20170807
OVERWHELMED BY THE
BURDENS OF LOVE
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Numbers 11:4-15 ©
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The sons of Israel began to wail, ‘Who will give us meat to eat?’
they said. ‘Think of the fish we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers,
melons, leeks, onions and garlic! Here we are wasting away, stripped of
everything; there is nothing but manna for us to look at!’
The manna
was like coriander seed, and had the appearance of bdellium. The people went
round gathering it, and ground it in a mill or crushed it with a pestle; it was
then cooked in a pot and made into pancakes. It tasted like cake made with oil.
When the dew fell on the camp at night-time, the manna fell with it.
Moses heard
the people wailing, every family at the door of its tent. The anger of the Lord
flared out, and Moses greatly worried over this. And he spoke to the Lord:
‘Why do you
treat your servant so badly? Why have I not found favour with you, so that you
load on me the weight of all this nation? Was it I who conceived all this
people, was it I who gave them birth, that you should say to me, “Carry them in
your bosom, like a nurse with a baby at the breast, to the land that I swore to
give their fathers”? Where am I to find meat to give to all this people, when
they come worrying me so tearfully and say, “Give us meat to eat”? I am not
able to carry this nation by myself alone; the weight is too much for me. If
this is how you want to deal with me, I would rather you killed me! If only I
had found favour in your eyes, and not lived to see such misery as this!’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 80(81):12-17 ©
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Ring out your joy to God our strength.
My people did not heed my voice
and Israel would not obey,
so I left them in their stubbornness of heart
to follow their own designs.
Ring out your joy to God our strength.
O that my people would heed me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!
At once I would subdue their foes,
turn my hand against their enemies.
Ring out your joy to God our strength.
The Lord’s enemies would cringe at their feet
and their subjection would last for ever.
But Israel I would feed with finest wheat
and fill them with honey from the rock.
Ring out your joy to God our strength.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jn14:6
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Mt4:4
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Man does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Matthew 14:13-21 ©
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When Jesus received the news of John the Baptist’s death he
withdrew by boat to a lonely place where they could be by themselves. But the
people heard of this and, leaving the towns, went after him on foot. So as he
stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them and healed their
sick.
When evening
came, the disciples went to him and said, ‘This is a lonely place, and the time
has slipped by; so send the people away, and they can go to the villages to buy
themselves some food.’ Jesus replied, ‘There is no need for them to go: give
them something to eat yourselves.’ But they answered ‘All we have with us is
five loaves and two fish.’ ‘Bring them here to me’ he said. He gave orders that
the people were to sit down on the grass; then he took the five loaves and the
two fish, raised his eyes to heaven and said the blessing. And breaking the
loaves handed them to his disciples who gave them to the crowds. They all ate
as much as they wanted, and they collected the scraps remaining; twelve baskets
full. Those who ate numbered about five thousand men, to say nothing of women
and children.
OVERWHELMED BY THE BURDENS OF LOVE
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ NUM 11:4-15; PS 81:12-17; MT 14:22-36 ]
We can easily identify with the sons of Israel when they lamented,
complained and bemoaned of a better life they had in Egypt.
What is the use of freedom when our stomach is hungry? This was what they
said. “Who will give us meat to eat? Think of the fish we used to eat free in
Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic! Here we are wasting
away, stripped of everything; there is nothing but manna for us to look at!”
Moses felt the burden of leadership. He was sandwiched between God
and his people. On one hand, he felt the
hardship with his people. It was not easy to survive in the desert
because water and food were lacking. On the other hand, he knew that if
the people were to continue grumbling, God would not be happy, for He brought
them out of Egypt because He heard their cries under the harsh treatment of
Pharaoh. He led them out of Egypt to the Promised Land, where milk and
honey flowed. Torn between God and His people, Moses felt
devastated.
Oftentimes, we too feel the same overwhelming burden of
responsibilities. Parents are exasperated with
their children because they work hard to provide for their needs but their
children are never contented and not cooperating by studying hard and helping
out in the house. Children are not happy with their parents because they
feel they do not have enough material things and freedom to do whatever they
want. Looking after the sick and elderly can be very trying for us too,
because it seems we can never please them enough. They are always unhappy
over this and that. They are stubborn and want things their way.
They do not acknowledge that they need help. It is the same for
those in priestly and religious life. No matter how much we sacrifices we
make, it is never enough for the people. They have nothing but demands
and when these are not met, they complain and criticize. It is very
difficult to satisfy the needs of everyone.
Like Moses, we are also tempted to give up in such a situation. We
are tired of being parents, superiors and caregivers.
Like Moses, we say to the Lord, “Was it I who conceived all this people, was it
I who gave them birth, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom,
like a nurse with a baby at the breast, to the land that I swore to give their
fathers?’” This is what we say as well, “Why should I give myself to the
Church when all I get are these uncalled for complaints and criticisms?”
Or sometimes, parents regret having children, saying, “Why did I give birth to
them?” Children would say, “Why did you bring me into this world to
suffer? I never asked to be born! So it is your duty to look after
my needs.” In our frustration, we too would say what Moses said to the
Lord, “Why do you treat your servant so badly? Why have I not found favour with
you, so that you load on me the weight of all this nation? If this is how you
want to deal with me, I would rather you killed me! If only I had found
favour in your eyes, and not lived to see such misery as this!” Have we
not said this many times to the Lord, “Let me die quickly! I am very tired of
this life!” How can we provide them all that they ask for?
Truly, by our own strength we cannot do all this! We cannot meet their
needs.
If we feel so overwhelmed by the trials of leadership and
responsibilities, we need to learn from Jesus how to deal with such a
situation. We read that Jesus too was overwhelmed by
the challenges in His ministry. When “Jesus heard of the death of John
the Baptist”, He knew that He had to withdraw to consider the implications of
the death of His cousin. He too would have to share the same fate as his
cousin and the prophets if He were to continue with His mission. Whilst
dealing with His grief, and the precarious dangers ahead of Him, He had also to
deal with a crowd that was hungry for spiritual and physical food. He
wanted to withdraw “to a lonely place where they could be by themselves.
But the people heard of this and, leaving the towns, went after him on
foot. So as he stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on
them and heeled their sick.” He did not even have time to find rest for
Himself or to deal with His grief or take stock of His mission. But there
were so many who needed Him. Indeed, when “they came to land at
Genesaret”, they “took all that were sick to him, begging him just to let them
touch the fringe of his cloak. And all those who touched it were completely
cured.” Such was the overwhelming demands made on the Lord.
But He was able to remain calm and composed.
What was Jesus’ secret to remaining calm and composed? He spent
time in prayer. We read that “after sending the
crowds away he went up into the hills by himself to pray.” It was His
constant communion with the Father that gave Him strength to carry on the
burdens of the people. Prayer had always been the constant source of
Jesus’ strength. His intimacy with the Father, the assurance of His love
for Him gave Jesus the courage to continue giving Himself selflessly and
generously to the people. Otherwise, He too would have given up carrying
such burdens for others, just like any of us.
Indeed, we cannot rely on our own strength to do God’s work! This
was the mistake of Moses for he said, “Where am I to find
meat to give to all this people, when they come worrying me so tearfully and
say, “Give us meat to eat”? I am not able to carry this nation by myself alone;
the weight is too much for me.” This was the same question that the
apostle asked Jesus when He told them to feed the five thousand. “But they
answered, ‘All we have with us is five loaves and two fish.’” But Jesus
did not rely on His own strength. He prayed for divine assistance. “He took
the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven and said the
blessing. And breaking the loaves he handed them to his disciples who
gave them to the crowds. They all ate as much as they wanted, and they
collected the scraps remaining, twelve baskets full.”
We too must learn from Jesus. God is always with us as He was with
Jesus. He never leaves us alone. This was what happened to the
apostles. Without Jesus, they panicked when the storm set in. We read
that “the boat, by now out on the lake, was battling with a heavy sea, for
there was a head-wind. In the fourth watch of the night he went towards
them, walking on the lake, and when the disciples saw him on the lake they were
terrified. ‘It is a ghost’ they said, and cried out in fear.” In
the storms of our life, we might not be able to see Jesus, but He is there in
our midst. He is not a ghost or just a figment of our imagination. He is
really with us. “At once Jesus called out to them, saying, ‘Courage! It
is I! Do not be afraid.’”
We must come to Him for strength. Jesus is always there for us if
we come to Him. That was what Peter did. He said,
“Lord, if it is you, tell me to come to you across the water.” And Jesus
said, “Come.” “Then Peter got out of the boat and started to walk towards
Jesus across the water, but as soon as he felt the force of the wind, he took
fright and began to sink. ‘Lord! Save me!’ he cried.” Like
Peter, we must come to the Lord to seek assistance. He promised us the
strength and the grace to accomplish His task but along the way we doubt His
love and His presence. “Jesus put out his hand at once and held
him. ‘Man of little faith,’ he said ‘why did you doubt?’” Truly, we
should never doubt the presence of Jesus who is with us in our trials. He
is holding us by our hands and pulling us up when we are sinking. We only
need to cry out to Jesus as Peter did in times of fear and discouragement,
“Lord, save me!” “And as they got into the boat the wind dropped.
The men in the boat bowed down before him and said, ‘Truly, you are the Son of
God.’”
Truly with the psalmist, we can rely on the Lord. The responsorial
psalm invites us, “Ring out your joy to God our strength.” When
God is our strength, we will find joy in our struggles because we know we will
overcome. We just have to obey the Lord and walk in His ways. “O
that my people would heed me, that Israel would walk in my ways! At once
I would subdue their foes, turn my hand against their enemies. The Lord’s
enemies would cringe at their feet and their subjection would last forever. But
Israel I would feed with finest wheat and fill them with honey from the
rock.” So we need not fear if only we continue to walk in His ways and
not follow ours. “My people did not heed my voice and Israel would not obey, so
I left them in their stubbornness of heart to follow their own designs.”
If we do not follow His ways, we will only destroy ourselves.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh,
Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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