20200207
THE
IMPERFECT SAINTLY LEADER
07 February,
2020, Friday, 4th Week of Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Ecclesiasticus 47:2-13 ©
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David sang out of love for his Maker
As
the fat is set apart from the communion sacrifice,
so
David was chosen out of all the sons of Israel.
He
played with lions as though with kids,
and
with bears as though with lambs of the flock.
While
still a boy, did he not slay the giant,
and
relieve the people of their shame,
by
putting out a hand to sling a stone
which
brought down the arrogance of Goliath?
For
he called on the Lord Most High,
who
gave strength to his right arm
to
put a mighty warrior to death,
and
lift up the horn of his people.
Hence
they gave him credit for ten thousand,
and
praised him while they blessed the Lord,
by
offering him a crown of glory;
for
he massacred enemies on every side,
he
annihilated his foes the Philistines,
and
crushed their horn to this very day.
In
all his activities he gave thanks
to
the Holy One, the Most High, in words of glory;
he
put all his heart into his songs
out
of love for his Maker.
He
placed harps before the altar
to
make the singing sweeter with their music;
he
gave the feasts their splendour,
the
festivals their solemn pomp,
causing
the Lord’s holy name to be praised
and
the sanctuary to resound from dawn.
The
Lord took away his sins,
and
exalted his horn for ever;
he
gave him a royal covenant,
and
a glorious throne in Israel.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 17(18):31,47,50-51 ©
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Praised
be the God who saves me.
The
ways of God are perfect;
the
word of the Lord, purest gold.
He
indeed is the shield
of
all who make him their refuge.
Praised
be the God who saves me.
Long
life to the Lord, my rock!
Praised
be the God who saves me,
so
I will praise you, Lord, among the nations:
I
will sing a psalm to your name.
Praised
be the God who saves me.
He
has given great victories to his king
and
shown his love for his anointed,
for
David and his sons for ever.
Praised
be the God who saves me.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.Lk8:15
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Blessed
are those who,
with
a noble and generous heart,
take
the word of God to themselves
and
yield a harvest through their perseverance.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 6:14-29 ©
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The beheading of John the Baptist
King Herod had
heard about Jesus, since by now his name was well known. Some were saying,
‘John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers
are at work in him.’ Others said, ‘He is Elijah’; others again, ‘He is a
prophet, like the prophets we used to have.’ But when Herod heard this he said,
‘It is John whose head I cut off; he has risen from the dead.’
Now
it was this same Herod who had sent to have John arrested, and had him chained
up in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife whom he had
married. For John had told Herod, ‘It is against the law for you to have your
brother’s wife.’ As for Herodias, she was furious with him and wanted to kill
him; but she was not able to, because Herod was afraid of John, knowing him to
be a good and holy man, and gave him his protection. When he had heard him
speak he was greatly perplexed, and yet he liked to listen to him.
An
opportunity came on Herod’s birthday when he gave a banquet for the nobles of
his court, for his army officers and for the leading figures in Galilee. When
the daughter of this same Herodias came in and danced, she delighted Herod and
his guests; so the king said to the girl, ‘Ask me anything you like and I will
give it you.’ And he swore her an oath, ‘I will give you anything you ask, even
half my kingdom.’ She went out and said to her mother, ‘What shall I ask for?’
She replied, ‘The head of John the Baptist.’ The girl hurried straight back to
the king and made her request, ‘I want you to give me John the Baptist’s head,
here and now, on a dish.’ The king was deeply distressed but, thinking of the
oaths he had sworn and of his guests, he was reluctant to break his word to
her. So the king at once sent one of the bodyguard with orders to bring John’s
head. The man went off and beheaded him in prison; then he brought the head on
a dish and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. When John’s
disciples heard about this, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
THE IMPERFECT
SAINTLY LEADER
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Sir 47:2-11; Ps 18:31, 47, 50-51; Mk 6:14-29 ]
Very often, when people
call us holy, our immediate reaction is to disclaim such perception of
us. This
is because we know ourselves better. We are far from holy. When we
examine our life, we cannot but look back with regret at all the wrongs we have
done, the mistakes we have made, and the consequences of our sins on our loved
ones and those under our care. We feel that not only do we fail as
a Christian but we fail as a leader too.
This is because we think
holiness is perfection of life and the virtues of the gospel. If we were
to use this as a gauge, then it is impossible for anyone to be holy. On that count, it would be
impossible to find any Christian leader in our community. People like to
find fault in a leader, and no leader is without fault. No one is
impeccable and sinless other than the Blessed Virgin. Indeed, for
many, holiness is perfection in Christian life. But in truth, holiness is
a gift of God and we can only make ourselves available to this gift. This
is true in the case of Mary as well. She received holiness as a gift and
cooperated with His grace to live a holy life.
But for most of us, we
are more like King David, an imperfect but holy leader. He was certainly not free from
sin. Perhaps he committed more serious sins than many of us. Not
only did he commit adultery but he even murdered his faithful soldier,
Bathsheba’s husband, to cover up his crime. Such heinous crime committed
by the King is unforgiveable. Later on, he offended the Lord again by
taking a census of his people. Yet, the book of Sirach gave a beautiful
eulogy to King David at the end of his life. His sins were forgiven
and overlooked. Instead, the good that he did was highlighted in today’s
first reading. This was simply because he cooperated with the grace of
God. The last sentence in today’s first reading is significant. “The Lord
took away his sins, and exalted his horn forever; he gave him a royal covenant,
and a glorious throne in Israel.”
