20210610 RADIATING THE GLORY OF GOD
10 June, 2021, Thursday, 10th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
2 Corinthians 3:15-4:1,3-6 © |
The veil over their eyes will not be removed until they turn to the Lord
Even today, whenever Moses is read, the veil is over their minds. It will not be removed until they turn to the Lord. Now this Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, with our unveiled faces reflecting like mirrors the brightness of the Lord, all grow brighter and brighter as we are turned into the image that we reflect; this is the work of the Lord who is Spirit.
Since we have by an act of mercy been entrusted with this work of administration, there is no weakening on our part. If our gospel does not penetrate the veil, then the veil is on those who are not on the way to salvation; the unbelievers whose minds the god of this world has blinded, to stop them seeing the light shed by the Good News of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For it is not ourselves that we are preaching, but Christ Jesus as the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. It is the same God that said, ‘Let there be light shining out of darkness’, who has shone in our minds to radiate the light of the knowledge of God’s glory, the glory on the face of Christ.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 84(85):9-14(Thu10) © |
The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
I will hear what the Lord God has to say,
a voice that speaks of peace.
His help is near for those who fear him
and his glory will dwell in our land.
The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
Mercy and faithfulness have met;
justice and peace have embraced.
Faithfulness shall spring from the earth
and justice look down from heaven.
The glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
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 glory of the Lord will dwell in our land.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.1Th2:13 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Accept God’s message for what it really is:
God’s message, and not some human thinking.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn13:34 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I give you a new commandment:
love one another just as I have loved you,
says the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 5:20-26 © |
Anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.
‘You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not kill; and if anyone does kill he must answer for it before the court. But I say this to you: anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it before the court; if a man calls his brother “Fool” he will answer for it before the Sanhedrin; and if a man calls him “Renegade” he will answer for it in hell fire. So then, if you are bringing your offering to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, go and be reconciled with your brother first, and then come back and present your offering. Come to terms with your opponent in good time while you are still on the way to the court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I tell you solemnly, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.’
RADIATING THE GLORY OF GOD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 COR 3:15-4:1.3-6; PS 85:9-14; MT 5:20-26]
We who are made in the image and likeness of God should be reflecting His glory in our life. Yet we know that we have lost His likeness because of sin. We no longer reflect His holiness, His love and mercy in the way we conduct ourselves with our fellowmen. We have lost our direction in life. But God in His mercy wants to restore us once again by making us His people. He chose Abraham, the Father of Israel to begin the process, culminating in Moses who constituted the Hebrews as the People of God after delivering them from Egypt. But to be truly recognized as the People of God, they would have to reflect God’s holiness by observing the laws laid down by God given through Moses.
Yet, in spite of the fact that the Law was given by God through Moses, this Covenant was only temporary. This covenant was the foundation of the greater covenant to be established by His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Law of Moses, whilst helpful as a guide to help the people to live as a People of God, in harmony with each other, it was external and the people failed to interiorize the Law. This was why St Paul wrote, “Even today, whenever Moses is read, the veil is over the minds of the Israelites. It will not be removed until they turn to the Lord.” Their interpretation of the Law, even the Decalogue, was seen in a minimalist way. There was a long list of prohibitions and the ensuing penalties for failure to observe the laws. The focus was on the external observance and not on the motive or the spirit in which the laws were observed. The laws were obeyed and applied in a legalistic manner. This led to pride for those who could observe the laws, helplessness for those who could not. Most of all, the laws were manipulated by the powerful for their own interests.
Jesus as the Son of God “reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power.” (Heb 1:3) Christ Himself said to His Father at the end of His life on earth, “I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.” (Jn 17:4f) Indeed, His glory was fully revealed at His death and resurrection when the Son of Man was lifted up. (Jn 3:14) This glory was hidden in His earthly life but the people already started noticing the difference between the authority of Jesus and that of the Scribes. “Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” (Mt 7:28f)
Jesus exuded the authority of God in His life and in His teaching. He spoke from His own authority, unlike the scribes who referred either to the prophets or the scriptures, which for them is unchangeable and valid for all time. They would begin by saying “Thus says the Lord” or as “in the ancient days of old, it was said …” But Jesus not only did not begin His teaching by appealing to the scriptures or the great men of old, but He even modified the commandments of Moses, and brought it, as He promised earlier, to fulfillment and completion. Jesus is the Word of God in person. He is the Divine Word. Although He did not explicitly claim it, but the way He taught with so much authority and truth resonated in the hearts and minds of His listeners, indicating that Jesus was truly speaking the Word of God.
Indeed, Jesus made it clear that the commandments given by Moses, whilst objectively true and good, did not go far enough. Just by observing the letter of the scriptures cannot lead us to salvation. This was why He cautioned those Jews who thought that just because they kept the laws faithfully, they were saved and were reflecting the holiness of God. Jesus said to His disciples, “If your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.”
How, then, must the Law be observed such that that we go to the heart and the spirit behind the Law of Moses? For Jesus, what mattered was not just the external observance, but the heart and the intention of the doer of the Law were even more important. We tend to judge from what we see. Unfortunately, we can only read the action but not the intention of the person. Externally, we can commend the person for the work he did, but do we know the real reasons for him doing what he did? Sometimes we are not even conscious of our motives whenever we say “yes” to a request, or when we do some good work. Often, it is motivated by pride, low self-esteem, the need for affirmation and recognition. On the surface, we might appear to be selfless, but are we really? Can we truly say with St Paul, “For it is not ourselves that we are preaching, but Christ Jesus as the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. It is the same God that said, ‘Let there be light shining out of darkness,’ who has shone in our minds to radiate the light of the knowledge of God’s glory, the glory on the face of Christ”?
To help us to be more conscious of the intention of what we do, Jesus provided us a list of daily life challenges. Today’s gospel text deals with the first common sin in humanity, namely, anger. All of us get angry now and then, no matter how patient we are with our fellowmen. Some days, we even react in a very harsh and extreme manner, to the extent of inflicting not just emotional but physical injury to those whom we perceive to have offended us. When that happens, and after the event is over, we would say that “we were not ourselves” which means we were “out of our mind!” We lost control of ourselves. St Paul in many of his letters always cautioned Christians to keep anger in check. “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil.” (Eph 4:26)
But before anger is expressed in contemptuous words and sarcasm, anger must first have been sown in our heart. Anger leads to killing because we allow the anger to be nursed. This explains why the Lord said, “You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not kill; and if anyone does kill he must answer for it before the court. But I say this to you: anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it before the court; if a man calls his brother ‘Fool’ he will answer for it before the Sanhedrin; and if a man calls him “Renegade” he will answer for it in hell fire.” Indeed, when we are not careful and alert to the anger that is brewing in our heart, we will express it through nasty words and unjust judgment on another person, leading to slander and the destruction of the reputation of people. So even if we do not kill, the fact of being angry will lead to the destruction of others.
But anger does not only hurt our enemies and destroy them, we ultimately destroy ourselves. This was why the Lord warned us, that we “will have to answer for it in hell fire.” What is this hell? It could mean that we will carry our anger with us to our death-bed and beyond to eternity in hell because we refused to forgive and we continue to harbor resentment, revenge and hatred in our hearts. Such a person is already in hell when he is on earth and in a deeper depth of hell when he dies. So anger will lead to death, not just emotional death but spiritual death. Our relationship with God also would be affected, for as the Lord said, “So then, if you are bringing your offering to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, go and be reconciled with your brother first, and then come back and present your offering.” We cannot expect God to hear us or heal us when we do not want to let go of our anger.
Hence, the Lord’s advice is indeed most appropriate for us. “Come to terms with your opponent in good time while you are still on the way to the court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I tell you solemnly, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.” If we do not settle our hurts with those who have offended us, the hurt and pain will grow from strength to strength until we become very vindictive or totally numbed to love and forgiveness. It is best that we settle our misunderstandings and hurts before they become unmanageable.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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