20180618
DISCERNING LOVE
18 JUNE, 2018, Monday, 11th Week,
Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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1 Kings 21:1-16 ©
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Ahab covets Naboth's vineyard and Jezebel has him killed
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Naboth of Jezreel had a vineyard close by the palace of Ahab king
of Samaria, and Ahab said to Naboth, ‘Give me your vineyard to be my vegetable
garden, since it adjoins my house; I will give you a better vineyard for it or,
if you prefer, I will give you its worth in money.’ But Naboth answered Ahab,
‘The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors!’
Ahab went
home gloomy and out of temper at the words of Naboth of Jezreel, ‘I will not
give you the inheritance of my fathers.’ He lay down on his bed and turned his
face away and refused to eat. His wife Jezebel came to him. ‘Why are you so
dispirited’ she said ‘that you will not eat?’ He said, ‘I have been speaking to
Naboth of Jezreel; I said: Give me your vineyard either for money or, if you
prefer, for another vineyard in exchange. But he said, “I will not give you my
vineyard.”’ Then his wife Jezebel said, ‘You make a fine king of Israel, and no
mistake! Get up and eat; cheer up, and you will feel better; I will get you the
vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel myself.’
So she wrote
letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, sending them to the
elders and nobles who lived where Naboth lived. In the letters she wrote,
‘Proclaim a fast, and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Confront him
with a couple of scoundrels who will accuse him like this, “You have cursed God
and the king.” Then take him outside and stone him to death.’
The men of
Naboth’s town, the elders and nobles who lived in his town, did what Jezebel
ordered, what was written in the letters she had sent them. They proclaimed a
fast and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Then the two scoundrels
came and stood in front of him and made their accusation, ‘Naboth has cursed
God and the king.’ They led him outside the town and stoned him to death. They
then sent word to Jezebel, ‘Naboth has been stoned to death.’ When Jezebel
heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, ‘Get up! Take
possession of the vineyard which Naboth of Jezreel would not give you for
money, for Naboth is no longer alive, he is dead.’ When Ahab heard that Naboth
was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel and take
possession of it.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 5:2-3,5-7 ©
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Give heed to my groaning, O Lord.
To my words give ear, O Lord,
give heed to my groaning.
Attend to the sound of my cries,
my King and my God.
Give heed to my groaning, O Lord.
You are no God who loves evil;
no sinner is your guest.
The boastful shall not stand their ground
before your face.
Give heed to my groaning, O Lord.
You hate all who do evil;
you destroy all who lie.
The deceitful and bloodthirsty man
the Lord detests.
Give heed to my groaning, O Lord.
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Gospel Acclamation
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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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Or:
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Ps118:105
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is a lamp for my steps
and a light for my path.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Matthew 5:38-42 ©
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Offer the wicked man no resistance
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Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the
wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right
cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have
your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one
mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to
borrow, do not turn away.’
DISCERNING LOVE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 Kings 21:1-16; Mt 5:38-42 ]
In the first reading,
we read of the greed of the King of Samaria, Ahab. He
saw Naboth’s vineyard next to his house and said to him, “Give me your vineyard
to be my vegetable garden, since it adjoins my house; I will give you a better
vineyard for it or, if you prefer, I will give its worth in money.”
Naboth refused because it was wrong for him to give away the inheritance of his
ancestors. For Naboth, the property was not his but held in trust for
future generations. He was answerable not only to himself but to his
ancestors and his children’s children.
Not only was
Ahab greedy but he behaved like a spoilt child, throwing tantrums when he did
not get what he wanted. “Ahab went home gloomy and out of temper at the words of
Naboth of Jezreel, ‘I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.’ He lay
down on his bed and turned his face away and refused to eat.” This is
exactly how immature people behave. They pout, lament, are dispirited,
refuse to eat and make their loved ones sad and worried.
So how do we
deal with such “big babies” in our lives? Do we pander to their
childishness, give in to their demands and seek to appease them? The truth is that this is
what most of us would do for our loved ones. When our children are anxious and
depressed because they cannot finish their schoolwork, we finish it for
them. When our children feel sad because they are not allowed to go out
with their friends, we cave in to their pleas even though they are slacking in
their studies. When our loved ones are overweight, we continue to feed
them with unhealthy food. When our loved ones are involved in irregular
relationships, we tolerate them. This seems to find support from
Jesus in the gospel today when He taught, “offer the wicked man no
resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer
him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let
him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go
two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to
borrow, do not turn away.”
This was
precisely what Jezebel did as well. Although she was equally
wicked, selfish, greedy, power-hunger and more vicious than Ahab, who was a
puppet king, she certainly loved Ahab much. She appeared to be the one
controlling the throne. She was protective of her husband and sought to
make him look good, capable and powerful. So when he was depressed over
Naboth’s refusal to sell him his vineyard, Jezebel schemed and manipulated to
have Naboth done away with, so as to secure his property for Ahab.
Presumably, she did it in the interest of her husband. “When Jezebel
heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, ‘Get up! Take
possession of the vineyard which Naboth of Jezreel would not give you for
money, for Naboth is no longer alive, he is dead.’ When Ahab heard that Naboth
was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel and take
possession of it.”
The question
we therefore need to reflect on is, whether helping our loved ones to commit
sin, even if it makes them apparently happy, the right thing to do? In other words, in the name
of love, do we commit another sin? If we are carrying a baby that we did
not plan or even want, do we go for abortion so that the baby would not suffer
in the long run because of rejection? Can we right a wrong with another
wrong? By so doing, aren’t we perpetuating the crime and causing more
injury to our neighbour?
Often, in the
name of love, we do something that actually hurts our loved ones in the end. We do not have the
courage to endure short-term suffering for long-term happiness. This is what
the letter of Hebrews is asking of us when the author says, “Let us also lay
aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with
perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer
and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right
hand of the throne of God.” (Heb 12:1f)
But why are
we accomplices to their crimes or sins when we know that supporting them is not
the right thing to do? We do all these not because we love them but because we
love ourselves more. We cannot bear to see them suffer or in a bad
mood. We cannot bear the pain of seeing them grow through
sufferings. Therefore, it is more for the love of self rather than for
them. Within this context, we can better feel with Jezebel. This
explains why we seek to take away their growing pains so that we do not have to
suffer. For in truth, if we really love them, then we must do what is for
their ultimate good and not just immediate good.
Is this is
the way Jesus is telling us to deal with those who sin? We must be
careful that we do not read the gospel out of context. The
underlying principle of our Lord is that our response must be to heal and not
to cause more harm. This was why He was against the ancient
principle of self-defence, a principle which we still hold today, namely, “Eye
for eye and tooth for tooth.” Instead, Jesus says, “offer the
wicked man no resistance.” The point is that when we take revenge by
taking the life of another, we will only add more injury, injustice and hatred
among all peoples. Hence, the principle of our Lord is clear; we do not
resolve a crime by committing another crime. It is as if a woman who is
pregnant with an unwanted child chooses to abort the baby, or a girl who is
made pregnant by her boyfriend rushes into a marriage that they are not
prepared. So clearly, whatever we do to help someone should not involve
another wrong.
We can only
use right and just actions to redeem someone who is in the wrong. Hence, there are
situations when we are unjustly treated by others, as in the case of Naboth,
whose property was stolen by Ahab. In such cases, then the principle of
non-violence and non-resistance applies. In this instance, we are not
directly committing a crime or a sin. Those who are unjust to us are the
ones who are guilty of sin. By not retaliating, we hope that our genuine
love and compassion for our enemies might win them over. Giving them what
they want, more than what they deserve, will hopefully help them to experience
the unconditional love of God. Solomon says, “love is strong as death,
passion fierce as the grave. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods
drown it. If one offered for love all the wealth of one’s house, it would
be utterly scorned.” (Songs 8:6f)
This is how
the Lord acted towards His enemies in His life and ministry. This was
what St Peter exhorted the early Christians who were persecuted for their
faith. “For it is a credit to you if, being aware of God, you endure pain
while suffering unjustly. If you endure when you are beaten for doing
wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do right and suffer for
it, you have God’s approval. For to this you have been called,
because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you
should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found
in his mouth. When he was abused, he did not return abuse;
when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who
judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so
that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have
been healed.” (1 Pt 2:19-24) Indeed, the Lord has shown us that
love is more powerful than hatred, life more powerful than death.
St Paul says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
(Rom 12:21)
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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