What made David a great
leader and a great man was not because he was free of fault and human weakness
but simply because he was a man who sought to be true to himself and humble in
his negligence and contrite in his sinfulness. When he sinned against the Lord, and when
made aware of his sin through God’s prophet or his personal realization, he
immediately admitted his guilt without exonerating himself or making light of
his sins. Instead, he begged for forgiveness and was ever ready to
receive the punishment from God that came from the consequences of his sins.
What was the secret of
David’s holiness? It was because his heart was in the right place. He was certainly not free from temptation
to lust and pride, but he deeply loved God. God was the first in his
life. Indeed, Sirach wrote, “In all his activities he gave thanks to the
Holy One, the Most High, in word of glory; he put all his heart into his songs
out of love for his Maker. He placed harps before the altar to make the singing
sweeter with their music; he gave the feasts their splendour, the festivals
their solemn pomp, causing the Lord’s holy name to be praised and the sanctuary
to resound from dawn.” King David was very much in love with God.
He had great devotion for Him. We recall how King David danced for joy
without reservation when the Ark of the Covenant came back to
Israel. Not only was he an active military soldier but he was also
a contemplative. Many of the psalms were either written by him or
inspired by him. They demonstrate to us his sincerity, humility,
self-awareness and deep reverence for God, His mercy, love and power.
Indeed, in choosing leaders, we cannot wait to choose the perfect one because
none can be found. When we choose leaders, we must, like the Lord, find
out where his heart is. If his heart is at the right place, his human
frailties can be tolerated and corrected along the way. But if his heart
is at the wrong place, even the most intelligent and hardworking person will
make a bad leader because he will be ambitious and end up doing things for
himself, not for his people.
As a consequence, God
was with him and always ever ready to help him in governing Israel. God knew his heart as he told Samuel
when he chose David, the youngest son of Jesse. The Lord said, “Do not
look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected
him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the
outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (1 Sm 16:7) Hence as Sirach said, “David
was chosen out of all the sons of Israel.” And we also read that when
Samuel “took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers;
and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day
forward.” (1 Sm 16:13)
Indeed, David was disposed to the work of the Holy Spirit in his
life. The book of Sirach praised him saying, “He played with the lions as
though with kids, and with bears as though with lambs of flock. While
still a boy, did he not slay the giant, and relieve the people of their shame,
by putting out a hand to sling a stone which brought down the arrogance of
Goliath? For he called on the Lord Most High, who gave him strength to his
right arm to put a mighty warrior to death, and lift up the horn of his people.
Hence they gave him credit for ten thousand, and praised him while they bless
the Lord, by offering him a crown of glory; for he massacred enemies on every
side, he annihilated his foes the Philistines, and crushed their horn to this
very day.”
In the case of King
Herod, unfortunately, his heart was in the wrong place. He, too, was given the grace of God to be
a good and holy leader. God sent him his prophet, John the Baptist to
enlighten him and guide him to walk the right path. And indeed, he was struck
by his words. His conscience was still alive because we read that “Herod
was afraid of John, knowing him to be a good and holy man, and gave him his
protection. When he had heard him speak he was greatly perplexed, and yet
he liked to listen to him.” However, he chose to replace God in his heart
with Herodias who possessed and controlled him in the end. He was not
free as he was afraid and manipulated by Herodias. His heart was
not with God or with his people. He was not discerning enough and did not
read his heart rightly.
Not only was his heart
was on Herodias, but he also had a proud heart. He was focused on
himself. When he realized his mistake of displaying his wealth and
generosity in granting any wish to Herodias’ daughter, instead of withdrawing
his pledge, he carried it out at the expense of the life of a holy and innocent
man, John the Baptist. He did not listen to his conscience and the
prompting of the Lord. He acted against his conscience and was
unrepentant. This is unlike King David who repented the moment he came to
consciousness of his sin.
The punishment for King
Herod was to be haunted by his sin day and night for the rest of his life. That was why he had hallucinations
about John the Baptist. He thought that Jesus was John the Baptist who
came back to haunt him. “Some were saying, ‘John the Baptist has risen from the
dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.’ Others said,
‘He is Elijah;’ others again, ‘he is a prophet, like the prophets we used to
have.’ But when Herod heard this he said, ‘It is John whose head I cut
off; he has risen from the dead.'” His conscience was killing him and
making him ill at rest. If only he had repented and asked for forgiveness
like King David, he would have been set free and God would have helped him to
be a good king.
In the final analysis,
the man of the day was of course, John the Baptist. He was almost the perfect
leader. He was sanctified by the Lord in the womb of Elizabeth even
before he was born and that prevented him from suffering the full effects of
original sin. That is why the Church not only celebrates his martyrdom
but also his birthday. Of course, he also cooperated with God’s
grace. Hence, John the Baptist was canonized by our Lord who said, “among
those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist.’ (Mt 11:11)
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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