20230219 WITNESSING BY A LIFE OF FORGIVENESS AND CHARITY
9 February 2023 Sunday, 7th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Leviticus 19:1-2,17-18 © |
You must love your neighbour as yourself
The Lord spoke to Moses; he said: ‘Speak to the whole community of the sons of Israel and say to them:
‘“Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.
‘“You must not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. You must openly tell him, your neighbour, of his offence; this way you will not take a sin upon yourself. You must not exact vengeance, nor must you bear a grudge against the children of your people. You must love your neighbour as yourself. I am the Lord.”’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 102(103):1-4,8,10,12-13 © |
The Lord is compassion and love.
My soul, give thanks to the Lord
all my being, bless his holy name.
My soul, give thanks to the Lord
and never forget all his blessings.
The Lord is compassion and love.
It is he who forgives all your guilt,
who heals every one of your ills,
who redeems your life from the grave,
who crowns you with love and compassion.
The Lord is compassion and love.
The Lord is compassion and love,
slow to anger and rich in mercy.
He does not treat us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our faults.
The Lord is compassion and love.
As far as the east is from the west
so far does he remove our sins.
As a father has compassion on his sons,
the Lord has pity on those who fear him.
The Lord is compassion and love.
Second reading |
1 Corinthians 3:16-23 © |
You belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God
Didn’t you realise that you were God’s temple and that the Spirit of God was living among you? If anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy him, because the temple of God is sacred; and you are that temple.
Make no mistake about it: if any one of you thinks of himself as wise, in the ordinary sense of the word, then he must learn to be a fool before he really can be wise. Why? Because the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As scripture says: The Lord knows wise men’s thoughts: he knows how useless they are; or again: God is not convinced by the arguments of the wise. So there is nothing to boast about in anything human: Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life and death, the present and the future, are all your servants; but you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God.
Gospel Acclamation | Jn14:23 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
If anyone loves me he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we shall come to him.
Alleluia!
Or: | 1Jn2:5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Whenever anyone obeys what Christ has said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 5:38-48 © |
Love your enemies
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away.
‘You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’
WITNESSING BY A LIFE OF FORGIVENESS AND CHARITY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [LEV 19:1-2,17-18; PS 103:1-4,8,10,12-13; 1 COR 3:16-23; MT 5:38-48]
Baptism is a call to holiness and to live out the sermon on the mount. To be holy means to be separated from the world. This does not mean that we withdraw from the world but that we do not imbibe in the values promoted by the world, such as secularism, individualism, self-centeredness, consumerism, moral relativism, seeking for power, glory, honour and pleasure as the goals of life. In this world because people are selfish and self-centred. They tend to defend their interests and grab as much as they can for themselves, even unjustly and unscrupulously. Man wants to enjoy himself, satisfy his sensual and physical needs. He is afraid of pain, suffering and sacrifices. But life is not about living for ourselves but for others, how we can help to make this world a happier, peaceful and loving place.
To be a Christian means that we want to become holy. It is within this context that today’s scripture readings must be understood. We are called to holiness and perfection in life. This perfection does not mean that we are free from all imperfections and sins and so become like God. Rather, perfection lies in growing in authentic love and service of our fellowmen, especially for strangers and our enemies, which include our loved ones whom we cannot get along with, our own family members and community. Holiness is to be perfected in love and compassion for our brothers and sisters. This is what the Lord meant when He said, “You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Among all the virtues which distinguish us Christians from others is forgiveness and love of enemies. All religions speak about love and compassion. Christianity speaks about forgiveness. We all seek justice. This desire for justice is in the DNA of every human being. The bible is full of cries seeking justice from the poor, the oppressed, the innocent and the vulnerable, especially widows and orphans. But as Christians, we are not only called to love those who love us, as the Lord said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not?”
This loving disposition towards our enemies differentiates us from the world. If you want to know how strong you are, ask yourself whether you can forgive freely. Only a strong person can forgive those who have hurt him or her and will not take revenge. The first reading from Leviticus says, “You must not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. You must not exact vengeance, nor must you bear a grudge against the children of your people.” Bearing hatred and taking revenge is not living according to what God is asking of us. Indeed, any form of retaliation is against the teaching of the gospel. The responsorial psalm asks us to imitate God for “the Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy. He does not treat us according to our sins nor repay us according to our faults.”
But that does not stop us from seeking justice. God is not asking us to turn a blind eye to injustice in the world. Failure to do so will result in the perpetuation of injustice, and the failure to correct our errant brothers is an act of injustice against him. We should not seek revenge, but we should right what is wrong and not be silent when injustices are committed, especially against those who are vulnerable and weak. Without doing anything, we will only be accomplices of the injustice committed by others. This is why the book of Leviticus says, “You must openly tell him, your neighbour, of his offence; this way you will not take a sin upon yourself.” Just as Jesus told Pilate, “For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” (Jn 18:37) In the Beatitude, Jesus taught, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 5:10)
But we do not seek justice by committing another act of injustice, in other words, by taking revenge against our enemies. As St Paul says, “So there is nothing to boast about in anything human: Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life and death, the present and the future, are all your servants; but you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God.” We all belong to God and we are God’s children even when we are sinners because we are created in His image and likeness. Jesus made it clear, “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike.”
The only right approach to seeking justice is as the Lord asks of us; to use non-violence, compassion and forgiveness to win over our enemies. Concretely, Jesus is suggesting that instead of seeking revenge, “offer the wicked man no resistance.” Through non-violence and love, we can eventually win over the most hard-hearted people around us. Love is stronger than hatred. Love is stronger than death. Jesus is asking us to be different from the world. This is why Jesus died on the cross and won for us our salvation. It is His death that assures us that God loves us so much that our sins are forgiven. It is His death that makes His resurrection and ours possible.
Of course, the way of the Lord is foolishness to the world. St Paul himself noted, “The wisdom of this world is foolishness to God.” Truly, to act in this manner is contrary to the way the world would act. But to be a Christian means that we are different. We are called to be holy for the Lord our God is holy. To be holy is to reflect the goodness and mercy of God. Like Christ who suffered innocently for us for our salvation, we too are called to suffer for the conversion of our enemies and for sinners in general, through our compassion, patience, love, tolerance and forgiveness.
Indeed, like the psalmist, we must proclaim, “The Lord is compassion and love. It is he who forgives all your guilt, who heals every one of your ills, who redeems your life from the grave, who crowns you with love and compassion. The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy. He does not treat us according to our sins nor repay us according to our faults. As far as the east is from the west so far does he remove our sins.”
But we can do this only if we contemplate on the face of Christ, on His life, passion, death and resurrection. Unless, we come to know Jesus more and love Him, we will not be able to imitate Him. Only in Christ, can we find the strength to love our enemies. We need to build up the Temple of the Holy Spirit, as individuals whom the Holy Spirit dwells in us and as a Church. St Paul warns us, “If anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy him, because the temple of God is sacred; and you are that temple.” We need to ask Christ to pour out in us the Spirit of His love.
This means that we need to continue to grow in holiness through a deepening of our spiritual life, a deeper love for the Word of God, a greater understanding of the sacraments we receive for our spiritual growth and, most of all, a deeper union with the Body of Christ. We need to grow in holiness through our connection with the Church, especially by being united with our brothers and sisters. I pray that we will never journey alone. Only then, can we shine forth in our life by our holiness of life, our love for your neighbours and our enemies so that others can see the Christ in us. This is what it means to be marked in Christ through the chrism we have received. We are called to be Christ and a sign of contradiction to the world.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment