20180620
AIM FOR THE HEAVENS, SEEK GOD AND HIS PEOPLE’S
INTERESTS
20 JUNE, 2018, Wednesday, 11th Week,
Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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2 Kings 2:1,6-14 ©
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Elijah is taken up to heaven
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This is what happened when the Lord took Elijah up to heaven in
the whirlwind: Elijah and Elisha set out from Gilgal, Elijah said, ‘Elisha,
please stay here, the Lord is only sending me to the Jordan.’ But he replied,
‘As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you!’ And they
went on together.
Fifty of the
brotherhood of prophets followed them, halting some distance away as the two of
them stood beside the Jordan. Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck
the water; and the water divided to left and right, and the two of them crossed
over dry-shod. When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Make your
request. What can I do for you before I am taken from you?’ Elisha answered,
‘Let me inherit a double share of your spirit.’ ‘Your request is a difficult
one’ Elijah said. ‘If you see me while I am being taken from you, it shall be
as you ask; if not, it will not be so.’ Now as they walked on, talking as they
went, a chariot of fire appeared and horses of fire, coming between the two of
them; and Elijah went up to heaven in the whirlwind. Elisha saw it, and
shouted, ‘My father! My father! Chariot of Israel and its chargers!’ Then he
lost sight of him, and taking hold of his clothes he tore them in half. He
picked up the cloak of Elijah which had fallen, and went back and stood on the
bank of the Jordan.
He took the
cloak of Elijah and struck the water. ‘Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?’
he cried. He struck the water, and it divided to right and left, and Elisha
crossed over.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 30(31):20,21,24 ©
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Let your heart take courage, all who hope in the
Lord.
How great is the goodness, Lord,
that you keep for those who fear you,
that you show to those who trust you
in the sight of men.
Let your heart take courage, all who hope in the
Lord.
You hide them in the shelter of your presence
from the plotting of men;
you keep them safe within your tent
from disputing tongues.
Let your heart take courage, all who hope in the
Lord.
Love the Lord, all you saints.
He guards his faithful
but the Lord will repay to the full
those who act with pride.
Let your heart take courage, all who hope in the
Lord.
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.Col3:16a,17
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Let the message of Christ, in all its richness,
find a home with you;
through him give thanks to God the Father.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Jn14:23
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Alleluia, alleluia!
If anyone loves me he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we shall come to him.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Matthew 6:1-6,16-18 ©
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Your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you
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Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be careful not to parade your good
deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this you will lose all
reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give alms, do not have it
trumpeted before you; this is what the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in
the streets to win men’s admiration. I tell you solemnly, they have had their
reward. But when you give alms, your left hand must not know what your right is
doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and your Father who sees all that is
done in secret will reward you.
‘And when
you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers
standing up in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them;
I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray, go to your
private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in
that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will
reward you.
‘When you
fast do not put on a gloomy look as the hypocrites do: they pull long faces to
let men know they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward.
But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that no one will
know you are fasting except your Father who sees all that is done in secret;
and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.’
AIM FOR THE HEAVENS, SEEK GOD AND HIS PEOPLE’S INTERESTS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 Kings 2:1, 6-14; Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
]
“Unless your
righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter
the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 5:20) This is the warning of our Lord with respect to our
sense of justice, doing what is right and how we should live our lives.
What is the kingdom of God? St Paul wrote, “The kingdom of God is not
food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Rom 14:17)
Indeed, it is only when we live a righteous life, that we enjoy the peace and
joy of the Holy Spirit. That is why St Paul urged the Christians, “seek
the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of
God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on
earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in
God.” (Col 3:1-3)
Indeed, that
was what Elisha did when he became Elijah’s disciple. When Elijah “passed by him
and threw his mantle over him, he left the oxen, ran after Elijah, ‘Let me kiss
my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.’” He gave up
everything to be the servant of Elijah. He “took the yoke of oxen, and
slaughtered them; using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and
gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out and followed Elijah, and
became his servant.” He gave up his professions to follow Elijah for a
greater cause, which was to serve God and His people by preserving them from
sin and idolatry so that they would serve the true God.
This is true
for the disciples of Jesus and for many priests, religious, and laity who give
themselves fully to the proclamation of the gospel. What motivates them
to take this course in life? What causes them to give up a bright future, a good career,
a luxurious life, a life of worldly freedom in exchange for a life of celibacy,
poverty and obedience? (cf Mt 10:8-10)
There must be a greater calling and a higher goal that such people are
seeking. Indeed, Jesus said, “there are eunuchs who have made themselves
eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 19:12)
They are those who have fallen in love with Jesus and so filled with His love,
joy and peace that they want to share with others what they have
encountered. St John wrote, “we declare to you what we have seen and
heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is
with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these
things so that our joy may be complete.” (1 Jn 1:3f)
In other words, they are seeking a more fulfilling life than just making money,
being famous and having power in the world.
