20180802
FINE TUNING
2 AUGUST, 2018, Thursday, 17th Week,
Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Jeremiah 18:1-6 ©
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When the clay goes wrong, the potter starts afresh
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The word that was addressed to Jeremiah by the Lord, ‘Get up and
make your way down to the potter’s house; there I shall let you hear what I
have to say.’ So I went down to the potter’s house; and there he was, working
at the wheel. And whenever the vessel he was making came out wrong, as happens
with the clay handled by potters, he would start afresh and work it into
another vessel, as potters do. Then this word of the Lord was addressed to me,
‘House of Israel, can not I do to you what this potter does? – it is the
Lord who speaks. Yes, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so you are in mine,
House of Israel.’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 145(146):2-6 ©
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He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.
or
Alleluia!
My soul, give praise to the Lord.
I will praise the Lord all my days,
make music to my God while I live.
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.
or
Alleluia!
Put no trust in princes,
In mortal men in whom there is no help.
Take their breath, they return to clay
and their plans that day come to nothing.
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.
or
Alleluia!
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
who alone made heaven and earth,
the seas and all they contain.
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jn15:15
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I call you friends, says the Lord,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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cf.Ac16:14
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Open our heart, O Lord,
to accept the words of your Son.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Matthew 13:47-53 ©
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The fishermen collect the good fish and throw away those that
are no use
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Jesus said to the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet
cast into the sea that brings in a haul of all kinds. When it is full, the
fishermen haul it ashore; then, sitting down, they collect the good ones in a
basket and throw away those that are no use. This is how it will be at the end
of time: the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the just to throw
them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and grinding of
teeth.
‘Have you
understood all this?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ And he said to them, ‘Well then, every
scribe who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a householder
who brings out from his storeroom things both new and old.’
FINE TUNING
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ JER 18:1-6; MT 13:47-53 ]
Many of us
are unable to accept the imperfections of this world. We cannot tolerate
the sins and weaknesses of others. We are judgmental of what others do
and say. We want things our way. We want everyone to agree with our
view of life. We impose our standards on others. We are so sure
that we are right and all other views are wrong. This is true not only for
those who hold absolutist views but ironically, the relativists are actually
more absolutist. As a result, we cause much unhappiness, leading to
division and hostility.
Yet, the
truth is that we live in an imperfect world. We are all imperfect human
beings. We are all growing in maturity and grace. We learn through
mistakes, trials and errors. We are still in the making. Man
remains a mystery to himself. The study of humanity is still an ongoing
process. We know so little about the psychological and genetic dimensions
of men. We are becoming more and more created in God’s image.
Indeed, when God created us, man never attained what God desired for
humanity. We are created to share the life and love of God.
However, because of sin and ignorance, right from the start, we did not get it
right.
Therefore,
humanity is in the process of growing and recovering our identity. God is reforming us in
and through our history. Of course, with Christ who is the true God and
true man, we are discovering more about the identity and calling of man.
This is what the parable or the prophecy in action in the first reading seeks
to illustrate. “So I went down to the potter’s house; and there he was, working
at the wheel. And whenever the vessel he was making came out wrong, as happens
with the clay handled by potters, he would start afresh and work it into
another vessel, as potters do.” This is the way God moulds His people in
grace. He said, “House of Israel, cannot I do to you what this potter does?
Yes, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so you are in mine, House of
Israel.” He is perfecting us by allowing us to go through our mistakes in
life.
The process
of forming man in the fullness of truth and love is ongoing. Life itself is a
pedagogy. It is through the events of life, joys and struggles,
good and evil, success and failure that we come to understand ourselves better
and grow in truth and love. Very few have special graces of infused
knowledge to know the truth clearly. Most of us grow through life, some
faster than others. However, like Jesus, we learn obedience to the truth
through suffering. (cf Heb 5:8f)
For this reason, if
we want to find peace and happiness in life we must first recognize our
limitations in all humility. None of us has the perfect
solution to life’s issues. None of us can claim to have the fullness of
truth. Even if the Church believes that Christ is the fullness of truth,
we are growing into it. We do not possess it fully even though we know
where the truth lies. So it is better to be humble and modest in our
claims rather than to be absolute. We can learn much from each other,
even from people of other faiths and cultures.
In the
declaration of the Church’s relation to other religions, Nostra Aetate says, “Religions, however,
that are bound up with an advanced culture have struggled to answer the same
questions by means of more refined concepts and a more developed
language. Likewise, other religions found everywhere try to counter the
restlessness of the human heart, each in its own manner, by proposing ‘ways,’
comprising teachings, rules of life, and sacred rites. The Catholic Church
rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. The Church,
therefore, exhorts her sons, that through dialogue and collaboration with the
followers of other religions … recognize, preserve and promote the good things,
spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these
men.” (NA, 2)
At any rate,
we believe in the development of doctrines. Faith and knowledge, like the mustard
seed, takes time to grow as Jesus taught us. Development must be
understood in terms of clarification and elaboration of what is already
taught. Development requires a continuity with the past and not something
altogether new or in direct opposition to what were previously held as truths.
