20201210 VIOLENCE OF THE KINGDOM
10 December, 2020, Thursday, 2nd Week of Advent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: Violet.
First reading | Isaiah 41:13-20 © |
I, the Holy One of Israel, am your redeemer
I, the Lord, your God,
I am holding you by the right hand;
I tell you, ‘Do not be afraid,
I will help you.’
Do not be afraid, Jacob, poor worm,
Israel, puny mite.
I will help you – it is the Lord who speaks –
the Holy One of Israel is your redeemer.
See, I turn you into a threshing-sled,
new, with doubled teeth;
you shall thresh and crush the mountains,
and turn the hills to chaff.
You shall winnow them and the wind will blow them away,
the gale will scatter them.
But you yourself will rejoice in the Lord,
and glory in the Holy One of Israel.
The poor and needy ask for water, and there is none,
their tongue is parched with thirst.
I, the Lord, will answer them,
I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.
I will make rivers well up on barren heights,
and fountains in the midst of valleys;
turn the wilderness into a lake,
and dry ground into waterspring.
In the wilderness I will put cedar trees,
acacias, myrtles, olives.
In the desert I will plant juniper,
plane tree and cypress side by side;
so that men may see and know,
may all observe and understand
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 144(145):1,9-13a © |
The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.
I will give you glory, O God my king,
I will bless your name for ever.
How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his creatures.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God,
to make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of your reign.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.
Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to age.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.
Gospel Acclamation |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Come, Lord, with your peace
that we may rejoice in your presence with sincerity of heart.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.Is45:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Send victory like a dew, you heavens,
and let the clouds rain it down.
Let the earth open and bring forth the saviour.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 11:11-15 © |
A greater than John the Baptist has never been seen
Jesus spoke to the crowds: ‘I tell you solemnly, of all the children born of women, a greater than John the Baptist has never been seen; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. Since John the Baptist came, up to this present time, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence and the violent are taking it by storm. Because it was towards John that all the prophecies of the prophets and of the Law were leading; and he, if you will believe me, is the Elijah who was to return. If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen!’
VIOLENCE OF THE KINGDOM
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ISAIAH 41:13-20; PS 145:1,9-13; MATTHEW 11:11-15 ]
In the gospel, Jesus warned His disciples about the cost of discipleship. He said, “Since John the Baptist came, up to this present time, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence and the violent are taking it by storm.” It is clear that entry to the Kingdom of God through discipleship is not for the faint-hearted. Only those who are ready to pay the price would be admitted into the kingdom. We are called to be ready like that merchant who found the treasure hidden in a field, “in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” or “a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Mt 13:44-46)
What kind of violence can we expect when we follow the Lord? It is the “violence” towards oneself. The price of discipleship requires sacrifices, discipline, self-denial, taking up our cross and following after Jesus. “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” (Mt 16:24f) When someone wanted to follow the Lord, the Lord said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Lk 9:58) He told the crowd, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.” (Lk 14:26) This was what St Paul shared, “Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.” (1 Cor 9:24-27)
Secondly, entry to the Kingdom of God is often met by opposition. In a world of relativism, secularism and materialism, there will be much hostility towards the gospel values. No one wants to be told that what they are doing is wrong because it is a matter of choice and preference. Man wants absolute freedom without accountability. They are not afraid of death either because it is the end of everything, including suffering. So when things go wrong and we cannot face the world or take the punishments, we only have to take our own lives. Since there is no life beyond death, the world is not going to wait for fulness of life in the next world as to them there is no next world. They want to enjoy all the pleasures of this world even if they are harmful because what is the meaning of life if not simply to enjoy. There is no other meaning since there are no eternal values or eternal meaning.
