20191231
THE
ANTI-CHRISTS OF THE 21TH CENTURY
31 December,
2019, Tuesday, 7th Day Within the Octave of Christmas
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
|
First reading
|
1 John 2:18-21 ©
|
You have been anointed by the Holy One
Children,
these are the last days;
you
were told that an Antichrist must come,
and
now several antichrists have already appeared;
we
know from this that these are the last days.
Those
rivals of Christ came out of our own number, but they had never really
belonged;
if
they had belonged, they would have stayed with us;
but
they left us, to prove that not one of them
ever
belonged to us.
But
you have been anointed by the Holy One,
and
have all received the knowledge.
It is
not because you do not know the truth that I am writing to you
but
rather because you know it already
and
know that no lie can come from the truth.
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Responsorial
Psalm
|
|
Psalm 95(96):1-2,11-13 ©
|
Let
the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
O
sing a new song to the Lord,
sing
to the Lord all the earth.
O
sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim
his help day by day,
Let
the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
Let
the heavens rejoice and earth be glad,
let
the sea and all within it thunder praise,
let
the land and all it bears rejoice,
all
the trees of the wood shout for joy
at
the presence of the Lord for he comes,
he
comes to rule the earth.
Let
the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
With
justice he will rule the world,
he
will judge the peoples with his truth.
Let
the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
|
Gospel
Acclamation
|
Alleluia,
alleluia!
A
hallowed day has dawned upon us.
Come,
you nations, worship the Lord,
for
today a great light has shone down upon the earth.
Alleluia!
|
Or:
|
Jn1:14,12
|
Alleluia,
alleluia!
The
Word became flesh, and dwelt among us.
To
all who received him he gave power to become children of God.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
John 1:1-18 ©
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The Word was made flesh, and lived among us
In
the beginning was the Word:
and
the Word was with God
and
the Word was God.
He
was with God in the beginning.
Through
him all things came to be,
not
one thing had its being but through him.
All
that came to be had life in him
and
that life was the light of men,
a
light that shines in the dark,
a
light that darkness could not overpower.
A man
came, sent by God.
His
name was John.
He
came as a witness,
as a
witness to speak for the light,
so
that everyone might believe through him.
He
was not the light,
only
a witness to speak for the light.
The
Word was the true light
that
enlightens all men;
and
he was coming into the world.
He
was in the world
that
had its being through him,
and
the world did not know him.
He
came to his own domain
and
his own people did not accept him.
But
to all who did accept him
he
gave power to become children of God,
to
all who believe in the name of him
who
was born not out of human stock
or
urge of the flesh
or will
of man
but
of God himself.
The
Word was made flesh,
he
lived among us,
and
we saw his glory,
the
glory that is his as the only Son of the Father,
full
of grace and truth.
John
appears as his witness. He proclaims:
‘This
is the one of whom I said:
He
who comes after me ranks before me
because
he existed before me.’
Indeed,
from his fullness we have, all of us, received –
yes,
grace in return for grace,
since,
though the Law was given through Moses,
grace
and truth have come through Jesus Christ.
No
one has ever seen God;
it is
the only Son, who is nearest to the Father’s heart,
who
has made him known.
THE ANTI-CHRISTS
OF THE 21TH CENTURY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 JOHN 2:18-21; JOHN 1:1-18]
St John wrote, “These
are the last days.” Today
is the last day of the Calendar Year but are we in the last days? How do
we know that we are in the last days and not just the last day of the
year? Indeed, the last calendar day is not as important as the last
days. The truth is the last day of the Calendar Year is but a
number. The frightening reality is that we are actually living in
the last days. Why is that so? If we open our eyes to see what is
happening in the world, we cannot but see the signs of the last days or, as St
John wrote, the day of the antichrists. Where are the antichrists of the
last days?
Firstly, the antichrist
is seen in the culture of death that is being promoted in the world. The world pays a hypocritical
demand for the respect of human life by asking for the abolition of the death
penalty for all crimes committed. On the other hand, they are killing
millions of babies through abortion. At least in one country, abortion at
birth has been legalized. The world also promotes suicide and
euthanasia. The sacredness of life must be promoted from birth to death
and not just at some stage of human life. Satan wants the world to
destroy itself by allowing criminals to commit crimes and killing without fear
for their own lives; and on the other hand, totally disregarding the lives of
innocent babies and vulnerable elderly.
Secondly, the antichrist
is seen in the culture of utilitarianism. The emphasis on productivity is something
promoted in society if we want to be rewarded. Only those who
produce and contribute to society have a right to live. Otherwise, they
are considered to be taking up space in this small planet. The weak, the
sickly, those with special needs, the elderly are being eliminated from society
because they are seen as useless, non-productive, burdensome and a drain on our
energy and resources. There is a lack of graciousness and
compassion for those who are slow, weak and defenseless.
Thirdly, the antichrist
is seen in the culture of materialism.
