20200520 RESURRECTION AS THE DIVIDING LINE BETWEEN FAITH AND UNBELIEF
20 May, 2020, Wednesday, 6th Week in Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
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Acts 17:15,22-18:1 ©
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I proclaim the God you already worship without knowing it
Paul’s escort took him as far as Athens, and went back with instructions for Silas and Timothy to rejoin Paul as soon as they could.
So Paul stood before the whole Council of the Areopagus and made this speech:
‘Men of Athens, I have seen for myself how extremely scrupulous you are in all religious matters, because I noticed, as I strolled round admiring your sacred monuments, that you had an altar inscribed: To An Unknown God. Well, the God whom I proclaim is in fact the one whom you already worship without knowing it.
‘Since the God who made the world and everything in it is himself Lord of heaven and earth, he does not make his home in shrines made by human hands. Nor is he dependent on anything that human hands can do for him, since he can never be in need of anything; on the contrary, it is he who gives everything – including life and breath – to everyone. From one single stock he not only created the whole human race so that they could occupy the entire earth, but he decreed how long each nation should flourish and what the boundaries of its territory should be. And he did this so that all nations might seek the deity and, by feeling their way towards him, succeed in finding him. Yet in fact he is not far from any of us, since it is in him that we live, and move, and exist, as indeed some of your own writers have said:
“We are all his children.”
‘Since we are the children of God, we have no excuse for thinking that the deity looks like anything in gold, silver or stone that has been carved and designed by a man.
‘God overlooked that sort of thing when men were ignorant, but now he is telling everyone everywhere that they must repent, because he has fixed a day when the whole world will be judged, and judged in righteousness, and he has appointed a man to be the judge. And God has publicly proved this by raising this man from the dead.’
At this mention of rising from the dead, some of them burst out laughing; others said, ‘We would like to hear you talk about this again.’ After that Paul left them, but there were some who attached themselves to him and became believers, among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman called Damaris, and others besides.
After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 148:1-2,11-14 ©
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Your glory fills all heaven and earth.
or
Alleluia!
Praise the Lord from the heavens,
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all his angels,
praise him, all his host.
Your glory fills all heaven and earth.
or
Alleluia!
All earth’s kings and peoples,
earth’s princes and rulers,
young men and maidens,
old men together with children.
Your glory fills all heaven and earth.
or
Alleluia!
Let them praise the name of the Lord
for he alone is exalted.
The splendour of his name
reaches beyond heaven and earth.
Your glory fills all heaven and earth.
or
Alleluia!
He exalts the strength of his people.
He is the praise of all his saints,
of the sons of Israel,
of the people to whom he comes close.
Your glory fills all heaven and earth.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation
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Col3:1
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Since you have been brought back to true life with Christ,
you must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is,
sitting at God’s right hand.
Alleluia!
Or:
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Jn14:16
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I shall ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you for ever.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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John 16:12-15 ©
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The Spirit of truth will lead you to the complete truth
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I still have many things to say to you
but they would be too much for you now.
But when the Spirit of truth comes
he will lead you to the complete truth,
since he will not be speaking as from himself
but will say only what he has learnt;
and he will tell you of the things to come.
He will glorify me,
since all he tells you
will be taken from what is mine.
Everything the Father has is mine;
that is why I said:
All he tells you
will be taken from what is mine.’
RESURRECTION AS THE DIVIDING LINE BETWEEN FAITH AND UNBELIEF
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 17:15, 22-18:1; JOHN 16:12-15 ]
Paul’s speech to the Council of the Areopagus in Athens gives us much thought for reflection. He began by mentioning a fact which many of us today deny, namely, the restlessness of man in his search for God. He said, “Men of Athens, I have seen for myself how extremely scrupulous you are in all religious matters, because I noticed, as I strolled round admiring your sacred monuments, that you had an altar inscribed: To An Unknown God.” Athens was a city known for its intelligentsia. They were a highly educated society and many of the philosophers would gather there to debate on existence and life. They were keen to discover new ideas and they liked to challenge each other’s thoughts. They were not afraid to talk about the existence of God and the nature of Being.
Yet, in spite of their intelligence, they could not agree on who God is. Hence, they had an altar to an unknown God. The search for God is true in every age. This is why St Augustine himself said, “Our hearts are restless until they rest in God.” We must not imagine that in this secular age, the question of God is dead. On the contrary, so long as there are human beings, the quest of God continues. Whether we call the Ultimate by the word, “God” is immaterial. The truth remains that man’s search for the ultimate questions of life cannot rest until they find the answer. So even in a secular world, many turn to the New Age Movement; a combination of the esoteric mystery religions and science to make sense of life. Many are going into meditation, yoga, Reiki and Pranic energy to find healing powers.
