20180913
CHARITY THE ULTIMATE
PRINCIPLE IN APPLYING ALL LAWS
13 SEPTEMBER,
2018, Thursday, 23rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
White.
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First reading
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1 Corinthians
8:1-7,11-13 ©
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Your brethren may be weaker than you: do
not lead them astray
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Now about food sacrificed to idols. ‘We
all have knowledge’; yes, that is so, but knowledge gives
self-importance – it is love that makes the building grow. A man may
imagine he understands something, but still not understand anything in the way
that he ought to. But any man who loves God is known by him. Well then, about
eating food sacrificed to idols: we know that idols do not really exist in the
world and that there is no god but the One. And even if there were things
called gods, either in the sky or on earth – where there certainly seem to
be ‘gods’ and ‘lords’ in plenty – still for us there is one God, the
Father, from whom all things come and for whom we exist; and there is one Lord,
Jesus Christ, through whom all things come and through whom we exist.
Some
people, however, do not have this knowledge. There are some who have been so
long used to idols that they eat this food as though it really had been
sacrificed to the idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled by it. In
this way your knowledge could become the ruin of someone weak, of a brother for
whom Christ died. By sinning in this way against your brothers, and injuring
their weak consciences, it would be Christ against whom you sinned. That is
why, since food can be the occasion of my brother’s downfall, I shall never eat
meat again in case I am the cause of a brother’s downfall.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm
138(139):1-3,13-14,23-24 ©
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Lead me, O Lord, in the
path of life eternal.
O Lord, you search me and you know me,
you know my resting and my
rising,
you discern my purpose from
afar.
You mark when I walk or lie down,
all my ways lie open to you.
Lead me, O Lord, in the
path of life eternal.
For it was you who created my being,
knit me together in my
mother’s womb.
I thank you for the wonder of my being,
for the wonders of all your
creation.
Lead me, O Lord, in the
path of life eternal.
Already you knew my soul,
O search me, God, and know my heart.
O test me and know my
thoughts.
See that I follow not the wrong path
and lead me in the path of
life eternal.
Lead me, O Lord, in the
path of life eternal.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jm1:21
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Accept and submit to the word
which has been planted in you
and can save your souls.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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1Jn4:12
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Alleluia, alleluia!
As long as we love one another
God will live in us
and his love will be complete in us.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 6:27-38 ©
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Love your enemies
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Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I say this
to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly. To the man who
slaps you on one cheek, present the other cheek too; to the man who takes your
cloak from you, do not refuse your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and do
not ask for your property back from the man who robs you. Treat others as you
would like them to treat you. If you love those who love you, what thanks can you
expect? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who
do good to you, what thanks can you expect? For even sinners do that much. And
if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what thanks can you expect?
Even sinners lend to sinners to get back the same amount. Instead, love your
enemies and do good, and lend without any hope of return. You will have a great
reward, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the
ungrateful and the wicked.
‘Be
compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not
be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves;
grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you:
a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured
into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be
given back.’
CHARITY THE ULTIMATE PRINCIPLE IN
APPLYING ALL LAWS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 COR 8:1-7, 11-13; LUKE 6:27-38 ]
Laws are legislated for
the purpose of establishing and fostering harmony among all peoples, especially in a
particular community or organization. So laws are good and necessary at
times. But the irony is that laws can also divide the people if not
properly implemented. There are many reasons why the laws can create
division and contention among the peoples. Not to speak about Church
laws, especially liturgical laws, even civil laws have always been challenged
on technical points in the way they are carried out, or even formulated.
So it is not surprising
that even within the Church, so much division exists because of the laws! There are those who interpret the laws
widely and there are those who interpret the laws narrowly. There
are those who want to observe the letter of the laws and there are those who
think it is more important to observe the spirit of the laws. There are
those who think that all laws must be obeyed with the same degree of
importance, and there are those who follow the principle of the hierarchy of
laws. This means that some laws are more essential than others and
obedience is not rendered in the same degree to all the laws. There are those
who are knowledgeable of the laws and there are those who are ignorant of the
laws. There are those who know the laws but do not understand the laws,
and apply them slavishly and blindly. There are those who do not know the laws
and do not understand them and so do not apply them. There are those who
uphold the rules above all else, regardless whether they help the people; and
there are those who put the practical needs of the people before the rules.
With such a wide range
of views and perspectives, we should not be surprised that these different
groups of people are always at odds with each other in the application of the
laws. At times,
disagreements lead to confusion, anger, hostility and disunity. This
happens quite often in the Church over the application of liturgical laws and
some Church practices. The situation becomes worse when the leaders of the
Church or organization seek to impose their views and personal preferences on
the community without proper dialogue, education, formation and
understanding. They just want the letter of the laws to be followed by
all, regardless of the context or the situation.
This was the case of the
Christians at Corinth during the time of St Paul. They were squabbling
over whether they could eat meat that was sold in the market place and which
had been offered to the idols. The
knowledgeable and enlightened group of Christians flaunted their newfound
freedom in Christ. As far as they were concerned, “idols do not really
exist in the world and that there is no god but the One. And even if
there were things called gods, either in the sky or on the earth – where there
certainly seem to be ‘gods’ and ‘lords’ in plenty … there is one God, the
Father, from whom all things come and for whom we exist; and there is one Lord,
Jesus Christ, through whom all things come and through whom we exist.”
Based on this principle, Christians surely could eat meat that was bought from
the market place that had been offered to the idols.
On the other hand, many
of the Christians in Corinth were converted from paganism. Indeed, as St Paul said, “Some
people, however, do not have this knowledge. There are some people who
have been so long used to idols that they eat this food as though it really had
been sacrificed to the idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled by
it.” They knew that the foods were offered to idols. So having been
converted, and asking them to eat the meat reminded them of their former
religious pagan practices. They therefore felt guilty to eat such
meat offered to idols because of their allegiance to Christ. In truth,
they could eat the meat, but because of their past religious practices, they
did not feel right. A case in point is our Catholic converts from
Hinduism and Buddhism. Some of them were vegetarian and some abstained
from beef. So even after conversion, they would not eat meat or
beef. This practice is so ingrained in them that to eat beef would be to
commit a sin, though for Catholics we know it is not a sin.
For this reason, St Paul
cautioned those with knowledge of the laws that they should not cause their
weaker brothers to be scandalized. Out of charity for them, we should refrain from
exercising our freedom. He said, “Your knowledge could become the ruin of
someone weak, of a brother for whom Christ died. By sinning in this way
against your brothers, and injuring their weak consciences, it would be Christ
against whom you sinned. That is why, since food can be the occasion of
my brother’s downfall, I shall never eat meat again in case I am the cause of
my brother’s downfall.” So for the greater good of our weaker brothers,
we must be sensitive to their conscience and their cultural ties. To
insist on doing what is lawful is against the sin of charity.
Conversely, those who
are weak, less knowledgeable, or even presumptuous, thinking that they know the
laws of the faith, should not impose their narrow views on others. They might discover later on that
they had misinterpreted the laws or applied them too legalistically without
taking into account the spirit and the context of the laws. A case in
point is the placing of flowers on top of the altar. The General Instructions
of the Roman Missal (GIRM) nos 305-306 says only the essential items should be
placed on the altar. Specifically, it says, “Floral decorations should
always be done with moderation and placed around the altar rather than on
its mensa.” (GIRM 305) But at Santa Martha Chapel, the
Pope celebrates mass with the flowers on top of the altar! And it seems
it is a universal practice in Italy. Therefore, we must be careful that we are
not more Roman than the Romans!
Of course, the laws are
good but not all laws have the same exigency to be complied with all at once. Without showing disrespect for the
laws which are guidelines to help us to celebrate the liturgy meaningfully, we
need to be sensitive to the culture and the practices of the people before
applying the laws within context and in the spirit of what the laws ask of
us. When it comes to essential laws, there should be no compromise, but
with regard to other minor details, we seek to comply where possible.
Even then, when we want to apply the laws and change the customary practices,
we need to educate, form and help them to understand the purpose of the laws
and how the laws can help them to live up to their faith and not just imposed
without understanding the spirit of the laws.
Indeed, this is true
even with regard to Christian practices. Often, converts ask me whether it is wrong to
hold joss sticks at the funeral of their loved ones who are not Catholic, or
even help to fold the “paper money” for their loved ones to burn at the
funeral. It is not a question of can or cannot. Rather, it is a
question of charity. When we do everything out of love, it is the only
law that is above all laws. So long as we do not worship their deities
and we are clear about it, there is no reason why we cannot bow to the deceased
using joss sticks as a symbol of respect and solidarity in prayer. Of
course, prudence is called for. If it causes scandal, then if possible we
avoid doing so, but if it is for a greater good, then we should not refrain
from doing a good act. As the psalmist says, “O Lord, you search me and
you know me, you know my resting and my rising, you discern my purpose from
afar. You mark when I walk or lie down, all my ways lie open to you.
Already you knew my soul, O search me, God, and know my heart. O test me and
know my thoughts. See that I follow not the wrong path and lead me in the path
of life eternal.”
In the final analysis,
we must remember the exhortation of our Lord in the gospel on compassion. “Be compassionate as your Father is
compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged yourselves; do
not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourself; grant pardon, and you will
be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure,
pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap;
because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.”
Indeed, we must exercise compassion and sensitivity in the way we apply the
laws, taking into consideration the different levels, interests, context and
importance of the laws. We must not allow our pride or
knowledge of the laws or narrow-mindedness based on personal preferences to
impose our will on others.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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