20180528
TAKING RISKS IN LOVE
28 MAY, 2018, Monday, 8th Week, Ordinary
Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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1 Peter 1:3-9 ©
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You did not see Christ, yet you love him
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Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his
great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from
the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that
can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for
you in the heavens. Through your faith, God’s power will guard you until the
salvation which has been prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a
cause of great joy for you, even though you may for a short time have to bear
being plagued by all sorts of trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed,
your faith will have been tested and proved like gold – only it is more
precious than gold, which is corruptible even though it bears testing by fire –
and then you will have praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet
you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy
so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure
of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your
souls.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 110(111):1-2,5-6,9-10 ©
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The Lord keeps his covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
I will thank the Lord with all my heart
in the meeting of the just and their assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord,
to be pondered by all who love them.
The Lord keeps his covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
He gives food to those who fear him;
keeps his covenant ever in mind.
He has shown his might to his people
by giving them the lands of the nations.
The Lord keeps his covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
He has sent deliverance to his people
and established his covenant for ever.
Holy his name, to be feared.
The Lord keeps his covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
To fear the Lord is the first stage of wisdom;
all who do so prove themselves wise.
His praise shall last for ever!
The Lord keeps his covenant in mind.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.1Th2:13
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Accept God’s message for what it really is:
God’s message, and not some human thinking.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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2Co8:9
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Jesus Christ was rich,
but he became poor for your sake,
to make you rich out of his poverty.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 10:17-27 ©
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Give everything you own to the poor, and follow me
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Jesus was setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before
him and put this question to him, ‘Good master, what must I do to inherit
eternal life?’ Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but
God alone. You know the commandments: You must not kill; You must not commit
adultery; You must not steal; You must not bring false witness; You must not
defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ And he said to him, ‘Master, I have
kept all these from my earliest days.’ Jesus looked steadily at him and loved
him, and he said, ‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell everything you own
and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then
come, follow me.’ But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he
was a man of great wealth.
Jesus looked
round and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it is for those who have riches to
enter the kingdom of God!’ The disciples were astounded by these words, but
Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he said to them ‘how hard it is to enter the
kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’ They were more astonished
than ever. ‘In that case’ they said to one another ‘who can be saved?’ Jesus
gazed at them. ‘For men’ he said ‘it is impossible, but not for God: because
everything is possible for God.’
TAKING RISKS IN LOVE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 Peter 1:3–9; Ps 111:1-2,5-6,9-10; Mark 10:17-27 ]
“Jesus was
setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this
question to him, ‘Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’” Like the rich man, we
are dissatisfied with life. We might be successful, doing well in our
career and even have a beautiful spouse and family. Yet, deep inside us, we
know that something is lacking. There is a yearning for something more. In
other words, we are seeking for eternal life, the life of God.
However, do
we really want it and have the capacity for it? This is the hard question
that Jesus asked the rich man. It is significant that this man was a good
man. “Jesus said to him, ‘You know the commandments: You must not kill;
You must not commit adultery; You must not steal; You must not bring false
witness; You must not defraud; Honour your father and mother.’ And he said to
him, ‘Master, I have kept all these from my earliest days’.” But he was still
sad even though he had observed all the commandments. This reminds me of
people I have encountered who are so-called righteous, who follow all the rules
and commandments of God, like the elder son in the parable of the Prodigal Son,
and yet who are rigid, uncompromising, judgemental, cold and
fault-finding. They do not appear to be people who are at peace with
themselves, at peace with others and with the world. They seem to despise
everyone. They have no friends and they seem to be more miserable, more
so than the sinners!
Why was this
man sad even though he had observed all the commandments? The truth is that the
commandments are negative in formulation. They tell us what we should not
do but not what we should do. They are good for those who are minimalists
and calculative. They do not help a person to love more but to love less
and feel justified that they have loved sufficiently. Such is the nature of
commandments. They are meant to prevent a person from making mistakes but
they do not empower a person to do good. Living a clear conscience is
only one thing. It can bring limited happiness and peace. It is a
safe way but it will never give you life to the fullest and make you alive.
