20200519 MASQUERADING EVIL AS GOOD
19 May, 2020, Tuesday, 6th Week in Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
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Acts 16:22-34 ©
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Become a believer and you will be saved, and your household too
The crowd joined in and showed their hostility to Paul and Silas, so the magistrates had them stripped and ordered them to be flogged. They were given many lashes and then thrown into prison, and the gaoler was told to keep a close watch on them. So, following his instructions, he threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
Late that night Paul and Silas were praying and singing God’s praises, while the other prisoners listened. Suddenly there was an earthquake that shook the prison to its foundations. All the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the prisoners. When the gaoler woke and saw the doors wide open he drew his sword and was about to commit suicide, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted at the top of his voice, ‘Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all here.’ The gaoler called for lights, then rushed in, threw himself trembling at the feet of Paul and Silas, and escorted them out, saying, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They told him, ‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, and your household too.’ Then they preached the word of the Lord to him and to all his family. Late as it was, he took them to wash their wounds, and was baptised then and there with all his household. Afterwards he took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their conversion to belief in God.
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 137(138):1-3,7-8 ©
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You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you.
I will adore before your holy temple.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I thank you for your faithfulness and love,
which excel all we ever knew of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of my soul.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
You stretch out your hand and save me,
your hand will do all things for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your hands.
You stretch out your hand and save me, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ has risen and shone upon us
whom he redeemed with his blood.
Alleluia!
Or:
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cf.Jn16:7,13
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I will send you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord;
he will lead you to the complete truth.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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John 16:5-11 ©
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Unless I go, the Advocate will not come to you
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Now I am going to the one who sent me.
Not one of you has asked, “Where are you going?”
Yet you are sad at heart because I have told you this.
Still, I must tell you the truth:
it is for your own good that I am going
because unless I go,
the Advocate will not come to you;
but if I do go,
I will send him to you.
And when he comes,
he will show the world how wrong it was,
about sin,
and about who was in the right,
and about judgement:
about sin: proved by their refusal to believe in me;
about who was in the right: proved by my going to the Father and your seeing me no more;
about judgement: proved by the prince of this world being already condemned.’
MASQUERADING EVIL AS GOOD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 16:22-34; PS 138:1-3, 7-8; JOHN 16:5-11 ]
What is the most insidious consequence of secularism? A moral absolutist relativism. In fact, this phrase itself is a contradiction. One either holds an absolute or a relativist morality; and secondly, a relativist has no moral position since all positions are permissible, neither right nor wrong, true or false. Indeed, when God is removed as the absolute foundation for all of life including morality, man has supplanted the place of God to decide what is good for himself. His decision is absolute for himself although, with others, it is relative. Man has become so proud, arrogant and overconfident of himself that he has the answers to all the problems and mysteries of life. He has made himself God and the absolute. Only in the face of death, does he realize his finiteness!
What is even more dangerous in the world today is that evil is masqueraded as good. On the surface, what the world is promoting seems to be in the interests of man; giving man his dignity and freedom. However, the world fails to realize that the autonomy of man is never absolute. What the world seeks is to give man absolute freedom over himself, often at the expense of the community. The world advocates abortion in the name of freedom for the woman; euthanasia, in the name of compassion for those suffering; divorce, in the name of love; surrogate motherhood and IVF in the name of the right to have a child; destruction of human embryos in the name of scientific research for the greater good of humanity; same-sex union, in the name of preference and choice; promiscuity in the name of freedom of expression; and the list continues.
All these values that the world is promoting are seen as good for humanity. However, are they really for or against humanity? Do these values promote selflessness or selfishness? Do they seek to promote the “Me First” or “Others First”? Do they strengthen family life and give a holistic ambience for the formation of our children? Do they promote authentic, faithful and lasting love or superficial love, or worse still, merely lust? Have we considered the consequences for the future of humanity? Does it promote the culture of life or the culture of death? Most of all, does it inspire hope for humanity, or does it create despair over this life?
