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GRAPPLING WITH THE MYSTERY OF GOD’S PLAN
27 MARCH, 2018, Tuesday of Holy Week
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Isaiah 49:1-6 ©
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I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation
may reach to the ends of the earth
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Islands, listen to me,
pay attention, remotest peoples.
The Lord called me before I was born,
from my mother’s womb he pronounced my name.
He made my mouth a sharp sword,
and hid me in the shadow of his hand.
He made me into a sharpened arrow,
and concealed me in his quiver.
He said to me, ‘You are my servant (Israel)
in whom I shall be glorified’;
while I was thinking, ‘I have toiled in vain,
I have exhausted myself for nothing’;
and all the while my cause was with the Lord,
my reward with my God.
I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord,
my God was my strength.
And now the Lord has spoken,
he who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
to gather Israel to him:
‘It is not enough for you to be my servant,
to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of
Israel;
I will make you the light of the nations
so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 70(71):1-6,15,17 ©
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My lips will tell of your help.
In you, O Lord, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
In your justice rescue me, free me:
pay heed to me and save me.
My lips will tell of your help.
Be a rock where I can take refuge,
a mighty stronghold to save me;
for you are my rock, my stronghold.
Free me from the hand of the wicked.
My lips will tell of your help.
It is you, O Lord, who are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, since my youth.
On you I have leaned from my birth,
from my mother’s womb you have been my help.
My lips will tell of your help.
My lips will tell of your justice
and day by day of your help.
O God, you have taught me from my youth
and I proclaim your wonders still.
My lips will tell of your help.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Hail to you, our King!
Obedient to the Father, you were led to your crucifixion
as a meek lamb is led to the slaughter.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
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Gospel
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John 13:21-33,36-38 ©
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'What you are going to do, do quickly'
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While at supper with his disciples, Jesus was troubled in spirit
and declared, ‘I tell you most solemnly, one of you will betray me.’ The
disciples looked at one another, wondering which he meant. The disciple Jesus
loved was reclining next to Jesus; Simon Peter signed to him and said, ‘Ask who
it is he means’, so leaning back on Jesus’ breast he said, ‘Who is it, Lord?’
‘It is the one’ replied Jesus ‘to whom I give the piece of bread that I shall
dip in the dish.’ He dipped the piece of bread and gave it to Judas son of
Simon Iscariot. At that instant, after Judas had taken the bread, Satan entered
him. Jesus then said, ‘What you are going to do, do quickly.’ None of the
others at table understood the reason he said this. Since Judas had charge of
the common fund, some of them thought Jesus was telling him, ‘Buy what we need
for the festival’, or telling him to give something to the poor. As soon as
Judas had taken the piece of bread he went out. Night had fallen.
When he had
gone Jesus said:
‘Now has the Son of Man been glorified,
and in him God has been glorified.
If God has been glorified in him,
God will in turn glorify him in himself,
and will glorify him very soon.
‘My little children,
I shall not be with you much longer.
You will look for me,
And, as I told the Jews,
where I am going, you cannot come.’
Simon Peter said, ‘Lord, where are you going?’ Jesus replied,
‘Where I am going you cannot follow me now; you will follow me later.’ Peter
said to him, ‘Why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.’
‘Lay down your life for me?’ answered Jesus. ‘I tell you most solemnly, before
the cock crows you will have disowned me three times.’
GRAPPLING WITH THE MYSTERY OF GOD’S PLAN
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISAIAH 49:1–6; PS 71:1-6,15,17; JOHN 13:21-38]
This life is
full of mysteries. There are many things that are inexplicable in life. Nothing is
certain. We get angry with God because we are carrying some sicknesses
and suffering the consequences of the sins of others. We wonder why we
are so unfortunate in life to be born into the family when our parents do not
really care for us. We regret that our life is what it is
today. We also do not understand how our life has unfolded.
Sometimes, we wish our life was different. But then decisions have been
made and we cannot turn back the clock. In a word, we do not understand
the plan of God for us.
So, what do
we do? We try to change the plan of God. We do not accept the plan
that God has for us. In the first reading, the prophet made it clear, “The Lord
called me before I was born, from my mother’s womb he pronounced my name. He made
my mouth a sharp sword, and hid me in the shadow of his hand. He made me into a
sharpened arrow, and concealed me in his quiver.” Indeed, can we accept
the plan of God for us in our lives? What if we were chosen to be the
Prophet Jeremiah? Would we be ready to prophesy for the Lord even unto
death, facing detractions, slander and opposition? Would we risk being
popular and accepted by the people at the expense of being true to our calling
in life? Even Jeremiah complained, “Lord, you have enticed me, and I
was enticed; you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed. I have
become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.” (Jer 20:7;
cf Jer 20:14-18)
This was true
in the case of Judas. Scholars have suggested different motives for
Judas’ betrayal of Jesus. One of them was the greed for money. But others have
posited that he could have been disappointed with Jesus because he expected
Jesus to fulfil his expectation of Him being a political messiah who would
overthrow the Romans. But Jesus was not acting as he thought He
should. Hence, he wanted to force Jesus to act by having His enemies
confront Him. Or perhaps, he had given up hope in Jesus as the
Messiah. In a word, he did not understand the mission of Jesus and the
plan of God. He wanted things his way and when he could not make
Jesus do what he thought should be the case, he dumped Him.
