20170815
THE TRIUMPHANT CHURCH IN THE FACE OF
PERSECUTION
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First reading
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Apocalypse 11:19,12:1-6,10 ©
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The sanctuary of God in heaven opened and the ark of the covenant
could be seen inside it. Then came flashes of lightning, peals of thunder and
an earthquake, and violent hail.
Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman, adorned
with the sun, standing on the moon, and with the twelve stars on her head for a
crown. She was pregnant, and in labour, crying aloud in the pangs of
childbirth. Then a second sign appeared in the sky, a huge red dragon which had
seven heads and ten horns, and each of the seven heads crowned with a coronet.
Its tail dragged a third of the stars from the sky and dropped them to the
earth, and the dragon stopped in front of the woman as she was having the
child, so that he could eat it as soon as it was born from its mother. The
woman brought a male child into the world, the son who was to rule all the
nations with an iron sceptre, and the child was taken straight up to God and to
his throne, while the woman escaped into the desert, where God had made a place
of safety ready, for her to be looked after in the twelve hundred and sixty
days.
Then I heard a voice shout from heaven, ‘Victory and
power and empire for ever have been won by our God, and all authority for his
Christ, now that the persecutor, who accused our brothers day and night before
our God, has been brought down.’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 44(45):10-12,16 ©
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On your right stands the queen, in garments of
gold.
The daughters of kings are among your loved ones.
On your right stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
Listen, O daughter, give ear to my words:
forget your own people and your father’s house.
On your right stands the queen, in garments of
gold.
So will the king desire your beauty:
He is your lord, pay homage to him.
They are escorted amid gladness and joy;
they pass within the palace of the king.
On your right stands the queen, in garments of
gold.
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Second reading
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1 Corinthians 15:20-26 ©
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Christ has been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all who
have fallen asleep. Death came through one man and in the same way the
resurrection of the dead has come through one man. Just as all men die in Adam,
so all men will be brought to life in Christ; but all of them in their proper
order: Christ as the first-fruits and then, after the coming of Christ, those
who belong to him. After that will come the end, when he hands over the kingdom
to God the Father, having done away with every sovereignty, authority and
power. For he must be king until he has put all his enemies under his feet and
the last of the enemies to be destroyed is death, for everything is to be put
under his feet.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Mary has been taken up to heaven;
all the choirs of angels are rejoicing.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 1:39-56 ©
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Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the
hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth.
Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and
Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of
all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why
should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment
your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed
is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’
And Mary
said:
‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour;
because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.
He has shown the power of his arm,
he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the
lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty
away.
He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his
mercy
– according to the promise he made to our ancestors –
of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back
home.
THE TRIUMPHANT CHURCH IN THE FACE OF PERSECUTION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ REV 11:19; 12:1-6.10; PS 45:10-12,16; 1 COR 15:20-26; LK 1:39-56 ]
In the first
reading from the book of Revelation, St John was writing to a Church that was
under severe persecution from the Roman Empire. Many Christians had to
suffer persecution, some even martyrdom for their faith. But yet, the
message of the Book of Revelation is that despite all the conflicts and wars,
Christ and the Christians would triumph in the end. The righteous would
be rewarded and evil condemned. So it is a book of hope and
encouragement even for us who are under siege by the secular world today.
Today, the situation is not much different because we are also under trying
circumstances because of the hostility of the secular world with
Christianity. The world is becoming more hostile to the gospel and
anything that is Christian, especially in the Western world. Christianity
is seen as an obstacle to freedom and life.
It is within
this context that we celebrate the feast of the Assumption. This feast is meant to give
hope to us all who are pilgrims along the way. The celebration is to give
us a foretaste of what is to come at the end of time. Mary’s assumption
into heaven is but the fulfillment of the victory won by Christ’s death and
resurrection. In the second reading, we read of Christ’s victory over sin
and death. “Christ has been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all
who have fallen asleep. Death came through one man and in the same way the
resurrection of the dead has come through one man. Just as all men died in
Adam, so all men will be brought to life in Christ; but all of them in their
proper order: Christ as the first-fruits and then, after the coming of Christ,
those who belong to him.”
But this
victory over sin and death is not just for Christ alone. It is for us all at
the end of time. “After that will come the end, when he hands over the
kingdom to God the Father, having done away with every sovereignty, authority
and power. For he must be king until he has put all his enemies under his feet
and the last of the enemies to be destroyed is death, for everything is to be
put under his feet – though when it is said that everything is subjected, this
clearly cannot include the One who subjected everything to him.”
Indeed, Christ will ultimately triumph in the end. So we must not fear
even when things do not seem right for the Church and we are facing all kinds
of challenges from within and without.
