20200113
VOCATION
TO FRUITFULNESS
13 January,
2020, Monday, 1st Week in Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
|
First reading
|
1 Samuel 1:1-8 ©
|
Hannah's rival taunts her for being barren
There was a man
of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the highlands of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah
son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. He had
two wives, one called Hannah, the other Peninnah; Peninnah had children but
Hannah had none. Every year this man used to go up from his town to worship and
to sacrifice to the Lord of Hosts in Shiloh. The two sons of Eli, Hophni and
Phinehas, were there as priests of the Lord.
One
day Elkanah offered sacrifice. He used to give portions to Peninnah and to all
her sons and daughters; to Hannah, however, he would give only one portion,
although he loved her more, since the Lord had made her barren. Her rival would
taunt her to annoy her, because the Lord had made her barren. And this went on
year after year; every time they went up to the temple of the Lord she used to
taunt her. And so Hannah wept and would not eat. Then Elkanah her husband said
to her, ‘Hannah, why are you crying and why are you not eating? Why so sad? Am
I not more to you than ten sons?’
|
Responsorial
Psalm
|
|
Psalm 115(116):12-19 ©
|
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make to you, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
How
can I repay the Lord
for
his goodness to me?
The
cup of salvation I will raise;
I
will call on the Lord’s name.
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make to you, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
My
vows to the Lord I will fulfil
before
all his people.
O
precious in the eyes of the Lord
is
the death of his faithful.
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make to you, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
Your
servant, Lord, your servant am I;
you
have loosened my bonds.
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make;
I
will call on the Lord’s name.
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make to you, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
My
vows to the Lord I will fulfil
before
all his people,
in
the courts of the house of the Lord,
in
your midst, O Jerusalem.
A
thanksgiving sacrifice I make to you, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
Acclamation
|
cf.Ac16:14
|
Alleluia,
alleluia!
Open
our heart, O Lord,
to
accept the words of your Son.
Alleluia!
|
Or:
|
Mk1:15
|
Alleluia,
alleluia!
The
kingdom of God is close at hand:
repent
and believe the Good News.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
Mark 1:14-20 ©
|
I will make you into fishers of men
After John had
been arrested, Jesus went into Galilee. There he proclaimed the Good News from
God. ‘The time has come’ he said ‘and the kingdom of God is close at hand.
Repent, and believe the Good News.’
As
he was walking along by the Sea of Galilee he saw Simon and his brother Andrew
casting a net in the lake – for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to
them, ‘Follow me and I will make you into fishers of men.’ And at once they
left their nets and followed him.
Going
on a little further, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they too
were in their boat, mending their nets. He called them at once and, leaving
their father Zebedee in the boat with the men he employed, they went after him.
VOCATION TO
FRUITFULNESS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 Sm 1:1-8; Ps 116:12-19; Mk 1:14-20 ]
Yesterday, we celebrated the Feast
of the Baptism of the Lord. This feast not only revealed the identity
of Jesus as the Son of the Eternal Father but it was also the ratification of
God’s call for Jesus to be the Messiah. It was after His baptism that He
began His public ministry. Shortly later, John the Baptist was
arrested. The gospel noted, “After John had been arrested, Jesus went
into Galilee. There he proclaimed the Good News from God. ‘The time has
come’ he said ‘and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent, and
believe the Good News.'” Jesus did not waste time or delay any longer to
continue what John the Baptist had started, namely, to call His people back to
God and the Covenant.
All of us, regardless of
our status and rank in life, are called to a vocation of fruitfulness. Whether as parents, married or single,
each according to his or her state of life and charisms, are called to be
fruitful in whatever they do. Indeed, this was the case of the apostles
in today’s gospel. They were fishermen doing what they were good
at. But Jesus had a higher calling for them, more than just to be
fishermen, they were called to be fishers of men. “He saw Simon and his brother
Andrew casting a net in the lake – for they were fisherman. And Jesus
said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you into fishers of men.’ And at
once they left their nets and followed him. Going on a little further, he
saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they too were in their boat,
mending their nets. He called them at once and, leaving their father
Zebedee in the boat with the men he employed, they went after him.”
Indeed, God wants us to be more and more fruitful in whatever we do. We
must bear fruit in order to find our self-worth in life.
When we are barren in
life, we lose our zeal to live. This is particularly true in the case of
women. In spite of all
the claims by proponents supporting same-sex union that it is in accordance
with creation and the plan of God, the truth is that even same-sex couples
realize that love between two persons is not enough to keep them fulfilled and
happy in life. Love must always go beyond the couple, otherwise, love
will die and one will stifle the other in growth, in love and in meaning.
If love simply stays between two lovers, they will come to realize no matter
how much love each receives from the other, that person cannot fulfill the
desire of our heart to have more and more love.
This is beautifully
illustrated in the story of Hannah. We read that she was barren without a
child. Even though her husband loved her more than his other wife,
Penninah, she remained inconsolable. “Her rival would taunt her to annoy
her, because the Lord had made her barren. And this went on year after
year: every time they went up to the temple of the Lord she used to taunt
her. And so Hannah wept and would not eat. Then Elkanah her husband
said to her, ‘Hannah, why are you crying and why are you not eating? Why
so sad? Am I not more to you then ten sons?'” The truth is that no
matter how much the husband can bestow his love upon her, without her bearing
fruit in her life, she would be like the Dead Sea, receiving water from the
river Jordan but no outlet to flow out. In order to be alive, we need to
receive and to give. That is why the husband’s love for her cannot
compensate and fulfil her desire to have children. The love of our spouse
cannot be compared to the love of our children and our love for them.
They are different.
Indeed, when couples do
not want to have children, in time to come, they will find their relationship
stale, boring and dull. When
we are in love with someone, we want to share the love and joy we have from
each other with others. For a married couple, they want to share their
joy with someone they could really love, someone that could identify with them
more perfectly. This person of course is the fruit of their love, their
child.
This is the truth of
life. This is why we can empathize with women who are desperate to have
children when they cannot conceive. They will use all means to conceive, even
outside their body using technology, such as freezing their eggs and using
In-vitro fertilization(IVF). It does not matter to them whether other embryos,
which means lives, are destroyed in the process to find the best embryo to be
implanted in the womb. Even same-sex couples, whilst denying that God
created male and female in His divine plan and that marriage is intimately
linked with procreation and not just companionship, also come to realize that
having a partner itself cannot bring fulfillment and happiness. So they
too want to adopt babies or use surrogate motherhood or IVF to have their own
children. When we use technology in that manner, trying to fulfill our
desires regardless of whether it is in accordance with God’s plan for humanity,
we will suffer the consequences in the long term, of which the full
repercussions and implications of playing God have yet to be unfolded in
history.
What about those who are
single or those who are married but cannot conceive the natural way? There is always the path of
adoption. Of course, those who adopt babies must be sure that they would
love the children they adopt as if they are their own. Even if they do
not adopt, this does not stop them from being fruitful. As singles,
divorced or married without children, we can still make our lives fruitful by
giving ourselves in service to the country, our community and charitable
organizations. So long as we are serving people, reaching out to those
who need our help and assistance, we too can consider ourselves as
fruitful. This is certainly the case of priests and religious.
Although priests do not have children of their own, they regard everyone as
their family members and children. They exist to serve the
community and in serving the community, they find great joy and fulfillment.
But what about
security? Can the love of our husband or the community we serve provide
us the security we need?
Indeed, Hannah was devastated not simply because she had no children. It
was also because she had no standing in life before society. If her
husband were to die before her, she would be left a widow. In those days,
a widow without children had no financial support for her needs. The last
person she could expect help from would be her rival, Peninnah. She would
taunt her even more and despise her. So we can understand why Hannah was
so sad that she could not have any children to give her security.
By extension, what about
those of us who are single and without children, or their spouse have left
them? Where can they find the
capacity to love? If the love of their spouse is lacking and that of
their children, how can they continue to be productive and fruitful in
life? This is where it is important for those who are without spouse and
children to rely on God alone. But it is also equally true that even
their spouse and children do not always give them the love and security they
need. That is why in the final analysis, they must put their faith in God
alone. Just as Elkanah said to Hannah, “Why so sad? Am I not more
to you then ten sons?” the Lord is saying to the Twelve and to us, “Do you also
wish to go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “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 6:67-69)
In the final analysis,
whether we have a spouse, children or without, it is immaterial. We must
place God as the center of our lives.
We must not displace Him even if we have loved ones around us because we cannot
love them properly and rightly without the grace and example of our Lord.
When we place our loved ones before God, we will end up possessing them and
when one day they leave us, our lives will be reduced to nothingness.
Nay, we must love our loved ones and those whom we are called to serve but we
must love them in God. “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him
comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall
never be shaken.” (Ps 62:1f)
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment