20211118 THE WAY TO PEACE
18 November, 2021, Thursday, 33rd Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
1 Maccabees 2:15-29 © |
'Heaven preserve us from forsaking the Law and its ordinances'
The commissioners of King Antiochus who were enforcing the apostasy came to the town of Modein to make them sacrifice. Many Israelites gathered round them, but Mattathias and his sons drew apart. The king’s commissioners then addressed Mattathias as follows, ‘You are a respected leader, a great man in this town; you have sons and brothers to support you. Be the first to step forward and conform to the king’s decree, as all the nations have done, and the leaders of Judah and the survivors in Jerusalem; you and your sons shall be reckoned among the Friends of the King, you and your sons shall be honoured with gold and silver and many presents.’ Raising his voice, Mattathias retorted, ‘Even if every nation living in the king’s dominions obeys him, each forsaking its ancestral religion to conform to his decrees, I, my sons and my brothers will still follow the covenant of our ancestors. Heaven preserve us from forsaking the Law and its observances. As for the king’s orders, we will not follow them: we will not swerve from our own religion either to right or to left.’ As he finished speaking, a Jew came forward in the sight of all to offer sacrifice on the altar in Modein as the royal edict required. When Mattathias saw this, he was fired with zeal; stirred to the depth of his being, he gave vent to his legitimate anger, threw himself on the man and slaughtered him on the altar. At the same time he killed the king’s commissioner who was there to enforce the sacrifice, and tore down the altar. In his zeal for the Law he acted as Phinehas did against Zimri son of Salu. Then Mattathias went through the town, shouting at the top of his voice, ‘Let everyone who has a fervour for the Law and takes his stand on the covenant come out and follow me.’ Then he fled with his sons into the hills, leaving all their possessions behind in the town.
At this, many who were concerned for virtue and justice went down to the desert and stayed there.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 49(50):1-2,5-6,14-15 © |
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
The God of gods, the Lord,
has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion’s perfect beauty he shines.
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
‘Summon before me my people
who made covenant with me by sacrifice.’
The heavens proclaim his justice,
for he, God, is the judge.
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God
and render him your votive offerings.
Call on me in the day of distress.
I will free you and you shall honour me.’
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:135 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your decrees.
Alleluia!
Or: | Ps94:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 19:41-44 © |
Jesus sheds tears over the coming fate of Jerusalem
As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!’
THE WAY TO PEACE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 1 MC 2:15-29; PS 50:1-2,5-6,14-15; LK 19:41-44]
“As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes!” Indeed, if only we understood the message of peace that Jesus has come to bring to humanity! Unfortunately, humanity is blind. The world only speaks of peace but all the time, it is preparing for war. Nations compete to make themselves more powerful, to control other countries not just militarily and politically but economically, all because of self-interests. We are not serious about wanting peace when the actions we take are hostile, discriminatory, unjust and destructive. There can be no peace unless we promote peace actively through mutual understanding, dialogue and common interests for the good of all of humanity, and not just for one particular nationality, race or religion. But the path to peace is hidden from the eyes of man.
In the first reading from the book of Maccabees, peace was hidden from the eyes of Antiochus because he used force to unite the nation. He thought that the way to unite the country was for everyone to have the same state religion. He thought peace is achieved through homogeneity, in culture, language and religion. And so he sent his commissioners to enforce apostasy in the town of Modein and made the Israelites sacrifice to their gods. They even tried to win Mattathias, their leader over to their side through the offering of wealth and friendship. “Be the first to step forward and conform to the king’s decree, as all the nations have done, and the leaders of Judah and the survivors in Jerusalem; you and your sons shall be reckoned among the Friends of the King, you and your sons shall be honoured with gold and silver and many presents.”
But it was a misjudgement, as in the case of Eleazar. They thought they could make use of their popularity among the people to lead others to follow them in conforming to the king’s decree. To their disappointment and perhaps surprise, when a Jew went forward to offer the sacrifice “on the altar in Modein as the royal edict required”, Mattathias “was fired with zeal; stirred to the depth of his being, he gave vent to his legitimate anger, threw himself on the man and slaughtered him on the altar. At the same time he killed the king’s commissioner who was there to enforce the sacrifice, and tore down the altar.” The king and the commissioners did not know that they were playing with fire when they sought to insult the religion of others.
