20190810
THE
POOR ARE THE TREASURES OF THE CHURCH
10 AUGUST, 2019,
Saturday, St Lawrence, Deacon
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Red.
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First reading
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2 Corinthians 9:6-10 ©
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God loves a cheerful giver
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Do not forget: thin sowing means thin
reaping; the more you sow, the more you reap. Each one should give what he has
decided in his own mind, not grudgingly or because he is made to, for God
loves a cheerful giver. And there is no limit to the blessings which
God can send you – he will make sure that you will always have all you
need for yourselves in every possible circumstance, and still have something to
spare for all sorts of good works. As scripture says: He was free in
almsgiving, and gave to the poor: his good deeds will never be forgotten.
The
one who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide you with
all the seed you want and make the harvest of your good deeds a larger one.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 111(112):1-2,5-9 ©
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Happy the man who takes
pity and lends.
Happy the man who fears the Lord,
who takes delight in all his
commands.
His sons will be powerful on earth;
the children of the upright
are blessed.
Happy the man who takes
pity and lends.
The good man takes pity and lends,
he conducts his affairs with
honour.
The just man will never waver:
he will be remembered for ever.
Happy the man who takes
pity and lends.
He has no fear of evil news;
with a firm heart he trusts in
the Lord.
With a steadfast heart he will not fear;
he will see the downfall of
his foes.
Happy the man who takes
pity and lends.
Open-handed, he gives to the poor;
his justice stands firm for
ever.
His head will be raised in
glory.
Happy the man who takes
pity and lends.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Jn8:12bc
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the light of the world, says the
Lord;
anyone who follows me will have the light
of life.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 12:24-26 ©
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If a grain of wheat falls on the ground
and dies, it yields a rich harvest
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Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I tell you, most solemnly,
unless a wheat grain falls on the ground
and dies,
it remains only a single grain;
but if it dies,
it yields a rich harvest.
Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world
will keep it for the eternal life.
If a man serves me, he must follow me,
wherever I am, my servant will be there
too.
If anyone serves me, my Father will honour
him.’
THE POOR ARE THE
TREASURES OF THE CHURCH
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 2 Cor 9:6-10; Ps 112:1-2,5-9; Jn 12:24-26 ]
Today, we celebrate the
Feast of St Lawrence, the deacon.
This feast is particularly important because of the witness that St Lawrence
gave to Christ both by giving up his life as a martyr for Christ and for the
poor. St Lawrence was martyred under the reign of Emperor Valerian.
Tradition tells the story of how Lawrence when asked by the Roman Prefect to
surrender the treasures of the Church to the Emperor, asked for chariots to be
sent to carry the treasures. When they came, all they found were the poor
that Lawrence assembled together and presented them as the treasures of the
Church. For such a defiant act, he was sentenced to death by being slowly
roasted on a gridiron. Whilst he was being roasted, legend tells of his
heroic endurance when he told the executioner to turn him over as one side was
already well done. Such was the courage and conviction of St Lawrence for
Christ and the poor, that he was seen as a true witness for Christ not only
because he loved the Lord but he loved the poor as much.
Indeed, a true Christian
is not one who simply loves the Lord but he must also have the same heart of
compassion for the poor.
To be a witness for Christ is more than just professing our faith in Him as our
Lord and Savior, but to serve Him and see Him in the poor and the
suffering. St Lawrence remembered what the Lord said when he told the
Roman Prefect that the poor were the treasures of the Church for Christ in the
gospel said, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these
who are members of my family, you did it to me.” (Mt 25:45) The poor are members of the
family of God as much as we are His brothers and sisters. To love the
poor is to love the Lord; and to love the Lord is to love the poor.
Indeed, in the gospel, the Lord promised us, “If a man serves me, he must
follow me, wherever I am, my servant will be there too. If anyone serves me, my
Father will honour him.”
Hence, the poor are the
treasures of the Church because in the poor, we see the face of Christ. The poor give us the opportunity to
encounter the Lord in a special way in their sufferings, poverty and
hunger. In ministering to them and in attending to them, they help us to
become more humane as they open up our hearts to compassion and love. Otherwise,
those of us who do not come into contact with the poor are often absorbed in
our own needs, pleasures and enjoyment, always thinking about ourselves, and
dissatisfied with the blessings we already have, and hence always
restless. This is simply because anyone who loves himself in a selfish
manner cannot find real happiness because he is cut off from developing a
personal relationship with his fellowmen. It is only when we hear the
struggles of our fellowmen, sharing in their woes, and their simple joys of
gratitude and thanksgiving, can we feel their joy in us also. This
explains why the poor are really the treasures of the Church because they help
us to come into awareness of what makes us truly happy, when we are one with
our fellowmen in joys and in sorrows.
The second reading
invites to give ourselves generously to Christ and the poor. “Thin sowing means thin reaping;
the more you sow, the more you reap.” We are called to be generous in
giving and sharing from our abundance. God has blessed us with many
things in life. Because we have received from God, we must in turn share
our blessings with those who are lacking. This is what St Paul encouraged
us. He said, “there is no limit to the blessings which God can send you –
he will make sure that you will always have all you need for yourselves in
every possible circumstance, and still have something to spare for all sorts of
good works. As scripture says: He was free in almsgiving, and gave to the poor:
his good deeds will never be forgotten.” Indeed, none of us is too poor
to not be able to give anything. We can always give whatever little we have to
others from our abundance. This is what giving entails, giving what
the Lord has given to us. He does not expect us to give what we do not have.
This is why giving
requires us to die to ourselves. So long as we are afraid to die to
ourselves, we cannot give what we have freely. What we give is an extension of
ourselves. We are called to give of ourselves, which is
fundamental. Only then are we called to discern what we can give.
This is what the Lord promised His disciples, “”I tell you most solemnly,
unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single
grain; but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest. ” We must be like the wheat,
ready to die to ourselves so that we can give life to others. Only by
giving ourselves to others, can we grow to become even better and more than we
have. In serving others, we grow in our skills and knowledge. In
teaching others, we learn twice. The death of our Lord and His apostles,
including St Lawrence, became the cause of the Church’s growth.
Perhaps today, the
reason why the Catholic Church is not growing as much, both in terms of quality
and quantity, is because we do not have heroic witnesses like St Lawrence and
the early Christians who were willing to give their entire lives to Christ and
the poor. The Church today
is too inward-looking. The Church has become a middle-class club for the
rich and the not-so-poor. We come to Church for blessings for our family,
our health, our business, our work and our well-being. It is not about
coming to do His will, working for the growth of His kingdom, serving our
brothers and sisters, especially the poor and those who are looking for the
fullness of life. Even our priests and religious are not so
self-sacrificing today. They also look for comfort and a good life.
Many of us shun suffering, even coming into contact with the poor, the sick,
the wounded and the suffering because it means taking up our energy and
resources.
We should thank God that
the Church is being humiliated today because the world is purifying us. We are being stripped of our glory, honour
and complacency. Corruption has entered the Church and infiltrated even
the hierarchy of the Church – cardinals, bishops, priests and religious.
By exposing all the sins of the Church, many Catholics with nominal faith will
leave the Church, because they come to conclude that Christ is not present in
our Church because of the scandals. Yet, just like St Lawrence and the
early Christians, it was because of the persecution that their love was purified,
proven and strengthened. When the day comes when all bishops, priests,
religious and our laity come to self-awareness of our sins and infidelity to
Christ and His Church, the gravity and serious consequences of our indifference
and complacency, that will be the time when the Church will grow again.
Now, the Church must die in order to live again. We must once again die
to ourselves for others.
So each one of us on our
part must do what we can to be a witness to Christ in our love for Him and for
the poor. St Paul said,
“Each one should give what he has decided in his own mind, not grudgingly or
because he is made to, for God loves a cheerful giver.” We must be
cheerful giver. We give ourselves only because we know that we have
received much from God. We are called to be like the just man in the
responsorial psalm. “Happy the man who fears the Lord, who takes delight
in all his commands. His sons will be powerful on earth; the children of the
upright are blessed. The good man takes pity and lends, he conducts his
affairs with honour. The just man will never waver: he will be remembered
for ever. Open-handed, he gives to the poor; his justice stands firm for
ever. His head will be raised in glory.”
When we do good, we have
no fear of death and suffering, like St Paul, because we have already died to
ourselves. “He
has no fear of evil news; with a firm heart he trusts in the Lord. With a
steadfast heart he will not fear; he will see the downfall of his foes.”
That is why, if we want to live fully, then the Lord said, “Anyone who loves
his life loses it; anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for the
eternal life.” Having died to ourselves and our self-centeredness, we
have nothing to hold us back from giving and sharing our lives with others.
In the process of sharing our joys and resources with others, and their
suffering and pain, we become united with them. Knowing that we have
brought some joy, hope and relief to our brothers and sisters, even if it were
just a smile, it is enough for us to feel that we have lived a life
meaningfully and not in vain.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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