20180911
RESOLVING CONFLICTS
WITHIN THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY
11 SEPTEMBER,
2018, Tuesday, 23rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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1 Corinthians 6:1-11 ©
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Do not drag your brother to a pagan for
judgement
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How dare one of your members take up a
complaint against another in the law courts of the unjust instead of before the
saints? As you know, it is the saints who are to ‘judge the world’; and if the
world is to be judged by you, how can you be unfit to judge trifling cases?
Since we are also to judge angels, it follows that we can judge matters of
everyday life; but when you have had cases of that kind, the people you
appointed to try them were not even respected in the Church. You should be
ashamed: is there really not one reliable man among you to settle differences
between brothers and so one brother brings a court case against another in
front of unbelievers? It is bad enough for you to have lawsuits at all against
one another: oughtn’t you to let yourselves be wronged, and let yourselves be
cheated? But you are doing the wronging and the cheating, and to your own
brothers.
You
know perfectly well that people who do wrong will not inherit the kingdom of
God: people of immoral lives, idolaters, adulterers, catamites, sodomites,
thieves, usurers, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers will never inherit the
kingdom of God. These are the sort of people some of you were once, but now you
have been washed clean, and sanctified, and justified through the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit of our God.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 149:1-6,9 ©
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The Lord takes delight
in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Sing a new song to the Lord,
his praise in the assembly of
the faithful.
Let Israel rejoice in its Maker,
let Zion’s sons exult in their
king.
The Lord takes delight
in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Let them praise his name with dancing
and make music with timbrel
and harp.
For the Lord takes delight in his people.
He crowns the poor with
salvation.
The Lord takes delight
in his people.
or
Alleluia!
Let the faithful rejoice in their glory,
shout for joy and take their
rest.
Let the praise of God be on their lips:
this honour is for all his
faithful.
The Lord takes delight
in his people.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ph2:15-16
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Alleluia, alleluia!
You will shine in the world like bright
stars
because you are offering it the word of
life.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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cf.Jn15:16
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I chose you from the world
to go out and bear fruit,
fruit that will last,
says the Lord.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 6:12-19 ©
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Jesus chooses his twelve apostles
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Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and
he spent the whole night in prayer to God. When day came he summoned his
disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them ‘apostles’: Simon whom
he called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of
James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.
He
then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was
a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts
of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon who
had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by
unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch
him because power came out of him that cured them all.
RESOLVING CONFLICTS WITHIN THE CHRISTIAN
COMMUNITY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 COR 6:1-11; LK 6:12-19 ]
In any community, including
Christian communities, there will always be personal differences in views and
perspectives. Some conflicts
happen because of the failures and weaknesses of fellow Christians. This
is expected because not all are of the same spiritual depth of holiness in
Christian life and the practice of Christian virtues. Not all live the life of
Christ as they should. Not all are so forgiving and tolerant. Not all are
humble and self-giving. Many who profess to be Christians are far from
what they should be.
Of course, as
Christians, we are supposed to have found Christ as the Light, the Truth and
the Life. We are required to walk in truth and love, in compassion and
forgiveness. What
do we do when a fellow Christian does not walk in righteousness? How do
we deal with difficult, weak, self-centered, vindictive, opinionated and
arrogant members of our community? The rule of thumb given by St Paul is
that we should never take up a lawsuit against our fellow
Christians. It is unthinkable that a fellow Christian would bring
another Christian to a secular civil court to find justice. Why?
Firstly, Christians
should not behave as such.
He said, “It is bad enough for you to have lawsuits at all against one another:
oughtn’t you to let yourselves be wronged, and let yourselves be cheated? But
you are doing the wronging and the cheating, and to your own
brothers.” Indeed, if we are Christians and not living the
Christ-like life, then we cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. We are only
Christians in name, not in fact. He wrote, “You know perfectly well that
people who do wrong will not inherit the kingdom of God: people of immoral
lives, idolaters, adulterers, catamites, sodomites, thieves, usurers,
drunkards, slanderers and swindlers will never inherit the kingdom of God.”
