20200831 PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL THROUGH A DEMONSTRATION OF THE SPIRIT
31 August, 2020, Monday, 22nd Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading |
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 © |
The only knowledge I claimed was of the crucified Christ
When I came to you, brothers, it was not with any show of oratory or philosophy, but simply to tell you what God had guaranteed. During my stay with you, the only knowledge I claimed to have was about Jesus, and only about him as the crucified Christ. Far from relying on any power of my own, I came among you in great ‘fear and trembling’ and in my speeches and the sermons that I gave, there were none of the arguments that belong to philosophy; only a demonstration of the power of the Spirit. And I did this so that your faith should not depend on human philosophy but on the power of God.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 118(119):97-102 © |
Lord, how I love your law!
Lord, how I love your law!
It is ever in my mind.
Your command makes me wiser than my foes;
for it is mine for ever.
Lord, how I love your law!
I have more insight than all who teach me
for I ponder your will.
I have more understanding than the old
for I keep your precepts.
Lord, how I love your law!
I turn my feet from evil paths
to obey your word.
I have not turned from your decrees;
you yourself have taught me.
Lord, how I love your law!
Gospel Acclamation | Jn8:12 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
anyone who follows me will have the light of life.
Alleluia!
Or: | Lk4:18 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The Lord has sent me to bring the good news to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to captives.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 4:16-30 © |
'This text is being fulfilled today, even as you listen'
Jesus came to Nazara, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day as he usually did. He stood up to read and they handed him the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll he found the place where it is written:
The spirit of the Lord has been given to me,
for he has anointed me.
He has sent me to bring the good news to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to captives
and to the blind new sight,
to set the downtrodden free,
to proclaim the Lord’s year of favour.
He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the assistant and sat down. And all eyes in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips. They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’
But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself” and tell me, “We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your own countryside.”’
And he went on, ‘I tell you solemnly, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country.
‘There were many widows in Israel, I can assure you, in Elijah’s day, when heaven remained shut for three years and six months and a great famine raged throughout the land, but Elijah was not sent to any one of these: he was sent to a widow at Zarephath, a Sidonian town. And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many lepers in Israel, but none of these was cured, except the Syrian, Naaman.’
When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him down the cliff, but he slipped through the crowd and walked away.
PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL THROUGH A DEMONSTRATION OF THE SPIRIT
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 COR 2:1-5; LK 4:16-30 ]
Today’s scripture readings invite us to proclaim the Good News, just as Jesus and St Paul did. What is the most effective way to bring across the Good News to those who do not know our Lord? Most people think that conversion is brought about through intellectual discourse and philosophical debate. Intellectuals think that we can argue people into faith. If these were so, then all intellectuals and brilliant people in the world would have shared the same faith. However, all of them subscribe to different beliefs and some only believe in themselves.
To think that a philosophical approach to religions can bring people to faith is an illusion. Of course, we might get a few conversions but in general when we argue over beliefs, most of us want to prove the other person’s position wrong and to prove ourselves right. Few would give in to the views of the other person. In a debate, it is not so much to believe what the other party is saying but we are focused on their weakness so that we can defeat their position. There is no docility and openness. Indeed, St Paul learned his lesson when he engaged in a philosophical debate with the Athenians at Areopagus. (Acts 17:16-34) He used reason to show why Jesus was the appointed one of God. Only a few joined him and became believers. At most, reason and argument can only sow the seeds of faith. St Paul learnt a hard lesson from this failure. In today’s reading, he wrote, “Brothers, when I came to you, it was not with any show of oratory or philosophy, but simply to tell you what God had guaranteed.”
What about eloquent preaching and teaching? Does it necessarily mean that if a preacher speaks eloquently, with the right diction, pronunciation and with great oratory skills, and even with profound insights, he will be able to touch lives and change people? Again, this is not the case. Every homily I preach will touch some people radically, some are enlightened, some are moved, some disagree and feel uninspired. Why? It is the same homily preached by the same person, but having different results. This was the case of Jesus in today’s gospel as well. He went back to His hometown to preach in the synagogue. “Then he began to speak to them, ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ And he won the approval of them all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips.” Jesus impressed them with His words. He must have spoken eloquently. But soon later, His own townsfolk rejected Him. Why?
St Paul in his letter to the Romans also asked, “But not all have obeyed the good news; for Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our message?’ So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ. But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed, they have; for ‘Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.’ Again I ask, did Israel not understand? Of Israel he says, ‘All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.'” (cf Rom 10:16-21) Indeed, it is not what is said that will change the minds and hearts of people. No matter how good a preacher is, how eloquent and enlightened he might be, if the listener is not receptive or open to the Word of God, nothing is going to happen. Instead of a humble reception, we will get only criticisms, arguments and disagreements.
Indeed, in today’s gospel, His townsfolk could not accept Him because of pride. They were prejudiced against Him as He was just one of them. They said, “This is Joseph’s son surely?” They were too proud to accept any exhortation from someone whom they knew came from a similar background as them. The older ones would have thought to themselves that they knew more and certainly they did not need a young man to lecture them. Intellectual pride is the main reason why today many cannot hear the Word of God when it is preached. They are not listening to the Word of God when it is read, or the homily when it is preached. They are like the Pharisees, looking for faults so that they could criticize and put the person down, so that they can feel good about themselves. They were envious and jealous, like the townsfolk of our Lord. Indeed, Jesus remarked that like all the prophets of the Old Testament, a prophet is never accepted in his own country.
Secondly, they were not just proud but selfish and exclusive. Jesus made the point that God not only came to the help of the Israelites but He also extended His mercy to the Gentiles as in the days of Elijah and Elisha. Elijah was sent to help a widow who was dying of hunger, and to heal Naaman. “When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him down the cliff.” They could not accept that the faith of the Gentiles was stronger than their own faith in God. They were angry that Jesus compared them to the Israelites who lost their faith in Yahweh and worshiped the pagan gods. They could not accept that God would love the Gentiles more than them, the chosen people of God.
As a result, they lacked faith in Jesus. They were not receptive to His word. They wanted to see miracles without faith. The Lord said, “No doubt you will quote me the saying, ‘Physician, heal yourself’ and tell me, ‘We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your countryside.'” No miracles could be performed because Jesus did not perform miracles to entertain people or to prove Himself. Jesus came to heal and to bring the “Good News to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and to the blind new sight, to set the downtrodden free, to proclaim the Lord’s year of favour.”
So, what can change the hearts, not so much their minds, of people? We must touch their hearts before we can touch their minds. As St Augustine says, “Believe and you will understand.” When they believe in us, their minds will be receptive to the Word of God. This is what St Paul realized in the work of evangelization. Proclamation of the gospel must begin with a personal conviction of the person of Christ. He said, “I simply want to tell you what God had guaranteed. During my stay with you, the only knowledge I claimed to have was about Jesus, and only about him as the crucified Christ.” It was St Paul’s personal encounter with the Risen Lord at Damascus that changed his views about Jesus; not some intellectual discourse.
For this reason, the most effective way of touching hearts is to testify to the Lord’s work in our lives, not by some abstract intellectual discussion. “Far from relying on any power of my speeches and the sermons that I gave, there were none of the arguments that belong to philosophy; only a demonstration of the power of the Spirit. And I did this so that your faith should not depend on human philosophy but on the power of God.” Only when we testify to what God is doing in our lives, can we convince people about the power of God. This was why the Lord went about doing good, healing the sick, casting our devil, freeing the people from oppression and diseases. Jesus incarnated God’s mercy and power in His life.
However, even testifying to what the Lord has done for us is not sufficient. The best way to convince people that Christ is the Lord is when our lives are changed. People will believe that our God is real not by what we say but how our lives have been transformed by our relationship with the Lord. The best witnessing is not by words but how our life has been changed from one of selfishness to generosity, from hostility to forgiveness, from hatred to love, from fear to trust in God. Indeed, when we find a person who was suffering from all kinds of addiction healed and liberated, we know that God is at work in Him. The best testimony is one who is transformed and living the life of Christ in humility and service.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved. The contents of this page may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission from the Archbishop’s Office. This includes extracts, quotations, and summaries.
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