20200926 SHORTNESS OF OUR LIFE
26 September, 2020, Saturday, 25th Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading |
Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:8 © |
Remember your creator in the days of your youth
Rejoice in your youth, you who are young;
let your heart give you joy in your young days.
Follow the promptings of your heart
and the desires of your eyes.
But this you must know: for all these things God will bring you to judgement.
Cast worry from your heart,
shield your flesh from pain.
Yet youth, the age of dark hair, is vanity. And remember your creator in the days of your youth, before evil days come and the years approach when you say, ‘These give me no pleasure’, before sun and light and moon and stars grow dark, and the clouds return after the rain;
the day when those who keep the house tremble
and strong men are bowed;
when the women grind no longer at the mill,
because day is darkening at the windows
and the street doors are shut;
when the sound of the mill is faint,
when the voice of the bird is silenced,
and song notes are stilled,
when to go uphill is an ordeal
and a walk is something to dread.
Yet the almond tree is in flower,
the grasshopper is heavy with food
and the caper bush bears its fruit,
while man goes to his everlasting home. And the mourners are already walking to and fro in the street
before the silver cord has snapped,
or the golden lamp been broken,
or the pitcher shattered at the spring,
or the pulley cracked at the well,
or before the dust returns to the earth as it once came from it, and the breath to God who gave it.
Vanity of vanities, the Preacher says. All is vanity.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 89(90):3-6,12-14,17 © |
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You turn men back to dust
and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’
To your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday, come and gone,
no more than a watch in the night.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You sweep men away like a dream,
like the grass which springs up in the morning.
In the morning it springs up and flowers:
by evening it withers and fades.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever?
Show pity to your servants.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
In the morning, fill us with your love;
we shall exult and rejoice all our days.
Let the favour of the Lord be upon us:
give success to the work of our hands.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Ac16:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open our heart, O Lord,
to accept the words of your Son.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Tim1:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Our Saviour Jesus Christ abolished death
and he has proclaimed life through the Good News.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 9:43-45 © |
They were afraid to ask him what he meant
At a time when everyone was full of admiration for all he did, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘For your part, you must have these words constantly in your mind: “The Son of Man is going to be handed over into the power of men.”’ But they did not understand him when he said this; it was hidden from them so that they should not see the meaning of it, and they were afraid to ask him about what he had just said.
SHORTNESS OF OUR LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ECCLESIASTES 11:9-12:8; LUKE 9:43-45 ]
In the responsorial psalm, the psalmist prayed, “Make us know the shortness of our life that we may gain wisdom of heart.” Indeed, often we fail to bear in mind this reality in life. We think that we have a long life ahead of us and that we have all the time we need to do what we have to do. That is why we tend to waste our time and squander away our opportunities in life. We fail to grasp how short our life is, especially living in this modern age. When we consider our days in years, it might seem far away but in truth when we look back, time passes so quickly. Before we know it, we have aged.
Indeed, the psalmist is reminded, “You turn men back to dust and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’ To your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, come and gone, no more than a watch in the night. You sweep men away like a dream, like the grass which springs up in the morning. In the morning it springs up and flowers: by evening it withers and fades.” Life is indeed short even though our lifespan is now extended to 85 years. Shorter still when it is compared to eternity. For this reason, we must make use of our time on earth well. We need to live a meaningful and happy life.
We must treasure our youth. This is what the author of Ecclesiastes is reminding us. “Rejoice in your youth, you who are young; let your heart give you joy in your young days. Follow the promptings of your heart and the desires of your eyes. But this you must know: for all these things God will bring you to judgement. Cast worry from your heart, shield your flesh from pain.” Those of us who are young must not be in a hurry to grow up. They must use their youth to learn, grow and discover about themselves, life, the world, God and especially learning how to grow in relationships. Youth is a period of life when young people have so much energy but often directed to harmful activities, destructive pleasures and unhealthy relationships. Young people should channel their energy rightly, otherwise they can destroy their bright future ahead of them and live a life of regret whilst their peers move forward in life. They must discern at the same time the promptings of their heart, their passion and vocation in life where they can give themselves wholeheartedly to the task before them. Indeed, “Yet youth, the age of dark hair, is vanity.”
Those who are old must also treasure their old age. Before we know it, we are getting older and older. But when we are old, we should not be afraid. Life, as the Preacher says, is a process and it unfolds according to the appropriate time. So we should simply dance with the tune. Old age has its advantages that the young do not have. We might not be as energetic but we have become wiser, emotionally more stable, more grounded and hopefully more mature in life through life’s challenges. We are able to see situations in a wider perspective and less reactive than the young who lack the hindsight of life experiences.
In fact, if older people are less imposing of their views and perspectives on the young but offer them as gifts, they will be even more appreciated. The young would be happy to listen to the wisdom of the old, and weigh the insights gained from the past with the present, and arrive at new solutions to the new challenges facing society today. The older generation must never forget that things have changed and our solutions of yesterday cannot be applied without adjustments to today’s new challenges, situations and mindsets. This is why the old must learn to let go and not impose their values and rules and customs on the young. By all means, we need to share with them our thoughts, assessments and considerations. If we want the young to value us, we must respect their choices, their decisions and their preferences. This does not mean that they are always right in their choices.
It is not easy, especially when their values go against time immemorial values we hold strongly in our days. But then they have to answer for themselves, their children’s children’s future. We have done our part and we should let them also learn from their own experiences as we did. The old must not feel that they are still responsible for them, especially when dealing with young adults. They have their lives to live. Whether it is the best way or best decision, time will tell. We can only give them the same advice the author of Ecclesiastes gave, “Fear God, and keep his commandments; for that is the whole duty of everyone. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” (Eccl 12:13f)
Most importantly, we must all be ready to go when death arrives. “And the mourners are already walking to and fro in the street before the silver cord has snapped … or before the dust returns to the earth as it once came from it, and the breath to God who gave it.” Death is inevitable. We must be ready to welcome death for this is the way to fullness of life. If we have lived a meaningful life, given ourselves to humanity and to God, welcoming death is like welcoming God and paradise which await us. There is lesser pain to depart from this world, having exhausted whatever resources the Lord has given to us; and given back to Him and to society what we have received from Him freely. There will be no regrets whatsoever, except gratitude for a life well lived. At death, the undertakers who carry our coffin will cry with joy for us as we enter into paradise.
This was the way Jesus lived His life. The gospel today shows us how Jesus lived His life in such a way that brought astonishment to those around Him. When Jesus came down from Mount Tabor after the Transfiguration and delivered a boy with a demon, “Everyone was awestruck by the greatness of God.” Indeed, in everything that Jesus did, He was always astonishing the disciples and the people. Whether it is the feeding of the Five Thousand (Lk 9:10-16), calming of the storm (Lk 8:22-25) or the raising of the son of the widow of Nain (Lk 7:11-17), the people were amazed. That was how Jesus lived His life in fidelity to the Father’s will.
But He was also very much aware that even in the process of revealing His identity, He knew His glory would not come until He had gone through the passion. Jesus said to His disciples, “For your part, you must have these words constantly in your mind: The Son of Man is going to be handed over into the power of men.” This was the second passion prophecy Jesus sounded out to the disciples. Jesus felt the necessity to prepare them for the ordeal just ahead of Him. He did not leave things to chance but wanted to prepare the disciples for His passion and death. Otherwise, they would be too shocked and scandalized when the event happened. He wanted them to understand the wisdom and plan of God. It was important for Jesus to respond to His Father’s plan at every stage in His life.
We have much to learn from the Lord. He died in His youthful age of 33. For most of us, we would say that His life was incomplete. It would be considered a premature death! Indeed, today when our young people die before they reach the age of 50, we would say that their life was not complete. It is such a pity that they hardly lived. But not so for our Lord. He lived a short life of thirty-three years and only in ministry for three years. But He lived it to the fullest in accordance with His Father’s plan. He accomplished His mission and finished the work His Father gave Him to do. There was no reason for Him to stay longer. This was what He said to the Father. “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (Jn 17:1, 26) Truly, Jesus lived His life to the fullest. It is not how long we live but how well we live that matters at the end of the day. A short life lived intensely is a blessed life as well. A long life lived in suffering or worse still, in meaninglessness, would be a martyrdom.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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