20180608 HEALING UNGRATEFUL HEARTS BY OVERWHELMING LOVE AND MERCY
08 JUNE, 2018, Friday, The Most Sacred
Heart of Jesus
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Hosea 11:1,3-4,8-9 ©
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I will not give rein to my fierce anger, for I am God, not man
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Listen to the word of the Lord:
When Israel was a child I loved him,
and I called my son out of Egypt.
I myself taught Ephraim to walk,
I took them in my arms;
yet they have not understood that I was the one looking after
them.
I led them with reins of kindness,
with leading-strings of love.
I was like someone who lifts an infant close against his cheek;
stooping down to him I gave him his food.
Ephraim, how could I part with you?
Israel, how could I give you up?
How could I treat you like Admah,
or deal with you like Zeboiim?
My heart recoils from it,
my whole being trembles at the thought.
I will not give rein to my fierce anger,
I will not destroy Ephraim again,
for I am God, not man:
I am the Holy One in your midst
and have no wish to destroy.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Isaiah 12 ©
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The rejoicing of a redeemed people
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With joy you will draw water from the wells of
salvation.
Truly, God is my salvation,
I trust, I shall not fear.
For the Lord is my strength, my song,
he became my saviour.
With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.
With joy you will draw water from the wells of
salvation.
Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name!
Make his mighty deeds known to the peoples!
Declare the greatness of his name.
With joy you will draw water from the wells of
salvation.
Sing a psalm to the Lord
for he has done glorious deeds;
make them known to all the earth!
People of Zion, sing and shout for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
With joy you will draw water from the wells of
salvation.
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Second reading
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Ephesians 3:8-12,14-19 ©
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The love of Christ is beyond all knowledge
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I, Paul, who am less than the least of all the saints have been
entrusted with this special grace, not only of proclaiming to the pagans the
infinite treasure of Christ but also of explaining how the mystery is to be
dispensed. Through all the ages, this has been kept hidden in God, the creator
of everything. Why? So that the Sovereignties and Powers should learn only now,
through the Church, how comprehensive God’s wisdom really is, exactly according
to the plan which he had had from all eternity in Christ Jesus our Lord. This
is why we are bold enough to approach God in complete confidence, through our
faith in him; This, then, is what I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom
every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name:
Out of his
infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden
self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and
then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have
strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until,
knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with
the utter fullness of God.
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Gospel Acclamation
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1Jn4:10
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Alleluia, alleluia!
This is the love I mean:
God’s love for us when he sent his Son
to be the sacrifice that takes our sins away.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Mt11:29
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Shoulder my yoke and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 19:31-37 ©
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Out of his pierced side there came out blood and water
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It was Preparation Day, and to prevent the bodies remaining on the
cross during the sabbath – since that sabbath was a day of special
solemnity – the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies
taken away. Consequently the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man
who had been crucified with him and then of the other. When they came to Jesus,
they found he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs one of the
soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood
and water. This is the evidence of one who saw it – trustworthy evidence,
and he knows he speaks the truth – and he gives it so that you may believe
as well. Because all this happened to fulfil the words of scripture:
Not one bone of his will be broken;
and again, in another place scripture says:
They will look on the one whom they have
pierced.
HEALING UNGRATEFUL HEARTS BY OVERWHELMING LOVE AND MERCY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Hos 11:1, 3-4, 8-9; Is 12:2-6; Eph 3:8-12, 14-19; John 19:31-37 ]
One of the
most painful experiences in life is to be betrayed by those whom we love. The more we
love, the greater is the pain when our love is taken for granted or even
abused. That is why those of us who are disappointed or hurt by our good
friends find it very hard to forgive. At least for friends, love is meant
to be reciprocal. However, the most painful form of abuse of love is by
our loved ones, particularly our children, spouse and family members or those
whom we serve. For our loved ones, most of the time, giving is a one-way
affair. Parents sacrifice much for their children, who can only receive
but cannot return all the sacrifices and things their parents do for
them. The love is unconditional insofar as they do not expect much from
their children, other than that they are happy and successful in life.
Indeed, this
too was the experience of God with the people He loved. He loved especially
Israel, whom He had chosen to be His own. They were slaves in Egypt and
in truth, they did not deserve any privileges. God chose Israel to be His
Chosen People. This is what the prophet Hosea said, “Listen to the word of the
Lord: When Israel was a child I loved him, and I called my son out of Egypt. I
myself taught Ephraim to walk, I took them in my arms; yet they have not
understood that I was the one looking after them.” God loved Israel like
His child. He did everything for Israel and showered them with His
love, working wonders and miracles in their eyes. This was why the
psalmist said, “Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name! Make his
mighty deeds known to the peoples! Declare the greatness of his name.
Sing a psalm to the Lord for he has done glorious deeds; make them known to all
the earth! People of Zion, sing and shout for joy, for great in your midst is
the Holy One of Israel.”
However,
Israel was unfaithful to the love showered upon them. They turned to false gods
and broke the laws of the Covenant. They were ungrateful for the
blessings God had given to them, conquering their enemies and giving them the
Promised Land. Instead, they abandoned true worship of God and adopted
pagan practices. The political and religious leaders lived a life
of injustice and oppression of the poor and the vulnerable.