The Church
suffers from many imperfections and persecution. The woman in the first
reading is a symbol of the mother Church. Like the woman who was under
persecution, the Church also suffers hostility from those who consider us as
enemies. “Then a second sign appeared in the sky, a huge red dragon which had seven
heads and ten horns, and each of the seven heads crowned with a coronet. Its
tail dragged a third of the stars from the sky and dropped them to the earth,
and the dragon stopped in front of the woman as she was having the child, so
that he could eat it as soon as it was born from its mother.” In other
words, both the Church and Christ who was born of the People of God are
constantly under threat and intimidation.
But the
Church would be victorious at the end. This is what the first
reading from the Book of Revelation wants to assure us. God will somehow
protect His Church from the snares of the Evil One. “The woman brought a male
child into the world, the son who was to rule all the nations with an iron
scepter, and the child was taken straight up to God and to his throne, while
the woman escaped into the desert, where God had made a place of safety
ready.” This text refers to the victory of Christ over death when
He was raised from the dead and glorified in heaven. At the same
time, the Church, in spite of being under threat, remained protected by
God. However, eventually, the Church will triumph over evil. “Then
I heard a voice shout from heaven, Victory and power and empire for ever have
been won by our God and all authority for his Christ.
What, then,
is the basis of this certainty of a definite victory, if not the anticipated
victory won by Mary for us in her assumption? The woman in the first
reading refers not just to the Mother Church but also to Mary herself because
she is the one who gave birth to the messiah as mentioned. The word
“woman” stands both for Mary and the Church. She is the one whom God has
kept safe from the attacks of the Evil One. “The woman escaped into the
desert, where God had made a place of safety ready.” In other words, Mary
was saved from corruption and was glorified upon her death, as tradition and
dogma explains it. What we are to receive at the end of time is the
resurrection of the body, just as Mary was glorified in both body and soul at
the end of her life. She was given the reward of victory over sin
as an anticipation of our own reward. She is indeed the Blessed One, as
Elizabeth declared. “Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed
is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the
mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in
my womb leapt for joy.”
Hence, she is
portrayed as the Woman adorned with the Sun with the Seven Stars as her
footstool. “Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman, adorned with the
sun, standing on the moon, and with the twelve stars on her head for a
crown.” It is the picture of beauty and grace. In the book of
Solomon, the beloved is described as being fair as the moon and clear as the
sun. (Songs 6:10) Mary certainly fits that image because of her
holiness and her dignity as the mother of the savior. Certainly, she
deserves to share in Christ’s victory and the splendour of His resurrection
because of her close association with the sufferings and passion of
Christ. The responsorial psalm sings of the beloved of the Messiah.
“On your right stands the queen, in garments of gold. The daughters of kings
are among your loved ones. On your right stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
Listen, O daughter, give ear to my words: forget your own people and your
father’s house. So will the king desire your beauty. He is your lord, pay
homage to him. They are escorted amid gladness and joy; they pass within the
palace of the king.” If the saints share in Christ’s victory, having been
bathed in the blood of the lamb, now wearing white and carrying palms in their
hands, more so for Mary. “After this I looked, and there was a great
multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and
peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in
white, with palm branches in their hands.” (Rev 7:9)
How, then,
can we share in Mary’s victory over sin and death? We need to have the
faith of Mary to allow God to do the impossible. This was what Elizabeth said
of Mary. “Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by
the Lord would be fulfilled.” Mary did not hesitate to say “Yes” to the
Lord in spite of all the different voices discouraging her. She did not
know how God would make use of her for the salvation of humanity and how she
could be the mother of the saviour. In faith, she said “Yes” to His
divine will and then responded as best as she could according to the unfolding
of events. She lived by faith and in faith.
She knew her
greatness comes from God; not from her. “Yes, from this day forward all
generations will call me blessed, for the Almighty has done great things for
me. Holy is his name, and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear
him. He has shown the power of his arm, he has routed the proud of heart. He
has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly. The hungry he
has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.” This is
especially true in the assumption because it is truly by God’s grace that the
Church discerns that God has glorified her because it is fitting to do so, not
because she deserves to be glorified.
But her faith
is not just a sentimental faith in God. It is expressed concretely in her
love for her fellowmen. She was a messenger of the Good News. As soon as she received the
news, not about her divine motherhood but about Elizabeth’s pregnancy, she
immediately reached out to Elizabeth, forgetful of her dignity. We
read that “Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill
country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as
soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and
Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” She said, “For the moment your
greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy.”
Finally,
notwithstanding those who are not happy that we glorify God for glorifying Mary
by taking her body and soul to heaven, let us join Mary in praising God in our
lives. “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord and my spirit exults
in God my saviour; because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.” The
Assumption of Mary is both a gift to Mary herself for her special association
with Christ’s salvific role, and also for the Church as a sign of hope for us
who will also be glorified with Mary at the end of time by our Lord. Most
of all, we are assured that the Church will be victorious at the end, not sin
or death.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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