20220307 HOLINESS IS MEASURED BY OUR IDENTIFICATION WITH CHRIST
07 March, 2022, Monday, 1st Week of Lent
First reading |
Leviticus 19:1-2,11-18 © |
Only pass judgement on your neighbour according to justice
The Lord spoke to Moses; he said: ‘Speak to the whole community of the sons of Israel and say to them:
‘“Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.
‘“You must not steal nor deal deceitfully or fraudulently with your neighbour. You must not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God. I am the Lord. You must not exploit or rob your neighbour. You must not keep back the labourer’s wage until next morning. You must not curse the dumb, nor put an obstacle in the blind man’s way, but you must fear your God. I am the Lord.
‘“You must not be guilty of unjust verdicts. You must neither be partial to the little man nor overawed by the great; you must pass judgement on your neighbour according to justice. You must not slander your own people, and you must not jeopardise your neighbour’s life. I am the Lord. You must not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. You must openly tell him, your neighbour, of his offence; this way you will not take a sin upon yourself. You must not exact vengeance, nor must you bear a grudge against the children of your people. You must love your neighbour as yourself. I am the Lord.”’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 18(19):8-10,15 © |
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,
it gives wisdom to the simple.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
they gladden the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
it gives light to the eyes.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The fear of the Lord is holy,
abiding for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are truth
and all of them just.
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
May the spoken words of my mouth,
the thoughts of my heart,
win favour in your sight, O Lord,
my rescuer, my rock!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
Gospel Acclamation | Ezk18:31 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Shake off all your sins – it is the Lord who speaks –
and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Or: | 2Co6:2 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Now is the favourable time:
this is the day of salvation.
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Gospel |
Matthew 25:31-46 © |
I was naked and you clothed me; sick, and you visited me
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, escorted by all the angels, then he will take his seat on his throne of glory. All the nations will be assembled before him and he will separate men one from another as the shepherd separates sheep from goats. He will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left.
‘Then the King will say to those on his right hand, “Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Then the virtuous will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you; or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome; naked and clothe you; sick or in prison and go to see you?” And the King will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.”
‘Next he will say to those on his left hand, “Go away from me, with your curse upon you, to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you never gave me food; I was thirsty and you never gave me anything to drink; I was a stranger and you never made me welcome, naked and you never clothed me, sick and in prison and you never visited me.” Then it will be their turn to ask, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or naked, sick or in prison, and did not come to your help?” Then he will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me.”
‘And they will go away to eternal punishment, and the virtuous to eternal life.’
HOLINESS IS MEASURED BY OUR IDENTIFICATION WITH CHRIST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [LEV 19:1-2,11-18; PS 19:8-10,15; MATT 25:31-46]
We have just completed the Orientation days for the season of Lent. Today, we enter into the first semester of Lent. For the next three weeks, the Liturgy will focus on the spiritual aspects of Lent. At the very outset, there is a call to holiness. All the spiritual exercises recommended by the Church is not to be performed in a perfunctory way or simply on the external level. Rather, we must be clear that the objective of the Lenten exercises is to help us grow in holiness. The Lord instructed Moses to address the whole community of the sons of Israel and say to them: “‘Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.”
But what is holiness? Very often, holiness is mistaken for religious piety. Holiness is seen as saying prayers, going for Mass, spending time in the adoration room. Whilst spiritual exercises especially prayers are important for growth in holiness, they are means, not the end. They help us to become more conscious of God’s love for us and most of all, to become more identified with Christ in our minds and actions. In the final analysis, holiness is to be identified with Christ in love and compassion. The measure of holiness is not how pious we are but how loving and compassionate we are.
For this reason, the invitation to holiness in the first reading is elaborated not in terms of rituals but in terms of practicing justice towards our neighbours. “You must not steal nor deal deceitfully or fraudulently with your neighbour. You must not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God. You must not exploit or rob your neighbour. You must not keep back the labourer’s wage until next morning. You must not curse the dumb, nor put an obstacle in the blind man’s way, but you must fear your God. You must not be guilty of unjust verdicts. You must neither be partial to the little man nor overawed by the great; you must pass judgement on your neighbour according to justice. You must not slander your own people, and you must not jeopardise your neighbour’s life. You must not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. You must openly tell him, your neighbour, of his offence; this way your will not take a sin upon yourself. You must not exact vengeance, nor must you bear a grudge against the children of your people.”
Jesus refines the true meaning of holiness by going beyond justice to charity. To those who practice charity, the Lord says, “Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Indeed, it is not enough to render justice to our fellowmen but we are called to show mercy and compassion to all regardless of race, language or religion.
What, then, is the secret to living a life of holiness? We need first to be identified with the Lord. For this reason, a life of prayer and contemplation on the passion and resurrection of our Lord is a pre-requisite. Indeed, the psalmist invites us to contemplate on the wisdom of the Word of God. “Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life. The law of the Lord is perfect, it revives the soul. The rule of the Lord is to be trusted; it gives wisdom to the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, they gladden the heart. The command of the Lord is clear; it gives light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is holy, abiding forever. The decrees of the Lord are truth and all of them just. May the spoken words of my mouth, the thoughts of my heart, win favour in your sight, O Lord, my rescuer, my rock!” But let us not forget that this is only a means to the end, which is identification with the Lord.
Secondly, we must remember that Christian Charity is not pure humanism. That is to say, the motive for helping the poor or rendering justice is not just based on our identification with the pains and aspirations of our fellowmen. Of course, this is included but the motive for reaching is much higher. It is based on our identification with the heart of the Good Shepherd who identifies Himself with the suffering of the people. He sees every one as His brother and sister and a child of God. He calls everyone His brother and identifies himself as a brother to all. For this reason, to those who help the poor, He said, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.” To those who neglected the poor, similarly He says, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me.” In other words, putting on the heart of Christ, we too feel with the pain of our fellowmen and like Jesus, reach out to heal them and give them hope.
With this in mind, therefore, we are called to be like sheep, not like goats. Why is that so? Goats are known to be individualistic, capricious, impulsive, stubborn, never contented, and strong-minded. They do not like to be confined and always want to be free. They are natural leaders. They fight for position and thus can create disunity. Unlike sheep that follow the shepherd, goats want things their own ways. As a result, their ego often leads them to hurt others and make them ambitious at the expense of others. Sheep are natural followers. They follow the shepherd. Sheep, like cattle and horses, are gregarious animals. They are sociable and caring. They move as a herd and they are innocent. Hence, the sheep and the lamb symbolize the meekness and humility of God. A sheep is content to be led and to listen to the shepherd. So today, like sheep, let us follow the Shepherd in giving up our lives for the service and love of our fellowmen. Let us give ourselves to Him like the Lord who made Himself as a sacrificial lamb for all. In giving ourselves for the service of others, we indeed, make ourselves the sacrifice for all.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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