20220621 THE WITNESS OF A CHRISTIAN LIFE
21 June, 2022, Tuesday, 12th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
2 Kings 19:9-11,14-21,31-36 © |
The Lord protects Jerusalem from Sennacherib and the Assyrians
Sennacherib, King of the Assyrians, sent messengers to Hezekiah saying, ‘Tell this to Hezekiah king of Judah, “Do not let your God on whom you are relying deceive you, when he says: Jerusalem shall not fall into the power of the king of Assyria. You have learnt by now what the kings of Assyria have done to every country, putting them all under the ban. Are you likely to be spared?”’
Hezekiah took the letter from the hands of the messenger and read it; he then went up to the Temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. Hezekiah said this prayer in the presence of the Lord, ‘O Lord of Hosts, God of Israel, enthroned on the cherubs, you alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth, you have made heaven and earth.
‘Give ear, Lord, and listen.
Open your eyes, Lord, and see.
Hear the words of Sennacherib
who has sent to insult the living God.
‘It is true, O Lord, that the kings of Assyria have exterminated all the nations, they have thrown their gods on the fire, for these were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, and hence they have destroyed them. But now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, I pray you, and let all the kingdoms of the earth know that you alone are God, Lord.’
Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah. ‘The Lord, the God of Israel,’ he said, ‘says this, “I have heard the prayer you have addressed to me about Sennacherib king of Assyria.” Here is the oracle that the Lord has pronounced against him:
‘“She despises you, she scorns you,
the virgin, daughter of Zion;
she tosses her head behind you,
the daughter of Jerusalem.
A remnant shall go out from Jerusalem,
and survivors from Mount Zion.
The jealous love of the Lord of Hosts shall accomplish this.”
‘This, then, is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
‘“He will not enter this city,
he will let fly no arrow against it,
confront it with no shield,
throw up no earthwork against it.
By the road that he came on he will return;
he shall not enter this city. It is the Lord who speaks.
I will protect this city and save it
for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.”’
That same night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. Sennacherib struck camp and left; he returned home and stayed in Nineveh.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 47(48):2-4,10-11 © |
God upholds his city for ever.
The Lord is great and worthy to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain rises in beauty,
the joy of all the earth.
God upholds his city for ever.
Mount Zion, true pole of the earth,
the Great King’s city!
God, in the midst of its citadels,
has shown himself its stronghold.
God upholds his city for ever.
O God, we ponder your love
within your temple.
Your praise, O God, like your name
reaches the ends of the earth.
God upholds his city for ever.
Gospel Acclamation | Mt11:25 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you, Father,
Lord of heaven and earth,
for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom
to mere children.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn8:12 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
anyone who follows me will have the light of life.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 7:6,12-14 © |
Treat others as you would like them to treat you
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls in front of pigs, or they may trample them and then turn on you and tear you to pieces.
‘So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the meaning of the Law and the Prophets.
‘Enter by the narrow gate, since the road that leads to perdition is wide and spacious, and many take it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it.’
THE WITNESS OF A CHRISTIAN LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 Kgs 19:9-11, 14-21, 31-36; Ps 48:2-4,10-11; Mt 7:6.12-14]
“Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls in front of pigs.” It is a fact of life that there are some people who would not be receptive to what we have to say and what we would like to share with them. There could be many reasons why they are not receptive. They could be arrogant and proud, like Sennacherib, King of the Assyrians in the first reading. He thought too highly of himself, of his strength and might. With disdain and scorn, he said, “Do not let your God on whom you are relying deceive you, when he says: Jerusalem shall not fall into the power of the king of Assyria. You have learnt by now what the kings of Assyria have done to every country, putting them all under the ban. Are you likely to be spared?” For others, like the religious leaders of Israel, it could be due to fear, prejudice and blindness. For yet others, it could simply be due to ignorance and the lack of capacity to understand.
Does it mean then that Jesus is telling us to ignore them and let them go to their own perdition? Certainly not! What Jesus is telling us is the reality of the situation. In our goodwill to spread the Good News, to help people to walk the way of truth and lead them back to God, we will at times be met with rebuff, opposition and even persecution. Indeed, Jesus said, “they may trample them and then turn on you and tear you to pieces.” So we should not be surprised. If words cannot reach out to them because the intellect is weak and the mind is shallow, then we need to devise other means of proclaiming the Good News. Otherwise, whatever we say would simply be a waste of time because nothing is absorbed by them.
What, then, is a more effective way of transmitting the Good News? St Francis of Assisi reminded his disciples to preach the gospel, but he qualified it by saying, “only if necessary, use words!” Indeed, the best argument for the Good News is not what we say but how we live out our Christian life. Those whose minds are closed, we can at least find a way to their hearts. And the way to the hearts of people is always through a living witness of Christian life. When it comes to life and love, everyone can understand. No one can argue over it, unlike over words and doctrines. Silent witnessing in such a situation would be the most effective, a life of faith expressed in love, hope and compassion for others.
That is why Jesus invites us to be proactive in charity and compassion. He said, “So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the meaning of the Law and the Prophets.” In most religions and philosophy of life, we are taught “Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you.” This philosophy of life is inward-looking and negative. We are called not to hurt others so that we will not get hurt. This is basic human relationship which itself is good because at least we do not hurt our fellowmen. If every man were to practise this principle then there would be less evil and sin in the world. However, we can end up like the rich man in the gospel in his attitude towards Lazarus, the poor man. We can be oblivious to the sufferings of others. We might not do evil but this is insufficient.
We are called to do good, not just avoid evil. Hence, Jesus exhorts us to go beyond the negative form of the Golden Rule of life. We must be proactive in love and works of compassion. We must put ourselves in their shoes and if we could identify with them in their suffering or pain or poverty, then we would know what they need and how they want to be helped. In this way, we will do for them what we hope others will do for us if we were in their shoes, in other words, “Do to others what we would like others to do for us”. If all of us compete in serving, caring and looking after each other, this will be a happy world.
To identify ourselves with others in their suffering and privation, we need humility. King Hezekiah in the first reading demonstrated his humility before God. Although he was King, he recognized the Lordship of God. He did not supplant His position. He knew his finiteness and limitations. In the face of a possible onslaught by the Assyrians, he went down on his knees to pray to God for divine intervention and assistance. Truly, those who do not know their place in life will get hurt one day. The haughty and proud people will suffer a fall that they will not be able to take it. This is the strategy of the Evil One. He tempts us to self-conceit and smugness so that when we fall one day, the fall will be so hard that it breaks us completely because of shame and shock.
But for those of us who are conscious of our inadequacies and limitations in life, we turn to God in prayer. We must not ever think that people are converted to the Lord because of our ingenious presentation of the gospel through preaching, teaching, music and drama. This would be too egoistical of us. Rather, docility and reception of what we say is not dependent on the speaker or the listener, it depends on the Holy Spirit who opens the hearts of our listeners. Unless the Holy Spirit opens their minds and hearts, they would not be ready to receive our message, regardless how well it is communicated. We are only the voice of the Word of God, Christ our Teacher, but it is the inner teacher, the Holy Spirit that opens the hearts of our listeners. So, if we want to spread the Good News, we must pray for our listeners and audience. If we want to do all things well for the Lord, we must rely on the power of intercession and not just on human eloquence, preaching and programs. It is prayer and fasting that make the program fruitful. To take credit when people are touched by our words is to think that we are responsible for the conversion of others and not God Himself.
So today, we are asked to take the narrow path in the proclamation of the Good News. “Enter by the narrow gate, since the road that leads to perdition is wide and spacious, and many take it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” We need to follow the narrow gate which is that of Jesus. It calls for self-discipline. It calls for discipleship! We are to follow Jesus in humble service and compassion for others, especially those who are sick and those without proper food, accommodation and medical care. This is the narrow road that leads to life because if we follow the gospel and take the Word of our Lord seriously, then we will find our life more peaceful and joyful.
Unfortunately, many are not ready to enter by the narrow gate. We all want quick results and short-cuts. There are certain things that take time to develop. There are some forms of spirituality that promise us that we can reach the mystical stage of prayer without having the need to go through the ascetical and purgative stages of our prayer life. So what they offer is a pseudo-psychological peace, not the peace that comes from Christ who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Hence, we are called to enter the narrow gate, which means that we are willing to suffer, learn and grow. Discipleship requires perseverance and commitment. If we take the path of growing in discipleship through prayer, meditation and the study of the Word of God and then serving the poor and offering our service to the Church, the community or the nation, we will find life.
Indeed, the Lord will be on our side as He promised Hezekiah that the Lord would fight the battle for him. And indeed as prophesied, the King of Assyria did not enter the city. We read of the power of divine intervention, for on “that same night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. Sennacherib struck camp and left; he returned home and stayed in Nineveh.” So let us trust in the Lord and pray to Him like Hezekiah, not just in times of crisis but every day. We pray especially for the conversion of hearts, the conversion of our children and our spouse who have given up on God, the Church and on themselves. If a prophet is not accepted in his own country, and words cannot be used to proclaim the truth of God’s love, let our lives be a testimony of His love.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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