20210717 PATIENCE IN FIGHTING BATTLES
17 July, 2021, Saturday, 15th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading | Exodus 12:37-42 © |
The sons of Israel leave Egypt hurriedly by night
The sons of Israel left Rameses for Succoth, about six hundred thousand on the march – all men – not counting their families. People of various sorts joined them in great numbers; there were flocks, too, and herds in immense droves. They baked cakes with the dough which they had brought from Egypt, unleavened because the dough was not leavened; they had been driven out of Egypt, with no time for dallying, and had not provided themselves with food for the journey. The time that the sons of Israel had spent in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And on the very day the four hundred and thirty years ended, all the array of the Lord left the land of Egypt. The night, when the Lord kept vigil to bring them out of the land of Egypt, must be kept as a vigil in honour of the Lord for all their generations.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 135(136):1,10-15,23-24 © |
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
He remembered us in our distress.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
And he snatched us away from our foes.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
The first-born of the Egyptians he smote.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
He brought Israel out from their midst.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
Arm outstretched, with power in his hand.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
He divided the Red Sea in two.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
He made Israel pass through the midst.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
He flung Pharaoh and his force in the sea.
Great is his love, love without end.
or
Alleluia.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:27 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Make me grasp the way of your precepts,
and I will muse on your wonders.
Alleluia!
Or: | 2Co5:19 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself,
and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 12:14-21 © |
He cured them all but warned them not to make him known
The Pharisees went out and began to plot against Jesus, discussing how to destroy him.
Jesus knew this and withdrew from the district. Many followed him and he cured them all, but warned them not to make him known. This was to fulfil the prophecy of Isaiah:
Here is my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved, the favourite of my soul.
I will endow him with my spirit,
and he will proclaim the true faith to the nations.
He will not brawl or shout,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.
He will not break the crushed reed,
nor put out the smouldering wick
till he has led the truth to victory:
in his name the nations will put their hope.
PATIENCE IN FIGHTING BATTLES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [EX 12:37-42; MT 12:14-21 ]
All of us have battles to fight. This is particularly so as leaders. Those of us in leadership will understand the stress of getting buy-in on our policies and ideas from those under our charge, or to deal with difficult people who cause disruption and disunity because they speak loudly and are opposed to whatever is proposed. Then there are situations when crises demand immediate action and cannot wait. As leaders, how do we win our battles against all obstacles and challenges from within and from without?
The scripture readings today offer us some food for thought on patience as the key to winning victory in battles. We should not rush into action or react quickly on impulse when attacked by our enemies. Rather, we should wait and see, and strategize for the right time to strike. Of course, there will be occasions when a decisive decision is needed in time of crisis. But in most cases, patience in building up our “army” is the key to finding success in our battles.
We must avoid the mistakes made by Moses in his fight against the oppression of the Egyptians and the religious leaders during the time of Jesus. When Moses was forty years old, he took upon himself leadership of the Hebrews and killed an Egyptian for beating up one of his kinsfolk. (Ex 2:12) He was impatient and impulsive. Perhaps he had seen too much of such cruelty done to his fellow Hebrews. But because he had no strategy and thus reactive, it caused him more problems, for when Pharaoh came to know about it, he sought to kill him. And so he had to flee for his life and took refuge in Midian. So, too, was the reaction of the religious leaders of Israel in their confrontation with Jesus. They were incensed and annoyed that Jesus was breaking the Sabbath Law by allowing His disciples to pick grain on the Sabbath and healing the man with a withered hand. In their anger, the Pharisees sought to destroy Him. (Mt 12:1-14) Whilst they might have their narrow views on how the Sabbath Law should be applied, but to seek to kill Jesus simply because He held a more liberal ethical view of the Sabbath Law rather than a legalistic viewpoint, was to break a more serious commandment of Moses, “You shall not murder.” (Ex 20:13)
We must take a page from our Lord in dealing with His opponents. Instead of fighting head-on, He withdrew. The gospel said, “the Pharisees went out and began to plot against Jesus, discussing how to destroy him. Jesus knew this and withdrew from the district.” There are times when dealing with our enemies, or when we have difficult issues and decisions to make, instead of rushing ahead and forcing a decision immediately, we must withdraw to take stock. We must know our strength, our limits, our resources, the support of our leaders and members, before we act decisively. Jesus was very much aware that He was not yet ready to fight a direct battle with the religious leaders as His mission would be short-circuited. It would be foolhardy for Him to go headlong without first building up His apostles and disciples, and extending the message of the Kingdom to the people. So Jesus wisely withdrew from confrontation. That does not mean He was a coward. It’s a question of strategy and timing.
