20220912 ARE YOU A PAGAN CATHOLIC?
12 September, 2022, Monday, 24th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
1 Corinthians 11:17-26,33 © |
If each one hurries to be first, it is not the Lord's Supper you are eating
On the subject of instructions, I cannot say that you have done well in holding meetings that do you more harm than good. In the first place, I hear that when you all come together as a community, there are separate factions among you, and I half believe it – since there must no doubt be separate groups among you, to distinguish those who are to be trusted. The point is, when you hold these meetings, it is not the Lord’s Supper that you are eating, since when the time comes to eat, everyone is in such a hurry to start his own supper that one person goes hungry while another is getting drunk. Surely you have homes for eating and drinking in? Surely you have enough respect for the community of God not to make poor people embarrassed? What am I to say to you? Congratulate you? I cannot congratulate you on this.
For this is what I received from the Lord, and in turn passed on to you: that on the same night that he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread, and thanked God for it and broke it, and he said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this as a memorial of me.’ In the same way he took the cup after supper, and said, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do this as a memorial of me.’ Until the Lord comes, therefore, every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are proclaiming his death. So to sum up, my dear brothers, when you meet for the Meal, wait for one another.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 39(40):7-10,17 © |
Proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings,
but an open ear.
You do not ask for holocaust and victim.
Instead, here am I.
Proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
In the scroll of the book it stands written
that I should do your will.
My God, I delight in your law
in the depth of my heart.
Proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
Your justice I have proclaimed
in the great assembly.
My lips I have not sealed;
you know it, O Lord.
Proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
O let there be rejoicing and gladness
for all who seek you.
Let them ever say: ‘The Lord is great’,
who love your saving help.
Proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:27 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Make me grasp the way of your precepts,
and I will muse on your wonders.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn3:16 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son:
everyone who believes in him has eternal life.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 7:1-10 © |
Give the word, and my servant will be healed
When Jesus had come to the end of all he wanted the people to hear, he went into Capernaum. A centurion there had a servant, a favourite of his, who was sick and near death. Having heard about Jesus he sent some Jewish elders to him to ask him to come and heal his servant. When they came to Jesus they pleaded earnestly with him. ‘He deserves this of you’ they said ‘because he is friendly towards our people; in fact, he is the one who built the synagogue.’ So Jesus went with them, and was not very far from the house when the centurion sent word to him by some friends: ‘Sir,’ he said ‘do not put yourself to trouble; because I am not worthy to have you under my roof; and for this same reason I did not presume to come to you myself; but give the word and let my servant be cured. For I am under authority myself, and have soldiers under me; and I say to one man: Go, and he goes; to another: Come here, and he comes; to my servant: Do this, and he does it.’ When Jesus heard these words he was astonished at him and, turning round, said to the crowd following him, ‘I tell you, not even in Israel have I found faith like this.’ And when the messengers got back to the house they found the servant in perfect health.
ARE YOU A PAGAN CATHOLIC?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 Cor 11:17-26, 33; Ps 40:7-10, 17; Luke 7:1-10]
In the gospel, we cannot but be inspired by the faith of the Centurion. He is a true model of a believer in God and in Christ. The Church even asks us all to repeat his words to the Lord at every Eucharistic celebration, “I am not worthy to have you under my roof but give the word and let my servant be cured.” Besides this centurion, it is quite significant that the bible gives us a few examples of other centurions who could inspire us in our faith life. We have the conversion of the Roman Centurion Cornelius who received the Holy Spirit even before he was baptized. (cf Acts 10) Then we have the confession of faith of the centurion at the foot of the cross. “Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!” (Mt 27:54)
What is the reason for the gospel giving us so many examples of centurions who were supposedly pagan and enemies of the Jews yet very much Christian at heart? The answer is clear. This is to provide a scandalous contrast between so called pagans, whom we think are not saved, and ourselves, so called believers and baptized Christians when in truth our hearts and minds are pagan, unconverted, selfish and inward-looking. And there are many of these baptized pagans in our Christian communities!
Let us examine how the Centurion showed himself to be a real Catholic and Christian at heart.
Firstly, he was a true Christian because we read that he was a man of great compassion and love, especially for those who were suffering. He had “a servant, a favourite of his, who was sick and near death. Having heard about Jesus he sent some Jewish elders to him to ask him to come and heal his servant.” He was only a servant; yet he treated him the way he would have treated his own son. For him, the servant was not a worker or a machine or a slave. The servant was a human being with feelings and needs like everyone, for food, lodging, respect, love, security, acceptance and good health. The centurion regarded him as a human being worthy of being loved as his own. Such was the great love of the centurion, like the way our Heavenly Father loves us and calls us all His children. (cf 1 Jn 3:1f)
Secondly, he was a true Catholic because his love was all embracing. Although a Roman soldier, he had deep love for the Jews as well. He did not behave like a conqueror and the Jews as prisoners or subjects. His love extended beyond the confines of his household, his own country, to all. He regarded all of them well. He even built for them a synagogue when he was not a Jew or a believer! Such was his all-embracing love for all, regardless of race, language or religion. His love was universal and this is what it means to be Catholic!
Thirdly, he was a man filled with the Holy Spirit because he exhibited the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The gifts of humility, faith, hope, tolerance, kindness, generosity and love were found in him. He was truly humble. He sincerely felt that he was not good enough to have Jesus come to his house. This was what he said to Jesus, “for this same reason I did not presume to come to you myself.” He did not feel that he was worthy to even approach Jesus directly. His love for his servant was so great that he did not mind lowering himself to ask his friends to approach Jesus for help.
He was a man of great sensitivity and respect for others. He was very conscious of the rituals and customs of the Jews. Instead of doing what he liked in his position of authority and power, He was sensitive to Jesus and considerate of the culture and sentiments of the Jews. He did not wish to oblige Jesus to enter into his house because he was fully aware that Jews could not enter the house of pagans.
Most of all, he was a man of great faith in the Lord. He told the Lord, “For I am under authority myself, and have soldiers under me; and I say to one man: Go, and he goes; to another: Come here, and he comes; to my servant: Do this, and he does it.” Thus, the centurion was saying to Jesus, because of the divine authority vested on you, just say the word and it would be done. The evangelist remarked, “When Jesus heard these words he was astonished at him and, turning round, said to the crowd following him, ‘I tell you, not even in Israel have I found faith like this’. And when the messengers got back to the house they found the servant in perfect health.”
In the light of what we have said about this centurion, we can appreciate why he endeared himself not only to the Jews and the synagogue leaders but especially to Jesus. Even though he was not a believer, or a Christian, or a Jew, yet his life reflected one who knew God and had deep faith in Him. Indeed, he puts us all so-called believers of Christ to shame. We do not possess his virtues of humility, faith and display the kind of unselfish, inclusive love and compassion he had for others. Many of us behave like the early Christians during the time of St Paul in the first reading. We behave like pagan Christians because what we believe and celebrate is not how we live. We are a contradiction and a counter witness to the Lord.
In what ways are we betraying the Lord today, just like Judas at the Last Supper? The words of the institution should challenge us to examine ourselves in the way we live out the Eucharist that we celebrate. “For this is what I received from the Lord, and in turn passed on to you: that on the same night that he was betrayed …” In what ways are we guilty of making a mockery of our faith, especially in the Holy Eucharist, which is the summit of our faith in Christ, celebrating His passion, death and resurrection.
Firstly, on the ecclesial dimension, if we are true believers of the Lord and true worshippers of the Eucharist as the Real Presence of our Lord, His body and blood, then all the more, we should have special reverence for members of His body the Church. Jesus is the Head and we are His mystical body. There can be no head without the body and there can be no body without the head because Christ and man are one. So if, like the early Church, we live a life that has no thought for our fellow brothers and sisters, then we are not truly worshipping our Lord in the Eucharist. Our brothers and sisters, baptized or otherwise, are our brothers and sisters in the Lord because they are children of God. So if we truly love the Lord in the Eucharist, then we must revere the Lord in the members of His body, the Church. Each human being is as sacred as the Eucharist we worship.
The love for the Eucharist is always very much related to our compassion and love, especially for the poor and the marginalized. We cannot worship the Eucharist apart from the community and apart from love. This was what St Paul was reprimanding the early Christians, especially those were rich and better off. Those who were labourers had to work late, and by the time they came for the Eucharistic meal, there was no more food left. Those who were rich did not bother to wait for the rest to turn up before breaking bread, or even leave some food for them. This could be the case for us as well when in our policies or decisions we do not take into consideration those who are not as fortunate as others.
Compassion and love also means sensitivity. Like the Centurion, we need to be sensitive to each other’s culture and sentiments. In each community and more so today, we need to live with each other and embrace each other’s culture. But this has to be done in a sensitive manner, taking into consideration the feelings of others. There are different levels of sensitivity where it pertains to religious preferences, culture, social status, intellectual capacity, language, etc. So we must be careful that we do not impose our culture and preferences on others; or be intolerant of them, especially those who are in the minority. Those in the minority must equally be sensitive to the larger interests of the community and hence be discreet in promoting their own culture and religious inclinations. At the end of the day, we need to exercise tolerance, patience and accommodate each other as no community is perfect.
Christians must always remember that we are a community. Parochial-mindedness is always a threat to the unity of the Church at every level. Church organizations often operate as if they are independent of the entire parish. They are only concerned about their members’ interests and the name of their organization. They do not work with other organizations and together with the parish as one body with many parts. Such factionalism is still prevalent in our churches. This is also true on the archdiocesan level where parishes function independently of the archdiocese and do not support archdiocesan programs and organizations which are meant to serve the larger interests of the entire Christian family, regardless whether it is youth, family, schools, media, migrants, administration.
Indeed, if we truly want to be Christian and live out the exemplary faith of the Centurion, we need to take the Eucharist seriously; not just as a perfunctory ritual we go through. Such an attitude towards the Eucharist cannot save us. We are called to conduct our lives in accordance with the example the Lord has set for us.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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