20200418
UNEASINESS
IN SHARING FAITH TODAY
8 April, 2020, Easter Saturday
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 4:13-21 ©
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We cannot promise to stop proclaiming what we have seen and heard
The rulers,
elders and scribes were astonished at the assurance shown by Peter and John,
considering they were uneducated laymen; and they recognised them as associates
of Jesus; but when they saw the man who had been cured standing by their side,
they could find no answer. So they ordered them to stand outside while the
Sanhedrin had a private discussion. ‘What are we going to do with these men?’
they asked. ‘It is obvious to everybody in Jerusalem that a miracle has been
worked through them in public, and we cannot deny it. But to stop the whole
thing spreading any further among the people, let us caution them never to
speak to anyone in this name again.’
So
they called them in and gave them a warning on no account to make statements or
to teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John retorted, ‘You must judge
whether in God’s eyes it is right to listen to you and not to God. We cannot
promise to stop proclaiming what we have seen and heard.’ The court repeated
the warnings and then released them; they could not think of any way to punish
them, since all the people were giving glory to God for what had happened.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 117(118):1,14-21 ©
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I
will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
Give
thanks to the Lord for he is good,
for
his love has no end.
The
Lord is my strength and my song;
he
was my saviour.
There
are shouts of joy and victory
in
the tents of the just.
I
will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
The
Lord’s right hand has triumphed;
his
right hand raised me up.
I
shall not die, I shall live
and
recount his deeds.
I was
punished, I was punished by the Lord,
but
not doomed to die.
I
will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
Open
to me the gates of holiness:
I
will enter and give thanks.
This
is the Lord’s own gate
where
the just may enter.
I
will thank you for you have answered
and
you are my saviour.
I
will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
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Sequence
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Victimae Paschali Laudes
Christians,
to the Paschal Victim
offer
sacrifice and praise.
The
sheep are ransomed by the Lamb;
and
Christ, the undefiled,
hath
sinners to his Father reconciled.
Death
with life contended:
combat
strangely ended!
Life’s
own Champion, slain,
yet
lives to reign.
Tell
us, Mary:
say
what thou didst see
upon
the way.
The
tomb the Living did enclose;
I saw
Christ’s glory as he rose!
The
angels there attesting;
shroud
with grave-clothes resting.
Christ,
my hope, has risen:
he
goes before you into Galilee.
That
Christ is truly risen
from
the dead we know.
Victorious
king, thy mercy show!
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Ps117:24
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
This
day was made by the Lord:
we
rejoice and are glad.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 16:9-15 ©
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Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News
Having risen in
the morning on the first day of the week, Jesus appeared first to Mary of
Magdala from whom he had cast out seven devils. She then went to those who had
been his companions, and who were mourning and in tears, and told them. But
they did not believe her when they heard her say that he was alive and that she
had seen him.
After
this, he showed himself under another form to two of them as they were on their
way into the country. These went back and told the others, who did not believe
them either.
Lastly,
he showed himself to the Eleven themselves while they were at table. He
reproached them for their incredulity and obstinacy, because they had refused
to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. And he said to them, ‘Go
out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.’
UNEASINESS IN
SHARING FAITH TODAY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS
4:13-21; PS 118:1, 14-21; MARK
16:9-15 ]
In the secular world of
ours today, it is considered improper to share our faith openly in
public. Today,
if a public figure or anyone giving a public lecture were to mention anything
about his or her faith, he or she would be frowned upon. This is rather
strange when at least 80% of the world are believers of some religion and even
among the 20% who profess humanism, agnosticism or atheism, many have some
recognition of the sacred.
As recent as the last
century, it was to a political leader’s favour to show his or her reverence for
God. In America, even
the US dollar says, “In God we trust.” Letting people know our faith was
considered something not just appropriate but edifying and deserving of
people’s trust and confidence. Indeed, it was presumed that those
who were believers were God-fearing and therefore lived lives in accordance to
the laws of God and their religion, since all true religions teach us to do
good, be just and live a righteous life. Regardless of which religion one
believed in, it was proper for everyone to subscribe to a religion.
How did secularism and
humanism, which are in the minority, come to dictate to the rest of the
religious world how one should conduct oneself in public life? How did we change from a deeply
religious society to a secularized world? The reason is simple. Because
there is a very subtle attempt to silence all religions by exploiting the
disharmony among religions as an excuse to promote secularism. Today
secularism uses this as a basis to remove religions from public life in the
name of neutrality to all religions except for those who are atheists and
humanists. This is why, unwittingly, the quarrels among religions have
helped secularism to succeed in the world today. As a result, all are
losers in this battle among religions, except the atheists and
humanists! Hence, if the world has become so secular, we should not
blame the atheists, secularists and humanists; they are just making use of our
division to further promote and strengthen secularism.
