20200423 THE NEW DICTATORSHIP
23 April, 2020, Thursday, 2nd Week of Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
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Acts 5:27-33 ©
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We are witnesses to all this, we and the Holy Spirit
When the officials had brought the apostles in to face the Sanhedrin, the high priest demanded an explanation. ‘We gave you a formal warning’ he said ‘not to preach in this name, and what have you done? You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and seem determined to fix the guilt of this man’s death on us.’ In reply Peter and the apostles said, ‘Obedience to God comes before obedience to men; it was the God of our ancestors who raised up Jesus, but it was you who had him executed by hanging on a tree. By his own right hand God has now raised him up to be leader and saviour, to give repentance and forgiveness of sins through him to Israel. We are witnesses to all this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.’
This so infuriated them that they wanted to put them to death.
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 33(34):2,9,17-20 ©
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This poor man called and the Lord heard him.
or
Alleluia!
I will bless the Lord at all times,
his praise always on my lips;
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
He is happy who seeks refuge in him.
This poor man called and the Lord heard him.
or
Alleluia!
The Lord turns his eyes to the just
and his ears to their appeal.
They call and the Lord hears
and rescues them in all their distress.
This poor man called and the Lord heard him.
or
Alleluia!
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted;
those whose spirit is crushed he will save.
Many are the trials of the just man
but from them all the Lord will rescue him.
This poor man called and the Lord heard him.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ has risen, he who created all things,
and has granted his mercy to men.
Alleluia!
Or:
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Jn20:29
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Alleluia, alleluia!
‘You believe, Thomas, because you can see me.
Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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John 3:31-36 ©
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The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to him
John the Baptist said to his disciples:
‘He who comes from above is above all others;
he who is born of the earth is earthly himself
and speaks in an earthly way.
He who comes from heaven
bears witness to the things he has seen and heard,
even if his testimony is not accepted;
though all who do accept his testimony
are attesting the truthfulness of God,
since he whom God has sent
speaks God’s own words:
God gives him the Spirit without reserve.
The Father loves the Son
and has entrusted everything to him.
Anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life,
but anyone who refuses to believe in the Son will never see life:
the anger of God stays on him.’
THE NEW DICTATORSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 5:27-33; PS 34:2, 9, 17-20; JOHN 3:31-36 ]
In the first reading, Peter and the apostles were brought before the Sanhedrin. The religious authorities were incensed by their preaching about Jesus whom they had crucified and which the apostles claimed to have risen and healed the man who was crippled. They felt pressured to admit their guilt and seek repentance. “The high priest demanded an explanation. ‘We gave you a formal warning’ he said ‘ not to preach in this name, and what have you done? You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and seem determined to fix the guilt of this man’s death on us.'” The truth is that what the apostles said was based on facts. Collectively during the trial of Jesus, when Pilate sought to wash his hands of this act of murder, the people together with the religious leaders said, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (cf Mt 27:24-25) For the apostles, “Obedience to God comes before obedience to man.”
How do we apply this teaching of Holy Scripture in our times? Most of us live in a secular world with a secular government. Most of our nations are also founded on democracy, which means everyone has a right to vote for the government. In a secular world, man seeks total autonomy from God. The world acts as if God does not exist, as if the world can explain itself. The decisions of the secular world are based on human reasoning alone. They do not take into account anything outside of human reasoning and empirical science. Yet it is also true, as the Lord remarked, “He who comes from above is above all others; he who is born of the earth is earthly himself and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, even if his testimony is not accepted.”
By removing God from society, man has no reference point. In seeking total autonomy from God, man supplants the absolute power of God. Based on human reason alone, man cannot agree on anything. Many of the presumed principles of life in truth are founded on the scriptures and cannot be proved empirically. For example, have you ever wondered why the life of man is precious and inviolable? Hence, murder and killing is wrong. However, who says that our life is different from that of animals? Why does the world generally adopt monogamy and not polygamy? The world today is allowing same-sex union, but why not polygamy for same-sex couples as well? Who dictates marriage is between two persons? Why must we accord freedom to every person? Why is slavery wrong? The truth is that when we investigate some of these principles governing the individual and human relationship, it is grounded on the bible’s interpretation of the human person as being created in the image and likeness of God.
Once God is removed from humanity and left to human reason alone, the whole basis governing the dignity of man loses its foundation. And since no one can agree on anything, relativism is the order of the day. Truth is now decided by consensus. The question is whether the decision of the majority is always right or best. Not all consensus is rooted in the truth but there is also a consensus to evil as well. This is what is happening in the world today. It is all about garnering popular support from the public. It is not about what is true or good. So manipulative people use the social media, entertainment, celebrity, powerful and influential people to propagate their materialistic ideology. Even in politics, does everyone vote with clarity of mind? Have they studied the candidates and the party he belongs to, or is it on the basis of “because I think I like him and I can trust him”? Is there real objectivity in determining why a candidate is elected over the other? Sometimes, it could be just a question of publicity. How many of us really screen every candidate?
The new form of dictatorship is no longer communism but ironically, democracy. However, it comes very subtly. It is through the weapon of conformity. Worldly people seek to capture the minds of our people, especially the young, using all the channels possible to sway them towards their atheistic and worldly philosophy of life. Using mass media, entertainment and social media, they normalize what is wrong and evil to be something acceptable by society. They seek to make the majority accept their ideas so that the minority would have to conform; otherwise they will find themselves out of place. For that matter, divorce, promiscuity, drug consumption, euthanasia, abortion, same-sex union and adoption, surrogate motherhood and even Satanism are promoted as the rights of everyone.
As Christians, how then do we live by this principle of “obedience to God before obedience to man”? This is because the world no longer accepts the Christian principles of truth and life. If we speak against the culture of death and the sanctity of marriage, we will be opposed on all fronts. A time will come, or perhaps it has already come in many places, when we will no longer be able to speak on moral issues that affect our family and social life. In many ways, Christians are silenced from voicing their opinions in the world today because we will otherwise be accused of interfering in politics and infringing the rules of democracy and secularism.
Regardless, the truth must be proclaimed in and out of season. As the apostles said, “We are witnesses to all this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.” If we know the truth and we do not proclaim it, then we commit a greater sin of omission. All earthly authority at the end of the day is under the authority of God. As Jesus told Pilate, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore, the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.” Jesus also said to Pilate, “I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” (Jn 18:37) The truth will ultimately set us free. The gospel is not against the world but for the world. We desire that there be true peace, harmony, respect, mutual sharing of the world’s resources; strong family life and marriages, and children brought up in a holistic, caring and loving environment. The Church has always been a promoter of authentic freedom, true love, life and the family.
The Church does more than offer right values to this world so that it can be a better place. She is not shy to declare that salvation is found ultimately in Christ whom “God has now raised him up to be a leader and saviour, to give repentance and forgiveness of sins through him.” In the gospel, John the Baptist declares, “God gives him the Spirit without reserve. The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to him. Anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life, but anyone who refuses to believe in the Son will never see life: the anger of God stays on him.” Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. We are not just proclaiming life on earth but the eternal life we are called to share with God. The world is only offering a worldly life to people just for this life on earth. We want to offer a life of true joy and happiness, which is more than pleasure, power, money and fame. It is about living the life of God, which is a life of faithful service to our brothers and sisters, caring for each other, making a difference in the lives of others, uplifting the misery of our fellowmen. It is this that makes our life worthwhile and worth living.
We cannot do this alone. As the apostles said, “We are witnesses to all this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.” We need to be witnesses of Christ’s resurrection before we can proclaim to others. Encountering the Risen Lord is the first and proper step to the work of evangelization. Once we have faith in Jesus, then we are called to be faithful to Him. True faith requires obedience to His will and the gospel He has taught us. This faith is given to us through the Holy Spirit when we are ready to obey Him. So only together with each other and the Holy Spirit, can we find the courage to stand up for Jesus and defend our faith in Him. Jesus will give us His Spirit to testify for Him.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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