20200225
CRAVINGS
OF THE HEART, THE CAUSE OF DIVISION
25 February,
2020, Tuesday, 7th Week of Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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James 4:1-10 ©
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Resist the devil and he will run away
Where do these
wars and battles between yourselves first start? Isn’t it precisely in the
desires fighting inside your own selves? You want something and you haven’t got
it; so you are prepared to kill. You have an ambition that you cannot satisfy;
so you fight to get your way by force. Why you don’t have what you want is
because you don’t pray for it; when you do pray and don’t get it, it is because
you have not prayed properly, you have prayed for something to indulge your own
desires.
You
are as unfaithful as adulterous wives; don’t you realise that making the world
your friend is making God your enemy? Anyone who chooses the world for his
friend turns himself into God’s enemy. Surely you don’t think scripture is wrong
when it says: the spirit which he sent to live in us wants us for himself
alone? But he has been even more generous to us, as scripture says: God opposes
the proud but he gives generously to the humble. Give in to God, then; resist
the devil, and he will run away from you. The nearer you go to God, the nearer
he will come to you. Clean your hands, you sinners, and clear your minds, you
waverers. Look at your wretched condition, and weep for it in misery; be
miserable instead of laughing, gloomy instead of happy. Humble yourselves
before the Lord and he will lift you up.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 54(55):7-11,23 ©
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Entrust
your cares to the Lord and he will support you.
O
that I had wings like a dove
to
fly away and be at rest.
So I
would escape far away
and
take refuge in the desert.
Entrust
your cares to the Lord and he will support you.
I
would hasten to find a shelter
from
the raging wind,
from
the destructive storm, O Lord,
and
from their plotting tongues.
Entrust
your cares to the Lord and he will support you.
For I
can see nothing but violence
and
strife in the city.
Night
and day they patrol
high
on the city walls.
Entrust
your cares to the Lord and he will support you.
Entrust
your cares to the Lord
and
he will support you.
He
will never allow
the
just man to stumble.
Entrust
your cares to the Lord and he will support you.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Jn14:23
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
If
anyone loves me he will keep my word,
and
my Father will love him,
and
we shall come to him.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Ga6:14
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
The
only thing I can boast about is the cross of our Lord,
through
whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 9:30-37 ©
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Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name
welcomes me
Jesus and his
disciples made their way through Galilee; and he did not want anyone to know,
because he was instructing his disciples; he was telling them, ‘The Son of Man
will be delivered into the hands of men; they will put him to death; and three
days after he has been put to death he will rise again.’ But they did not
understand what he said and were afraid to ask him.
They
came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you
arguing about on the road?’ They said nothing because they had been arguing
which of them was the greatest. So he sat down, called the Twelve to him and
said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and
servant of all.’ He then took a little child, set him in front of them, put his
arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these little
children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not me
but the one who sent me.’
CRAVINGS OF THE
HEART, THE CAUSE OF DIVISION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [James 4:1-10; Ps 55:7-11, 23; Mk 9:30-37]
There is so much
division in the world. What is the cause? The real conflict begins in the
human heart. St
James wrote, “Isn’t it precisely in the desires fighting inside your own
selves? You want something and you haven’t got it; so you are prepared to
kill. You have an ambition that you cannot satisfy; so you fight to get
your way by force.” It is the heart of man that craves for more things,
power and glory. It springs from selfishness, which then
gives rise to envy, comparison and stirs up our selfish heart. When the
heart is not at peace, it will lead to division with others. We compete
with others, desire to have more than others, and if we do not get what we
want, we become envious; we use worldly ways to acquire them. So we get
into fights with others, simply because we are enticed by our desires. We
begin to rationalize and justify our demands. So the real battle is not
with others outside of us but within us. If we do not come to terms with
the inner battle, then we will cause division wherever we go.
This craving is not just
for things but for position, power and glory as well. Fighting in the world is not just among
those who are poor but those who are rich and powerful because they seek to be
the most powerful and most famous in the world. This was the case
of the apostles. They wanted to be better than others.
Among themselves, they were discussing who was the greatest. They were
embarrassed that Jesus knew their ulterior motive in following Him. Jesus
asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” They said nothing
because they had been arguing which of them was the greatest. They were still
not enlightened. They were still thinking like the rest of the world in
spite of Jesus reminding them that “the Son of Man will be delivered into the
hands of men; they will put him to death; and three days after he has been put
to death he will rise again.’ But they did not understand what he said
and were afraid to ask him.”
