20180508
FAITH IN THE RISEN LORD THROUGH THE CONVICTING
POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AS THE KEY TO HOPE IN LIFE
08 MAY, 2018, Tuesday, 6th Week of Easter
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 16:22-34 ©
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Become a believer and you will be saved, and your household too
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The crowd joined in and showed their hostility to Paul and Silas,
so the magistrates had them stripped and ordered them to be flogged. They were
given many lashes and then thrown into prison, and the gaoler was told to keep
a close watch on them. So, following his instructions, he threw them into the
inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
Late that
night Paul and Silas were praying and singing God’s praises, while the other
prisoners listened. Suddenly there was an earthquake that shook the prison to
its foundations. All the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the
prisoners. When the gaoler woke and saw the doors wide open he drew his sword
and was about to commit suicide, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. But
Paul shouted at the top of his voice, ‘Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all
here.’ The gaoler called for lights, then rushed in, threw himself trembling at
the feet of Paul and Silas, and escorted them out, saying, ‘Sirs, what must I
do to be saved?’ They told him, ‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you
will be saved, and your household too.’ Then they preached the word of the Lord
to him and to all his family. Late as it was, he took them to wash their
wounds, and was baptised then and there with all his household. Afterwards he
took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their
conversion to belief in God.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 137(138):1-3,7-8 ©
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You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you.
I will adore before your holy temple.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you for your faithfulness and love,
which excel all we ever knew of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of my soul.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
You stretch out your hand and save me,
your hand will do all things for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your hands.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ has risen and shone upon us
whom he redeemed with his blood.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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cf.Jn16:7,13
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I will send you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord;
he will lead you to the complete truth.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 16:5-11 ©
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Unless I go, the Advocate will not come to you
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Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Now I am going to the one who sent me.
Not one of you has asked, “Where are you going?”
Yet you are sad at heart because I have told you this.
Still, I must tell you the truth:
it is for your own good that I am going
because unless I go,
the Advocate will not come to you;
but if I do go,
I will send him to you.
And when he comes,
he will show the world how wrong it was,
about sin,
and about who was in the right,
and about judgement:
about sin: proved by their refusal to believe in me;
about who was in the right: proved by my going to the Father and
your seeing me no more;
about judgement: proved by the prince of this world being already
condemned.’
FAITH IN THE RISEN LORD THROUGH THE CONVICTING POWER OF THE HOLY
SPIRIT AS THE KEY TO HOPE IN LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ACTS 16:22-34; JN 16:5-11 ]
One of the most
difficult topics to speak about is death. Many people, especially the
Chinese, consider the topic a taboo as it might bring bad luck. Of
course, there are also many of us who might not mind speculating about death
generally and academically. But most would find it difficult to
talk about their own death with their loved ones. Yet we all know
that death is a fact of life. We cannot avoid the reality.
Certainly it is a painful confrontation because all departures are
painful. This was the same situation of the disciples. They too
were not willing to confront the imminent death of their master. Jesus
had already told them, “I am going to the one who sent me.” Yet, not one
of them asked, “Where are you going?” Why? Because they were sad at
heart! They had become so attached to Jesus that His departure would
leave a big hole in their lives.
But Jesus knew
that He must broach this issue. It would be better to talk about His
departure rather than to pretend that He was going away. Indeed, many a
time in my pastoral ministry to the sick, I cannot but feel sorry that the
dying patient and the loved ones have never spoken about death to each
other. They would prefer to deny that death was near
even when it is so obvious. This is unfortunate because they would miss
the great opportunity to speak to each other about what is deepest in their
hearts. So the pain would be even greater when it is time for them to
leave each other because they would leave each other physically without any
real assurance of hope, love and solidarity. That is why Jesus would not
hide the fearful silence of His disciples. He brought it to the open.
But why
do we not have the same courage like Jesus to speak about our own physical
separation from our loved ones? Because, unlike Jesus, we do
not know who we really are; and what is our real destiny in life.
Although we profess our faith in the resurrection, we do not really truly
believe in our hearts. Because if we do, then there is nothing to fear
since death is but our union with God and that we do not really die but simply
live in a new way. Not only will we have a new life and a life that is
fulfilled with God, but we will also remain in communion with our loved ones in
a new way. Death is not the end of our relationship with our loved ones
but it will remain and be stronger in a new way as we will live with them in
our spirits.
Indeed, that was
the conviction of Jesus. He had no doubt that He was returning to His
Father, the origin of life and love. He was conscious that He came from
Him and that He belonged to Him. Only in union with the Father is He
complete. But He was also aware that His going was not a real departure,
as He would come again in a new and personal way to His disciples. He
would come again in His Spirit, which would transcend all barriers. In
fact, He would be even closer to them because He would live in them.
Today, we
are called upon to imitate the apostles, Paul and Silas. We read of
their courage and hope even when they were imprisoned, flogged and
humiliated. Yet, we can see the high spirits of the apostles as they were
praying and singing God’s praises in joy. What was the basis for their
confidence even in the face of sufferings? Simply this: they
were so conscious of the real presence of the Risen Lord in their lives and the
Holy Spirit within them. That is why they did not feel the need to escape
even when the doors of the jail were opened and the chains fell from
them. They stayed behind instead. And thus when the prison warden
wanted to kill himself out of hopelessness, Paul and Silas told him that he and
his household could be saved if only they became believers in the Lord Jesus.
In other words, if they too confessed and believed that Jesus is truly Lord,
alive and present, then they would always find strength, hope and courage in
the face of tribulations.
How then can
we have the same conscious presence of the Risen Lord in us today?
We must be
like the apostles who prayed and sang praises to God. We must in a special
way pray for the Holy Spirit whom Jesus promised us in the gospel that He would
send to us. The Holy Spirit is none other than the Advocate, His own
Spirit that would live in us. When the Holy Spirit dwells in us,
then Jesus said, He will convict, convince and enlighten us as to who He really
is. He will convict us firstly of our sin, which is the
failure to recognize Jesus as the Risen Lord, the expression of the Father’s love
for us and consequently by rejecting Him, we reject the gospel message as
well. Secondly, the Holy Spirit will convince us who He really
is, that He is one with the Father and thus identical with God
Himself. Such a belief is only possible from within our hearts and not
just in our minds. Finally, the Holy Spirit will force us to
confront ourselves. In other words, He will judge us by allowing us
to judge ourselves. For in rejecting the prince of this world, Jesus
said, we are already condemned. This is because to reject Jesus as the
Good News of God in person, is to reject life itself.
Let us then, as
we prepare for the feasts of the Ascension and Pentecost, make ourselves more
docile to the Holy Spirit through prayer and praises so that when He comes, the
glory of the Risen Lord will fill us, bringing us joy, courage, hope, love and
peace.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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