20200704 CHANGING OUR MINDSET
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading
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Amos 9:11-15 ©
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I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel
It is the Lord who speaks:
‘That day I will re-erect the tottering hut of David,
make good the gaps in it, restore its ruins
and rebuild it as it was in the days of old,
so that they can conquer the remnant of Edom
and all the nations that belonged to me.’
It is the Lord who speaks, and he will carry this out.
‘The days are coming now – it is the Lord who speaks –
when harvest will follow directly after ploughing,
the treading of grapes soon after sowing,
when the mountains will run with new wine
and the hills all flow with it.
I mean to restore the fortunes of my people Israel;
they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them,
plant vineyards and drink their wine,
dig gardens and eat their produce.
I will plant them in their own country,
never to be rooted up again
out of the land I have given them,
says the Lord, your God.’
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 84(85): 9,11-14 ©
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The Lord speaks peace to his people.
I will hear what the Lord God has to say,
a voice that speaks of peace,
peace for his people and his friends
and those who turn to him in their hearts.
The Lord speaks peace to his people.
Mercy and faithfulness have met;
justice and peace have embraced.
Faithfulness shall spring from the earth
and justice look down from heaven.
The Lord speaks peace to his people.
The Lord will make us prosper
and our earth shall yield its fruit.
Justice shall march before him
and peace shall follow his steps.
The Lord speaks peace to his people.
Gospel Acclamation
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Ps118:135
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Let your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your decrees.
Alleluia!
Or:
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Jn10:27
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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Matthew 9:14-17 ©
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When the bridegroom is taken from them, then they will fast
John’s disciples came to him and said, ‘Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not?’ Jesus replied, ‘Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one puts a piece of unshrunken cloth on to an old cloak, because the patch pulls away from the cloak and the tear gets worse. Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; if they do, the skins burst, the wine runs out, and the skins are lost. No; they put new wine into fresh skins and both are preserved.’
CHANGING OUR MINDSET
04 July, 2020, Saturday, 13th Week, Ordinary Time
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ AMOS 9:11-15, MT 9:14-17]
In the first reading, we read the conclusion of the book of Amos. This lay prophet from Judah was prophesying in the Northern Kingdom of Israel during a time when there was relative peace and prosperity in Israel. His message was largely to warn the rulers, religious leaders and the people to change, live lives of integrity and not just be contented with external rituals. Their complacency and lack of justice would bring about the judgment of God. They would be conquered by their enemies and be exiled.
In spite of the message of gloom, the Prophet ended with a note of hope. Even though Israel would be destroyed and fall into ruins, a day would come when God would restore Israel from its ruins. “That day I will re-erect the tottering hut of David, make good the gaps in it, restore its ruins and rebuild it as it was in the days of old, so that they can conquer the remnant of Edom and all the nation that belonged to me.” Indeed, this prophecy was cited by St James when he supported the Church in welcoming the Gentiles. (cf Acts 15:16f) When the kingdom of Israel is rebuilt, even the Gentiles would be welcomed and included in the kingdom.
In the gospel, Jesus precisely came to bring about the New Covenant. The Old Covenant was a failure as Jeremiah said. God wants to replace it with the New Covenant. “The days are surely coming, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days. I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.” (cf Jer 31:31-34)
The New Covenant is no longer one that is dependent on rituals and sacrifice. “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said ‘Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, ‘See, God, I have come to do your will, O God’ (in the scroll of the book it is written of me).” (Heb 10:4-7) The New Covenant is not merely about external sacrifices and rituals but it is about a change of heart, knowing God personally and doing His holy will.
When the disciples of John the Baptist asked, “Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not?”,Jesus replied, “Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast.” In other words, it is not simply a question of fasting. It is the spirit of fasting that is important. There is a time for everything including fasting. One does not fast when one is attending a wedding feast because it is a time of celebration. We fast only when someone we love has departed from us. We must be consistent with what we do and what we desire to express. The disciples of Jesus will fast when He enters into His passion and death. Since the Lord was still with them, it was not yet a time of fasting. Fasting is not just for show, to gain recognition or to prove that we are disciplined and holy. Fasting is an expression of our desire for something. Fasting is always associated with fervent prayers and also atonement for our sins. When we fast, it shows our sincerity in asking what we want from the Lord, and it helps us to focus our eyes on Him. If it is our sinfulness, then fasting is an expression of sorrow for our sins.
So it is the heart that matters most of all rather than the externals. External rituals and celebrations are still important but they must come from faith and love; and not done in a perfunctory way, without thinking and feeling. Our spirituality, as the Lord says, must be deeper than that of the scribes and the Pharisees. This too is our danger as Catholics because we have inherited 2000 years of tradition, whether in terms of Church governance, a hierarchical clerical dominated system, parochial system or strict liturgical rules. What is critical for the Church to ask is whether these established structures require change to suit the needs of modern times. Alternatively, should we continue to apply them blindly in a disconnected way, when our people cannot identify with the old traditions of the Church?
Indeed, the challenge of today’s scripture readings is whether we need to tear down the old structures in order for us to rebuild a new one as what the Lord did to Israel. There are progressives that advocate a total “aggiornomento”, that is, a bringing to date of the traditions of the Church, whether it is with regard to theology, institutions, structures, liturgy, catechesis or pastoral outreach. Otherwise, the Church will become outdated and irrelevant in the world. In other words, the old must give way to the new. This seems to be what the Lord is saying in today’s gospel. “No; they put new wine into fresh skins and both are preserved.” New wine refers to the new generation and the old wineskins refer to the inherited traditions and structures. Unless, the institutions and structures change, the new wine will not fit. When we put “new wine into old wineskins; the skins burst, the wine runs out, and the skins are lost.”
Then there is the other end of the spectrum as the Lord remarked, “no one after drinking old wine desires new wine, but says, ‘The old is good.'” (Lk 5:39) These are the traditionalists. They believe in the traditions of the Church and they want the Church to retain these traditions without change, whether it is with regard to structures, institutions, liturgy, worship or catechesis. These, in their view, are time-proven methods and doctrines which have withstood for a thousand years and longer, even to the apostolic time. They have been a great help in encountering God. So no change is possible. What needs to be changed is not the traditions but the mindset of the new generation. We must educate them.
So what has the Church done to accommodate both extreme positions? We tried to do patch-up work like what Jesus said. “No one puts a piece of unshrunken cloth on to an old cloak, because the patch pulls away from the cloak and the tear gets worse.” Indeed, in trying to adapt the old traditions to the new generation of needs, we end up with a crooked bridge or having pants that are patched up all over, a real symbol of our times because the young people are precisely trending such patch-up pants. It is a mis-match, but we try our best to blend both, just like there are many fusions in cultures, dresses and food as well. Often, there remains a real tension between the progressives and the traditionalists. Both groups are trying to impose their views and practices on the other. This results in competition and sometimes even hostility and division.
Jesus proposes a solution; diversity in unity. Such patchwork work may not be the best option. He said, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” (Mt 13:52) In other words, we should just co-exist and change our mindset into accepting both old and new. There will be those who prefer the old traditions because they feel secure and able to encounter God deeply. There will be those who prefer the new way of worship, new ways of catechesis and new structures of governance. Both should be made available. The Church is Catholic, which means universal. I think charity should make us able to accommodate each other’s preferred liturgical traditions and structures. This is nothing new because even in the Catholic Church, whilst holding the same doctrines, we have different liturgical rites and different forms of governance. This should be the mindset that we need to adopt; one of unity in diversity, respecting each other’s uniqueness.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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