To crave for worldly
things and glory is tantamount to the sin of adultery. St James says, “You are unfaithful
as adulterous wives; don’t you realise that making the world your friend is
making God your enemy? Anyone who chooses the world for his friend turns
himself into God’s enemy. Surely you don’t think scripture is wrong when
it says: the spirit which he sent to live in us wants us for himself
alone?” Indeed, to choose the world is to choose against God. We
cannot serve God and mammon at the same time.
This is where the real
fight begins. The true battle
is fought within us, whether we choose God or the world. We cannot
find peace until we surrender all our passions and desires to the Lord.
When there is an inordinate love for the world, it leads to ambition, which is
contrary to the love for God. If we truly love God, we will only do those
things that please Him and flow from His love for us. We will not be
seeking honour from man because we know that even when we give ourselves,
everything we have comes from Him. St Paul wrote, “If I must boast, I
will boast of the things that show my weakness.” (2 Cor 11:30)
Jesus made it clear that
greatness lies in humble service to humanity. “So he sat down, called the twelve to him and
said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and
servant of all.’ He then took a little child, set him in front of them,
put his arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these
little children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes
not me but the one who sent me.” Any competition among us must be a competition
to serve humbly, without seeking for recognition and honour. This is the
wise man because his fulfillment comes from manifesting the love of God in Him
and not attracting attention from others to find security.
Indeed, when we are
generous and humble in service, God will bless us even more. As St James wrote, “He had been even
more generous to us, as scripture says: God opposes the proud but he gives
generously to the humble.” When we are generous with others, humble in
our service, we will earn the genuine respect and love of our fellowmen without
our seeking recognition. By taking the child into His arms, Jesus taught
us that although the child has no significance in the world, he is important in
the eyes of God. God loves the lowly, the insignificant, the marginalized
and the despised. The joy of loving, giving and serving freely those who cannot
repay us is the greatest of all joys.
So it is important that
we make proper discernment. We must search our motives as Jesus did in purifying
the motives of His disciples in following Him. St James
wrote, “Why you don’t have what you want is because you don’t pray for it; when
you do pray and don’t get it, it is because you have not prayed properly, you
have prayed for something to indulge your own desires.” Prayer is the way
we discern if what we are seeking is truly in accordance with the will of
God. This is why Jesus asked us to pray. He said, “Ask, and it will
be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for
you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and
for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Mt 7:7f) Anything we ask from the
Lord is for us to give away to others. The failure to pray indicates that we do
not trust in God’s grace or that we have selfish motives.
Indeed, God will never
give us anything that is evil. God is pure love. Jesus said, “Is there anyone among
you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? Or if the
child asks for a fish, will give a snake? If you then, who are evil,
know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in
heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Mt 7:9-11) God will not grant us something
that is evil or when our motives are evil. He does not give us things to
destroy ourselves. Only the devil will help us to acquire what we want
because he knows that eventually, we will destroy ourselves. This
is particularly so in the area of greed for money, desire for power and status;
or the sin of the flesh. We give in to our passions, namely, hedonism,
concupiscence and pleasure. That is why, if we desire something, we must always
turn to the Lord in prayer, not simply just asking for it, but asking whether
it is in the mind of God. Isn’t this what the Lord teaches us to do in
prayer? “I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do
it.” (Jn 14:13f)
Let us resist the
temptation of the Evil One to pride and the sin of the flesh. St James wrote, “Give in to God,
then; resist the devil, and he will run away from you.” Only when we decide
to resist the Evil One will he then leave us because he has no power over
us. When we choose God, the devil will flee from us. Those who
welcome evil will also welcome the devil. The problem is that we have two
minds. We want God and Satan, God and Mammon. The choice has to be
made. “Clean your hands, you sinners, and clear your minds, you
waverers.” There is no neutrality when it comes to serving God.
How? By coming
near to God! “The
nearer you go to God, the nearer he will come to you. Look at your
wretched condition, and weep for it in misery; be miserable instead of
laughing, gloomy instead of happy. Humble yourselves before the Lord and
he will lift you up.” Only when we turn to God, will we come to realize
the wretchedness of our sins and worldly desires leading to our unhappiness and
division with our fellowmen. Unless we come to God, we will be influenced
by the world and the Evil One. That is why we must keep close to Jesus,
receive Him in Holy Communion and be filled with His word. When we draw
near to God, He will purify our thoughts and desires. Only then can we
give our lives totally to Christ. Like a little child, we must trust in the
Lord and bask in His love and divine protection.
So let us get our
priorities right in life. We must know where we stand before God. Are we with Him or against
Him? If we choose Him, then we choose the way of the cross, the way of
humble service unto death. Dying to self is the way to find true life and
peace.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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