Secondly, to go to the
civil court to find justice is to surrender our values to the world. We are indirectly saying that the justice
of the court is the justice of Christ and the gospel. The truth is that
human laws are enacted by man, by the parliament and executed by the
courts. Not all legislations of Parliament are wise and true. Many
countries in the world, because of pressure from society, formulate unwise if
not harmful laws for their citizens. Some countries permit abortion,
euthanasia, cloning, death penalty etc. Some of these laws are against
the values of the gospel. So to turn to the world for judgement is to
deny that we have the truth. This is why St Paul said, “How dare one of
your members take up a complaint against another in the law courts of the
unjust instead of before the saints? As you know, it is the saints who are to
‘judge the world’; and if the world is to be judged by you, how can you be
unfit to judge trifling cases? Since we are also to judge angels, it follows
that we can judge matters of everyday life; but when you have had cases of that
kind, the people you appointed to try them were not even respected in the
Church.”
Thirdly, Christian
justice is unlike human justice, which is based on revenge, the principle of an
eye for an eye.
Christian justice goes beyond retribution and punishment. The heart of
Christian justice is compassion, mercy and forgiveness. A Christian does
not take revenge but conquers the hatred of his enemy by love and mercy.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes
you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue
you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you
to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from
you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you. (Mt 5:38-42)
Fourthly, Christian
justice is not reducible to justice in this life but in the world to come. It is the salvation of the soul and
not just of the body. What is even more important than seeking earthly
justice is to be concerned about saving the soul. Our enemies, slanderers
and cheaters are ignorant and hurting themselves as much as they hurt others.
We were also once like that. St Paul reminded us, “These are the sort of
people some of you were once, but now you have been washed clean, and
sanctified, and justified through the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and through
the Spirit of our God.” St Peter exhorted the Christians who were
undergoing trials, “Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even
though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an
indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your
faith, the salvation of your souls. (cf 1 Pt 1:6-9)
Fifthly, when we go to a
civil court, it is like washing dirty linen in public. Do we announce to the whole our
domestic problems? Do we let the world know our family issues and
struggles? So, too, the Church is the family of God. When we take
our problems to the world to decide for us, we become a laughing stock in the
world. Not only will those who are concerned lose their credibility as Christians
but the whole Church is belittled and humiliated by the publicity given to the
quarrels among Christians. Instead of the Church becoming a light
of truth and love in the world, we become counter witnesses. We cause
unbelievers to lose faith in us and reduce us to just any other human
organization. Instead of focusing on the Church’s mission, we are focused on
our problems.
How do we avoid this
scandalous situation? We need to resolve our problems within our community and
among ourselves. St
Paul advised, “You should be ashamed: is there really not one reliable
man among you to settle differences between brothers and so one brother brings
a court case against another in front of unbelievers?” We must therefore look
for mature leaders in our Christian community to do the work of
meditation. Moses heeded the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro who said
to him, “You should also look for able men among all the people, men who
fear God, are trustworthy, and hate dishonest gain; set such men over them as
officers over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. Let them sit as
judges for the people at all times; let them bring every important case to you,
but decide every minor case themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they
will bear the burden with you.” (Ex 18:21f cf Ex 18:13-20)
Secondly, we need to
pray for discernment as Jesus did.
“Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer
to God.” Mature leaders need time out to pray and be in solitude so that
they can judge wisely and according to the mind of God. We need to pray
for good leaders to resolve conflicts and to lead the way in Christian
discipleship. It was after a night of prayer that Jesus “summoned
his disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them
‘apostles’.” It is significant that the choice of the leaders were
not according to worldly standards. His criteria for leadership were so
unlike that of the world. They were a diverse group of people who
all had their own peculiar views and interests. But Jesus purposely chose
the Twelve who were diverse in character, ideology, temperament and personality
to teach us how to live and work together in unity.
What is the key to
resolving all personal conflicts at the end of the day? It is to be focused on our
mission. Upon coming down from the mountain, “a great crowd of people
from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre
and Sidon who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases.
People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd
was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them
all.” For the sake of the mission and our common love for Jesus and the
Church, we should be willing to let go of all personal differences and
hurts. This is provided, we place the glory of God and His kingdom and
His Church before all else.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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