20211008 WHICH SIDE OF THE BATTLE ARE YOU ON?
08 October, 2021, Friday, 27th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
Joel 1:13-15,2:1-2 © |
Let all tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming
Priests, put on sackcloth and lament.
Ministers of the altar, wail.
Come, pass the night in sackcloth,
you ministers of my God.
For the house of our God has been deprived
of oblation and libation.
Order a fast,
proclaim a solemn assembly;
elders, call together
all the inhabitants of the country
to the house of the Lord your God.
Cry out to the Lord,
‘Oh, what a day!
For the day of the Lord is near,
it comes as a devastation from Shaddai.’
Sound the trumpet in Zion,
give the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the country tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming,
yes, it is near.
Day of darkness and gloom,
day of cloud and blackness.
Like the dawn there spreads across the mountains
a vast and mighty host,
such as has never been before,
such as will never be again
to the remotest ages.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 9A(9):2-3,6,16,8-9 © |
The Lord will judge the world with justice.
I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will recount all your wonders.
I will rejoice in you and be glad,
and sing psalms to your name, O Most High.
The Lord will judge the world with justice.
You have checked the nations, destroyed the wicked;
you have wiped out their name for ever and ever.
The nations have fallen in the pit which they made,
their feet caught in the snare they laid.
The Lord will judge the world with justice.
But the Lord sits enthroned for ever.
He has set up his throne for judgement;
he will judge the world with justice,
he will judge the peoples with his truth.
The Lord will judge the world with justice.
Gospel Acclamation | Jn10:27 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn12:31-32 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Now the prince of this world is to be overthrown,
says the Lord.
And when I am lifted up from the earth,
I shall draw all men to myself.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 11:15-26 © |
The finger of God has overtaken you
When Jesus had cast out a devil, some of the people said, ‘It is through Beelzebul, the prince of devils, that he casts out devils.’ Others asked him, as a test, for a sign from heaven; but, knowing what they were thinking, he said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin, and a household divided against itself collapses. So too with Satan: if he is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? – since you assert that it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils. Now if it is through Beelzebul that I cast out devils, through whom do your own experts cast them out? Let them be your judges then. But if it is through the finger of God that I cast out devils, then know that the kingdom of God has overtaken you. So long as a strong man fully armed guards his own palace, his goods are undisturbed; but when someone stronger than he is attacks and defeats him, the stronger man takes away all the weapons he relied on and shares out his spoil.
‘He who is not with me is against me; and he who does not gather with me scatters.
‘When an unclean spirit goes out of a man it wanders through waterless country looking for a place to rest, and not finding one it says, “I will go back to the home I came from.” But on arrival, finding it swept and tidied, it then goes off and brings seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and set up house there, so that the man ends up by being worse than he was before.’
WHICH SIDE OF THE BATTLE ARE YOU ON?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Joel 1:13-15; 2:1-2; Ps 9: 2-3,6,16,8-9; Lk 11:15-26]
In the first reading, the Prophet Joel warned the Israelites of the coming of the Day of the Lord. The day of the Lord was presented in negative terms. It would be a day of judgment, destruction before a new heaven and earth could appear. He said, “Cry out to the Lord, ‘Oh, what a day! For the day of the Lord is near, it comes as a devastation from Shaddai.’ Sound the trumpet in Zion, give the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the country tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, yes, it is near.” When that day comes, it will be a “Day of darkness and gloom, day of cloud and blackness. Like the dawn there spreads across the mountains a vast and mighty host, such as has never been before, such as will never be again to the remotest ages.”
Indeed, we can see the signs of the arrival of the Day of the Lord in present times. We see shadows and darkness all around us. These shadows can be seen in the ambiguities of technological advancement in the world. Because of technology, the world is changing so rapidly, which of course has impact on our lifestyle, relationships, work, health and spiritual life. Technology is a double-edged sword. Artificial Intelligence robots might seem a solution to the problems of humanity but the ramifications are frightening. Just like in other forms of technology, whether nuclear energy, internet, digital or biotechnology, we can use them for good or for evil. With advancement in science, we make possible IVF, freezing of embryos, cloning, euthanasia resulting in the fragmentation of family and social life. In a world where there is a growing narrow nationalistic view of one’s nation, there will not only be competition but aggression, violence and manipulation. There is a growing hostility among nations, suspicious and wary of each other because many nations want to be the best, the top, the most powerful, the most affluent, the highest GDP. Wars are always on the horizon and a world war III is always possible unless the powerful nations restrain themselves.