Life is reduced to mere pleasure. One works and makes money so that one
can enjoy the riches and pleasures of a comfortable life. It is not about
selfless service, about meaning and about love. It is all about enriching
oneself, enjoying the gifts of creation and technology, having a sensual and
fun life. It is all about taking care of our body, making ourselves
forever young and beautiful, attractive and healthy to live as long as we can,
because there is only one life which ends in death. We forget that the
greatest and essential things in life are often unseen and invisible. It
is love, compassion, kindness, generosity, relationship and friendship.
Fourthly, the antichrist
is seen in the culture of humanism. Man no longer believes in God and that He
is the answer to all the questions about life. He believes that he can do
everything and anything. God is not needed. There is no God, no
afterlife, no beyond. There is only one reality, that is, the planet and
the human beings. Yet, the truth is that both the planet and humanity are
on the way to self-destruction because we live only for ourselves and for this
world. We think we can solve all problems when we cannot even answer the
basic questions of life, where we come from, where do we go after death and
what is the meaning of life on earth, especially the mystery of suffering and
death? If we cannot answer these essentials questions, all the answers to
the other questions have no meaning because they are non-essential. When
man rejects God and takes over his own life, this is where we see the mess and
the confusion.
Fifthly, the antichrist
is seen in the culture of individualism. With humanism and secularism, the only
philosophy accepted is relativism. This has made us more individualistic and
self-righteous. We are all right in our own ways. No one has the
truth or the answer. The freedom of the individual is underscored to
the extent of not respecting the rights of others or even the larger community.
It is all about myself, my ideas and my rights. We do not think of the
larger interests of the community. Marriage is seen in an individualistic
manner, it is about finding a companion. It is no longer connected with
procreation and the extension of the human family. It is about my country
and my people, not about the world and humanity. Nationalism is promoted
at the expense of globalization. Arts are promoted to emphasize the
uniqueness of the individual and their expression but without consideration for
whether the values promoted are wholesome, life-giving, tolerant, loving and
uplifting. Arts have become means to profanation, vulgarity, insult,
mockery, disrespect of people’s beliefs and cultures.
Sixthly, the antichrist
is seen in the New Age Movement.
Due to secularism and materialism, there is a spiritual vacuum in the hearts of
humanity. To fulfill the spiritual hunger of people, the New Age Movement
seeks to integrate the spiritual with modern sciences and technology. It
is a masked way of helping man to gain power over the universe by tapping their
inner energy and that of the cosmos. Through meditation, occult
activities, tapping into cosmic energy, they hope to discover the true man
within themselves, one that is divine. Even Catholics have unwittingly
subscribed to such new-age philosophy and bewitched by the positive energy that
they seem to get out from such new-age practices.
But the real antichrist
is not outside the Church but within.
This is what St John is warning us about. “Those rivals of Christ came out of
our own number, but they had never really belonged; if they had belonged, they
would have stayed with us; but they left us, to prove that not one of them ever
belonged to us.” Indeed, the real antichrist is the corruption, scandals,
deviations from the truth, false compromises, spiritual worldliness, and
half-truths being taught by our Church leaders, theologians and lay
leaders. They themselves are contaminated by the values of the world, of
relativism, rationalism and secularism. Our Church leaders are now
disagreeing openly, challenging one another. So much so, the ordinary
Catholic is lost and confused, not knowing who is right or wrong.
That is why, if we want
to save humanity and the planet from self-destruction, we must go back to the
beginning. This
is what St John said, “In the beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God
and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” Indeed, the fact
is that we already have the truth. “But you have been anointed by the
Holy One, and have all received the knowledge. It is not because you do not
know the truth that I am writing to you but rather because you know it already
and know that no lie can come from the truth.” Instead of being like St
John the Baptist who came to witness to Jesus as the Truth of God and humanity,
we are counter-witnesses. St John the Baptist, “came as a witness, as a
witness to speak for the light, so that everyone might believe through him. He
was not the light, only a witness to speak for the light.”
This is because we have
forgotten the truth of creation, incarnation and salvation. We have forgotten that we are created by
God through His Word. “Through him all things came to be, not one
thing had its being but through him. All that came to be had life in him and
that life was the light of men, a light that shines in the dark, a light that
darkness could not overpower.” Because man strayed from the truth, Christ
as the light of the world came to show us the way to God and to recover our
dignity as the children of God. Christ is the Word of God made flesh in
person. “The Word was made flesh, he lived among us, and we saw his
glory, the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and
truth”. He is the light of the world, the way, the truth and the
life. If the world is confused, it is because they did not recognize
Jesus as the Light of humanity. “The Word was the true light that
enlightens all men; and he was coming into the world. He was in the world that
had its being through him, and the world did not know him. He came to his own
domain and his own people did not accept him.”
However, the Good News
is this, “But to all who did accept him he gave power to become children of
God, to all who believe in the name of him who was born not out of human stock
or urge of the flesh or will of man but of God himself.” Indeed, there is hope for humanity and
this planet which we call earth if only we lead humanity to turn to Christ the
Light of the world, for indeed, “from his fullness we have, all of us, received
– yes, grace in return for grace.” The reason is simple, “No one
has ever seen God; it is the only Son, who is nearest to the Father’s heart,
who has made him known.” Only Christ who is the Son of God can lead us to
the heart of the Father and give us back our sonship.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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