This is the
heart of Jesus’ teaching in the gospel. We must examine and purify our
motives in what we do. He said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on
earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and
steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth
nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where
your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Mt 6:19-21)
We get rewarded according to our expectations. If our goals are of lesser
value, then we will simply get what we seek. Jesus said to His disciples:
“Be careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their notice;
by doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven.” Jesus
illustrates this truth with the examples of fasting, almsgiving and
praying. After explaining the lowly motives of the scribes and Pharisees
for practising such forms of spirituality, He remarked, three times, “I tell
you solemnly, they have had their reward.” Indeed, if we give alms
in order to win men’s admiration, that is the only reward we get. Many people
give and announce to the whole world their generosity. They want the world to
speak well of them and to glorify them. Or when we pray to let people see
how holy and pious we are, that is about all we get. So if we fast to
impress others, this is our reward.
But such
rewards of the world are empty. The praises and glory of the world cannot last and they do
not change us from within. Today, they glorify us but if we make a
mistake tomorrow, they will not only dump us but condemn us. Many praise
us also because they are self-serving. They want to get something from
us. That is why money, fame and power in themselves cannot bring
happiness, joy and peace. With riches, life becomes more complex and our
needs increase. We become slaves to a luxurious life and forget the joys
of a simple life. When we are powerful, many who are serving us are
seeking to fight for our position. This explains why in the corporate and
political world, and even in the religious world, the struggle for power and
control is real. We create enemies and competitors. To think that
it is a blessing to be famous and to have the world know who we are, is silly
because it means we have lost our privacy and our freedom to do what we want
and go where we like. In truth, we become very lonely because we do not
know who our real friends are and those who truly love us and not our office,
position and money.
That is why
we must do everything with a higher motive and driven by heavenly things,
namely, peace, love and joy in the Holy Spirit. We must seek authentic love
and meaning. As Jesus said, when we give alms, the joy is not that others
notice us, but that we share in the capacity of God to give as Jesus did
because “though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his
poverty you might become rich.” (2 Cor 8:9)
When we give selflessly without condition and expectation of reward, that
giving is genuine and we feel the joy of God that no one can give to us.
When we do something for others with the intention of benefiting ourselves,
this is not giving but merely an exchange. When we fast, it must not be a
show to others how pious and disciplined we are; rather, it should be a means
to humble ourselves before God, sharing in His suffering, identifying with the
poor and hungry, being disposed for prayer as an act of repentance and
atonement for our sins and to be open for His grace to fill us. Such motives
are certainly more helpful to our lives than peoples’ admiration.
Finally, when we pray, what is even greater than impressing people is our
personal relationship with God; being filled with His love, inspired by His
words and consoled by His wisdom and compassion. It is being filled
with the spirit of thanksgiving and praise that brings the presence of God into
our hearts. Such motives are certainly more satisfying than people’s
empty praises.
Elisha is a
good model of one who sought the higher things of life. Before Elijah
departed from this earth, he requested to “inherit a double share of your
spirit.” He saw how Elijah lived his life in total fidelity to God and
His people. He witnessed how Elijah performed miracles to demonstrate the
power of God and the need to be faithful to His covenant. Elisha too
wanted to share in his prophetic ministry because he knew that this is where
life, meaning and joy was to be found. Indeed, when we seek God and the
good of His people as Elisha and Elijah did, we find perfect peace and
joy. We have fewer worries and our worries are temporary because we know
that our lives are in the hands of God. This was what Elijah said, “Your
request is a difficult one. If you see me while I am being taken from you, it
shall be as you ask; if not, it will not be so.” We can only surrender
our lives and the work of our hands to God. Because we do not have any selfish
ambition on our part, we do not have to fight with people for glory, power and
riches. We only want to glorify God like Mary who said, “My soul
magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (cf Lk 1:46-49)
We need not be bothered by accolades and what people say.
Today, we
need to have more role models like Elijah to inspire others to give up their
lives for the service of God and His people. We have enough of
self-serving leaders like the Jewish leaders during the time of Jesus.
Such leaders are hypocrites because they have no intention of doing what they
preach because their hearts are not with God and His people. This is
quite different from those of us who are seeking to do God’s will
sincerely. Even if we are not perfect, we will share in God’s love, joy
and mercy because we are sincere. So long God is pleased with us and we
love Him and His people, we are at peace.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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