20190528
THE
HOLY SPIRIT AS THE KEY TO REMAINING FIRM IN OUR FAITH IN TIMES OF PERSECUTION
28 MAY, 2019,
Tuesday, 6th Week of Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
White.
|
First reading
|
Acts 16:22-34 ©
|
|
Become a believer and you will be saved,
and your household too
|
The crowd joined in and showed their
hostility to Paul and Silas, so the magistrates had them stripped and ordered
them to be flogged. They were given many lashes and then thrown into prison,
and the gaoler was told to keep a close watch on them. So, following his
instructions, he threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in
the stocks.
Late
that night Paul and Silas were praying and singing God’s praises, while the
other prisoners listened. Suddenly there was an earthquake that shook the prison
to its foundations. All the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the
prisoners. When the gaoler woke and saw the doors wide open he drew his sword
and was about to commit suicide, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. But
Paul shouted at the top of his voice, ‘Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all
here.’ The gaoler called for lights, then rushed in, threw himself trembling at
the feet of Paul and Silas, and escorted them out, saying, ‘Sirs, what must I
do to be saved?’ They told him, ‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you
will be saved, and your household too.’ Then they preached the word of the Lord
to him and to all his family. Late as it was, he took them to wash their
wounds, and was baptised then and there with all his household. Afterwards he
took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their
conversion to belief in God.
|
Responsorial Psalm
|
|
Psalm 137(138):1-3,7-8 ©
|
You stretch out your
hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my
mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless
you.
I will adore before your holy
temple.
You stretch out your
hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you for your faithfulness and
love,
which excel all we ever knew
of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of
my soul.
You stretch out your
hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
You stretch out your hand and save me,
your hand will do all things
for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your
hands.
You stretch out your
hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
|
Gospel Acclamation
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ has risen and shone upon us
whom he redeemed with his blood.
Alleluia!
|
Or:
|
cf.Jn16:7,13
|
Alleluia, alleluia!
I will send you the Spirit of truth, says
the Lord;
he will lead you to the complete truth.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
John 16:5-11 ©
|
|
Unless I go, the Advocate will not come
to you
|
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Now I am going to the one who sent me.
Not one of you has asked, “Where are you
going?”
Yet you are sad at heart because I have
told you this.
Still, I must tell you the truth:
it is for your own good that I am going
because unless I go,
the Advocate will not come to you;
but if I do go,
I will send him to you.
And when he comes,
he will show the world how wrong it was,
about sin,
and about who was in the right,
and about judgement:
about sin: proved by their refusal to
believe in me;
about who was in the right: proved by my
going to the Father and your seeing me no more;
about judgement: proved by the prince of
this world being already condemned.’
THE HOLY SPIRIT
AS THE KEY TO REMAINING FIRM IN OUR FAITH IN TIMES OF PERSECUTION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ACTS 16:22-34; JN 16:5-11 ]
In yesterday’s gospel, Jesus commissioned
His disciples to be His witnesses. At the same time, He warned them
that they would be persecuted and expelled from the synagogues.
Of course we know that John was writing at a time when the Jewish Christians
were already being persecuted and prohibited from worshipping in the
synagogues. But this persecution began much earlier as we read in today’s
first reading when Paul and Silas were attacked by the crowd and then stripped,
flogged, put in the inner prison and their feet chained in stocks.
But what should certainly impress
us is the way the apostles responded to the persecution. We
see them courageous, confident and calm in the face of threats and
crises. Instead of feeling angry at the injustices inflicted on them, we
are told, “Paul and Silas were praying and singing God’s praises.” They
seemed so assured that God would vindicate and protect them. At any
rate, they were not afraid to die. Indeed, when the doors were suddenly
opened, they did not even bother to escape. Instead, Paul assured the
jailer, “Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all here.” Such calmness
contrasted with the fear and discouragement of the jailer.
How many of us can
remain steadfast, calm and cool like
the apostles in the face of hostility and difficulty,
especially in our ministry? Isn’t it true that whilst we proclaim that we
are ready to die with Jesus and share in His sufferings, the reality is far
from our claims? When we encounter negative criticisms, how often do we
get angry, resentful, and hit back at our opponents and perceived slanderers,
or threaten to throw in the towel? We want people to praise us and
affirm us in all that we do. Often, when things are not to our liking, we
complain and grumble. If we are unable to tolerate the little sufferings
and irritations in daily living, how can we speak about making sacrifices for
the gospel, much less dying for Jesus?