We must not think that
this attempt to suppress public speaking in the name of Jesus is only happening
today. This was also true in
the case of the early Church! In the first reading, we have the Sanhedrin
warning Peter and John not to preach in the name of Jesus. They were told
that they may continue with their works of healing but not in Jesus’
name. This is precisely what the world wants of us. Today, there are so
many attempts by secularists to prevent religions from speaking and sharing
about their faith. They do not mind religions doing good works, but they
do not want us to display our faith and beliefs in God whilst doing what we
do. Although the world speaks about freedom in the practice of religion,
it is to be done only within our family, among our friends and within our
religious houses and communities. Faith cannot be expressed or spoken in
public. In many countries around the world, we are not allowed to display
any religious images in public life, in offices, in public buildings, even if
that building was built by a religious organization for their services to the
community.
We are not allowed to
express our views on ethical, social and moral issues that affect our family
and the larger society because we are deemed to be putting pressure on society
and political leaders, as if they are all people without faith! Can one dichotomize and compartmentalize
one’s faith from one’s view of life, whether in the area of business,
economics, politics, healthcare, family life, sexual identity and purpose of
life? Whether we like it or not, the way we perceive life is influenced
by our beliefs. Even the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was based
on a Christian perspective of freedom and the dignity of the human
person. The only difference is that over the years, Christianity
has lost her influence, and because of secularism, the Christian principles of
human rights and freedom have been stretched beyond what was intended by the
original legislators of Human rights.
This has led to an over
exaggeration of human freedom and dignity at the expense of the rights of
others. Personal freedom
has become so absolute that it no longer takes into consideration the larger
community. The freedom of expression and of speech includes the right to insult
others, spread fake news, and even distort and abuse the religious beliefs of
others. Freedom of religion today even means one’s right to subscribe to
any form of worship, even if it teaches evil and causes disharmony in
society. This is why the world has become so fragmented. Family and
society are breaking apart even with advancement in social and mass communication.
The freedom to life means one can take away one’s life, whether through suicide
and euthanasia or going for an abortion, because the birth of the baby would
infringe on the person’s freedom. This championing of absolute freedom
has become so ludicrous, especially in some sectors of society in the world.
As I have said, this
situation has also come about because of the intolerance among religions. This is what we see in
today’s first reading. The religious leaders were incensed by the
preaching of Peter and John about the resurrection of Jesus, the man whom they
had just crucified. They were pressured by their guilt because of what
they did on one hand, and on the other hand, they were threatened by the
healing miracle that was performed in the name of the man whom they had
crucified. “They recognised them as associates of Jesus; but when they
saw the man who had been cured standing by their side, they could find no
answer.” Furthermore, they could not explain how the miracle
happened. “What are we going to do with these men?’ they asked. ‘It is
obvious to everybody in Jerusalem that a miracle has been worked through them
in public, and we cannot deny it.” Furthermore, they could not explain
how Peter and John, who were uneducated laymen, could preach so convincingly.
Last not be least, the only reason why they did not take action was the fear of
losing popularity because “they could not think of any way to punish them,
since all the people were giving glory to God for what had happened.”
Instead of investigating
and studying the phenomenon objectively, seeking the truth of the matter, they
were defensive. They
wanted to protect their interests. They should have been humble and
continue to observe whether the phenomenon and the claims of the disciples were
true. Instead, they reacted by seeking to stop it. They
concluded, “But to stop the whole thing spreading any further among the people,
let us caution them never to speak to anyone in this name again.”
What was of great importance to them was that Peter and John were stopped from
speaking about Jesus whom they attributed the healing of the crippled man
to. They were not concerned about the validity of their claims for fear
that they would have to change their views. They were simply being
defensive.
Indeed, in the light of
how religions have played themselves into the hands of the secularists, it is
important that if we want to reclaim society for God, then believers,
regardless of whichever religion, must come together for a common purpose to
serve God together. Religions
may have different views, but all have a common purpose, which is to serve our
fellowmen, promote truth and love, help each other, safeguard morality, protect
family life, and not allow our people to become selfish, individualistic and
materialistic. All religions call their followers to be kind, respectful,
hospitable and tolerant of people of other faith; and some would even go
further to seek appreciation of the beliefs and practices of others and learn
from each other.
Today, the gospel
invites us to be receptive.
Even if we do not agree, we must be open to the testimonies of others.
Jesus reprimanded the apostles for being incredulous and obstinate when the
women and the disciples of Emmaus testified to them that they saw the Risen
Lord. Sharing our testimonies of faith is not imposing our faith on
others. We depend on God’s grace to find faith in the testimonies.
But arrogance and skepticism does us no good. As for those who have
encountered God, Peter and John said, “We cannot promise to stop proclaiming
what we have seen and heard.” So, too, the Lord commands us, “Go
out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.” So let
us be witnesses of His life and love.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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