The Christian message is clearly articulated by Paul about the One God whom we all worship, knowingly or unknowingly, in diverse ways and perception. Regardless of how we worship Him, there is this One God we all worship in the final analysis. He argued, “Well, the God whom I proclaim is in fact the one whom you already worship without knowing it. Since the God who made the world and everything in it is himself Lord of heaven and earth, he does not make his home in shrines made by human hands. He is not far from any of us, since it is in him that we live, and move, and exist.” Indeed, God created us all to be His children. Up to this point, all religions would more or less agree with Paul with regard to the question of God and creation. God is above all created things.
In this sense, Paul’s approach via Natural Theology could be useful in proclaiming the Gospel today, especially in a multi-religious world. With the free flow of information via the internet today, it would be unthinkable to put down any religion and their religious beliefs. That is why few religions and even Christians dare to proclaim that their religion is the only way to salvation and is the only true religion whereas the rest are false or even worshippers of evil spirits. Such absolute claims will cause adherents of other religions to defend their faith, and we can even stir up hostility, misunderstanding and violence among other religions. For this reason, in a world where religious sensitivity is of utmost importance, we must, for the sake of harmony, respect other religions even if we do not subscribe to their beliefs.
But the point is that most religions have many things in common, especially the desire to worship God, the Ultimate, our common origin and destiny as one human race. This is what the Church endorses as well in Nostra Aetate, Decree of the Church in relation to Non-Christian Religions. She teaches, “In her task of promoting unity and love among men, indeed among nations, she considers above all in this declaration what men have in common and what draws them to fellowship. One is the community of all peoples, one their origin, for God made the whole human race to live over the face of the earth. One also is their final goal, God. His providence, His manifestations of goodness, His saving design extend to all men.” (NA 1)
Indeed, there are many things we hold in common with the other religions, such as fasting, prayer, meditation and the scriptures. Fundamentally where it concerns common values, such as harmony, honesty, respect, justice, compassion, forgiveness and charity, these are all taught by almost all religions. Consequently, “The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reverence those ways of conduct and of life, those precepts and teachings which, though differing in many aspects from the ones she holds and sets forth, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men. Through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions, carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, they recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these men.” (NA 2)
However, we would not be true to our beliefs, if we stop at this level of Natural Theology. This explains why Paul’s charismatic preaching did not manage to convince the Athenians or bring about many conversions. In fact, we read, “At this mention of rising from the dead, some of them burst out laughing; others said, ‘We would like to hear you talk about this again.'”
What separates us and distinguishes us from other religions precisely is our faith in the resurrection of Christ. Paul said, “Since we are the children of God, we have no excuse for thinking that the deity looks like anything in gold, silver, or stone that has been carved and designed by man. But now he is telling everyone everywhere that they must repent, and he has appointed a man to be the judge. And God has publicly proved this by raising this man from the dead.” Indeed, faith in the resurrection of Christ who by His death and resurrection was appointed Lord and Saviour is what makes us Christians.
Unfortunately, faith in the resurrection is not something that could be empirically proven although we can illustrate from scriptures, as Paul and Peter did for the Jewish audience. But for non-Jews who do not have the scriptures, natural theology is the starting point. But it could only go so far. After all that is said, one would need to take the leap of faith to come to believe in Christ. One needs to rely on the testimonies of the believers who have come to encounter the Risen Lord. One needs to have the enlightenment from the Holy Spirit, as the Lord said in the gospel. Only the Holy Spirit can reveal Jesus to us and lead us to the fullness of truth. Jesus said, “I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself but will say only what he has learnt; and he will tell you of the things to come. He will glorify me, since all he tells you will be taken from what is mine.”
Hence, it is important that in the work of evangelization today, we cannot rely on reason alone based on natural theology. We must help our listeners to move to the level of faith. This is why we need to pray for the assistance of the Holy Spirit. Conversion comes about not just by sitting through a lecture but by hearing the message and testimony in faith. Conversion ultimately comes from prayer and relationship with Jesus in the Holy Spirit. Thus, to lead people to God and to Christ, we must lead them to worship Him and pray to Him and to read the scriptures. The Lord would then open their hearts as He did with Lydia. (cf Acts 16:14)
We read that after that Paul left them and went to Corinth. It was a failed mission. He must have left the place disappointed at the poor response. But in truth, it was not a complete failure. Some actually became believers. “There were some who attached themselves to him and became believers, among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman called Damaris, and others besides.” Even if they did not, Paul would have sown the seeds of faith. We too, when we reach out to non-Christians through dialogue. They might not be convinced about what we believe at this point in time, but we would have sown the seeds of faith, of love and of peace. People take time to digest and understand and accept the faith. So ultimately, we must leave it to the grace of God.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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