20190911
TRUE
LIFE WITH CHRIST
11 SEPTEMBER,
2019, Wednesday, 23rd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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Colossians 3:1-11 ©
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Since you have been brought back to true
life with Christ, you must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ
is, sitting at God’s right hand. Let your thoughts be on heavenly things, not
on the things that are on the earth, because you have died, and now the life
you have is hidden with Christ in God. But when Christ is revealed – and
he is your life – you too will be revealed in all your glory with him.
That
is why you must kill everything in you that belongs only to earthly life:
fornication, impurity, guilty passion, evil desires and especially greed, which
is the same thing as worshipping a false god; all this is the sort of behaviour
that makes God angry. And it is the way in which you used to live when you were
surrounded by people doing the same thing, but now you, of all people, must
give all these things up: getting angry, being bad-tempered, spitefulness,
abusive language and dirty talk; and never tell each other lies. You have
stripped off your old behaviour with your old self, and you have put on a new
self which will progress towards true knowledge the more it is renewed in the
image of its creator; and in that image there is no room for distinction
between Greek and Jew, between the circumcised or the uncircumcised, or between
barbarian and Scythian, slave and free man. There is only Christ: he is
everything and he is in everything.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm
144(145):2-3,10-13a ©
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How good is the Lord to
all.
I will bless you day after day
and praise your name for ever.
The Lord is great, highly to be praised,
his greatness cannot be
measured.
How good is the Lord to
all.
All your creatures shall thank you, O
Lord,
and your friends shall repeat
their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your
reign
and declare your might, O God.
How good is the Lord to
all.
To make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of
your reign.
Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to
age.
How good is the Lord to
all.
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Gospel Acclamation
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1Jn2:5
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Whenever anyone obeys what Christ has
said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Lk6:23ab
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Rejoice and be glad:
your reward will be great in heaven.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 6:20-26 ©
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Fixing his eyes on his disciples Jesus
said:
‘How happy are you who are poor: yours is
the kingdom of God.
Happy you who are hungry now: you shall be
satisfied.
Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh.
Happy are you when people hate you, drive
you out, abuse you, denounce your name as criminal, on account of the Son of
Man. Rejoice when that day comes and dance for joy, for then your reward will
be great in heaven. This was the way their ancestors treated the prophets.
‘But alas for you who are rich: you are
having your consolation now.
Alas for you who have your fill now: you
shall go hungry.
Alas for you who laugh now: you shall
mourn and weep.
‘Alas for you when the world speaks well
of you! This was the way their ancestors treated the false prophets.’
TRUE LIFE WITH
CHRIST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Col 3:1-11; Ps 145:2-3, 10-13; Lk 6:20-26 ]
We all seek true
happiness in life. Where is life to be found? Those who are rich are not
happy. They who are successful are also not happy. Even those of us
who have beautiful families feel that something is missing in our lives.
So not only the poor, the needy and the sick are not happy but even those who
supposedly are doing well in life, possessing all that they need for a
luxurious life. So, where can we find real happiness in this life?
St Paul tells us that
true life is with Christ and that the life we have is hidden with Christ in
God. If
we seek fullness of life, then we must come to Christ who is the Way, the Truth
and the Life. (cf Jn 14:6) And when Jesus asked Peter
whether he would also leave Him, his reply was, “Lord, to whom can we go? You
have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you
are the Holy One of God.” (Jn 6:68f) So if anyone seeks to find
fullness of life, then he or she must come to Christ.
With baptism, we have
been made children of God. But
baptism is not just a ritual but an act of dying to Christ in our old self and
living a new life in Christ. St John wrote, “Beloved, we are God’s
children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is
this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.
And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is
pure.” (1 Jn 3:2f) This
calls for death to the old self because as St Paul says, we have died.
The more we die to ourselves, the more our life hidden in Christ will shine out
in us. “But when Christ is revealed – and he is your life – you too will
be revealed in all your glory with him.”
For this to be a
reality, we “must kill everything in you that belongs only to earthly life: fornication, impurity, guilty passion,
evil desires and especially greed, which is the same thing as worshipping a
false god. Indeed, desire for worldly things is the cause of many of our
woes. We desire sensual pleasures, fame, wealth and power. In themselves
they are earthly and acceptable. It is when these things start to control
our lives and make us see them as ends in themselves that we must evict them
from our lives. The truth is that when there is no true love in life, we
allow our passions to take charge – often making use of others for our vested
interests. Such passions will lead to greed, envy, pride, gluttony and
anger.
Christians must show
themselves to be different from others in the world. St Paul advised us, “And it is the
way in which you used to live when you were surrounded by people doing the same
thing, but now you, of all people, must give all these things up: getting
angry, being bad-tempered, spitefulness, abusive language and dirty talk; and
never tell each other lies.” Allowing our passions to control us is to show
ourselves still under the bondage of the Evil One. When we are in an
angry state, we lose our temper and take it out on others. It shows the
lack of maturity and restraint in dealing with difficult situations and the
mistakes of others. The lack of self-control is a sign that the Spirit of
the Lord is not with us.
This is what the gospel
is suggesting through the beatitudes.
These beatitudes are about choices. Jesus gives us His blueprint for
happiness in this world and in the next. But the beatitudes are
more than His words; it is the encapsulation of His entire life on earth.
He lived a life of poverty, of total openness to the Spirit in whatever He
did. By the power of the same Spirit, He was able to stand courageous in
the face of His enemies. “Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh. Happy
are you when people hate you, drive you out, abuse you, denounce your name as a
criminal, on the account of the Son of Man. Rejoice when that day comes
and dance for joy, for then your reward will be great in heaven. This was
the way their ancestors treated the prophets.” Jesus has turned the
values of the world upside down.
This is what St Paul is
calling us to.
He said, “Since you have been brought back to true life with Christ, you must
look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right
hand. Let your thoughts be on heavenly things, not on the things that are
on the earth, because you have died.” Yes, we are called to focus on the
things of heaven. In other words, we are to see the spiritual
aspect of our lives. To look for the things of heaven is to look for what
ultimately lasts in life. The things of this earth, even if they are not
immoral are passing, are only the means to enjoy the transcendent values of
this life. In themselves they can only give us pleasure which is
passing. But we must seek for what ultimately makes us happy beyond the
things of this life. We must seek for values like truth, love and
compassion. These are the transcendent values of this life and hereafter.
It is in this context
that St Luke speaks about the mission of the Church to restore the dignity of
the poor and the hungry.
St Luke was inviting us to share in the mission of the Church by giving
preferential option to the poor. The care for the marginalized and the
poor is an obligation of the Church because all are children of God. “How
happy are you who are poor: yours is the kingdom of God. Happy you who
are hungry now: you shall be satisfied.” We are also called to reach out
to those in sorrow and to suffer injustices on account of their needs. By
reaching out to them, we share in their joy of trusting in the Lord and being
filled with good things. Whether we are the givers or the recipients, we
give joy to each other by being grateful recipients or generous givers.
St Paul urges us to
strip off “your old behaviour with your old self, and you have put on a new
self which will progress towards true knowledge the more it is renewed in the
image of its creator;
and in that image there is no room for distinction between Greek and Jew, between
the circumcised or the uncircumcised, or between barbarian and Scythian, slave
and free man. There is only Christ: he is everything and he is in
everything.” To be in Christ is to recognize that all of us are
brothers and sisters in the same Lord with the same Father. With this
renewed image, we can then treat our brothers and sisters in the manner we
treat our own blood brothers and sisters.
In the final analysis,
what makes us happy in life?
When there is sincere love for each other, mutual understanding and support;
compassion for the weak and fellow sinners; forgiveness and acceptance.
There will always be enough food for this world if we die to ourselves and our
selfishness. There will be no poor people if only those who are rich are
willing to share what they have with those who have not; and those who have not
are willing to work responsibly for their food. But the truth is that
whether it is the poor or the rich, we are not living responsibly in our
lives. For those of us who have come to realize that we need very little
to be happy in life, and spend our lives in a labour of love and service for
the poor, the underprivileged and the wounded, we will find great happiness in
life. This is to share in the joy of our Lord.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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