20191003
DICTATORSHIP
OF SECULARISM
03 OCTOBER,
2019, Thursday, 26th Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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Nehemiah 8:1-12 ©
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When the seventh month came, all the
people gathered as one man on the square before the Water Gate. They asked Ezra
the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses which the Lord had prescribed
for Israel. Accordingly Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly,
consisting of men, women, and children old enough to understand. This was the
first day of the seventh month. On the square before the Water Gate, in the
presence of the men and women, and children old enough to understand, he read
from the book from early morning till noon; all the people listened attentively
to the Book of the Law.
Ezra
the scribe stood on a wooden dais erected for the purpose. In full view of all
the people – since he stood higher than all the people – Ezra opened
the book; and when he opened it all the people stood up. Then Ezra blessed the
Lord, the great God, and all the people raised their hands and answered, ‘Amen!
Amen!’ Then they bowed down and, face to the ground, prostrated themselves
before the Lord. And Ezra read from the Law of God, translating and giving the
sense, so that the people understood what was read.
Then
Nehemiah – His Excellency – and Ezra, priest and scribe, and the
Levites who were instructing the people, said to all the people, ‘This day is sacred
to the Lord your God. Do not be mournful, do not weep.’ For the people were all
in tears as they listened to the words of the Law.
He
then said, ‘Go, eat the fat, drink the sweet wine, and send a portion to the
man who has nothing prepared ready. For this day is sacred to our Lord. Do not
be sad: the joy of the Lord is your stronghold.’ And the Levites calmed all the
people, saying, ‘Be at ease; this is a sacred day. Do not be sad.’ And all the
people went off to eat and drink and give shares away and begin to enjoy
themselves since they had understood the meaning of what had been proclaimed to
them.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 18(19):8-11 ©
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The precepts of the Lord
gladden the heart.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,
it gives wisdom to the simple.
The precepts of the Lord
gladden the heart.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
they gladden the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
it gives light to the eyes.
The precepts of the Lord
gladden the heart.
The fear of the Lord is holy,
abiding for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are truth
and all of them just.
The precepts of the Lord
gladden the heart.
They are more to be desired than gold,
than the purest of gold
and sweeter are they than honey,
than honey from the comb.
The precepts of the Lord
gladden the heart.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Mt4:4
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Man does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the
mouth of God.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Mk1:15
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The kingdom of God is close at hand:
repent and believe the Good News.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 10:1-12 ©
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The Lord appointed seventy-two others and
sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself
was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few,
so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now,
but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no
haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into,
let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there,
your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in
the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer
deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a
town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it
who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you.” But whenever
you enter a town and they do not make you welcome, go out into its streets and
say, “We wipe off the very dust of your town that clings to our feet, and leave
it with you. Yet be sure of this: the kingdom of God is very near.” I tell you,
on that day it will not go as hard with Sodom as with that town.’
DICTATORSHIP OF
SECULARISM
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ NEHEMIAH 8:1-12; PSALM 19:8-11; LK 10:1-12 ]
In this secular world,
it is no longer politically correct to speak about one’s faith in public. Secularism, the new religion, controls the
other 80% of faith believers in the world in how we can conduct ourselves in
public space, all in the name of respect and freedom. Just because 20% do
not like religion to be expressed in public space, the majority of those who
have religions are deprived of this freedom.
Sadly, because we are
such peace-loving people and do not wish to make a nuisance of ourselves, we
allow ourselves to be conditioned to feel that it is wrong to express our faith
in God in public and that we should keep our moral positions to ourselves as
well. To
do so might cause us to lose our audience and popularity or support. So,
most Catholics are afraid to articulate their faith in public and especially
their moral positions. Partly because of fear of losing their
privileges and partly because they do not truly understand the reasons for the
Church’s teachings and so feel inadequate to defend the truth of the gospel.
That is why, if a
politician or an artiste or a businessman were to declare his or her belief in
God in public, some listeners may feel uncomfortable and uneasy. But believers secretly admire the
courage of such people in their profession, especially if they are influential
people in society, to state categorically that they believe in the power of
prayer or in God who helps them in their life. In the history of humanity
until the 19th Century, it was seen as something positive when leaders, whether
in government or corporate leaders, publicly declared their allegiance to
God. It meant that because they were God-fearing, their lives would
also be lived with integrity and compassion for the weak. Honesty and
charity became the hallmarks of the way they conducted themselves in the world
and in their relations with their fellowmen. And if they did not,
they would bring discredit to their faith and religion.
But today, there is
lesser incentive to conduct ourselves with moral integrity simply because with
secularism there is no accountability to a supreme being other than to your fellowmen.
There are no consequences for our actions beyond this world. The motive
for doing the right thing is based on mutual respect and justice. But
this motivation might not be enough for most people. The truth is that we
are all selfish and inward-looking. We are tempted to pleasures, wealth
and power. So, for many people, when conscience is dead, it becomes a
principle of just avoiding getting caught. The motivation for
selfless service and charity has little place for those who do not have faith
in God or retribution in the next life. As they say, “you only live once”
so one is always “fearful of missing out.” That being the case, why do
good and why sacrifice and inconvenience ourselves for others?
Indeed, is it sufficient
in the work of evangelization simply to do good without an explicit
proclamation of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ? It is true that evangelization
includes the proclamation of the gospel in deeds, especially in social work,
education and humanitarian works. This was what the Lord said to the
disciples, “Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, ‘Peace to this
house!’. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, ‘The kingdom of God is very
near to you.'” The works of charity and messages of peace and goodwill of
course are necessary components of the work of evangelization. But the question
is whether that is all we have to offer to the world. Are we just simply
offering our people a better material and physical life, education and skills,
and technology? Is happiness in life just a matter of having enough to
eat, a comfortable place to stay and good health? At the end of the day,
happiness has to do with meaning and purpose.
The gospel offers more
than just finding peace on this earth and enjoying all the benefits of
creation. It offers the fullness of life, here on earth and hereafter. As Jesus
said, “I have come to give you life and life abundantly.” (Jn 10:10). If Christianity is reduced
merely to humanitarian work, we would have short-changed our
people. Rather, we are called to offer them the fullness of
life. When the Church insists on the need to promote human development,
she does not mean simply a good education, food and shelter, social skills and
harmonious living, but it must involve all the different aspects of the human
person. Human development cannot be reduced to mere intellectual,
emotional and physical formation. It must necessarily include spiritual,
affective and moral development. The problem with the world is that
human development is reduced merely to acquiring intellectual and technological
knowledge, mastering skills, physical and health, and social integration.
But where does the
secular government promote the necessary spiritual and moral development of the
human person? A secular education that is devoid of religious education
is not respecting or fulfilling the spiritual needs of the human person. This explains why even people in the most
affluent countries are not happy and people in poorer countries have greater
happiness even if they did not have the joy of luxuries in their life. Indeed,
if we follow the way of the secular world, humanity would become impoverished,
devoid of meaning and purpose because there are no values that are promoted as
good, and even if they are promoted as good values, there is no foundation for
good and moral values since relativism holds the dictatorship of the day.
Furthermore, when the
secular world presents to the modern man that there is only one life to live,
there is no motive to live for the future except for the present. This concretely implies that we
must get the most out of it for our enjoyment and comfort rather than put in
the most we have in us for the good and future of humanity. When
what we do in this life is limited to this world only, without eternal
consequences, then the destruction of life seems to be the end of all
suffering. This explains why there is a culture of death, abortion and
euthanasia. There is no real motive to do good in this world as there is
no life beyond death. It is the secularistic values of the world that
have robbed our modern generation of hope for the future and care for the
future of humanity and the world.
In truth, when Jesus
commanded His disciples to heal and cure the sick, it was never without the
proclamation of the kingdom of God, the reign of God’s love and rule in our
lives. The proclamation
of the kingdom is never without the proclamation of God. It is not just
an earthly kingdom but also a spiritual kingdom, not only of this earth but
hereafter, not only of this life but eternal life. If we fail to mention
this in the work of evangelization, even if we are doing good works of mercy
and charity, we would not be giving our recipients the fullness of life which
they are looking for. By not giving them the ultimate purpose of
life, direction and meaning, no matter what we do for them in human development
in terms of education, skills, food and material aids, they will not find real
happiness in life. Twice, the Lord said to the disciples, you must say, “The
kingdom of God is very near to you.”
We must teach them the
precepts of the Lord as
the responsorial psalm says. “The law of the Lord is perfect, it revives
the soul. The rule of the Lord is to be trusted; it gives wisdom to the
simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, they gladden the heart. The
command of the Lord is clear it gives light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord
is holy, abiding for ever. The decrees of the Lord are truth and all of them
just.” We must announce the gospel explicitly without any apology or
reservation, but of course always with humility and reverence and respect for
others. We must imbue in them the Word of God as Ezra did when the people
listened attentively to the Word of God. Only then could they begin to
share their food with each other. “He then said, ‘Go, eat the fat, drink
the sweet wine, and send a portion to the man who has nothing prepared ready.
For this day is sacred to our Lord. Do not be sad.’ And all the people
went off to eat and drink and give shares away begin to enjoy themselves since
they had understood the meaning of what had been proclaimed to them.”
So we must begin to sow
the seeds for the harvest. The
Twelve apostles were sent out to sow the seeds and the 72 were called to do the
harvest. We must ask how we sow the seeds of the gospel today, especially in
the areas of education of our young people, in our families, offices and society
at large. Is it enough just to teach them moral values without
making explicit reference to Christ and the gospel? Is it enough just to
do good quietly and help the poor? Should we fight shy of announcing that
Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life? Should we insist on the
importance of spiritual and moral formation of our young people and not simply
on academic knowledge and skills, supplying their material and physical
needs? Are we short-changing the world by not announcing Jesus, and most
of all, telling them that our real citizenship is in heaven? (cf Phil 3:20) Let us offer the full gospel
to all of humanity and not mislead them into thinking that it is sufficient to
live only for this world and for themselves.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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