Thus, it is important that we ask
ourselves, where did Paul and Silas get such energy, valor and firmness
in their faith? The answer is found in today’s gospel. It is
the power of the Holy Spirit working in their lives. This explains why
Jesus, knowing that His departure would cause fear in the hearts of His
disciples, assured them that His departure would result in a new coming of the
Advocate. It would be a new coming of His presence, a coming that would
no longer be constrained by time and place since Jesus in the person of the
Holy Spirit can live in the hearts and minds of everyone. More
importantly, we must understand the consequences of His coming in
the Spirit with regard to our faith.
Firstly, with the experience of the
personal presence of the Holy Spirit, we will be convicted of our sins.
This, according to Jesus, is the first manifestation of our encounter with the
Holy Spirit. Yes, “when he comes, he will show the world how wrong it was
about sin … proved by their refusal to believe in me.” If we were to give
ourselves to the Lord and experience Him, the first step to take is a true
realization of our sinfulness and unworthiness in the face of God’s
unconditional love in Christ.
Why is this emphasis on
sin fundamental? Unless
we realize that we are sinners, we will not feel the need for a saviour.
The problem with the world today, especially in the New Age Movements and even
Satanic cults, is that they do not see the need of a saviour. The
proponents of these movements, reminiscent of the Enlightenment period and
modern philosophers, declare that there is no God or gods but that they are
gods. At any rate, people who are not aware of their moral sinfulness
also do not see the need for conversion. Thus, they remain in their
ignorance and sinfulness.
What, then, is the way
out of this sinful situation?
It is the recognition of God’s love in Jesus. If we do not recognize our
sinfulness, it is because we do not realize the depth of God’s love for us in
Christ. It is the deep awareness of His love that will convict us of our
sins and transform us in love. Without a real awareness of our sinful
condition, there can be no hope of repentance or conversion. Without
repentance, there will also be no gratitude for Jesus. Thus, the
emphasis on sin is not so much to make us disheartened or become
over-scrupulous but it serves as a necessary step to proclaim the love of
God in contrast to our lack of love. Of course, if we were to be
convicted of our sins, we need the grace of the Holy Spirit. Only
the Spirit of Christ can reveal to us the unfathomable love of God and our
nothingness.
Secondly, to grow in steadfast faith, it is
not enough to be convicted of our sins; we must also be
convinced of the righteousness of Jesus. Precisely, the Jews thought
that Jesus was a criminal, a troublemaker and a sinner breaking the laws of
Moses. But we know that Jesus was proven to be right because of His
return to the Father after His death at the resurrection. In His
glorification, Jesus had been vindicated by God to be the Son of God. In
this way, the Holy Spirit, who helps us to understand the person of
Jesus and experience His liberating and transforming presence in our
lives, will also give us the gift of faith to recognize His
divinity and that in Jesus, God is fully present.
Thirdly, with the coming of the Holy
Spirit, we will recognize that to reject Jesus is to be condemned
already. Jesus made it clear that judgment will take place and has
already taken place the moment we reject Jesus. This is “proved by the
prince of this world being already condemned.” In rejecting the teaching
of Jesus and to live in our sinfulness and ignorance; in rejecting the person
of Jesus as the Son of the Father who has come to reveal to us His truth and
love, we have already judged and condemned ourselves. By not accepting
Jesus, we are simply depriving ourselves of truth and life. Indeed,
it will not be the Father or even Jesus who will condemn us, but we condemn
ourselves since we choose against life.
So, it is clear that without the Holy Spirit, we
cannot be convicted of our sins, or be convinced of Jesus as the love of the
Father in person; or be aware that we have condemned ourselves for not
responding to Jesus and His invitation to life. Hence, in these last
two weeks of the Easter season, the Church wants us to contemplate on the Holy
Spirit so that we are disposed to receiving Him at
Pentecost. Without a reception of the Holy Spirit, we will not only
remain powerless in the face of persecutions with regard to our faith but
we will also find ourselves lacking the motivation and will to live the
life of the Gospel. But if we do, then we will find Jesus so real and
personal in us in the Holy Spirit that we will be energized by Him in all that
we do and say. We will find ourselves having that extra power or strength
which can only come from Christ who empowers us in the Spirit.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment