20220723 THE CHURCH A REFUGE FOR SINNERS
23 July, 2022, Saturday, 16th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading | Jeremiah 7:1-11 © |
Reform your behaviour and I will stay here with you, says the Lord
The word that was addressed to Jeremiah by the Lord:
‘Go and stand at the gate of the Temple of the Lord and there proclaim this message. Say, “Listen to the word of the Lord, all you men of Judah who come in by these gates to worship the Lord. The Lord Sabaoth, the God of Israel, says this: Amend your behaviour and your actions and I will stay with you here in this place. Put no trust in delusive words like these: This is the sanctuary of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Lord! But if you do amend your behaviour and your actions, if you treat each other fairly, if you do not exploit the stranger, the orphan and the widow (if you do not shed innocent blood in this place), and if you do not follow alien gods, to your own ruin, then here in this place I will stay with you, in the land that long ago I gave to your fathers for ever. Yet here you are, trusting in delusive words, to no purpose! Steal, would you, murder, commit adultery, perjure yourselves, burn incense to Baal, follow alien gods that you do not know? – and then come presenting yourselves in this Temple that bears my name, saying: Now we are safe – safe to go on committing all these abominations! Do you take this Temple that bears my name for a robbers’ den? I, at any rate, am not blind – it is the Lord who speaks.”’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 83(84):3-6,8,11 © |
How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.
My soul is longing and yearning,
is yearning for the courts of the Lord.
My heart and my soul ring out their joy
to God, the living God.
How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.
The sparrow herself finds a home
and the swallow a nest for her brood;
she lays her young by your altars,
Lord of hosts, my king and my God.
How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.
They are happy, who dwell in your house,
for ever singing your praise.
They walk with ever-growing strength,
they will see the God of gods in Zion.
How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.
One day within your courts
is better than a thousand elsewhere.
The threshold of the house of God
I prefer to the dwellings of the wicked.
How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.
Gospel Acclamation | Heb4:12 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
The word of God is something alive and active:
it can judge secret emotions and thoughts.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jm1:21 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Accept and submit to the word
which has been planted in you
and can save your souls.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 13:24-30 © |
Let them both grow till the harvest
Jesus put another parable before the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’
THE CHURCH A REFUGE FOR SINNERS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [JER 7:1-11; MT 13:24-30]
Many of us hold this erroneous idea that the Church is already the Kingdom of God, where God’s rule of love and justice has been established in the hearts of all Christians. Consequently, they are easily scandalized and become disillusioned when they see the failures in the lives of their fellow Christians and worst still, when they hear of the scandals committed by Church leaders, clerical, religious or lay. In their understanding, all Christians must be loving, caring, forgiving, righteous and holy people.
Of course, we know that this is not the reality. Those who advocate such a view must first begin with themselves to see how good, holy and righteous a Christian he or she is. In the gospel, Jesus reminds us, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Mt 7:1f) Again Jesus said, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.” (Jn 8:7) Either we are blind to our own sins or are so self-righteous that we cannot see that we are part of the sinfulness in the community of Christ’s Church.
Indeed, Vatican II in the “Constitution of the Church” describes the Church as the budding of the Kingdom of God but is not yet identified with it. “When Jesus, who had suffered the death of the cross for mankind, had risen, He appeared as the one constituted as Lord, Christ and eternal Priest, and He poured out on His disciples the Spirit promised by the Father. From this source the Church, equipped with the gifts of its Founder and faithfully guarding His precepts of charity, humility and self-sacrifice, receives the mission to proclaim and to spread among all peoples the Kingdom of Christ and of God and to be, on earth, the initial budding forth of that kingdom. While it slowly grows, the Church strains toward the completed Kingdom and, with all its strength, hopes and desires to be united in glory with its King.” (Lumen Gentium, 5)
So we should expect the Church in the present time to be a pilgrim Church where it is comprised of sinners seeking to become saints. All of us are in various stages of spiritual growth in the Church. There are those who are not yet baptized but are still searching for the truth. Those who are newly baptized are still immature in the faith. They are still learning how to be good Catholics. There are the old Catholics who have lost their zeal because of routine and negligence in the practice of their faith. There are those who are superstitious and keep the faith out of fear for their well-being and the judgement to come. Many are living a double life, on one hand, sincerely wanting to follow the gospel way of life but on the other hand are tempted and torn by the daily pressures and challenges of life. Many more are carrying their old wounds in their past lives and cannot let go of the past. They remain prisoners of the Old Adam. Of course, there are also many who have sought to live a holy and righteous life, but they also know that they are far from the Seventh Castle of St Teresa of Avila. As Jesus said, “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (Jn 15:2)
This is what the scripture readings seek to highlight to us. This is what the Lord wants to teach us in the parable of the Wheat and the Darnel. “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep, his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well.”
So what should we do? Believers in the Church must address this question, “Do you want us to weed it out?” The answer of our Lord is clear. “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow until the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.” In other words, we must allow good and evil to co-exist in this world. This is the arena in which both sinners are brought to repentance and the good are purified further in love and holiness. If we were to get rid of sinners, we would hamper their conversion and the deepening of the faith of those who are seeking to be faithful to Christ.
The truth is that we are all rough diamonds. We need to rub against each other in order to be polished. So too in life, it is in the interaction of good and evil that both sides are converted. It is the ongoing tension, the battle between good and evil that is played out all the time, both within the heart of each individual and in society. Only when we relate with each other can the true character of a person come to light. Whether we are humble, tolerant, forgiving, accommodating, sensitive, generous, positive and inclusive is revealed when we are challenged in daily life situations. If we only live with people who share our values and views, life is certainly more comfortable, but we will never stretch ourselves to the fullest. Whether we like it or not, growth is only possible in trials.
This explains why God does not remove all evil from society and from the Church. God permits Satan to tempt men so that we will have the opportunity to prove ourselves and to grow in humility, self-awareness and in love. In tempting us, the devil is unwittingly cooperating with God in purifying the love of His people for Him. So we too must see the weaknesses and sinfulness of our fellow Christians as occasions for us to be purified in love and in grace. Instead of looking at their sins, as many often do, and end up being judgmental, we should instead be looking at our own sins and, most of all, the grace and mercy of God for us all, His patience and forgiveness.
There is a story of someone who complained to the pastor and told him that she was leaving the Church. The pastor was silent and then asked, “Why?” She answered, because she was irritated and annoyed by the behaviour of the church members. They are talking in church, using their digital devices, gossiping, etc. Then the pastor told her if it were possible, to hold two glasses full of water and walk round the church without spilling the water. When she returned, the pastor asked her, “Did you see anyone using the digital devices or hear people gossiping?” She said, “No, I was too absorbed trying not to spill the water.” Then the pastor told her, “You should do the same as well. Instead of looking at others, you should be focusing on God. If you are absorbed in worshipping the Lord, then we won’t be distracted by what others do. We are here to look at God and not at others!”
Indeed, rather than focusing on the sins of the Church, we must focus on God’s mercy and His gracious love for His people, in forgiving us, in tolerating us, and in accepting us, unworthy as we are in our meagre and weak attempts to be true to Him. We must bear with the presence of evil and sin in our community and in society. It is God’s grace that will change us. We should take heart that His grace is working, often imperceptibly, in our lives.
However, this does not mean we do nothing. We must also cooperate with His grace. We must not fall into the same mistake of the Israelites in the first reading. They were committing all kinds of sins, theft, murder, adultery, idolatry but took comfort that God would surely protect them because God’s presence in the Temple of Jerusalem would shield them from all harm. This was what Jeremiah was trying to debunk from the thoughts of the Judeans. “Put no trust in delusive words like these: This is the sanctuary of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Lord! Now we are safe – safe to go on committing all these abominations! Do you take this Temple that bears my name for a robbers’ den?”
Jeremiah warned the people as he warns us all about being superstitious in our faith. Just by relying on some sacred objects, whether it is a temple, church, holy picture, scapular or holy water will not save us from harm unless we are sincerely repentant and desire to live the life of Christ. We are to heed the words of Jeremiah, “If you do amend your behaviour and your actions, if you treat each other fairly, if you do not shed innocent blood in this place), and if you do not follow alien gods, to your own ruin, then here in this place I will stay with you, in the land that long ago I gave to your father forever.” Just because we are baptized does not mean that we are saved, unless we live out our baptismal promises.
So let us not be deceived by such delusions and false teachings of the world. We must be alert to what wheat is and what darnel is. They look alike but there is a world of difference. So too, let us keep our eyes open and be discerning in what is happening in our lives and in the world today so that we will not be deluded in making choices in life. We must always check the fruits of what we do and what the world proposes. This is the only way to tell whether they are wheat or darnel. As Jesus said, “By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.” (Mt 7:16f) Let us not be discouraged when we see sins in our community but let each one of us show the way by living an exemplary life so that we can overcome evil with good by edifying each other in the gospel life.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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