fail to put
others first before ourselves. At most, we perform our duties
perfunctorily and reluctantly. Such kind of service is counter-witnessing.
Have you ever
wondered why at every mass, practically the whole congregation receives
communion and yet we do not see them living a life of charity and selfless
service? Some even spend time adoring the Lord in the Eucharist but yet
produce no fruits with respect to a life of integrity, compassion and
service. If we do pray and receive the Eucharist daily and yet do
not manifest the fruits, it could be because it has become a ritual and a
routine. We fail to enter deeply into the Eucharistic
celebration. Only those who contemplate deeply the life of our Lord in
the Eucharist, which is a memorial of His passion, death and resurrection, will
be able to love at all times, in good and bad. That is why Church
organizations and movements must always bear in mind not to measure its success
in terms of the number of visitors it attracts to its programmes and
services. Whilst prayers and retreats are absolutely necessary and are
the foundation of all our activities, it is only a means to cultivate love and
compassion in our lives. When there is no longer joy in service, it means
love is lacking. And when love is lacking, it is because Christ is not
present in our hearts. When love is lacking, we become bureaucratic in
relating with each other. The only organization that will last and
attract more members is when love, compassion, selfless and humble service is
lived out.
Furthermore,
it is not sufficient to simply serve and help others, especially the poor. St Paul reminds us
that “each one should give what he has decided in his own mind, not grudgingly
or because he is made to, for God loves a cheerful giver.” In other
words, we must give from a right motive. To give in order to
receive is not true giving. We give simply because we see Christ in the
person. In giving too, what counts is not the amount we give but the
extent of the sacrifice. If the gift we give is only that of the widow’s
mite, it would be considered a great blessing. For at the end of the day,
it is the capacity to sacrifice, to give from our hearts that will transform us
into the heart of God.
As we give
ourselves to others, we find ourselves. This is the paradox of dying
to self. As Jesus assured us, “I tell you most solemnly, unless a wheat
grain falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it
dies, it yields a rich harvest. Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for the eternal
life.” Indeed, when we give, not only does He give us more happiness,
but He also gives us a greater capacity to love. This experience of the joy of
giving is aptly summed up by St Paul. “And there is no limit to the blessings
which God can send you – he will make sure that you will always have all you
need for yourselves in every possible circumstance, and still have something to
spare for all sorts of good works. As scripture says: He was free in
almsgiving, and gave to the poor: his good deeds will never be forgotten. The
one who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide you with
all the seed you want and make the harvest of your good deeds a larger one.”
In the plan of
God, life is not a matter of receiving and acquiring. It is
one of giving. The more we give of ourselves to others, the more we find
ourselves in Him. Any gift we have must be spent on others because we are
only stewards of God’s gifts. The fact that we cannot bring along our
wealth and talents at death shows that whatever resources we have belong to the
Father. So whatever gifts one has received, one must give them away.
St Paul urges us, “We have different gifts, according to the grace given
to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with
your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then
teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving,
then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show
mercy, do it cheerfully.” (Rom 12:6-8)
So let us pray
as we celebrate the Feast of St Lawrence that we come to a deeper appreciation
of the Eucharist and the love of Christ so that we can live it out in our daily
life. Like St Lawrence, we will find the strength and love to die to self
because this strength no longer comes from us but from Christ who dwells in our
hearts in the Holy Spirit. In this way, we reap eternal life for
ourselves since we share in Christ’s divine life; and we bring life to others
as well.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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