Indeed, we see in the life of John the Baptist the violence of the kingdom. He was an ascetic and a man of discipline. He lived in the wilderness, spending his days in solitude, in contemplation and prayer, conversing with God. He “wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.” (Mt 3:4) The Lord remarked, “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What, then, did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'” (Mt 11:7-10)
Most of all, John the Baptist stood for the truth unto death. He was fearless in calling people to repentance. He called the Pharisees and Sadducees, “brood of vipers.” (Mt 3:7) He rebuked King Herod for committing adultery. He did not mince his words. Even though Herodias wanted to kill him, “Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him.” (Mk 6:20) Alas, due to his pride and folly, he provided Herodias with an opportunity to ask for the head of John the Baptist. (Mk 6:22-28) John the Baptist suffered a tragic death in the hands of his enemies because he had the courage to speak the truth. Martyrdom was the price he had to pay. Jesus too had to pay the same price for proclaiming the truth about God and exposing the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders.
What about us? Are we ready to go through the “violence” of the kingdom? But we are like Israel, afraid, “poor worm, puny mite” as the Lord calls Israel. Indeed, we are cowards. We are afraid of rejection, unpopularity and being marginalized. We fight shy of suffering, discomfort, and most of all, death. We want to protect our comfortable way of life. We do not want to fight with people. We are pacifists. Live and let live, we say. That is why we do not want to interfere in the lifestyle of others. We dare not correct our brothers and sisters lest we are misunderstood or rejected. We are not ready to carry the cross after our Lord.
This, too, is the reason why many are not willing to take up the call to priestly and religious life. They are not ready for the violence of the kingdom. They are not ready to forgo the pleasures of life, to sacrifice themselves for the humble service of others. They want to have things their way. They do not want to carry the cross and follow after Jesus. Of course, there are those who are already in the priesthood or religious life, but they are not living out their discipleship in a “violent” manner. That is why you can be in the priesthood or religious and yet not be in the kingdom of God. So too, some of us are afraid to assume responsibilities in life, whether undertaking an office, assuming a position that requires self-sacrifice because we feel we cannot do it, and it is beyond our strength and our capacity. This was the same excuse when the prophets were called, whether it was Moses, Gideon, Jeremiah or Isaiah. Moses felt he could not speak eloquently. (Ex 4:10) Gideon said, “how can I deliver Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” (Jdg 6:15) Jeremiah felt he was too young. (Jer 1:6) Isaiah felt he was too sinful. (Isa 6:5)
Precisely, not by our strength but by His alone. The response of God to those who feel diffident about being called has always been, “I will be with you!” The Lord assured Israel who was fearful of the Babylonians, “For I, the Lord, your God, I am holding you by the right hand. I will help you.” God will lead us along the way. We never travel or work alone for His kingdom. He will be with us and He had always been with His prophets, apostles and disciples who gave their lives for the kingdom. We might be like John the Baptist, the least in the kingdom of God, but God will do great wonders in and through us, if we allow Him and are docile to His Spirit, like all those apostles and prophets before us.
Truly, it will not be our strength alone that will enable us to see the fruits of our labour. Rather, success comes from God alone. God told Israel that they would eventually crush their enemies, as they will be turned into “a threshing-sled, new, with doubled teeth; you shall thresh and crush the mountains, and turn the hills to chaff.” Those who are poor or thirsty will be quenched and rivers will flow and wilderness will turn “into a lake, and dry ground into water spring. In the wilderness I will put cedar trees, acacias, myrtles, olives … so that men may see and know, may all observe and understand that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.”
So let us take courage and not be afraid of the challenges ahead of us, the sacrifices we have to make, the sufferings we have to carry or the oppositions we have to face in proclaiming the Kingdom of God. As Isaiah says, “the Holy One of Israel is your redeemer.” A redeemer is one who bails us out and saves us from harm. The name of God, the Holy One of Israel is a name to be feared and all powerful. Let us not trust in our own strength but on Him alone. Indeed, with the psalmist we say, “Yours is an everlasting kingdom; your rule lasts from age to age.” The Lord is full of compassion and love. Have courage and have faith!
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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