20190415
INCALCULABLE
VALUE OF LIFE
15 APRIL, 2019,
Monday of Holy Week
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Violet.
|
First reading
|
Isaiah 42:1-7 ©
|
|
Here is my chosen one in whom my soul
delights
|
Here is my servant whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom my soul delights.
I have endowed him with my spirit
that he may bring true justice to the
nations.
He does not cry out or shout aloud,
or make his voice heard in the streets.
He does not break the crushed reed,
nor quench the wavering flame.
Faithfully he brings true justice;
he will neither waver, nor be crushed
until true justice is established on
earth,
for the islands are awaiting his law.
Thus says God, the Lord,
he who created the heavens and spread them
out,
who gave shape to the earth and what comes
from it,
who gave breath to its people
and life to the creatures that move in it:
‘I, the Lord, have called you to serve the
cause of right;
I have taken you by the hand and formed
you;
I have appointed you as covenant of the
people and light of the nations,
‘to open the eyes of the blind,
to free captives from prison,
and those who live in darkness from the
dungeon.’
|
Responsorial Psalm
|
|
Psalm 26(27):1-3,13-14 ©
|
The Lord is my light and
my help.
The Lord is my light and my help;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
before whom shall I shrink?
The Lord is my light and
my help.
When evil-doers draw near
to devour my flesh,
it is they, my enemies and foes,
who stumble and fall.
The Lord is my light and
my help.
Though an army encamp against me
my heart would not fear.
Though war break out against me
even then would I trust.
The Lord is my light and
my help.
I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.
Hope in the Lord!
The Lord is my light and
my help.
|
Gospel Acclamation
|
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
Hail to you, our King!
You alone have had compassion on our sins.
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
|
Gospel
|
John 12:1-11 ©
|
|
'She had to keep this scent for the day
of my burial'
|
Six days before the Passover, Jesus went
to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom he had raised from the dead. They gave a
dinner for him there; Martha waited on them and Lazarus was among those at
table. Mary brought in a pound of very costly ointment, pure nard, and with it
anointed the feet of Jesus, wiping them with her hair; the house was full of
the scent of the ointment. Then Judas Iscariot – one of his disciples, the
man who was to betray him – said, ‘Why wasn’t this ointment sold for three
hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor?’ He said this, not because he
cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he was in charge of the
common fund and used to help himself to the contributions. So Jesus said,
‘Leave her alone; she had to keep this scent for the day of my burial. You have
the poor with you always, you will not always have me.’
Meanwhile
a large number of Jews heard that he was there and came not only on account of
Jesus but also to see Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead. Then the chief
priests decided to kill Lazarus as well, since it was on his account that many
of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus.
INCALCULABLE
VALUE OF LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [IS 42:1-7; PS 27:1-3, 13-14; JN 12:1-11 ]
In the world today, life
is not valued. Sometimes we treat human life worse than our pets.
There is this hypocrisy in the world that is not much different from that of
Judas who said, “‘Why
wasn’t this ointment sold for three hundred denarii, and the money given to the
poor?’ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a
thief; he was in charge of the common fund and used to help himself to the
contributions.” Indeed, whilst the world speaks so much about human
rights, they do not respect the rights of the elderly and unborn. It is
ironical because the weak and the vulnerable are those who cannot defend or
speak for themselves. Whilst we encourage adoption even by same-sex
couples, many couples are not willing to have children because they are afraid
to lose their freedom and mobility. On the world-stage, countries
that fight for democracy and protection of their citizens treat other human
lives as non-entities. They can use all the advanced arms and send their
soldiers to kill not just their enemies but also innocent lives. When one
of their soldiers dies in battle, there is a big outcry but when others are
killed innocently, the world just watches without any regret.
In the gospel today, we
have Mary who “brought in a pound of very costly ointment, pure nard, and with
it anointed the feet of Jesus,
wiping them with her hair; the house was full of the scent of the
ointment.” The ointment was very expensive and would have cost a year’s
wages. Like Judas, we would logically think it is rather extravagant to
throw away money on such non-essentials. Of course, like Judas, we make all
kinds of excuses why we should not give money to the Church to build the House
of God and purchase all the vestments and sacred vessels. We should buy
the cheapest and not spend too much money on worship. But we just
have to look at our houses. They are much more exquisitely decorated with
expensive and branded materials. But for the House of God, we lament and
criticize that we spend too much. Indeed, like Judas, we practise double
standards.