The history of Christianity shows many of our doctrines about Christ, Mary, the
Sacraments, salvation and redemption have evolved through clarification and
elaboration. The dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and salvation
outside the Church came through clarification and qualification of these
doctrines. Another recent case in point is the doctrine of Justification
by Faith alone, which is now a shared doctrine with the Protestants.
The Church
teaches us that through study and prayer, we are journeying into the plenitude
of truth. “This tradition which comes from the Apostles develop in the
Church with the help of the Holy Spirit. For there is a growth in the
understanding of the realities and the words which have been handed down. This
happens through the contemplation and study made by believers, who treasure
these things in their hearts (see Luke, 2:19, 51) through a penetrating
understanding of the spiritual realities which they experience, and through the
preaching of those who have received through Episcopal succession the sure gift
of truth. For as the centuries succeed one another, the Church constantly moves
forward toward the fullness of divine truth until the words of God reach their
complete fulfillment in her.” (Dei Verbum, 8)
This is true
especially for morality as well. Humanity grows in understanding of what
is right and wrong. We see the changing morality from the Old Testament to the
New Testament. What was then considered right and just in the Old
Testament, even if it were the Word of God, is no longer accepted in later
generations. Take the example of marriage and family. In the days
of old, people intermarry within their own tribes and relatives. Polygamy was
accepted. Women were simply objects for men’s pleasure and had no rights
but subjected to men’s whims and fancies. Killing of our enemies,
especially those who do not share our faith, was a holy thing to do.
Slavery was an accepted culture. Today, such actions are considered
abhorrent. We speak of the freedom and dignity of human persons. We have
abolished slavery. Monogamy is almost the universal norm. We
respect and appreciate the religion and culture of others. Women are
considered equal in every way. We speak of the dignity of human life, respect
for all, regardless of race, language or religion.
However, some
developments remain controversial. What is wrong now becomes right and what is
right becomes wrong. These are the shadows of the modern
world. Are they retrogression or progression? Until the 18th
century, atheism was a crime. However, today, it has become a novelty to
be known as a free thinker or even an atheist. In fact, to subscribe to a
belief in God seems degrading for an intelligent human being. Same
sex union is more accepted as a norm of society. Sex is seen as a
legitimate pleasure outside of marriage, so long as there is mutual
consent. Divorce and remarriage is considered better than remaining in a
difficult marriage or even being single for the rest of our lives. Abortion
is taken as the best way out of an unwanted pregnancy. Euthanasia is
advocated as a compassionate way to end the lives of our elderly and the sick.
The truth is
that not all developments are necessarily good and true. Growth is never
linear. There will be aberrations along the way. So these debates
continue. Through these interactions and dialogues, the truth will become
clearer. We are arriving but not yet arrived. We will arrive only
at the end of time as, St Paul wrote: “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but
then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully,
even as I have been fully known.” (1 Cor 13:12)
The advice of our Lord is clear. “Well then, every scribe who becomes a
disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his
storeroom things both new and old.” We need to allow the old and
new to interact so that we do not lose the wisdom of the past and at the same time,
we do not freeze history and prevent growth in truth and grace.
There is
wisdom from the past but with changing situations, we need to find and discern
how the Spirit of God is leading us forward. Like the parable of
the dragnet, we need to sift out what is good and evil. “The kingdom of
heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea that brings in a haul of all kinds.
When it is full, the fishermen haul it ashore; then, sitting down, they collect
the good ones in a basket and throw away those that are no use.” We need
to turn to God for divine assistance. The psalmist says, “Put no trust in
princes, in mortal men in whom there is no help. He is happy who is
helped by Jacob’s God, whose hope is in the Lord his God.” We are
ignorant and short sighted. We need to imbue ourselves with the word of
God and to read the signs of the times.
Finally, we
cannot escape judgement in the end. “This is how it will be at the end of
time; the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the just to throw
them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and grinding of
teeth.” These judgements are on the individual and collective
levels. We will need to account for our actions. On the individual
level, we will be judged by our intentions and our conscience. It will be
our actions that count, not so much the effects because God judges us by our
efforts and sincerity. We are called to be faithful, not
successful. However, on the collective level, judgement is by the
consequences and outcome for history and humanity. Unlike the
individual’s judgement, this judgment is an objective assessment of the actions
of historical decisions.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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