20181114
INGRATITUDE AS THE
REASON FOR LOSS OF CHRISTIAN IDENTITY
14 NOVEMBER,
2018, Wednesday, 32nd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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Titus 3:1-7 ©
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It was purely by his own compassion that
God saved us
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Remind your people that it is their duty
to be obedient to the officials and representatives of the government; to be
ready to do good at every opportunity; not to go slandering other people or
picking quarrels, but to be courteous and always polite to all kinds of people.
Remember, there was a time when we too were ignorant, disobedient and misled
and enslaved by different passions and luxuries; we lived then in wickedness
and ill-will, hating each other and hateful ourselves.
But
when the kindness and love of God our saviour for mankind were revealed, it was
not because he was concerned with any righteous actions we might have done
ourselves; it was for no reason except his own compassion that he saved us, by
means of the cleansing water of rebirth and by renewing us with the Holy Spirit
which he has so generously poured over us through Jesus Christ our saviour. He
did this so that we should be justified by his grace, to become heirs looking
forward to inheriting eternal life.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 22(23) ©
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The Lord is my shepherd:
there is nothing I shall want.
The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.
The Lord is my shepherd:
there is nothing I shall want.
He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your
staff;
with these you give me
comfort.
The Lord is my shepherd:
there is nothing I shall want.
You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.
The Lord is my shepherd:
there is nothing I shall want.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow
me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.
The Lord is my shepherd:
there is nothing I shall want.
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.2Th2:14
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Through the Good News God called us
to share the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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1Th5:18
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Alleluia, alleluia!
For all things give thanks,
because this is what God expects you to do
in Christ Jesus.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 17:11-19 ©
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No-one has come back to praise God, only
this foreigner
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On the way to Jerusalem Jesus travelled
along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered one of the
villages, ten lepers came to meet him. They stood some way off and called to
him, ‘Jesus! Master! Take pity on us.’ When he saw them he said, ‘Go and show
yourselves to the priests.’ Now as they were going away they were cleansed.
Finding himself cured, one of them turned back praising God at the top of his
voice and threw himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. The man was a
Samaritan. This made Jesus say, ‘Were not all ten made clean? The other nine,
where are they? It seems that no one has come back to give praise to God,
except this foreigner.’ And he said to the man, ‘Stand up and go on your way.
Your faith has saved you.’
INGRATITUDE AS THE REASON FOR LOSS OF
CHRISTIAN IDENTITY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ TITUS 3:1-7; LUKE 17:11-19 ]
Titus was instructed by
Paul to remind the Christians of their identity and their calling in life to be
witnesses of Christ.
They were to live differently from the rest of society but at the same time
show themselves to be even more patriotic and better citizens than those who
were not Christians. “Remind your people that it is their duty to be
obedient to the officials and representatives of the government; to be ready to
do good at every opportunity; not to go slandering other people or picking
quarrels but to be courteous and always polite to all kinds of people.”
In other words, Christians must show themselves to live a better, more
honorable and responsible life than others because of their newfound identity
in Christ.
But this call to be
different does not imply a superiority complex. It would be counter-witnessing if it
were. Then we would be no better than the religious leaders during the
time of Jesus. They were arrogant and despised those who were sinners and
not living a righteous life. Rather, our motive in living a good and holy
life arises from “the kindness and love of God our saviour for mankind.”
We are conscious that we are sinners and do not deserve His love and
mercy. Indeed, “It was not because he was concerned with any
righteous actions we might have done ourselves; it was for no reason except his
own compassion that he saved us.”
God loves us and saves
us even when we are not worthy of His love and mercy. He has given us a new life in baptism and
the personal gift of His Holy Spirit. “It was for no reason except his
own compassion that he saved us, by means of the cleansing water of rebirth and
by renewing us with the Holy Spirit which he so generously poured over us
through Jesus Christ our saviour.” Indeed, this is such a wonderful gift
even though we are undeserving. God chose to take away our sins,
forgive us unconditionally and give us His Holy Spirit so that we can share in
His fullness of life.
This was the same
experience of the lepers in today’s gospel. They were outcasts and totally hopeless.
Those with leprosy were just waiting for death. Their flesh rotted before
their very eyes. Those in the advanced stage of leprosy were almost
unrecognizable. They were reduced to less than a human being. No
cure was expected. They were excommunicated from their community and
estranged, especially from their loved ones. Everyone avoided them.
