20171004
ARE YOU ASHAMED TO BE A CATHOLIC?
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Nehemiah 2:1-8 ©
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In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes,
the wine being my concern, I took up the wine and offered it to the king. Now I
had never been downcast before. So the king said, ‘Why is your face so sad? You
are not sick, surely? This must be a sadness of the heart.’ A great fear came
over me and I said to the king, ‘May the king live for ever! How could my face
be other than sad when the city where the tombs of my ancestors are lies in
ruins, and its gates have been burnt down?’ ‘What’ the king asked ‘is your
request?’ I called on the God of heaven and made this reply to the king, ‘If it
pleases the king, and if you are satisfied with your servant, give me leave to
go to Judah, to the city of my ancestors’ tombs, and rebuild it.’ The king, with
the queen sitting there beside him, said, ‘How long will your journey take, and
when will you return?’ So I named a date that seemed acceptable to the king and
he gave me leave to go. I spoke to the king once more, ‘If it please the king,
could letters be given me for the governors of Transeuphrates to allow me to
pass through to Judah? And also a letter for Asaph, keeper of the king’s park,
to supply me with timber for the gates of the citadel of the Temple, for the
city walls and for the house I am to occupy?’ This the king granted me, for the
kindly favour of my God was with me.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 136(137):1-6 ©
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O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember
you not!
By the rivers of Babylon
there we sat and wept,
remembering Zion;
on the poplars that grew there
we hung up our harps.
O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember
you not!
For it was there that they asked us,
our captors, for songs,
our oppressors, for joy.
‘Sing to us,’ they said,
‘one of Zion’s songs.’
O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember
you not!
O how could we sing
the song of the Lord
on alien soil?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
let my right hand wither!
O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember
you not!
O let my tongue
cleave to my mouth
if I remember you not,
if I prize not Jerusalem
above all my joys!
O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember
you not!
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps118:105
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is a lamp for my steps
and a light for my path.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Ph3:8-9
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I have accepted the loss of everything
and I look on everything as so much rubbish
if only I can have Christ
and be given a place in him.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 9:57-62 ©
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As Jesus and his disciples travelled along they met a man on the
road who said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus answered,
‘Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has
nowhere to lay his head.’
Another to
whom he said, ‘Follow me’, replied, ‘Let me go and bury my father first.’ But
he answered, ‘Leave the dead to bury their dead; your duty is to go and spread
the news of the kingdom of God.’
Another
said, ‘I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say goodbye to my people
at home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who
looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’
ARE YOU ASHAMED TO BE A CATHOLIC?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Neh 2:1-8; Ps 137:1-6; Lk 9:57-62
]
Not too long
ago, we started a “Proud to be Catholic” movement. What do we mean when
we say we are “Proud to be Catholic?” Some Catholics naively criticized this tag line as
something that is not in line with Christian values. To be proud in this
sense is not to be associated with a superiority complex, arrogance or
snobbishness of any sort. On the contrary, to be proud is to be grateful
that God has been so kind to accept us as His adopted sons and daughters.
We are humbled and overjoyed that through no credit of ours, God has chosen us
in Christ to be His sons and daughters. It is for this reason that we are proud
to be Catholic because of the great honour that we have received through the
mercy of God. Our feeling is exactly the same as that of Mary’s when she
was chosen to be the mother of the Saviour.
The
manifestation of this great joy and honour to be a Catholic is that of
evangelization, the announcement of the Good News. We who have received the
Good News freely are now called to do the same. As Jesus instructed
the disciples, “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.
You received without pay, give without pay.” (Mt 10:8)
Indeed, Mary the Star of the New Evangelization, upon receiving the Good News,
immediately set out to announce it to her cousin, Elizabeth, and to bring the
joy to John the Baptist who was still in his mother’s womb. So how
do you know that you are proud to be a Catholic? When you cannot resist
talking about Jesus and what He has done for you; and how He is the Way, the
Light and the Truth in your life. Without this missionary endeavor and
passion to evangelize you cannot be proud to be a Catholic, regardless what you
profess.
What about
those who are ashamed to be a Catholic? Unfortunately, many
Catholics are ashamed to own up to their faith. They hide their faith
from others as if they have joined some secret society or belong to a taboo
organization. Most of these Catholics are ashamed because they do not
know their faith and what they believe in. Others are embarrassed because
they do not see the Church growing or as dynamic and evangelistic as other
Christian communions. Then there are others who are ashamed because they
do not want to suffer possible disadvantages to their positions in society or
at work if others come to know that they are Catholic. They serve their
career and money before God. Of course, many are ashamed simply because they
live lives that are contrary to the faith and are counter-witnesses in
society.
So if you are
proud of your faith, we thank God for the gift of gratitude and the joy of
being loved by Him. If we are ashamed, then instead of running away from
the fact, we must confront it like Nehemiah in today’s first reading. He was saddened to see the
state of Jerusalem which was in total ruins. The walls were broken
down and the Temple destroyed. The king noticed his sadness and inquired
the cause of his sadness. In truth, Nehemiah was taking a big risk in
allowing his sadness to be seen by the king because he could be executed for
misconduct and disrespect. He was courageous enough to admit that he was
ashamed of the ruins in Jerusalem. He was disheartened that even his own
countrymen were not concerned and were indifferent to the state of the Temple
and the city.
Once we
acknowledge the sadness in our hearts and the lack of peace within, then we
must take courage and initiative to look for a way out. Instead of condemning
the inactivity or slowness of Church leaders in making changes in the Church,
or the lack of participation of church members in the activities and growth of
the Church, we should instead be proactive like Nehemiah. He took the
occasion to ask the King for leave to go back home to rebuild the Temple. He
even had the audacity to ask the King for letters to facilitate his journey and
to supply the raw materials to rebuild the city. Such was the courage and
wisdom of Nehemiah, knowing when to seize the opportunity when it came.
However to
rebuild the city, the kingdom of God, Jesus warns us firstly that a price has
to be paid.
He told the man who wanted to follow Him, “Foxes have holes and the birds of
the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
Without sacrifice, we cannot go far. Even Jesus had to suffer the
inconvenience, the loneliness, poverty and rejection in His ministry. Many
people want to be Catholic but they are not ready to make sacrifices to attend
RCIA class or faith formation; or come for regular spiritual and faith sharing
meetings. They all want to have a share of the resurrection but they want
to bypass the cross.
Truly, like
Nehemiah, there are many lay workers and volunteers who have made financial
sacrifices to work for the Church, full time or part time. Many willingly join
the church workforce, notwithstanding the limited prospects for
promotion. Our salaries and fringe benefits are not comparable to the
corporate world. Many of our volunteers even pay for meals and transport
from their own pockets. But this is true for priests and religious
as well. We are called to make sacrifices by observing the evangelical
counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience for the greater good of the
mission. Without imbibing in these counsels, the mission of the Church
would be rendered ineffective.
Secondly, we
must be singular-minded, especially in the face of opposition and temptations. Again, Jesus told the
man who said, “I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say good-bye to
my people at home.” Jesus said to him, “Once the hand is laid on the
plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” We
must be alert to the distractions in our mission. Very often, we get
discouraged because we face opposition to our plans for the Church. We
get disheartened when our priests or leaders do not support or encourage us in
our service when we have put in so much effort. Indeed, too many give up
easily when faced with obstacles. They lack singular mindedness.
Not
infrequently, we can be tempted by money, power and status. We are serving only
because we get publicity, popularity or even offered the pleasures of life.
Indeed, this is particularly true for priests and religious because many
generous and compassionate people would gladly shower us with gifts, holidays
and good food, if we allow them. Such distractions take us away from the
mission. From serving God, we eventually serve ourselves, our convenience
and self-interests. For this reason, Jesus reminds us that our eyes must
always be focused on our mission. We must ensure that in whatever we do,
our lifestyle, our choices in life must help us to accomplish our mission of
sharing the good news with all of humanity. We must not allow anything to
distract us from fulfilling Christ’s mission.
In the light
of these challenges, how do we keep ourselves focused and remain strong in our
times? We must pray continuously like Nehemiah and the
psalmist. At every step in his endeavor to rebuild the Temple, he would turn
to God in prayer. He knew that God was with Him and hence he could continue to
work hard at rebuilding the Temple even though many were discouraging him,
believing that nothing could be done. Without prayers, nothing can be
achieved. Only God can change minds and hearts.
Finally, let
us be awake to the urgency of the proclamation of the gospel. This was what Jesus
told the man who wanted to bury his father first. It is significant that
unlike the other two who wanted to follow Jesus voluntarily, Jesus asked the
man to follow Him. But his reply was hesitant. He said, “Let me go
and bury my father first.’” But the response of Jesus was swift and
decisive, “Leave the dead to bury the dead; your duty is to go and spread the
news of the kingdom of God.” Truly, when God calls, we do not
tarry. Many good things are never done because great inspirations and
ideas from the Lord were never taken up. Nice feelings and beautiful
ideas alone without action will not bring about any change. There are
some things that cannot wait.
Make our
decision for the Lord and the restoration of His Church today! Don’t wait any
longer. Come and follow Him. Come and give your life to
Jesus. Help Him rebuild His Church. With the psalmist, let us be
filled with shame and sorrow that the mission of the Church is met with
indifference. Indeed, we must pray, “By the rivers of Babylon there we
sat and wept, remembering Zion; on the poplars that grew there we hung up our
harps. For it was there that they asked us, our captors, for songs, our
oppressors, for joy. ‘Sing to us,’ they said, ‘one of Zion’s songs.’ O
how could we sing the song of the Lord on alien soil? If I forget you,
Jerusalem, let my right hand wither! O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I
remember you not, if I prize not Jerusalem above all my joys.” How can we
allow the Church to continue in this state of lethargy? If we do not help
to rebuild the Church, then the next generation of humanity will suffer as
secularization and secularism will destroy all the values of society. So
let us act now. Let us stand up for God, stand up for Christ and stand up
for the Catholic Church! Let us stand up for our fellow Catholics and say
we are proud to be Catholic!
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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