20191216
BY
WHOSE AUTHORITY?
16 December,
2019, Monday, 3rd Week of Advent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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Numbers 24:2-7,15-17 ©
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The oracles of Balaam
Raising his eyes
Balaam saw Israel, encamped by tribes; the spirit of God came on him and he
declaimed his poem. He said:
‘The
oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the
oracle of the man with far-seeing eyes,
the
oracle of one who hears the word of God.
He
sees what Shaddai makes him see,
receives
the divine answer, and his eyes are opened.
How
fair are your tents, O Jacob!
How
fair your dwellings, Israel!
Like
valleys that stretch afar,
like
gardens by the banks of a river,
like
aloes planted by the Lord,
like
cedars beside the waters!
A
hero arises from their stock,
he
reigns over countless peoples.
His
king is greater than Agag,
his
majesty is exalted.’
Then
Balaam declaimed his poem again. He said:
‘The
oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the
oracle of the man with far-seeing eyes,
the
oracle of one who hears the word of God,
of
one who knows the knowledge of the Most High.
He
sees what Shaddai makes him see,
receives
the divine answer, and his eyes are opened.
I see
him – but not in the present,
I
behold him – but not close at hand:
a
star from Jacob takes the leadership,
a
sceptre arises from Israel.’
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 24(25):4-6,7a-9 ©
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Lord,
make me know your ways.
Lord,
make me know your ways.
Lord,
teach me your paths.
Make
me walk in your truth, and teach me:
for
you are God my saviour.
Lord,
make me know your ways.
In
you I hope all day long
because
of your goodness, O Lord.
Remember
your mercy, Lord,
and
the love you have shown from of old.
Do
not remember the sins of my youth.
In
your love remember me.
Lord,
make me know your ways.
The
Lord is good and upright.
He
shows the path to those who stray,
He
guides the humble in the right path,
He
teaches his way to the poor.
Lord,
make me know your ways.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
The
Lord will come, go out to meet him.
Great
is his beginning and his reign will have no end.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Ps84:8
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Let
us see, O Lord, your mercy
and
give us your saving help.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Matthew 21:23-27 ©
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'I will not tell you my authority for acting like this'
Jesus had gone
into the Temple and was teaching, when the chief priests and the elders of the
people came to him and said, ‘What authority have you for acting like this? And
who gave you this authority?’ ‘And I’ replied Jesus ‘will ask you a question,
only one; if you tell me the answer to it, I will then tell you my authority
for acting like this. John’s baptism: where did it come from: heaven or man?’
And they argued it out this way among themselves, ‘If we say from heaven, he
will retort, “Then why did you refuse to believe him?”; but if we say from man,
we have the people to fear, for they all hold that John was a prophet.’ So
their reply to Jesus was, ‘We do not know.’ And he retorted, ‘Nor will I tell
you my authority for acting like this.’
BY WHOSE
AUTHORITY?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ NUM 24:2-7, 15-17; PS 25:4-6, 7-9; MT 21:23-27]
The question of
authority is an important means of verifying the truth of what is said and the
legality of the person’s actions. Therefore, it should not be surprising that in the
gospel, the chief priests and the elders of the people asked Jesus, “What authority
have you for acting like this? And who gave you this authority?” The
context of this query arose from what Jesus did earlier on when He drove out
the merchants and moneychangers from the Temple. “It is written, ‘My
house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you make it a den of
robbers.” (cf Mt 21:12f) For the religious leaders,
their authority was threatened by Jesus’ implicit claims to divine
authority. Earlier on, the people welcomed Him as their Messiah by
spreading garments and branches of leaves on the road shouting, “Hosanna to the
Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the
highest.’ (Mt 21:9f)
Clearly, Jesus’
authority came from God. In
the first reading, the prophet Balaam prophesied “a star from Jacob takes the
leadership, a sceptre arises from Israel.” This would happen not in the
near future. “I see him – but not in the present, I behold him – but not
at close hand.’ Even a pagan prophet acknowledged the divine authority of
Christ. He said: “The oracle of Balaam son of Boer, the oracle of the man
with far-seeing eyes, the oracle of the one who hears the word of God, of one
who knows the knowledge of the Most High. He sees what Shaddai makes him see,
receives the divine answer, and his eyes are opened.”
It is significant that
Jesus justified His authority not with presumptuous claims but with actions. Hence, Jesus said to them, “And I will ask
you a question, only one; if you tell me the answer to it, I will then tell you
my authority for acting like this. John’s baptism: where did it come
from: heaven or man?” The truth is that John the Baptist was seen
as a prophet by the people because of his life of integrity. He
preached the message of repentance not just by his word but also by his actions
and lifestyle. He lived in the desert and a life of penance. He
listened to the Word of God and meditated on it before he preached
it. The Jewish leaders knew that. He too had no “academic”
authority like Jesus as well, compared to the scribes. However, his
lifestyle and words were his credentials.
The truth is not whether
Jesus had authority to do what He did but that they could not accept Him
because of their vested interests in
the same way they rejected John. We read, “they argued it out this way
among themselves, ‘If we say from heaven, he will retort, “Then why did you
refuse to believe him?”, but if we say from man, we have the people to fear,
for they all hold that John was a prophet.” The authority of Jesus rested
in the truth of what He taught but most of all by His actions. When John
the Baptist sent his messengers to ask Jesus, “Are you he who is to come, or
shall we look for another?” And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you
hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are
cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good
news preached to them.” (Mt 11:3-5) And in John’s gospel, Jesus
reiterated this when He said, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father and
the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own
authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe
me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; or else believe me for the
sake of the works themselves.” (Jn 14:10f) To the Jews who took up
stones to stone Him, Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the
Father; for which of these do you stone me? If I am not doing the works
of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though you do
not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the
Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (Jn 10:32, 37f)
Unfortunately, for those
who close their hearts like the Pharisees, they will not be able to receive the
truth. When
our hearts are evil and when we want to have things our own way, we will close
ourselves to the truth. Many of us, because of our pride and
self-will, will not listen to others. Instead of trying to understand the
truth of what is said, we rebel against it. It is important that we are
open to the criticisms of others even if they are not pleasant to our ears.
But it also does not mean that we need to believe every criticism that is
directed at us. It is better for us to sift out what is good and true
from those that are based on prejudice and a lack of information.
Jesus advises us not to
be too worried about such people when they refuse to accept us. When they are ready, the master
will appear. When they replied to Jesus, “We do not know”, Jesus
retorted, “Nor will I tell you my authority for acting like this.” Since
these people were not open to reason and the truth, Jesus knew that no matter
what He said, it would be rejected. Hence, as He also once taught, “Do
not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or
they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.” (Mt 7:6) Jesus did not spend much time
arguing with them or explaining to them. Since they could not accept His
words and refused to acknowledge His works, He could not do much.
Indeed, the tragedy and
greatness of man is his freewill. God has given us the free will to accept Him or reject
Him. He does not force us but leaves us free to accept or reject
Him. Those who reject Him will be the losers in the end. We
will only suffer the consequences of choosing Satan, the World and the Flesh
rather than God Himself. We think riches, power and glory are
everything. They cannot bring us happiness but we do not believe.
We spend our whole life struggling and pursuing such illusions only to realize
when we find them, that all such goals in life are futile.
Hence we must, like the
Psalmist, pray that we will know His ways and walk in His path. “Lord, make me know your ways. Lord, teach
me your paths. Make me walk in your truth, and teach me: for you are God my
saviour. The Lord is good and upright. He shows the path to
those who stray. He guides the humble in the right path, He teaches his way to
the poor.” Only by walking in the way of the Lord, can we find
life. If we trust in His ways and submit to His authority, we will find
true happiness in life. We will be like Israel as the Prophet Balaam
prophesied, “How fair are your tents, O Jacob! How fair your dwellings, Israel!
Like valleys that stretch afar, like gardens by the banks of a river, like aloes
planted by the Lord, like cedars beside the waters! A hero arises from their
stock, he reigns over countless peoples. His king is greater than Agag, his
majesty is exalted.” Only by submitting to God’s ways, can we come
to realize His wisdom and the truth of what He is teaching us. We must
yield to the Spirit of truth because Jesus is the incarnate Word of God.
Indeed, we must follow
the example of Balaam who obeyed God.
He was a pagan prophet, or rather a pagan sorcerer. He was more
concerned with riches and wealth. He was a greedy man who used his
talents for his own selfish needs. (cf. Num 31:16) When he was asked by Balak, the
King of the Moabites to use sorcery to defeat Israel, since he could not do it
by using military might, Balaam agreed to put a curse on Israel, but every time
he tried, God hindered him from doing so. (Num 22) Instead, he ended up by blessing
Israel, as we read in the first reading. (Num 23) Although not a good man, Balaam
understood who the King was. He obeyed and blessed Israel, warned Balak
that a great king would appear in Israel.
As for those who
continue to oppose us, let us through our good works win them over one
day. We
must persevere, especially if there are non-Catholics at home or in our offices
who are skeptical of our faith. We must, like Jesus, continue to do good,
love them, accept them, show our patience, overcoming evil with good, hatred
with love. Eventually, even if they cannot believe in what we believe
about Jesus, our love will open their hearts to God’s grace.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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