20231012 THE DILEMMA OF BEING GOOD WHEN EVIL PEOPLE PROSPER
12 October 2023, Thursday, 27th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading | Malachi 3:13-20 © |
The day that is coming will burn up the wicked
You say harsh things about me, says the Lord. You ask, ‘What have we said against you?’ You say, ‘It is useless to serve God; what is the good of keeping his commands or of walking mournfully before the Lord of Hosts? Now we have reached the point when we call the arrogant blessed; yes, they prosper, these evil-doers; they try God’s patience and yet go free.’ This is what those who fear the Lord used to say to one another. But the Lord took note and heard them: a book of remembrance was written in his presence recording those who fear him and take refuge in his name. On the day which I am preparing, says the Lord of Hosts, they are going to be my own special possession. I will make allowances for them as a man makes allowances for the son who obeys him. Then once again you will see the difference between an upright man and a wicked one, between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve him. For the day is coming now, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and the evil-doers will be like stubble. The day that is coming is going to burn them up, says the Lord of Hosts, leaving them neither root nor stalk. But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will shine out with healing in its rays.
Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 1:1-4,6 © |
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Happy indeed is the man
who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners
nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord
and who ponders his law day and night.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
He is like a tree that is planted
beside the flowing waters,
that yields its fruit in due season
and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Not so are the wicked, not so!
For they like winnowed chaff
shall be driven away by the wind:
for the Lord guards the way of the just
but the way of the wicked leads to doom.
Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | 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!
Or: | cf.Ac16:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open our heart, O Lord,
to accept the words of your Son.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 11:5-13 © |
Ask, and it will be given to you
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him in the middle of the night to say, “My friend, lend me three loaves, because a friend of mine on his travels has just arrived at my house and I have nothing to offer him”; and the man answers from inside the house, “Do not bother me. The door is bolted now, and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up to give it you.” I tell you, if the man does not get up and give it him for friendship’s sake, persistence will be enough to make him get up and give his friend all he wants.
‘So I say to you: Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. What father among you would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or hand him a snake instead of a fish? Or hand him a scorpion if he asked for an egg? If you then, who are evil, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’
THE DILEMMA OF BEING GOOD WHEN EVIL PEOPLE PROSPER
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Malachi 3:13-20; Ps 1:1-4,6; Lk 11:5-13]
Is it that those who are upright and pure in heart will be blessed by God? The psalmist says, “Happy indeed is the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked; nor lingers in the way of sinners nor sits in the company of scorners, but whose delight is the law of the Lord and who ponders his law day and night. He is like a tree that is planted beside the flowing waters, that yields its fruit in due season and whose leaves shall never fade; and all that he does shall prosper. Not so are the wicked, not so! For they like winnowed chaff shall be driven away by the wind. For the Lord guards the way of the just but the way of the wicked leads to doom.”
But the truth is that in life, it does not always pay to be good, generous, kind and giving. Indeed, contrary to the claims of the psalmist, many of us experience just the opposite. We see the wicked prosper, the good suffer; the arrogant get what they want, the humble are marginalized; the liars and traitors are rewarded; and the honest and sincere are taken advantage of. This was how another psalmist felt. “For I was envious of the arrogant; I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pain; their bodies are sound and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are; they are not plagued like other people. Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them like a garment. Such are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches.” (Ps 73:3-6,12)
This was how the faithful remnant of Israel felt as well in today’s first reading. They lamented and complained to God for not treating them well as promised. They said, “It is useless to serve God; what is the good of keeping his commands or of walking mournfully before the Lord of Hosts? Now we have reached the point when we call the arrogant blessed; yes, they prosper, these evil-doers; they try God’s patience and yet go free.” Indeed, when we see wicked, selfish, evil, arrogant and dishonest people prosper, whereas we who live an honest and God-fearing life suffer, we begin to wonder whether we should join them instead because being good does not do us good!
This is where we lack wisdom because we are looking at the surface of things, people and situations. We lack wisdom and understanding, like the psalmist who thought that way recounted, “My feet had almost stumbled; my steps had nearly slipped.” (Ps 73:2) The truth is that what we see externally may look good but if we go to the depth of the reality, what appears to be blessings for the wicked are actually curses; and what are woes for those who act justly are actually blessings in disguise. “Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes; on awaking you despise their phantoms.” (Ps 73:18-20)
Indeed, the riches and apparent blessings of the wicked are like phantoms. They do not last. Those who are dishonest in their dealings with others might be able to make ill-gotten riches, but they have no peace in their hearts and minds. Whatever they have, they know deep in their hearts these do not belong to them. When we spend illicit money that are not ours, we can eat nice foods but we cannot enjoy; we can lie in comfortable beds but cannot sleep; we can go on holidays but our minds are not at peace. We are afraid that one day, the law will catch up with us. We will be punished and go to jail eventually.
Those of us who are powerful because we manipulated people to get promoted and recognized will eventually be played out by their competitors and enemies. Others will covet our position and power. We in turn will be manipulated by others on their way to the top. So those who are powerful are weak because they depend on people who can support them to remain in power. As a consequence, powerful people are actually slaves to those who put them in power. They have to buy their hearts and often use their position to help their supporters get what they want. They have to return gratitude for the help they got. So even powerful and influential people have no real freedom. They live in fear that someone else will take their place. Hence, they have no real friends because all are potential enemies. Their relationships are superficial. They trust no one because they are afraid to be vulnerable. They live lonely lives. They may appear to have many friends but most are fair-weather friends. They come to them only to look for favours.
Those of us who are rich and have much wealth will also have no peace. We are worried about preserving our wealth and growing them. We will need to think how to protect the value of our money. Otherwise, when we get old, we need to think of how to dispose of our wealth properly. If we have family members, they will be fighting over our property and wanting us to give them something before we leave this world. But because we are selfish and insecure, we hold on to our money. By the time we want to give away, those who receive them eventually will not be grateful because they know we cannot bring our wealth with us. Indeed, the rich also have few true friends because people come to them only for money not for themselves.
Indeed, what we sow is what we reap in life. This is what St Paul wrote, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.” (Gal 6:7-10) If we sow evil, we will reap evil eventually, even if not in this life, it will be in the next life. No one can escape the retribution of God. Even if we do not suffer personally, we will suffer by seeing our loved ones suffer on account of our bad examples and wicked life. They will imitate us and suffer the same fate.
That is why we must always seek true wisdom to look at life not in the way worldly people see life, in terms of material success, power and fame, but as godly people see life in terms of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Gal 5:22f) The way of the world only brings “fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal 5:19-21)
This godly wisdom can only be found when we acquire the Spirit of God at prayer. This is why in the gospel the Lord invites us to pray. “Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. What father among you would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or hand him a snake instead of a fish? Or hand him a scorpion if he asked for an egg?” Only in prayer, through persistent reflection and patient listening to the voice of God, can we make a distinction between real bread from a stone, real fish from a snake, real egg from a scorpion. This is the advice of the psalmist as well. “But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end.” (Ps 73:16)
God wants to give us the best things in life, which is peace, love and joy in the Holy Spirit. Indeed, St Paul said, “For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Rom 14:17) That is why the Lord said, “If you then, who are evil, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Most of all, Malachi says, our names will be written in the book of life. “The Lord took note and heard them: a book of remembrance was written in his presence recording those who fear him and take refuge in his name.” The Lord assures us, “For the day is coming now, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and the evil-doers will be like stubble. The day that is coming is going to burn them up, says the Lord of Hosts, leaving them neither root nor stalk. But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will shine out with healing in its rays.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment