20230213 REJECTING THE GRACE OF GOD AS THE ROOT CAUSE OF SINS
13 February 2023 Monday, 6th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Genesis 4:1-15,25 © |
The mark of Cain
The man had intercourse with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. ‘I have acquired a man with the help of the Lord’ she said. She gave birth to a second child, Abel, the brother of Cain. Now Abel became a shepherd and kept flocks, while Cain tilled the soil. Time passed and Cain brought some of the produce of the soil as an offering for the Lord, while Abel for his part brought the first-born of his flock and some of their fat as well. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering. But he did not look with favour on Cain and his offering, and Cain was very angry and downcast. The Lord asked Cain, ‘Why are you angry and downcast? If you are well disposed, ought you not to lift up your head? But if you are ill disposed, is not sin at the door like a crouching beast hungering for you, which you must master?’ Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out’; and while they were in the open country, Cain set on his brother Abel and killed him.
The Lord asked Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ ‘I do not know’ he replied. ‘Am I my brother’s guardian?’ ‘What have you done?’ the Lord asked. ‘Listen to the sound of your brother’s blood, crying out to me from the ground. Now be accursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood at your hands. When you till the ground it shall no longer yield you any of its produce. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth.’ Then Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear. See! Today you drive me from this ground. I must hide from you, and be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth. Why, whoever comes across me will kill me!’ ‘Very well, then,’ the Lord replied ‘if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken for him.’ So the Lord put a mark on Cain, to prevent whoever might come across him from striking him down.
Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she gave birth to a son whom she named Seth, ‘because God has granted me other offspring’ she said ‘in place of Abel, since Cain has killed him.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 49(50):1,8,16-17,20-21 © |
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
The God of gods, the Lord,
has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
‘I find no fault with your sacrifices,
your offerings are always before me.’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘But how can you recite my commandments
and take my covenant on your lips,
you who despise my law
and throw my words to the winds?
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
‘You who sit and malign your brother
and slander your own mother’s son.
You do this, and should I keep silence?
Do you think that I am like you?’
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps94:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn14:6 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Mark 8:11-13 © |
No sign shall be given to this generation
The Pharisees came up and started a discussion with Jesus; they demanded of him a sign from heaven, to test him. And with a sigh that came straight from the heart he said, ‘Why does this generation demand a sign? I tell you solemnly, no sign shall be given to this generation.’ And leaving them again and re-embarking, he went away to the opposite shore.
REJECTING THE GRACE OF GOD AS THE ROOT CAUSE OF SINS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [GEN 4:1-25; PS 50:1,8, 16-17,20-21; MARK 8:11-13]
The grace of God is a real dilemma for humanity. Yet it is a reality. Many of us are resentful of God, life and the world because we feel that God is not fair. We see the inequalities of human beings, some are better off; some are less fortunate; some are more talented and gifted than others. Why does God not give equally to all? Why is there this discrepancy? In contrast, the justice of the world is based on pure merit. You are paid according to what you do. If you can do a better job than others, you will be paid more. At the end of the day, workers are appraised and given bonuses and promotion depending on their performance.
But this is not the way of God. He loves us all. He blesses us not according to our merits but because of His love for us. Before God, we cannot make any demands because He provides us with everything. We have nothing to claim from Him. He is not our debtor. Everything we have comes from God and there is nothing that is not His. That is why we are called to offer sacrifices to the Lord to remind us that all we have comes from Him. Whether we are farmers or shepherds, like Cain and Abel, we are called to offer a perfect sacrifice to God. Our responsorial psalm invites us, “Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God.”
This precisely was the problem with Cain. He could not accept that God favoured Abel’s offering more than his. The story does not give us the reasons for God’s rejection of Cain’s sacrifice. The point that the author wants to make is that God is free to choose and elect the people that He has called to help Him in unfolding the plan of salvation. St Paul reminds us that “God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” (1 Cor 1:28f)
The rejection of God’s grace and wanting things our way is always the root cause of sin. It was the same for Adam and Eve. God wanted them to share in His life and love. But they wanted to be like God without God. The serpent said to the woman, “You will not die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Gn 3:4f) When man insists on having things his way, instead of being receptive to the grace of God, he lends himself to the temptations of the Evil One. Cain was too proud to accept God’s decision. When he was angry with God for not accepting his sacrifice, the sin of envy overcame him. This was the same sin of the Pharisees in Jesus’ time. Earlier on, Jesus had just performed the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves. Yet, immediately after the miracle, they could come to Jesus and ask Him for a sign from heaven. Jesus felt so exasperated at their stubbornness and lack of docility that, “With a sigh that came straight from the heart he said, ‘Why does this generation demand a sign? I tell you solemnly, no sign shall be given to this generation.'”
But the truth is that one sin leads to another. This explains why the Lord warned Cain, sin is “at the door like a crouching beast hungering for you.” From pride, it led to anger, envy and eventually killing. When our anger and envy have control over us, we become their slaves. The Pharisees, like Cain, allowed the sin of pride and envy to overcome them so that they could not see that the sign they were asking for was already given in the miracles and especially in the multiplication of loaves, the reenactment of the manna given to the people in the desert by Moses. Like Cain, they too allowed their pride and envy to be their master, resulting in the death of Jesus.
So what must we do in order to be happy in life? We must not grudge the generosity of God. We will never understand the wisdom of God’s plan because it is beyond us. In faith, we must accept the situation we are in and make the best of it. If only Cain had offered the perfect sacrifice of thanksgiving, he would have been happy, and God would have been happy with him too. He should have been grateful for the blessings he already had instead of begrudging God for showing favour to his brother. Instead of looking at himself, his eyes were on his brother. Perhaps the reason why his gift was rejected was because he did not give the best of what he had. We read that “Cain brought some of the produce of the soil as an offering for the Lord, while Abel for his part brought the first-born of his flock and some of their fat as well.” Abel gave the best portion but Cain only took some of his produce. He lacked gratitude and a spirit of thanksgiving.
Let us be content that whatever God gives us is sufficient for us to be happy in life. It does not mean that if we are somebody influential or powerful or famous in the world, then we could be happy. On the contrary, such people often carry with them tons of problems, worries, anxieties and fear. They are seldom at peace because they have so many competitors and opponents. They cannot sleep properly because of their responsibilities and the many problems they have to solve. Their life is nothing more than fighting with their enemies, competing with others each day. They do not even have time to enjoy life, be with their family or spend time with their children. Wherever God puts us, that is where we must find happiness. Anything else comes from the Evil One. St James wrote, “What causes wars, and what causes fighting among you? Is it not your passions that are at war in your members? You desire and do not have; so you kill. And you covet and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage war.” (Jms 4:1f)
We must also be happy for those who are blessed. This is what St Paul urges us. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; never be conceited.” (Rom 12:15f) Unlike Cain, we must declare that we are our brother’s keeper. We are called to rejoice and celebrate with them. The perfect sacrifice of thanksgiving is to love and care for our brothers. This is what the Lord said, “But how can you recite my commandments and take my covenant on your lips, you who despise my law and throw my words to the winds? You who sit and malign your brother and slander your own mother’s son! You do this, and should I keep silence? Do you think that I am like you?”
We must not imitate Cain who chose to find happiness in his own way. He thought that by killing Abel, he would no longer be anxious or jealous anymore. But evil is in the heart as Jesus taught us. “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.” (Mk 7:21) With the killing of Abel, the consequences of sin caught up with him. For fear of his own life, he was forced to flee and be a fugitive. Adam and Eve were driven out of paradise; now Cain is driven out a second time from the earth. “Listen to the sound of your brother’s blood, crying out to me from the ground. Now be accursed and driven from the ground that has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood at your hands. When you till the ground it shall no longer yield you any of its produce. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer over the earth.”
Yet at the end of the day, grace triumphs! Even when man turns against His grace, God continues to grace us with His love and mercy. In the case of Adam and Eve, even with punishment, there is the promise of salvation. So too when Cain’s life was threatened, God would not allow Cain to be killed. God does not permit revenge and the taking of life. Instead, God assured him of His divine forgiveness, forbearance and mercy. The Lord replied “if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken for him.’ So the Lord put a mark on Cain, to prevent whoever might come across him from striking him down.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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