On the other
hand, Jesus remained on course although He was also troubled at the prospect of
His passion and death, and most of all, “troubled in spirit” because one of His Twelve
was going to betray Him. He knew that Judas was up to no good and that he
would betray Him. He did not stop him from doing what he had intended to
do. Instead, He sought to give him a last chance at winning him over by
an act of love. So, instead of retaliating, the Lord “dipped the piece of
bread and gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot.” It was an appeal to
Judas to come to his senses. How many of us can continue to love our
enemies, knowing that they are hurting us, betraying us, saying all kinds of
untruths behind our back, and cheating us? Would we still be able to
offer a hand of friendship and kindness to them? Or do we just write them
off completely from our lives. Jesus did not. He was faithful, as
the gospel said, to His Father and to us until the end. “Having loved his
own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” (Jn 13:1)
What about
us? Will we stay faithful to the plan of God for us? Will we carry the crosses of
life courageously and faithfully to the end? Indeed, like the disciples,
we might not understand fully the plan of God for us. We do not
understand why we have to carry so much responsibilities, deal with so many
problems, challenges and demands, as if the whole world is on our shoulders.
In such
situations, will we muster enough faith not to walk by sight but to trust in
Him?
This is what we are called to do. When we feel that nothing seems
to be going on right in our lives, then we must surrender our lives into His
hands as Jesus did on the cross, crying with a loud voice, “Father, into your
hands I commend my spirit.” (Lk 23:46)
This is what the Lord told the Suffering Servant of Isaiah, “You are my servant
(Israel) in whom I shall be glorified.” Jesus too came to this
realization that if His death was needed to glorify God, then He would say
“Yes” to His holy will. “Now has the Son of Man been glorified, and in
him God has been glorified. If God has been glorified in him, God will in turn glorify
him in himself, and will glorify him very soon.”
Indeed, in
the mysterious plan of God, the death of Jesus would bring about His glory and
Jesus in turn would be glorified by Him. Humanly speaking, such thoughts defy
human logic. When we are suffering, we feel rather defeated. Even
Jesus felt that way, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” It is
certainly not easy to believe that the way of God for us is the way to
happiness in life. We resist and we seek to change His plan. Jesus
in the Garden of Gethsemane was tempted to do so but gave in to His Father’s
will. “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my
will but yours be done.” (Lk 22:42)
Even the devil thought that having influenced Judas to betray the Lord to His
enemies, His death would be the end of His mission. Little did he know
that the death of Jesus would be the death of all deaths and by His death, the
sting of death will be removed, resulting in victory over death and sin.
Hence, in our
trials and sufferings, when we feel like giving up, know that God is
on our side. The truth is as the Suffering Servant remarked,
“While I was thinking, ‘I have toiled in vain, I have exhausted myself for
nothing’; and all the while my cause was with the Lord, my reward
with my God. I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord, my God was my
strength.” Indeed, our tragedy and sufferings in the eyes of the world
might seem to be God’s punishment but that is His wisdom of saving us.
“For though in the sight of others they were punished, their hope is full of
immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great
good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in
the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted
them.” (Wisdom 3:4-6) This is the testimony of the psalmist when
he declared, “My lips will tell of your help. In you, O Lord, I take
refuge; let me never be put to shame. In your justice rescue me, free me: pay
heed to me and save me. Be a rock where I can take refuge, a mighty stronghold
to save me; for you are my rock, my stronghold. Free me from the hand of
the wicked.” God will show forth His power and reveal His plan to us in
due time.
Today, we are
called to make a decision for Christ. Will we be like Judas
and Peter? Or will we take the path of the Suffering Servant and our
Lord? In the face of trials, even Peter and the disciples
betrayed the Lord. Jesus knew how weak they were, more than they knew
themselves. “Peter said to him, ‘Why can’t I follow you now? I will lay
down my life for you.’ ‘Lay down your life for me?’ answered Jesus. ‘I tell you
most solemnly, before the cock crows you will have disowned me three
times.’” We too often speak like Peter. I will follow you!
But in the face of trials and sufferings, like Peter and the rest, we will flee
from our Lord. Peter was the first to condemn our Lord because when he
was asked whether he knew the Lord, he made it clear that Jesus was of no
significance to him and therefore did not deserve to be known.
The denial of
Peter and the apostles must have hurt our Lord deeply. So is our denial
of Him when we live lives contradictory to the gospel values. In so doing, we deny our
Lord. Let us once again surrender ourselves to the wisdom of God’s
mysterious plan for us by cooperating with Him as the Suffering Servant and our
Lord did. We too have been chosen since we were in the womb of our mothers
for a higher purpose in life, which is “ to gather Israel to him” and be “the
light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the
earth.” Together with Jesus, let us embrace the plan of God for us, even
when we do not understand. Walk by faith!
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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