Perhaps the only comfort was that they had each other. But seeing each
other deteriorating each day added more discouragement and despair in their
lives. And so when they heard that Jesus was in one of the villages, they
came to meet him. “They stood some way off and called to him, ‘Jesus! Master!
Take pity on us.'” He was their only hope left. They had heard of
Jesus’ miraculous powers and so they pleaded with Jesus to heal them and
restore their identity.
The Lord in His
compassion for them, said, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” He had no obligation to heal them.
Most of them were not even His fellow Jews, and one was a Samaritan, the enemy
of the Jews. But Jesus went beyond race and social prejudices. He
cured them all the same. In faith, He asked them to claim healing by
showing themselves to the priests so that they could be certified that they
were healed. We read that “as they were going away they were
cleansed.” It was their faith in the Lord that cured them of their deadly
infection. Without faith, they would not have been cured.
Until then, the ten lepers cooperated with the grace of God. They
were receptive of the divine love and mercy of God. Indeed, they would
have been extremely elated and excited that their identity was restored and
that they could be reunited with their families. It was too good to be
true and too wonderful that immediately, they went back home to celebrate their
cure.
However, although all
were cured, only one was really saved.
And this man was a Samaritan. “Finding himself cured, one of them turned
back praising God at the top of his voice and threw himself at the feet of
Jesus and thanked him. The man was a Samaritan. This made Jesus say, ‘Were not
all ten made clean? The other nine, where are they? It seems that no one has
come back to give praise to God, except this foreigner.’ And he said to the
man, ‘Stand up and go on your way. Your faith has saved you.'” The other
nine, as soon as they were healed, forgot who healed them. They did not
give glory to God or return to give Him thanks. They resumed the life
they led before they were diagnosed with this tragic illness. In
that sense, the suffering and the pain did not heal them. They learnt
nothing from this episode. They did not pause to consider who they were
and who they are now. They did not acknowledge the power of God at work
in their lives.
Isn’t this true of many
people who have encountered God’s love and mercy? We are so forgetful of what God has done
for us. Remember the time when we were desperate because we were not
prepared for our exam, or a project, or a presentation and the Lord came to our
help and we did well; or when we had an incurable illness or a threatened
pregnancy, and the doctors had given up hope on us and we turned to God and
received a miraculous healing or a favour; and after receiving our favour, we
forgot all about God? We were not grateful for what we had
received. We forgot that without Him and His grace, we would not have
been able to succeed or overcome our illnesses. We behaved like the
Unforgiving Servant in the gospel when the master forgave him for an enormous
debt but upon receiving that forgiveness, he immediately went out to seek
payment of a petty sum of money owed to him by his fellow servant. (cf Mt 18:23-35)
This was what Titus
sought to remind the Christians of who they were and who they had become. “Remember, there was a time when we
too were ignorant, disobedient and misled and enslaved by different passions
and luxuries; we lived then in wickedness and ill-will, hating each other and
hateful ourselves.” When we look at ourselves today, shouldn’t we be
grateful instead of lamenting and complaining all the time? We were worse
off and now our lives have improved. But we are complaining that it is
not as good as someone else’s.
If we are truly touched
by His love and grateful for the new identity we have received from Him, then
we would surely have lived out our identity in such a way that our lives would
have been radically transformed.
We would stop living for ourselves and for this world only. We would have
been so grateful for a new lease of life that we want to use this short life
for the service of others, for the good of humanity and for the glory of God.
Indeed, those who have been granted favours will want to return the
favour, not because they have to but because they want to, out of gratitude for
the undeserving gifts of God.
Forgetfulness of God’s
love and mercy is one of the reasons for ingratitude. Let us learn gratitude and be
grateful of what we have lest we take our blessings for granted and become
always unsatisfied. We are called to learn from the Samaritan who came
back to give praise to God and to thank the Lord. He was the only one who
was saved because we can be sure that unlike the rest, he would not go back to
his former lifestyle. Rather, as a new man restored by Christ, he would
give up his life to praise God and to serve Him in his fellowmen. He knew
that his life had been radically changed by the Lord. The restoration was
more than just a mere physical healing; it was a healing of the heart and the
mind, the forgiveness of sins and the bestowal of new life.
If we are grateful for
the gift of baptism, we too must live this new life as the son and daughter of
God, our newfound identity, with pride and consciousness. From now on, we know that we can live our
lives in true freedom and love, because we have Jesus as the Good Shepherd who
leads us and guides us to the green pastures of rest. With the psalmist,
we say, He guides me along the right path; he is true to his name. If I should
walk in the valley of darkness no evil would I fear.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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