20180507 HOLY SPIRIT AS THE AGENT OF CONVERSION
07 MAY, 2018, Monday, 6th Week of Easter
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 16:11-15 ©
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The Lord opened Lydia's heart to accept what Paul was saying
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Sailing from Troas we made a straight run for Samothrace; the next
day for Neapolis, and from there for Philippi, a Roman colony and the principal
city of that particular district of Macedonia. After a few days in this city we
went along the river outside the gates as it was the sabbath and this was a
customary place for prayer. We sat down and preached to the women who had come
to the meeting. One of these women was called Lydia, a devout woman from the
town of Thyatira who was in the purple-dye trade. She listened to us, and the
Lord opened her heart to accept what Paul was saying. After she and her
household had been baptised she sent us an invitation: ‘If you really think me
a true believer in the Lord,’ she said ‘come and stay with us’; and she would take
no refusal.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 149:1-6,9 ©
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The Lord takes delight in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Sing a new song to the Lord,
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel rejoice in its Maker,
let Zion’s sons exult in their king.
The Lord takes delight in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Let them praise his name with dancing
and make music with timbrel and harp.
For the Lord takes delight in his people.
He crowns the poor with salvation.
The Lord takes delight in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Let the faithful rejoice in their glory,
shout for joy and take their rest.
Let the praise of God be on their lips:
this honour is for all his faithful.
The Lord takes delight in his people.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.Lk24:46,26
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Alleluia, alleluia!
It was ordained that the Christ should suffer
and rise from the dead,
and so enter into his glory.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Jn15:26,27
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The Spirit of truth will be my witness;
and you too will be my witnesses.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 15:26-16:4 ©
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The Spirit of truth will be my witness
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Jesus said to his disciples:
‘When the Advocate comes,
whom I shall send to you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth who issues from the Father,
he will be my witness.
And you too will be witnesses,
because you have been with me from the outset.
‘I have told you all this that your faith may not be shaken.
They will expel you from the synagogues,
and indeed the hour is coming
when anyone who kills you
will think he is doing a holy duty for God.
They will do these things
because they have never known
either the Father or myself.
But I have told you all this,
so that when the time for it comes
you may remember that I told you.’
HOLY SPIRIT AS THE AGENT OF CONVERSION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ACTS 16:11-15; PS 149:1-6,9; JOHN 15:26-16:4 ]
We are called
to witness to Christ and the gospel. But this call to witness to Christ explicitly is
increasingly difficult in today’s world. We are faced with the challenge
of promoting religious harmony on the one hand, whilst grappling with the
growing number of secularists who claim that they do not profess any
particular religion but believe in the Sacred, and those who are professed
humanists, agnostics and atheists on the other. Countries in the first
world promote secularism. And they are seeking to export their
ideology to the rest of the world through trade and technology. Of
course, the rise of secularism is also due to the quarrels and divisions among
religions; and not least, the loss of credibility of religious leaders due to
scandals. At the other end of the spectrum, we have
many countries that are still deeply religious but often discriminate minority
religions. Many are subtly, if not overtly, persecuted or marginalized
because of their faith.
The rise in
secularism is further complicated or reinforced by the ideology and
dictatorship of relativism and individualism. The former champions a
contradictory ideology claiming that relativism is the absolute way to see
life. Everything, according to the relativists, is relative except
relativism, which is absolute. There is no truth or rather, no one can
find the truth because truth is seen from different perspectives. Hence,
there is no objective truth but it is pure subjectivity. So there is no right
or wrong. The ideology of relativism is strengthened by an individualistic
mentality. In those days, our parents and forefathers would sacrifice
their happiness for the sake of their children and children’s
children. Nowadays, people only live for themselves and for
today. The future is not our business because we will be dead and
gone. Let the people of tomorrow handle their own problems.
The challenge
in witnessing to Christ is also made more difficult because of two other
factors. With
advancement in technology and mass media, especially digital and social media,
news travel fast, almost in an instant. But technology is a
double-edged sword. We can harness it for good or for evil. Some
use social media to spread fake news or distort the message.
Instead of using it to spread goodwill, some will use it to cause division, sow
hatred and even cause civil wars. Because religious views and doctrines
are easily accessible, those who do not agree with the doctrines or morality
preached and taught would often speak out against them. They extract the
message out of context and circulate it, causing misunderstandings, dismay and
anger. Of course, when used positively, mass media and technology are
powerful means to spread the Good News. But it behooves preachers and
teachers to be more sensitive and careful in what they say.
The other factor
in witnessing to Christ is global migration where society is no more
homogenous. When society is cosmopolitan, there is a need to find common
space among the different religions and cultures. When society is homogenous,
it is easier to unite the people because all have a shared religion, culture,
belief and values. Seeing it positively, it is a great opportunity
to share our faith with each other and our cultures too, so that in the process
we are enriched in our own faith and in our cultures. But there is
also the danger of aggressive competition leading to oppression, persecution
and discrimination.
There is
still another obstacle in the proclamation of the gospel. This could come
from government policies. Most democratic governments will formulate policies to
reflect the common will of the people, as one of the most important tasks of
the government is to preserve harmony, ensure law and order so that everyone
can live in peace. In a cosmopolitan country, it appears that a secular
government is the way to manage the differences among all religions. By
adopting secularist policies, there is an apparent neutrality of the government
towards all religions. But unwittingly, it also renders support to
secularism as well, since religions are taken out of public life. So such
policies, whilst not favouring people of faith, does inadvertently favour
people who are without faith. In truth, secularism is another form of
“religion”, if we see religion as a way of life and belief. On the
other hand, countries that do not have a secular government tend to oppress
those of minority religions where there is a dominant religion or where atheism
is considered the professed “religion” of the nation.
So what do we
do in the light of the heightened sensitive situation we are in?
Evangelization can no longer be conducted as in the first or second
millennium. We need to find new ways to overcome these challenges in
sharing the gospel with everyone.
Right from
the outset, we must accept the fact that we will always be misunderstood at
some time and by some people. Persecution is inevitable in
some countries because there is a state religion or state atheism.
Misunderstanding and criticism of our doctrines, beliefs and practices are even
more unavoidable. But should we be surprised? “If
the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If
you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do
not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world – therefore the
world hates you.” (Jn 15:18f)
Indeed, the
reason why Christians are persecuted or misunderstood is because those who are
not believers do not share in our religious experience or encounter with the
Risen Lord. For
such people, we need to forgive them for their ignorance. As Jesus said
to His disciples, “They will expel you from the synagogues, and indeed the hour
is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is doing a holy duty for God.
They will do these things because they have never known either the Father or
myself.” The prophecy of Jesus came true during the time of the early Church
when the Jewish leaders were arresting the Jewish Christians whom they
considered as adopting an outlawed religion that was deviant, subversive and
divisive. (cf 1 Tim 1:12-14) So we should not blame those who
misunderstand us and cannot accept our beliefs and doctrines simply because
they have not enjoyed the same encounter we have had with the Risen Lord.
Those who sincerely object to our beliefs are doing so in ignorance and we
should not fault them but to pray for them and enlighten them.
But there are
those who persecute us because of sin, that is, because they want to protect
their interests, their positions in society, money and power. Some persecute us
because we preach a morality that offends them or compromises their economic
interests in promoting unhealthy entertainment and a promiscuous
lifestyle. Again, Jesus said, “If I had not come and spoken to
them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.
It was to fulfil the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me
without a cause.’” (Jn 15:22, 25)
So, as
Christians, we must exercise patience in dealing with opposition and
persecution. We must also exercise greater sensitivity in the way we
proclaim the gospel and avoid giving ammunition for others to distort our
message of truth and love. But it does not mean that we need to
compromise what we believe in. As St Peter exhorts us, “Always be
ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the
hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and reverence.
Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who
abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame.” (1 Pt 3:15f)
We must also proclaim the truth with charity!
In the final
analysis, we must remember that conversion is the work of the Holy Spirit. This was true for the
conversion of Lydia, “a devout woman from the town of Thyatira who was in the
purple-dye trade. She listened to us, and the Lord opened her heart to accept
what Paul was saying.” Without the Holy Spirit opening her heart, she
would not have had the gift of faith. This is why the Lord said, “When
the Advocate comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of
truth who issues from the Father, he will be my witness.”
More
importantly, we must sing praises to God for what He has done for us through
testimony in songs, words and deeds. We must sing the Lord’s praises through works of charity
and love. These are means to help people to open their hearts to the love
of God. It is preferable that we steer away from doctrinal arguments
because it presupposes faith and experience. As the Lord said, “you
too will be witnesses, because you have been with me from the outset.”
Unless we have been companions of Jesus, seen and heard Him, we cannot have
faith or be His witnesses.
Only with
matured believers of all faith who are lovers of God and men, can we can then
dialogue in charity and truth. Inter-religious dialogue must make progress beyond cordial
friendship to the sharing of religious experiences and how our doctrines are
expressive of what we experience and what we believe. By humble sharing
of our faith, we can actually enrich each other’s faith, making us re-examine
our beliefs and practices. Indeed, at the end of the day, our desire is
that all peoples will come to know God more and more and love Him in our
brothers and sisters, so that we all become one family of God. We should
not envy people of other faiths but rejoice that they too have found God and to
give praise to Him, for God indeed works in many ways unknown to us. Even
though we believe that Christ is the image of the invisible God (cf Heb 1:1-3a),
yet we also hold that salvation “holds true not only for Christians, but
for all men of good will in whose hearts grace works in an unseen way. For,
since Christ died for all men, and since the ultimate vocation of man is in
fact one, and divine, we ought to believe that the Holy Spirit in a manner
known only to God offers to every man the possibility of being associated with
this paschal mystery. (GS 22)
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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