But we also see the darkness of this age as well. In the name of moral relativism, evil is promoted as good, wrong is seen as right, moral is perceived as immoral. Freedom is abused at the expense of the common good. Democracy is used to promote social disunity, rioting and violence. The world portrays divorce, co-habitation, promiscuity, abortion, euthanasia, satanism, transgenderism as personal rights. We have an extreme form of individualism that puts the individual above everyone else. It is a subtle way to promote egotism and selfishness, the worship of self. This results in the abuse of the environment, as we can see in the ecological imbalance in the world; climate warming leading to extreme weather such as heat-waves, floods, typhoons, earthquake, destruction of wild life, plants and marine life. This is because people are living for themselves and for today only and are not concerned about tomorrow when they will no longer be around.
However, while the presentation of Joel and those of us who see the shadows and darkness of this age is not wrong, we must not be overly pessimistic as well. The negative aspect of the Day of the Lord is to awaken us to welcome the positive dimension of the Day of the Lord, which is the arrival of the Kingdom of God. Indeed, this would be a necessary stage for the arrival of the kingdom as St Paul wrote, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labour pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.” (Rom 8:23f) The responsorial psalm says, “The Lord will judge the world with justice. You have checked the nations, destroyed the wicked; you have wiped out their name for ever and ever. The nations have fallen in the pit which they made, their feet caught in the snare they laid. But the Lord sits enthroned for ever. He has set up his throne for judgement; he will judge the world with justice, he will judge the peoples with his truth.”
In the gospel, Jesus announces the arrival of the Kingdom of God in Himself. He shows us the light instead of the darkness of the Day of the Lord. “If it is through the finger of God that I cast out devils, then know that the kingdom of God has overtaken you. So long as a strong man fully armed guards his own palace, his goods are undisturbed; but when someone stronger than he is attacks and defeats him, the stronger man takes away all the weapons he relied on and shares out his spoil.” Jesus is that strong man who can overcome the evil of this world. In His work of exorcism, He demonstrated that the Kingdom of God, the rule of God is establishing itself, defeating the Kingdom of Satan. Indeed, the miracles of Jesus foreshadow the re-creation of the New Heaven and the New Earth.
That is why even when we are fighting against the dark forces in the world today, we should not be intimidated just because the world opposes the values of the gospel, of justice, truth, love and mercy that we proclaim. The Lord Himself was confronted by His enemies who used slander to destroy His reputation, accusing Him of collaborating with Satan to destroy the world. By exposing the hypocrisy of the world, just as Jesus exposed the hypocrisy of the religious leaders, we will be severely attacked and even physically harmed. But we must take courage that Jesus the Strong Man is with us. He will help us to win the battle against darkness and evil as He has shown us by His death and resurrection. In Jesus, the whole of creation including humanity would be redeemed, transfigured and recreated.
The question is, which side of the battle are we on? The Lord makes it clear that there is no neutrality. “He who is not with me is against me; and he who does not gather with me scatters.” Indeed, either we are on the side of the light or in darkness. We must make a choice today. Will we fight the battle with our Lord or will we join Satan and his angels to destroy the world? To say “Yes” to Jesus means that we will join the millions of people who continue to champion justice, truth, mercy and compassion in the world. It means to promote ecumenism, inter-religious dialogue, multilateralism among nations, especially when it comes to trade and international laws. Most of all, we are called to promote an integral ecology in creation by protecting the environment, safeguarding our natural resources, using them responsibly not just for ourselves but for the future of our children. But ecology cannot be limited to the environment and the planet. It involves humanity and their inter-personal relationships with each other, beginning in marriage, family life and society. Unless we promote holistic growth in the human person, humanity will become dysfunctional and detrimental to the environment as it will abuse creation for its selfish needs.
We must be careful of negativism as well because it can lead to discouragement and complacency in our fight against the evil forces. The best way to win a battle is not to remain helpless or indifferent to the situation. The parable of the man who was exorcised of an unclean spirit but did nothing positive in his life would only attract more spirits, more wicked than the first and so “the man ends up by being worse than he was before.” It is not enough to say that I am with Jesus but remain passive in the face of evil. When we do not evangelize the world, the world will more than secularize us but demonize us. So there is truly no neutrality. The best way to keep ourselves protected is by doing good works and strengthening our faith. Being defensive will not be sufficient to protect us from our enemies.
We must be proactive in conquering the world for Christ. By doing nothing, the little faith we have would be lost. This is why the world wants to marginalize all religions and proclaim secularism as the religion of the day in the name of unity and partiality. How can there be true unity when secularism, which is opposed to religions, be the only presence in society? What we should be promoting is a multi-religious and multi-racial society where, in spite of our different religious beliefs and cultures, we respect each other, and are sensitive to each other’s faith and values. In this way, we empower and enrich each other in our faith and relationship as well. Promoting a common brotherhood irrespective of faith and culture is what will protect the planet and the future of humanity. As the Lord warns us, “Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin, and a household divided against itself collapses.”
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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