If we just
follow the rules slavishly, we will have no adventure in life. Not taking risks in love
means depriving ourselves of excitement and surprises. When
we do not take initiatives and risks in love, we live life like a robot,
securely, with a fixed routine. No big harm may befall us but there are
also no thrills as well. If we want to live dynamically, we must embrace
surprises without certainty of the future. An analogy would be those
going on holiday. Would you prefer to take an organized tour where
everything is planned and made comfortable for you, or a free-and-easy tour
which you organize on your own with unpredictability but with the prospect of
excitement and surprises?
The gospel
invites us to take risks in love. You will get hurt, but you will also be
alive!
This was the way of God and the way of Jesus. Our Lord did not live a
secure and comfortable life. He lived and walked amongst the
people. Every day was lived in divine providence, trusting in the love of
His heavenly Father, and responding to the situation and the needs around
Him. He lived out what He taught, “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What
will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is
the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father
knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of
God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as
well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of
its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Mt 6:31-34)
The psalmist invites us to be true in God. “The Lord keeps his covenant in
mind. He gives food to those who fear him; keeps his covenant ever
in mind. He has shown his might to his people by giving them the lands of the
nations.”
True
happiness in life is not just about adventure but taking risks in
loving. The greater the capacity to love, the greater is the
happiness. This explains why missionaries of Christ and of charity are
never rich but they live very rich lives because their lives are expended in
the service of others. It is the capacity to give one’s life for others
in love that will determine how happy we are. This was what the Lord said
to the rich man. “Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him, and he
said, ‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell everything you own and give the
money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow
me.’” This was true for the early Christians who were ready to
suffer for Jesus because they knew that their happiness lay in loving Jesus
unto death. St Peter commended them saying, “You did not see him, yet you love
him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so
glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of
the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your
souls.”
Hence, the
rich man left sad. “His face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a
man of great wealth.” He could not let go of his wealth. He could
not love beyond himself and his false security in his possessions and in
obeying the minimum requirements of the laws. He was attached to
his idols, which is his “salvation through obedience to the laws” and his
possessions. By so doing, he remained empty and unfulfilled because he
had yet to participate in the love of God. We are also sad because we
have our attachments. Many of us are afraid to love. We
give the little out of our abundance just to satisfy our conscience and soothe
our guilt. Indeed, how much have we shared with others, compared to what
we have received from the Lord? Very few of us can be like St Francis
of Assisi or Mother Teresa, or other saints, who left everything to serve the
Lord and His people, keeping not a single possession to call their own.
Indeed, this
is the tragedy of many of us. We are imprisoned by our own fears and lack
of capacity to love others. “Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, ‘How hard it
is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’ The disciples were
astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted, ‘My children,’ he said to them
‘how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass
through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.’
They were more astonished than ever.”
So how can we
love like Jesus and God? With God, everything is possible. This is what the Lord
says. Only with God, not with men! We must rely on God’s grace and
His divine providence. Can we? If only we can just trust in God and live
from hand to mouth without worrying about the next day, life would be so great.
We will be so free in love. But then we also need to be
responsible for those under our care and be good stewards. Therefore, the
worries and anxieties do weigh us now and constrain us from giving ourselves
fully to service. But there is a possibility that we
can be calculative and then rationalize our stinginess, like the rich
man. Even the disciples were like that before Jesus’ death and
resurrection. They could not give their lives to God and their
fellowmen. They were ambitious, struggling for power and status.
Are we doomed
to a half-fulfilled life? Only those enlightened by the Lord and loved by Him
deeply can let go completely; unless, we have the faith of the early Christians under
persecution. We must contemplate and find strength from the death and
resurrection of Christ to love like Him. St Peter wrote, “Blessed
be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us
a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have
a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or
soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens.”
Only faith in
Christ, can help us let go and surrender our lives to Him. “Through
your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has been
prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you,
even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of
trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been
tested and proved like gold.”
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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