20220412 COMMITTING OUR CAUSE TO THE LORD
12 April, 2022, Tuesday of Holy Week
First reading | Isaiah 49:1-6 © |
I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth
Islands, listen to me,
pay attention, remotest peoples.
The Lord called me before I was born,
from my mother’s womb he pronounced my name.
He made my mouth a sharp sword,
and hid me in the shadow of his hand.
He made me into a sharpened arrow,
and concealed me in his quiver.
He said to me, ‘You are my servant (Israel)
in whom I shall be glorified’;
while I was thinking, ‘I have toiled in vain,
I have exhausted myself for nothing’;
and all the while my cause was with the Lord,
my reward with my God.
I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord,
my God was my strength.
And now the Lord has spoken,
he who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
to gather Israel to him:
‘It is not enough for you to be my servant,
to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel;
I will make you the light of the nations
so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 70(71):1-6,15,17 © |
My lips will tell of your help.
In you, O Lord, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
In your justice rescue me, free me:
pay heed to me and save me.
My lips will tell of your help.
Be a rock where I can take refuge,
a mighty stronghold to save me;
for you are my rock, my stronghold.
Free me from the hand of the wicked.
My lips will tell of your help.
It is you, O Lord, who are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, since my youth.
On you I have leaned from my birth,
from my mother’s womb you have been my help.
My lips will tell of your help.
My lips will tell of your justice
and day by day of your help.
O God, you have taught me from my youth
and I proclaim your wonders still.
My lips will tell of your help.
Gospel Acclamation |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Hail to you, our King!
Obedient to the Father, you were led to your crucifixion
as a meek lamb is led to the slaughter.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Gospel |
John 13:21-33,36-38 © |
'What you are going to do, do quickly'
While at supper with his disciples, Jesus was troubled in spirit and declared, ‘I tell you most solemnly, one of you will betray me.’ The disciples looked at one another, wondering which he meant. The disciple Jesus loved was reclining next to Jesus; Simon Peter signed to him and said, ‘Ask who it is he means’, so leaning back on Jesus’ breast he said, ‘Who is it, Lord?’ ‘It is the one’ replied Jesus ‘to whom I give the piece of bread that I shall dip in the dish.’ He dipped the piece of bread and gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. At that instant, after Judas had taken the bread, Satan entered him. Jesus then said, ‘What you are going to do, do quickly.’ None of the others at table understood the reason he said this. Since Judas had charge of the common fund, some of them thought Jesus was telling him, ‘Buy what we need for the festival’, or telling him to give something to the poor. As soon as Judas had taken the piece of bread he went out. Night had fallen.
When he had gone Jesus said:
‘Now has the Son of Man been glorified,
and in him God has been glorified.
If God has been glorified in him,
God will in turn glorify him in himself,
and will glorify him very soon.
‘My little children,
I shall not be with you much longer.
You will look for me,
And, as I told the Jews,
where I am going, you cannot come.’
Simon Peter said, ‘Lord, where are you going?’ Jesus replied, ‘Where I am going you cannot follow me now; you will follow me later.’ Peter said to him, ‘Why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.’ ‘Lay down your life for me?’ answered Jesus. ‘I tell you most solemnly, before the cock crows you will have disowned me three times.’
COMMITTING OUR CAUSE TO THE LORD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [IS 49:1-6; JOHN 13:21-38]
Like the Suffering Servant, all of us are called by the Lord to serve Him by being His witnesses of light and love in the world. This was what He told the Suffering Servant. “It is not enough for you to be my servant, to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back the survivors of Israel; I will make you the light of the nations so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” Our call to serve the Lord goes beyond serving our own kind, that is, our loved ones, but our fellowmen as well. Many of us are willing to serve God but in truth we are serving ourselves. We only care for those whom we love, especially our family members. But we are blind to the needs of the community, especially those who are suffering and in need. The love that we have is confined only to our dear ones. This is not the kind of service that Christ envisaged. It is a service to all. Our love must be inclusive. This is the love and service of the Suffering Servant of Isaiah and our Lord.
Secondly, this call was given to us even before we were born. “The Lord called me before I was born; from my mother’s womb he pronounced my name.” Every call and vocation is unique. There is no basis for comparison. It is vanity for us to ask why we are not a doctor, or a teacher, or a priest, etc. It is the Lord who calls us and He has a special role for us to fulfil in His divine plan. To each, He provides the necessary charism to do our work. The Suffering Servant said, “He made my mouth a sharp sword, and hid me in the shadow of his hand. He made me into a sharpened arrow, and concealed me in his quiver.” In this way, he could be a true prophet of His word and strike the hearts of the people by his preaching and prophecy. Indeed, the Lord has formed him “in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him, to gather Israel to him.” So our vocation is not by chance nor is our life meant to be lived in vain, without a purpose or without a role for the service of His people. We are not created to live for ourselves but to live for others. Otherwise, life has no meaning or purpose. We are created by love and for love.
In a special way, Jesus took upon Himself as the fulfilment of the prophecy of the Suffering Servant. He taught many times in the gospelthat He had come as a servant to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. (cf Mk 10:45) St Paul in his letter to the Philippians described Him as a servant as well. “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross.” (Phil 2:6-8)
Thirdly, our vocation must be seen in the overall context of a bigger plan of God. This is true of the Suffering Servant and also true of Jesus and all of us. Within this context, we can appreciate why the bible often sees the enfolding of the history of Israel as all within the plan of God, including the death of Jesus. He enlightened the disciples at Emmaus, “‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.” (Lk 24:25-27) So in the plan of God, nothing happens by chance. God works everything to our good if we cooperate with Him. St Paul wrote, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined, he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Rom 8:28-30)
Fourthly, we must realize that our task is simply to fulfil the plan of God and to do His will. To be a servant does not mean to be ambitious like the apostles who were seeking power and places of honour. It does not matter whether we are successful in worldly terms or failures in the eyes of the world. We should not be too concerned about what kind of name we are crafting for ourselves in history. What is more important is that we are faithful. Indeed, when the Suffering Servant was lamenting his failure, thinking that he had “toiled in vain” and exhausted himself “for nothing”, the Lord assured him, “You are my servant (Israel) in whom I shall be glorified.” The truth, as the Suffering Servant discovered, was that God was with him. He might seem to have lost the battle but God was winning the battle for him. He said, “all the while my cause was with the Lord, my reward with my God. I was honoured in the eyes of the Lord, my God was my strength.”
For this reason, in all that we do, we must entrust our cause to the Lord, since that calling came from Him. We should not allow disappointments and failures to upset us too easily. If we are called to do the Lord’s will and if we seek His will, not ours, then there is no failure, even when the world considers it a failure. It is only a failure when we do not cooperate with His grace, regardless how successful we are in the world. Consequently, in whatever we do, we must trust in the Lord who is our refuge and strength. He is the Lord of Hosts. As the psalmist says, “In you, O Lord, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame. In your justice rescue me, free me: pay heed to me and save me. Be a rock where I can take refuge, a mighty stronghold to save me; for you are my rock, my stronghold.”
Like Jesus, although troubled in spirit, He did not flinch from doing the will of His Father. Humanly, He felt the pain of betrayal by Judas, one of the Twelve. There is no greater pain than that of being betrayed by people closest to us and those whom we trust most. Even St Peter who professed his love and loyalty failed Him like the rest. He did not stop Judas from going against the plan of God. Jesus accepted the weaknesses of His apostles. Like St Peter, we all make great professions of love and loyalty, but when it comes to living out our promises, we fail. This is true in marriage and even in priestly and religious commitments. We take beautiful vows only to break them. Jesus was not idealistic. He knew the weak nature of us all. And so with St Peter, Jesus remarked, “Lay down your life for me? I tell you most solemnly, before the cock crows you will have disowned me three times.”
But He knew that somehow God would have the upper hand, not Judas or wicked men. On the contrary, He saw this in the light of faith, for He said, “Now has the Son of Man been glorified, and in him God has been glorified. If God has been glorified in him, God will in turn glorify him in himself, and will glorify him very soon.” Through the betrayal of Judas and His death, He would glorify the Father by showing us His love and mercy; and in turn the Father will glorify Him by raising Him from the dead. He knew that after the threefold denial of Peter, there will be a threefold affirmation of His love. So in confidence, let us follow the path of the psalmist and pray confidently when we feel like giving up or when we feel so helpless. “Free me from the hand of the wicked. It is you, O Lord, who are my hope, my trust, O Lord, since my youth. On you I have leaned from my birth, from my mother’s womb you have been my help.”
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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