20210712 KNOWING OUR HISTORY
12 July, 2021, Monday, 15th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
Exodus 1:8-14,22 © |
The Egyptians force the sons of Israel into slavery
There came to power in Egypt a new king who knew nothing of Joseph. ‘Look,’ he said to his subjects ‘these people, the sons of Israel, have become so numerous and strong that they are a threat to us. We must be prudent and take steps against their increasing any further, or if war should break out, they might add to the number of our enemies. They might take arms against us and so escape out of the country.’ Accordingly they put slave-drivers over the Israelites to wear them down under heavy loads. In this way they built the store-cities of Pithom and Rameses for Pharaoh. But the more they were crushed, the more they increased and spread, and men came to dread the sons of Israel. The Egyptians forced the sons of Israel into slavery, and made their lives unbearable with hard labour, work with clay and with brick, all kinds of work in the fields; they forced on them every kind of labour.
Pharaoh then gave his subjects this command: ‘Throw all the boys born to the Hebrews into the river, but let all the girls live.’
Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 123(124) © |
Our help is in the name of the Lord.
‘If the Lord had not been on our side,’
this is Israel’s song.
‘If the Lord had not been on our side
when men rose up against us,
then would they have swallowed us alive
when their anger was kindled.
Our help is in the name of the Lord.
‘Then would the waters have engulfed us,
the torrent gone over us;
over our head would have swept
the raging waters.’
Blessed be the Lord who did not give us
a prey to their teeth!
Our help is in the name of the Lord.
Our life, like a bird, has escaped
from the snare of the fowler.
Indeed the snare has been broken
and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Our help is in the name of the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Ac16:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open our heart, O Lord,
to accept the words of your Son.
Alleluia!
Or: | Mt5:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Happy those who are persecuted
in the cause of right,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 10:34-11:1 © |
It is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword
Jesus instructed the Twelve as follows: ‘Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth: it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s enemies will be those of his own household.
‘Anyone who prefers father or mother to me is not worthy of me. Anyone who prefers son or daughter to me is not worthy of me. Anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me. Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.
‘Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and those who welcome me welcome the one who sent me.
‘Anyone who welcomes a prophet will have a prophet’s reward; and anyone who welcomes a holy man will have a holy man’s reward.
‘If anyone gives so much as a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple, then I tell you solemnly, he will most certainly not lose his reward.’
When Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples he moved on from there to teach and preach in their towns.
KNOWING OUR HISTORY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Ex 1:8-14. 22; Ps 124:1-8; Mt 10:34-11:1]
One of the greatest mistakes in life is that the contemporary generation wants to make progress without remembering their history. In the search for freedom and growth, they tend to despise all that is old or from the past. This tendency to dissociate ourselves from our history has serious repercussions not just for politics and culture but also for religion. Knowing our history is critical so that we can learn from the mistakes of the past, and so avoid repeating them again; or learn from historical successes so that the wisdom gained can be used to steer the country or organization under our care. To write-off history is to repeat the same mistakes all over again, which can be costly and cause immense sufferings.
This was what happened to the new King of Egypt. The scripture said, “There came to power in Egypt a new king who knew nothing of Joseph.” In other words, he had forgotten the long history of Egypt of 400 years, how his predecessors ruled Egypt well and how Egypt became successful and prosperous because of Joseph’s administrative skills. He “bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. All the Egyptians sold their fields, because the famine was severe upon them; and the land became Pharaoh’s.” (Gen 47:20) Egypt also became prosperous with the Hebrews living in the Goshen land looking after their flocks and cultivating crops, work that the Egyptians did not want to do. Pharaoh then told Joseph, “The land of Egypt is before you; settle your father and your brothers in the best part of the land; let them live in the land of Goshen; and if you know that there are capable men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.” (Gen 47:6) All the good that Joseph and his family did for Pharaoh and his kingdom were forgotten.
Because the new Pharaoh did not know Joseph or had a good understanding of the history of Egypt, he became fearful and insecure, as new leaders often are when they assume power. Instead of seeing them as collaborators working for the prosperity of everyone, he became exclusive and distrustful of the foreigners. He started to imagine that the country would be overthrown by the them eventually. To give him an excuse to suppress the foreigners, he said to his own people, ‘Look, these people, the sons of Israel, have become so numerous and strong that they are a threat to us. We must be prudent and take steps against their increasing any further, or if war should break out, they might add to the number of our enemies. They might take arms against us and so escape out of the country.”
Today, we see history repeating itself. The natives of the host country tend to regard migrants with suspicion and distrust. They are discriminated not just in employment but also in social security. Minority races are treated poorly and they face discrimination in work and in living conditions. But it is not only in politics that we discriminate foreigners or people of minority races; we do that even in religion. We fail to see that we are one family, one people of God and that we are all inextricably connected. Our success and happiness are not just inter-dependent on each other in the same nation but globally as well. We cannot isolate other nations or hinder their progress, otherwise all will suffer eventually. But protectionism still prevails today, not just among races and religions but in international politics as well, when countries seek to marginalize those who are a threat to their power and influence.
We are reminded that the lessons of history are important to us for our future growth. We cannot afford to forget our history at the expense of paying another heavy price for our lessons. Knowing our history and tradition is important for setting future directions. When a people or a nation or a religion is cut off from their history and tradition, they will lose the foundation of their existence. When it comes to our faith, it is critical that believers are familiar with the history of salvation to understand the unfolding of God’s plan for humanity.
This is what the scriptures seek to do. The bible attempts to explain and illustrate how God is involved in our history, including the history of the world. Everything is within the plan of God for the salvation of humanity. The book of Exodus is but a chapter in the Pentateuch, just like the other four books. They are all inter-related and cannot be understood in isolation from each other. There is continuity in history. Israel’s history began with the story of God’s creation in Genesis and unfolded in the call of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The book of Exodus begins by tracing back to the book of Genesis, starting with the word, “And these are the names.” It shows its continuity with Genesis by repeating the genealogy of Genesis 46:8. Furthermore, the language used calls to mind the creation language of Genesis in the use of the words such as fruitful and multiply. “But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.” (Ex 1:7)
Indeed, the increasing number of Israelites was a sign of God’s presence and blessing. God was with the people although not always so visible, but God has always been providentially guiding and forming the people to become the Chosen People of God, a nation. God’s hand was instrumental in protecting Moses when his life was threatened by Pharaoh. Although it was the ingenuity of his mother and sister in saving Moses by having Pharaoh’s daughter adopt him, God was allowing such events to unfold.
Truly, as God’s people we are never alone. God is in charge of creation and our history. Israel’s sojourn in Egypt was never meant to be permanent. Joseph knew it himself when he told his brothers, “I am about to die; but God will surely come to you, and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” So Joseph made the Israelites swear, saying, “When God comes to you, you shall carry up my bones from here.” (Gen 50:24f) It is significant to remember that the story of deliverance from the slavery of Egypt would be repeated in the future to remind the Israelites where they were and how far they had come. When the Israelites recalled their history, they would remember that just as God dealt with their fathers in fidelity to His promises, He would do the same for them again.
What the Old Testament did for the Israelites also continues in the Christian tradition. The New Testament takes pain to link Jesus Christ with the Old Testament as the fulfilment of God’s messianic promises. The genealogy of our Lord in the infancy gospels is traced to Abraham in Matthew’s gospel (Mt 1:1), whereas in Luke it began with Adam. Luke gives a more universal perspective because the story of Jesus, to be truly understood, must begin with Adam. (Lk 3:38) But what distinguishes the New Testament from the Old Testament is not so much where it began but where it ended. Christ is the goal of the New Testament, not Israel, even though He was very much in continuity with the history of Israel. St Paul defines our salvation in terms of Jesus as the New Adam. (Rom 5:12-21) Linking Adam and Christ places Christ in the context of creation. St John even goes further by speaking of the “beginning”, putting Christ even beyond creation. (Jn 1:1) Hence, salvation and creation are linked together in the scriptures. Creation is the stage for salvation. It is all within the plan of God. This explains why St Paul speaks of salvation as a new creation. (2 Cor 5:17)
Consequently, despite the vicissitudes of history, the ups and downs of life, God is in control. What is asked of us is to give our total commitment to the Lord. We are called to put Christ as the centre of our life and the goal, even before our loved ones, our family and our children. More than that, we are called to surrender our entire life to Him, to take up our cross and follow after Him. As the Lord said, “Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.” The promise of eternal life and being with Him is more than what God promised Abraham and His descendants, namely, land, posterity and kingdom. As Hebrews says, “But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them.” (Heb 11:16) “God had provided something better” more perfect than what our fathers obtained from him. (Heb 11:40)
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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