Secondly, He kept Himself from public view, especially from the authorities, to avoid unnecessary publicity and causing them to react and act against Him. Indeed, “many followed him and he cured them all, but warned them not to make him known.” Jesus chose to work quietly among the people without drawing too much attention to Himself. He had to first establish His credibility and spread the beauty of His message to His people. As leaders, we too must work the ground before we can get support from those under us. We need to reach out to them, bring them the good news of love and hope. Unless we are with them in their struggles, pains and frustrations, we cannot win them over to our side. So the groundwork of being with them and understanding them is key to building credibility.
Thirdly, Jesus continued without fear of teaching the truth about God and about love. But He did it without imposing or forcing His message on His listeners. “This was to fulfil the prophecy of Isaiah: Here is my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved, the favourite of my soul. I will endow him with my spirit, and he will proclaim the true faith to the nations. He will not brawl or shout, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.” Jesus as the Suffering Servant of Isaiah (Isa 42:1-4), the Chosen One of God, proclaimed the true faith firmly and courageously without shouting or quarrelling with those who disagreed with Him. He was not like so many of us who would spend time arguing, splitting hairs over words, wanting to maintain and prove ourselves to be right, especially in theological and liturgical matters. In the face of His opponents, Jesus spoke the truth plainly based on the scriptures. He was not afraid to speak about the harsh truth of life, faith and love. But He did it respectfully. Those who disagreed with Him, He left them alone. Jesus did not force His message on anyone. He left an open invitation.
Fourthly, like the Suffering Servant, “He will not break the crushed reed, nor put out the smouldering wick till he has led the truth to victory: in his name the nations will put their hope.” Even in calling sinners to repentance, Jesus was not harsh with them. He did not condemn them or humiliate them before others. Rather, His approach to sinners was one of patience, gentleness and sensitivity. He assessed the person and the situation and applied the right action and approach. Each one is handled differently, according to his or her needs. Jesus came to give hope by encouraging and affirming that we are loved by God and forgiven by Him. Indeed, against those who oppose us or are sceptical of us, we need to listen to them and in a spirit of dialogue assure them that their concerns are heard and being considered. That was how He won over the people gradually, especially those rejected by the establishment.
Truly, this was the way God delivered Israel from slavery under the Egyptians. But God waited until the time was opportune. When the time came, He appeared to Moses in the Burning Bush and called him to lead His people out of Egypt. Moses learnt his lesson and waited another forty years before he went back to lead his people out of Egypt. The story of Moses should teach us patience, discernment, the importance of prayer and empowerment by God. God was patient with Pharaoh too. He gave Pharaoh the opportunity to repent by working miracles, especially the plagues. Initially the plagues against nature were proportionate measures against Pharaoh, such as the water turning into blood in the River Nile, and the plagues of frogs, gnats and flies. But because Pharaoh’s heart remained hardened, the plagues became more severe, as seen in the diseases affecting the livestock and then the boils infesting both animals and human beings. Thunder, hail, locusts and darkness destroyed their crops. Still, Pharaoh was adamant, until the angel of death killed the first born of all the Egyptians’ male and livestock. Only then did Pharaoh submit to the power of God and His judgement on him. He repented, but it was too late.
Indeed, in the final analysis, just as Jesus ultimately had to face His enemies in Jerusalem when the battle was ready, we too must act decisively when the time comes. We cannot delay action when we have already prepared the ground, and thought through our strategy. Hard decisions have to be made. There is no escape from decision-making in leadership. We cannot win all to our side but we must always act for the greater good of all. It is not about ourselves or our interests. So once D-Day arrives, we must be ready to fight tooth and nail to win the battle. At Jerusalem, Jesus threw down the gauntlet and confronted His enemies, the chief priests and the Roman authorities. Once He knew that the mission had to be accomplished only by His death on the cross, He was ready to act accordingly. So as leaders we must act when all the consultations have been done, all the appeals have been made, all the compromises have been offered, and all the reasons have been given. We can be sure that if we have discerned and prayed and have done all we humanly could, God will be with us. Just as He helped Moses to deliver Israel from slavery, God will help us too. We will lead our people to victory, not by our own strength but His.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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