20210809 RELINQUISHING OUR PERSONAL RIGHTS FOR THE COMMON GOOD
09 August, 2021, Monday, 19th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
Deuteronomy 10:12-22 © |
The Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords
Moses said to the people:
‘Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you? Only this: to fear the Lord your God, to follow all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul, to keep the commandments and laws of the Lord that for your good I lay down for you today.
‘To the Lord your God belong indeed heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth and all it contains; yet it was on your fathers that the Lord set his heart for love of them, and after them of all the nations chose their descendants, you yourselves, up to the present day. Circumcise your heart then and be obstinate no longer; for the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, triumphant and terrible, never partial, never to be bribed. It is he who sees justice done for the orphan and the widow, who loves the stranger and gives him food and clothing. Love the stranger then, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. It is the Lord your God you must fear and serve; you must cling to him; in his name take your oaths. He it is you must praise, he is your God: for you he has done these great and terrible things you have seen with your own eyes; and though your fathers numbered only seventy when they went down to Egypt, the Lord your God has made you as many as the stars of heaven.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 147:12-15,19-20 © |
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
or
Alleluia!
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
Zion, praise your God!
He has strengthened the bars of your gates
he has blessed the children within you.
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
or
Alleluia!
He established peace on your borders,
he feeds you with finest wheat.
He sends out his word to the earth
and swiftly runs his command.
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
or
Alleluia!
He makes his word known to Jacob,
to Israel his laws and decrees.
He has not dealt thus with other nations;
he has not taught them his decrees.
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation | Ps147:12,15 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem!
He sends out his word to the earth.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Th2:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Through the Good News God called us
to share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 17:22-27 © |
'They will put the Son of Man to death'
One day when they were together in Galilee, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘The Son of Man is going to be handed over into the power of men; they will put him to death, and on the third day he will be raised to life again.’ And a great sadness came over them.
When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the half-shekel came to Peter and said, ‘Does your master not pay the half-shekel?’ ‘Oh yes’ he replied, and went into the house. But before he could speak, Jesus said, ‘Simon, what is your opinion? From whom do the kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their sons or from foreigners?’ And when he replied, ‘From foreigners’, Jesus said, ‘Well then, the sons are exempt. However, so as not to offend these people, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that bites, open its mouth and there you will find a shekel; take it and give it to them for me and for you.’
RELINQUISHING OUR PERSONAL RIGHTS FOR THE COMMON GOOD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Dt 10:12-22; Ps 147:12-15,19-20; Mt 17:22-27 ]
In the gospel, “the collectors of the half-shekel came to Peter and said, ‘Does your master not pay the half-shekel?’ ‘Oh yes’ he replied, and went into the house.” Peter as usual committed himself to something that he did not know. He was afraid to be embarrassed if the authorities knew that Jesus and Peter did not pay the Temple tax. Just earlier on, Jesus was prophesying a second time of His imminent confrontation with the religious authorities. So Peter was protective of our Lord for fear of causing further hostility.
Yet, the truth remains that Jesus and even Peter were exempted from the Temple tax. Jesus asked Peter, “From whom do the kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their sons or from foreigners?’ And when he replied, ‘From foreigners, ‘Jesus said, ‘Well then, the sons are exempt.'” The truth is that God is the King of Israel and therefore the land belongs to God. They were the chosen race and the people of God. They were not subjects of a foreign nation. Hence, as citizens of God, they are exempted from paying taxes. Furthermore, Jesus was the Son of God. The Temple was His Father’s house. As a little boy, Jesus said to Mary, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Lk 2:49) In cleansing the Temple, Jesus said, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!” (Jn 2:16) Peter who was so closely related to Jesus too was exempted as well, for all Christians are adopted sons and daughters of God.
Nevertheless, Jesus did not hold on to His rights. He instructed Peter, “However, so as not to offend these people, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that bites, open its mouth and there you will find a shekel; take it and give it to them for me and for you.” For the sake of peace and to avoid scandal and unnecessary confrontation, and since they did not know His true identity, Jesus told Peter to pay the Temple tax anyway. Yet, this is done in such a way that did not compromise His identity before His disciples. In asking Peter to take the shekel from the mouth of the fish, Jesus was not going against His fundamental principle of performing miracles for His own needs and personal interests. The devil right from the start had tempted Jesus to change stones into bread when He was hungry after 40 days of fasting. (Mt 4:4) But in this case, it was to demonstrate that even the fish and the seas belong to God and to His Father. So in paying the Temple tax, no tax was really paid because everything belongs to God.
This story of the Temple tax was most probably told during the time of St Matthew’s community in the 80’s or 90’s when the Temple was already destroyed by the Romans. The question was, should they continue to pay the Temple tax to the treasury of the Temple of Jupiter in Rome decreed by the Roman Emperor? Indeed, it was a sensitive issue because the Jews and the Jewish Christians were not inclined to support this law. But the failure to obey would be seen as an act of rebellion, which would have dire consequences as the Romans would immediately crush them. Furthermore, it would only give a bad reputation to others that Jews and Christians were irresponsible and disloyal to the state. Indeed, St Matthew wanted to underscore the importance of the Christians’ obligations to the State and to society. As Christians, we cannot shirk our responsibility to the State and neglect our social obligations to the community. A good Christian must also show himself to be a good citizen and one who is committed to the larger community and not just the narrow confines of his religious community. We must always put the interests of the community before our personal and narrow sectarian interests. This calls for magnanimity and generosity on our part. As in the case of Covid 19 pandemic, we cannot be insisting on our right to attend Mass physically on Sunday in church when so many are infected and have died because of our irresponsibility.
Indeed, we must not insist on our personal rights when it is against the common good of society. St Paul is exemplary in forfeiting his personal rights for the greater good of the gospel and of society. Even though he won the support of the apostles in Jerusalem in not requiring the Gentiles to be circumcised to be Christians (Acts 15:19f), he had Timothy, who was born of a Jewish mother and a Greek Father, circumcised when he brought him along on this missionary trip. (Acts 16:3) It was a question of expediency. Then again, although it was permitted for itinerant preachers to be paid for their work, he did not insist on his rights and privileges. On the contrary, he offered the Good News free and he worked as a tent-maker to sustain his daily living. (1 Cor 9) He said, “To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.” (1 Cor 9:22f) He asked the Christians to do the same when it concerned the question of food offered to idols. “All things are lawful but not all things are beneficial. All things are lawful but not all things build up. Do not seek your own advantage, but that of the other. Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, for the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.” (1 Cor 10:23-26) “Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, so that they may be saved.” (1 Cor 10:32)
This was the same command of Moses to the People of Israel. After commanding them to fear God, walk in His ways, serve Him with their entire being, and keeping His commandments, he gave them the basis for doing all these things. He said, “To the Lord your God belong indeed heaven and the heaven of heavens, and the earth and all it contains; yet it was on your fathers that the Lord set his heart for love of them, and after them of all the nations chose their descendants, you yourselves up to the present day.” God is the Lord of all, regardless of which nation people belong to. However, God had chosen Israel out of all the nations to be His people and to be His praise. “He it is you must praise, he is your God: for you he has done these great and terrible things you have seen with your own eyes; and though your fathers numbered only seventy when they went down to Egypt, the Lord your God has made you as many as the stars of heaven.”
But how could they manifest to others that God is the Lord of all? Moses said what is critical is that they must circumcise their hearts. It is significant that he was addressing that generation which had not yet been circumcised. (cf Joshua 5:2-5) Until they were circumcised physically, the greater importance is that their hearts were circumcised first. In other words, they must demonstrate their purity of heart in serving and obeying God. People cannot see who has been circumcised or not but they could readily see how we behave as the People of God by our acts of kindness, compassion and charity. So, too, it is not enough just to frequent the sacraments but to manifest ourselves as people transformed by the sacraments which we receive.
In Moses’ understanding, loving, serving and obeying God entails that we show the mercy and justice of God in our lives, “for the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, triumphant and terrible, never partial, never to be bribed. It is he who sees justice done for the orphan and the widow, who loved the stranger and gives him food and clothing. Love the stranger then, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” So true love for God cannot just be words but truly reflecting our status as God’s people. We must show the face of God’s mercy and justice in our lives so that others will come to know God as well. Failing which, we will scandalize others. Thus, the most important lesson we learn from today’s scripture readings is to forgo our personal rights so that we fulfil our social obligations to the State and to the community. We should not do things, as the Lord reminded us, to cause unnecessary misunderstanding of our faith that could turn potential believers away. What we should be addressing is not our rights but the truth of the gospel. We must sacrifice everything for the greater good of the gospel so long as it is not against morality, charity and truth.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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