When we come
across such ingrates, what is our normal reaction? We retaliate. We cut them off from our
lives and strip them of all their privileges. We might even take
revenge and become vindictive. Why should we continue to love those who
do not love us or even appreciate what we do for them? Better that we
give our love to those who are more deserving, meaning that they appreciate
what we do for them.
This,
however, is not the way God responds to the hardness of men’s hearts. God does not withdraw
His love even for those who have hurt Him or do not appreciate Him. The
Lord said, “Ephraim, how could I part with you? Israel, how could I give you
up? My heart recoils from it, my whole being trembles at the thought. I will
not give rein to my fierce anger.” Indeed, God is unlike us. We
have our limits in loving our brothers and sisters. We only love those
who love us. Loving our enemies and ingrates might be possible at times
but not forever. A time will come when we also give up on them. We
are easily overwhelmed by suffering and rejection. But this is not the
way God acts because as He said, “I will not destroy Ephraim again, for I am
God, not man: I am the Holy One in your midst and have no wish to
destroy.” God seeks only our good and happiness more than His own.
He loves us for our sake, not His. His love is pure.
God is
omnipotent not because He is all-powerful and can do what He likes.
Rather, He is almighty in love because He is not overwhelmed by our rejection
or by suffering, unlike us. That is why He has the capacity for long-suffering
love. His way of dealing with our infidelity is to show even
more love and mercy. God knows that only love and mercy can conquer the
most hardened of hearts. So He continues to remain patient with us in our
ignorance and weakness. When we suffer the consequences of our sins, it
is an act of kindness from God, not an act of revenge or God’s wrath. He
allows us to suffer the pains of growing in self-realization just as parents
watch their children grow up through making mistakes and learning from
them. So too, God is patient with us. This is how the Lord
leads us “with reins of kindness, with leading-strings of love.” He
also continues to feed us with His wisdom and understanding of His laws.
The Lord said, “I was like someone who lifts an infant close
against his cheek; stooping down to him I gave him his food.”
Nevertheless,
even then, we still do not believe in God’s love and mercy. This is the
reason for His sending His only Son to die for us. Only the sacrifice of
His Son can convict the world of His love for us. Jesus said to
Nicodemus, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that
everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (Jn 3:16)
St Paul wrote, “What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us,
who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up
for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will
bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.” (Rom 8:31-33)
Most of all,
it is because of Christ’s love us even unto death on the cross, that God hopes
to convict us of our sins. “Because all this happened to fulfil the words of scripture:
Not one bone of his will be broken; and again, in another place scripture says:
They will look on the one whom they have pierced.” (Zech 12:10;
cf Isa 52:14f)
Such is the love and mercy of God for us. (cf Rom 8:34f)
Indeed, if we
want to love like that, what must we do? We will need to draw our
strength from His love and mercy. St Paul wrote, “No, in all these things we are more than
conquerors through him who loved us.” (cf Rom 8:37-39)
This is what the psalmist is asking of us. “With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation. Truly, God is my salvation, I trust, I shall not
fear. For the Lord is my strength, my song, he became my saviour. With
joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”
We must
contemplate on the love of God in Christ Jesus to find the capacity to love
like God. St
Paul was able to give up His life for His people and suffer for them. He
encouraged the Ephesians in his suffering, “I pray therefore that you may not
lose heart over my sufferings for you; they are your glory.” (Eph 3:13)
He recounted, “I, Paul, who am less than the least of all the saints have
been entrusted with this special grace, not only of proclaiming to the pagans
the infinite treasure of Christ.” Paul was grateful for the love
and mercy of God in His life. He could not but be amazed at God’s
election of him when he wrote, “I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has
strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his
service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man
of violence. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the foremost.” (1 Tim 1:11,12, 13, 15)
Secondly, we
must deepen our understanding of the depth, height, width and breadth of God’s
love.
St Paul wrote, “And then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all
the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and
the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge,
you are filled with the utter fullness of God.” Unless we come to own for
ourselves the experience of God’s love as St Paul did, we will not be able to
be filled with the fullness of God’s love in us. The more we fall in love
with God, the more we will find the capacity to love deeply.
Thirdly, what
better way to contemplate on His love and mercy than in the celebration of the
Eucharist.
That was why last Sunday we celebrated the Feast of the Body and Blood of
Christ. In the gospel, we read “When they came to Jesus, they found he
was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs one of the soldiers
pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and
water.” So at every Eucharist, we remember the passion, death and
resurrection of our Lord. In celebrating the Eucharist and receiving Him
in Holy Communion, we contemplate on His love and sacrifice for us, and receive
His Spirit as well. This is why St Paul prayed, “Out of his infinite
glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to
grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith.” Only
the Spirit that we receive through the Eucharist can empower us to do what
Jesus did.
Indeed, on
our own strength, we cannot do great things for God unless God works in and
through us.
We need to turn to Him in prayer and with confidence. “This is why we are
bold enough to approach God in complete confidence, through our faith in
him.” God, who is our Father, will certainly hear our prayers, especially
when we pray as a family at every Eucharistic celebration. Through the
Eucharist too, we become more united with Christ and His body, the Church. It
is our fellowship with other Christians and through their support and
encouragement that we are encouraged to do more and love more.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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