But Jesus makes it clear
that love does not count the cost. When we love, there is nothing too costly
to give to our loved ones. Otherwise, we should not be using our money to
buy diamonds and gold jewellery because they are useless things. They
cannot be eaten! Love is not measurable by money. What we give to people
are but tokens of our expression of love. In the case of Mary, she loved
the Lord deeply. So devoted and faithful was her love that she did not
mind giving the best to the Lord. Not only did she anoint His feet with
ointment but wiped them with her hair. When we love, there are no limits
to how we show our love. We always give the best to our loved ones, be it
food, things or money. Do we count the cost when we spend money on
our loved ones? We only count the cost when our love is lacking. We
become calculative when we give out of obligation. Hence, the Lord told
Judas, “Leave her alone; she had to keep this scent for the day of my burial.
You have the poor with you always, you will not always have me.”
But there is also
another lesson to learn as well. The Lord was not just basking in Mary’s
love; He wanted to demonstrate the value of life. By accepting Mary’s anointing of His feet,
which is the lowest part of the human body, the Lord is inviting us all to
contemplate the sacredness of the human body. If the feet, which is the
lowliest part of the human body, is honoured by Mary, how much more important
is it for us to respect the dignity of the human body and not just life
itself. Even a dead body must be given due respect and honour because it
is the symbol of the person who was alive. And this body is destined for
the resurrection. That is why the Church has specific rules with respect to
burial and cremation, so that the body is given the dignity it deserves as when
the person was alive.
Consequently, we must
treat our bodies with respect and dignity at all times. To love our soul
is also to love our bodies.
St Paul wrote, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit
dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that
person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.” (1 Cor 3:16f) “Or do you not know
that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from
God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore
glorify God in your body.” (1 Cor 6:19f) Indeed, we must glorify God
by using our bodies for good and not for evil, for love and not as a thing to
be used and abused. To love God means that we must take care of our
bodies, that we live healthily, exercise regularly, eat and drink moderately,
and keep good hygiene. We must not think that we are loving God when we
do not take proper care of our bodies. God wants us to be well and
healthy. When we abuse our bodies and use it only for pleasure or allow
pleasures to destroy our bodies, we are doing a grave injustice to God who has
bought us with the price of His blood!
Indeed, we must be
watchful of those who seek to destroy the body either by killing or by
abuse. This
was the case of the chief priests who “decided to kill Lazarus as well, since
it was on his account that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in
Jesus.” They were not only intent on killing Jesus but also Lazarus, even
though the latter had done nothing wrong. Taking innocent lives and
abusing our bodies is truly an act of grave injustice to humanity.
When we are consumed by evil and selfishness, we cannot see the truth of what
we are doing. Those who advocate abortion do so because they can only
think of themselves, their convenience, their pleasures and their
security. They have no regard for the lives of vulnerable babies.
Similarly, who advocate euthanasia do so because they are bankrupt in
love. We no longer value our elderly who spent their lives caring for us,
working and loving us. We want our freedom and enjoyment. When there
is no love and gratitude for our elderly, they become a burden to us.
Today, the Lord is
reminding us through the Suffering Servant that if we love Him, then we must
anoint His body by
loving Him in the poor and in the suffering. This is what the Lord said,
“I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right; I have taken you by
the hand and formed you; I have appointed you as covenant of the people and
light of the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from
prison, and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.” This is why the
washing of the feet on Holy Thursday is an invitation for us to love His
Church, which includes all sinners and everyone who is wounded, hurt,
marginalized, and sick – the outcasts of society. These are the people we
are called to reach out to. This explains why the Holy Father, Pope
Francis choose to wash the feet of prisoners and those who are considered
outcasts in society on Holy Thursday.
But more than just
washing their feet, or reaching out to them, we need to “bring true justice to
the nations. He does not cry
out or shout aloud, or make his voice heard in the streets.” We do this
not in a hostile or aggressive way but gently proclaim the truth wherever we
are and whenever we can. There is no need to take up arms or join in
protests and demonstrations. But we act in love, speak with respect and
humility, and dialogue with those who do not see the truth. Indeed, the
Suffering Servant “does not break the crushed reed, nor quench the wavering
flame. Faithfully he brings true justice; he will neither waver nor be crushed
until true justice is established on earth, for the islands are awaiting his
law.”
But we cannot do what
the Lord is asking of us unless we are filled with His Spirit. “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my
chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have endowed him with my
spirit.” We must imitate Mary who allowed herself to be loved by the Lord
and bask in His love. Only when we come to adore the Lord and love Him
with all our soul, heart and strength, can we then find the power to do what
the Suffering Servant did and how our Lord gave Himself and His body and blood
for the salvation of humanity. Only in Him can we remain strong and
firm. With the psalmist, we say, “Though an army encamp against me my
heart would not fear. Though war break out against me even then would I
trust.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment