20190326 HYPOCRISY OF THE
WORLD
26 MARCH, 2019,
Tuesday, 3rd Week in Lent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Violet.
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First reading
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Daniel 3:25,34-43 ©
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Let our sacrifice to you today be a
contrite soul and humbled spirit
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Azariah stood in the heart of the fire,
and he began to pray:
Oh! Do not abandon us for ever,
for the sake of your name;
do not repudiate your covenant,
do not withdraw your favour from us,
for the sake of Abraham, your friend,
of Isaac your servant,
and of Israel your holy one,
to whom you promised descendants as
countless as the stars of heaven
and as the grains of sand on the seashore.
Lord, now we are the least of all the
nations,
now we are despised throughout the world,
today, because of our sins.
We have at this time no leader, no
prophet, no prince,
no holocaust, no sacrifice, no oblation,
no incense,
no place where we can offer you the
first-fruits
and win your favour.
But may the contrite soul, the humbled
spirit be as acceptable to you
as holocausts of rams and bullocks,
as thousands of fattened lambs:
such let our sacrifice be to you today,
and may it be your will that we follow you
wholeheartedly,
since those who put their trust in you
will not be disappointed.
And now we put our whole heart into
following you,
into fearing you and seeking your face
once more.
Do not disappoint us;
treat us gently, as you yourself are
gentle
and very merciful.
Grant us deliverance worthy of your
wonderful deeds,
let your name win glory, Lord.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 24(25):4-6,7a-9 ©
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Remember your mercy,
Lord.
Lord, make me know your ways.
Lord, teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your truth, and teach me:
for you are God my saviour.
Remember your mercy,
Lord.
In you I hope all day long
because of your goodness, O
Lord.
Remember your mercy, Lord,
and the love you have shown
from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth.
In your love remember me.
Remember your mercy,
Lord.
The Lord is good and upright.
He shows the path to those who
stray,
He guides the humble in the right path,
He teaches his way to the
poor.
Remember your mercy,
Lord.
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.Lk8:15
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Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Blessed are those who,
with a noble and generous heart,
take the word of God to themselves
and yield a harvest through their
perseverance.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
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Or:
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Joel2:12-13
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Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Now, now – it is the Lord who
speaks –
come back to me with all your heart,
for I am all tenderness and compassion.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
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Gospel
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Matthew 18:21-35 ©
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To be forgiven, you must forgive
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Peter went up to Jesus and said, ‘Lord,
how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?’
Jesus answered, ‘Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.
‘And
so the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who decided to settle his
accounts with his servants. When the reckoning began, they brought him a man
who owed ten thousand talents; but he had no means of paying, so his master
gave orders that he should be sold, together with his wife and children and all
his possessions, to meet the debt. At this, the servant threw himself down at
his master’s feet. “Give me time” he said “and I will pay the whole sum.” And
the servant’s master felt so sorry for him that he let him go and cancelled the
debt. Now as this servant went out, he happened to meet a fellow servant who
owed him one hundred denarii; and he seized him by the throat and began to
throttle him. “Pay what you owe me” he said. His fellow servant fell at his
feet and implored him, saying, “Give me time and I will pay you.” But the other
would not agree; on the contrary, he had him thrown into prison till he should
pay the debt. His fellow servants were deeply distressed when they saw what had
happened, and they went to their master and reported the whole affair to him.
Then the master sent for him. “You wicked servant,” he said “I cancelled all
that debt of yours when you appealed to me. Were you not bound, then, to have
pity on your fellow servant just as I had pity on you?” And in his anger the
master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And
that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your
brother from your heart.’
HYPOCRISY OF THE
WORLD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Daniel 3:25-43; Ps 25:4-9; Matthew 18:21-35 ]
The world is merciless
towards failures.
We not only condemn those who have been caught committing crimes, but we do it
harshly and ruthlessly. Indeed, it is not uncommon for people on social media,
especially those who hide behind pseudonyms, to make nasty, venomous remarks
that are aimed at destroying, demoralizing and judging those who think
differently, deemed to be ignorant or weak. Instead of helping
these people to repent and change, we drive them deeper into anger, resentment,
retaliation and despair.
When we behave in this
manner, we are behaving like the servant who could not forgive the debt of his
fellow servant who merely owed him a labourer’s wage for the day. “He seized him by the throat and began to
throttle him. ‘Pay what you owe me’ he said. His fellow servant fell at his
feet and implored him, saying, ‘Give me time and I will pay you’. But the other
would not agree; on the contrary, he had him thrown into prison till he should
pay the debt.” For a day’s wage, he could not forgive him. So when
we condemn others callously we fall into the same sin of hypocrisy.
The truth is as Jesus
said, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at
her.” (Jn 8:7) St Paul also said a similar
thing about his fellow Jews, “But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on
the law and boast of your relation to God and know his will and
determine what is best because you are instructed in the law, and if you
are sure that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in
darkness, a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of children, having
in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth, you, then, that teach
others, will you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you
steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You that abhor
idols, do you rob temples? You that boast in the law, do you dishonor God
by breaking the law?” (Rom 2:17-22)
Truly, what right do we
have to condemn others who have sinned when we ourselves have sinned? The servant who demanded that his fellow
servant repay the small debt he was owed, had himself owed his master ten
thousand talents, which was an enormous sum of money, and yet when he begged
for mercy, the master forgave him. So we condemn those who commit sexual
sins, as if we ourselves have not committed any ourselves. We condemn
those who steal, as if we have never stolen in our lives. We condemn
those are unfaithful as if we have always been faithful. Perhaps, we
might not have fallen into the same sins of our fellowmen, but surely we have committed
other sins! We are all sinners, like the rest of humanity.
This is what the Lord
warns us, “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you
will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why
do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your
own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbour, ‘Let me take the
speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite,
first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take
the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.” (Mt 7:1-5) This does not mean that
we cannot judge what is right or wrong, or condemn evil and falsehood.
What we cannot condemn is the person, because we do not know the full
circumstances why a person committed a sin or a crime. It could be due to
weakness, a moment of temptation, conditioning, constant exposure to evil, such
as pornography, or a wounded past. It is not wrong for us to
condemn sin but it is an entirely different matter to condemn someone and cast
aspersions on him and his intentions. Only God can judge the heart, we
can only see the action. But we are all blinded by our own sins and
selfishness to enable us to judge the other person rightly.
Furthermore, what right
and audacity do we have to condemn when God forgives? “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. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was
raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.” (Rom 8:31-34) More so, when God Himself also
has forgiven our many grievous sins against Him, His name and His
holiness. We deserve condemnation for our sins but again and again
when we turn back to Him, He forgives.
Indeed, the Lord is so
different from the way we react to those who sinned. He made it clear, “Cast away from you all
the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new
heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no
pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. Turn, then, and
live.” (Ez 18:31f) In contrast,
we desire the death of the sinner. We want to push the dagger into the
heart of our enemies, use harsh words to crucify him, and bring him down
altogether, out of revenge and self-righteousness. We do not think of how
to help a person to come out of his prison and misery and sinfulness so that he
can live a good life and be well again. We are out to destroy the person and
even relish in seeing the person punished, humiliated and his dignity crushed.
The first reading and
the responsorial psalm is clear. When God permits us to suffer, it is
never punitive but a means to help us to come to realization. This was the case for the
Israelites. Azariah said, “Lord, now we are the least of all the nations,
now we are despised throughout the world, today, because of our sins. We have
at this time no leader, no prophet, no prince, no holocaust, no sacrifice, no
oblation, no incense, no place where we can offer you the first-fruits and win
your favour.” Israel was sent into exile not so much because God enjoyed
punishing them and taking revenge on them for their infidelity, but He wanted
them to reflect on their sins, come to realization and so repent.
“Remember your mercy, Lord, and the love you have shown from of old. Do
not remember the sins of my youth because of your goodness, O Lord.”
The moment we sincerely
repent, God takes us back. All
He wants for us is to be sorry for our sins. “May the contrite soul, the
humbled spirit be as acceptable to you as holocausts of rams and bullocks, as
thousands of fattened lambs: such let our sacrifice be to you today.” The
psalmist says, “The Lord is good and upright. He shows the path to those
who stray. He guides the humble in the right path; he teaches his way to
the poor.” Indeed, God is faithful to us and to His Covenant. He
does not withdraw His favour from us and His promises. The servant who
was forgiven by the master did not show signs of repentance and hence he was
eventually punished again. He was unrepentant even though His master
forgave him his debts. That is why, without contrition of heart, even
though God always forgives us, that forgiveness has no effect on us unless it
is received with gratitude and joy.
The sign of a contrite
heart is seen in a changed life. This is all that is required for healing
to begin. This was the sincere prayer of the Israelites. “May it be your will that we follow you
wholeheartedly, since those who put their trust in you will not be
disappointed. And now we put our whole heart into following you, into fearing
you and seeking your face once more. Do not disappoint us; treat us gently, as
you yourself are gentle and very merciful. Grant us deliverance worthy of your
wonderful deeds, let your name win glory, Lord.” So long as we follow the
Lord, we will be well again. Our prayer must be like that of the
psalmist, “Lord, make me know your ways. Lord, teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your truth, and teach me: for you are God my saviour.”
Hence, we must be ready to forgive our brothers and sisters who have sinned
against us or failed in their Christian life. Our task is to heal, save
and redeem them. The Lord made it clear, “I cancelled all that debt of
yours when you appealed to me. Were you not bound, then, to have pity on your
fellow servant just as I had pity on you?”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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