Indeed, Paul and Silas faced this same situation when they were in Philippi. What brought the crowd to oppose Paul and Silas? Just earlier on, they encountered a “female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, ‘These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.’ She kept this up for many days. Finally, Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, ‘In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.'” (Acts 16:16-18) This was clearly a case when the Evil Spirit sought to make himself a good spirit by uttering what was true about Paul and Silas. The intention was not to encourage the people to listen to Paul and Silas. Rather, it was to strengthen credibility for the female slave who was under the possession of the Evil One. In this way, the Evil Spirit would get more people to listen to her.
Then “when her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, ‘These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.'” (Acts 16:19-21) This is exactly what the world is doing to those of us who are Christians. The world seeks to destroy Christianity, particularly Catholicism, because we are at the forefront in championing truth and justice. They do this by exposing the failures of the Church, especially the clergy. There is a concerted attack on the Church by the world, especially by the media, so that the Church loses her moral authority to teach the truth. Why? This is because the Catholic moral teachings will cause entrepreneurs to lose business and money especially in the entertainment world. When the vested interests of selfish people are exposed, they become hostile and offensive. At the same time, Catholics are easy to be bullied because they know we will not retaliate with violence but always with humility and forgiveness.
Nevertheless, should we be surprised? Not at all! Jesus in the gospel had forewarned us many times of the hostility of the world against the gospel. Something would not be right if the world agrees with the gospel. Most likely, if we find that the world is so agreeable with us, it is because we have compromised the truth and values of the gospel to appease the wrath of the world against us. Since the early Church, missionaries have always been fiercely opposed by those whose interests or status quo were challenged.
However, we are not alone. This is what the Lord wants to assure His disciples. “Now I am going to the one who sent me. Not one of you has asked, “Where are you going?” Yet you are sad at heart because I have told you this. Still, I must tell you the truth: it is for your own good that I am going because unless I go, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I do go, I will send him to you.” Jesus will send us the Advocate to fight the battle for us and with us. We will not face the world alone, because God will be with us in this battle against darkness. He will send us the Holy Spirit. “When he comes, he will show the world how wrong it was, about sin, and about who was in the right, and about judgement: about sin: proved by their refusal to believe in me; about who was in the right: proved by my going to the Father and your seeing me no more; about judgement: proved by the prince of this world being already condemned.”
This was what happened to Paul and Silas. When they were flogged and put in prison, they took it in a stride. They were not worried at all. Even though their feet were fastened in the stocks and they were thrown into the inner prison, their hearts were so free. In fact, instead of feeling depressed and discouraged or complaining, they were “praying and singing God’s praises, while the other prisoners listened. Suddenly there was an earthquake that shook the prison to its foundations. All the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the prisoners.” Indeed, it was their fervent prayers and faith in God that could not chain up the spirits of Paul and Silas. Not even the chains could chain up the Good News. Such was the power of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, conversion was brought about through the work of the Holy Spirit. When the gaoler saw the doors wide open, he was about to commit suicide, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. Paul shouted, “Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all here.” Who was in darkness, not Paul and Silas but the gaoler! So “the gaoler called for lights, then rushed in, threw himself trembling at the feet of Paul and Silas.” Having been saved from physical death, he asked to be saved from eternal death. Escorting them out, he asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Paul and Silas said, “‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, and your household too.’ Then they preached the word of the Lord to him and to all his family.” He and all his household was baptized. Truly, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the miracle took place. Not only Paul and Silas were released from jail, but the gaoler too and his entire family were given the gift of faith and eternal life. Once converted, he no longer saw Paul and Silas as prisoners but brothers in the Lord. Hence, “he took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their conversion to belief in God.” So let us not fear but trust in Jesus who will stand by us to keep us free in spirit even if we are imprisoned. The Holy Spirit and His angels will assist us.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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