When we insult the religions of others, we are touching not on logic but their hearts. Religion is not a matter of logic alone but it is more a matter of the heart. It is the heart that believes. The head only provides the intelligibility of believing. There are many things we cannot reason with people when it comes to religion because we are dealing with a God-encounter, religious experiences and even miracles. If someone has experienced God in and through his or her religion and the rituals and prayers, we cannot change the person’s faith and beliefs. Those who are converted to another faith or have lost their faith are those whose faith was weak and shallow to begin with. They are still searching for their God, so to speak. They do not find their faith fulfilling. So once a person is convinced from his heart that this is the God he experienced and believes, we have to respect their convictions.
So too, those Jews who apostatized were those who were weak in their faith. That was why they easily compromised with the authorities because of the earthly and worldly benefits of safety, wealth and power they could get. It was not because they believed in the gods of the King as well, but they were simply opportunists, going where the wind blows. Not for Mattathias and his friends. They had a deep conviction of the God of Israel and in the Law of Moses. Nothing could shake their faith. And they were willing to pay a price to remain faithful to God at all costs. “Then Mattathias went through the town, shouting at the top of his voice, ‘Let everyone who has a fervour for the Law and takes his stand on the covenant come out and follow me.’ Then he fled with his sons into the hills, leaving all their possessions behind in the town. At this many who were concerned for virtue and justice went down to the desert and stayed there.”
Discrimination and oppression will only bring about resentment, enmity, rebellion and bloodshed. This happens wherever peoples are discriminated because of race and religion, nationality or even caste. The world never learns what brings real peace in the world. We cannot speak of peace unless there is justice and respect for all peoples. There can be no peace unless wealth is shared among all peoples. When wealth is centred on just a small group of people, there will always be jealousy, resentment and anger. It is important that everyone is treated with respect, with dignity and equality regardless of race, language, religion, culture or nationality.
Unfortunately, this way to peace was hidden from the eyes of the Jews as well because they sought to rebel against Rome. They were not willing to live under the Pax Romana. This was the time when Rome ruled the world and based on the principles enshrined in Pax Romana, there was peace and economic prosperity throughout the Roman Empire from 27 BC to 180 A.D. However, they wanted freedom, independence, autonomy and power. They were plotting to overthrow the Romans, something which they could never do as they failed to realize that their nation had lost all its glory and military power. Jesus said, “Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!” And this prophecy was fulfilled in A.D. 70 when Jerusalem was sacked by Rome and reduced to ruins and the temple completely destroyed.
Jesus’ message of peace is co-existence, respect and compassion. He underscored the importance of reconciling with God through repentance of our sins of greed for wealth, power and revenge. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus set forth the blueprint to peace and a blessed life. He taught us purity of heart, compassion and mercy, poverty of spirit and the call to be peacemakers. Most of all, we are called to denounce violence and retaliation against our enemies. When we allow pride, greed and revenge to consume us, we will cause division in our lives. The path of Jesus is non-violence and accepting sinners and gentiles. He was there for the Centurion whose servant was dying. He welcomed the Samaritan woman and healed her of her emotional wounds of rejection and failure in relationships. He answered the prayers of the Syrophoenician woman whose daughter was possessed by a demon.
Indeed, the gospel values as taught by Christ are universal values. All religions will teach us to do good, promote peace and unity, respect and love for each other, and compassion for the poor and the suffering. St Paul and St Peter urged the Christians to pray for civil authorities and to have respect for the laws of the country. (1 Tim 2:1-3; 1 Pt 2:13-17) Civil authorities on the other hand must have deep respect for the conscience and beliefs of their people. They should not marginalize religions from public space but instead promote harmony among all religions. It is to the advantage of those in government to have religious-minded people living in peace and unity as they would contribute and sacrifice themselves for the country even more, not because of political or economic benefits but purely because of their love for God and for their fellowmen. Such service is genuine and sacrificing. Godly politicians serve the country not for themselves but truly for the glory of God and for the good of all. Unless, our political and religious leaders are working together for the common good, there can be no peace.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment