20231123 HONOURABLE AND COMPASSIONATE LEADERSHIP
23 November 2023, Thursday, 33rd Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
1 Maccabees 2:15-29 © |
'Heaven preserve us from forsaking the Law and its ordinances'
The commissioners of King Antiochus who were enforcing the apostasy came to the town of Modein to make them sacrifice. Many Israelites gathered round them, but Mattathias and his sons drew apart. The king’s commissioners then addressed Mattathias as follows, ‘You are a respected leader, a great man in this town; you have sons and brothers to support you. Be the first to step forward and conform to the king’s decree, as all the nations have done, and the leaders of Judah and the survivors in Jerusalem; you and your sons shall be reckoned among the Friends of the King, you and your sons shall be honoured with gold and silver and many presents.’ Raising his voice, Mattathias retorted, ‘Even if every nation living in the king’s dominions obeys him, each forsaking its ancestral religion to conform to his decrees, I, my sons and my brothers will still follow the covenant of our ancestors. Heaven preserve us from forsaking the Law and its observances. As for the king’s orders, we will not follow them: we will not swerve from our own religion either to right or to left.’ As he finished speaking, a Jew came forward in the sight of all to offer sacrifice on the altar in Modein as the royal edict required. When Mattathias saw this, he was fired with zeal; stirred to the depth of his being, he gave vent to his legitimate anger, threw himself on the man and slaughtered him on the altar. At the same time he killed the king’s commissioner who was there to enforce the sacrifice, and tore down the altar. In his zeal for the Law he acted as Phinehas did against Zimri son of Salu. Then Mattathias went through the town, shouting at the top of his voice, ‘Let everyone who has a fervour for the Law and takes his stand on the covenant come out and follow me.’ Then he fled with his sons into the hills, leaving all their possessions behind in the town.
At this, many who were concerned for virtue and justice went down to the desert and stayed there.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 49(50):1-2,5-6,14-15 © |
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
The God of gods, the Lord,
has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion’s perfect beauty he shines.
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
‘Summon before me my people
who made covenant with me by sacrifice.’
The heavens proclaim his justice,
for he, God, is the judge.
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
Pay your sacrifice of thanksgiving to God
and render him your votive offerings.
Call on me in the day of distress.
I will free you and you shall honour me.’
I will show God’s salvation to the upright.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:135 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your decrees.
Alleluia!
Or: | Ps94:8 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 19:41-44 © |
Jesus sheds tears over the coming fate of Jerusalem
As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!’
HONOURABLE AND COMPASSIONATE LEADERSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 MC 2:15-29; PS 50:1-2,5-6,14-15; LK 19:41-44]
What does it take for anyone to be a true leader? On one hand, he needs courage and integrity. On the other hand, he needs compassion and forgiveness. This is the gist of today’s scripture lessons on Christian leadership. Mattathias showed us the first aspect of leadership, fortitude and integrity. Jesus in the gospel completes this aspect by demonstrating His love and compassion for His enemies.
Mattathias showed himself to be a man of principles. Indeed, even his enemies recognized him, saying, “You are a respected leader, a great man in this town; you have sons and brothers to support you.” Unfortunately, they failed to go further to ask why he was highly respected and considered to be a great leader. It is said that office is given but respect has to be earned. In the case of Mattathias, when he offered gold, silver and other presents, and be numbered among “the Friends of the King” if he were to apostasy, he flatly rejected the offer. He would not allow status, security and material rewards to cause him to be unfaithful.
For Mattathias, it was important that he remained faithful to the Law of God. He retorted, “Even if every nation living in the king’s dominions obeys him, each forsaking its ancestral religion to conform to his decrees, I, my sons and my brothers will still follow the covenant of our ancestors. Heaven preserve us from forsaking the Law and its observances. As for the king’s orders, we will not follow them; we will not swerve from our own religion either to right or to left.” He was focused and inflexible when it came to the fundamentals of faith. For Mattathias, the commands of God took precedence over human authority.
He was so zealous for his faith that he would do anything to protect the name of God. Hence, when he saw one of his fellow Jews who “came forward in the sight of all to offer sacrifice on the altar in Modein as the royal edict required”, he was “was fired with zeal; stirred to the depth of his being, he gave vent to his legitimate anger, threw himself on the man and slaughtered him on the altar. At the same time he killed the king’s commissioner who was there to enforce the sacrifice, and tore down the altar.” Although we would not go to that extreme today as he did, yet, such actions on his part reflect the zeal, courage and passion for the faith. He would give up everything for the love of God and the sake of truth. Indeed, after killing his enemies, “Mattathias went through the town, shouting at the top of his voice, ‘Let everyone who has a fervour for the Law and takes his stand on the covenant come out and follow me.’ Then he fled with his sons into the hills, leaving all their possessions behind in the town.” Because of his inspiring example, “many who were concerned for virtue and justice went down to the desert and stayed there.”
Indeed, we have much to learn from him. How many of us succumb to temptations of glory, honour and wealth! We are all insecure people and we want to find security in popularity. For the sake of acceptance by the world, we formulate populist policies for the immediate gratification of those under our charge but we do not consider the long term implications of what we do. Isn’t this the situation today, when many governments in the name of pragmatism and expediency make policies that have serious impact on the future of society? They think that they would no longer be around by then, so why bother anyway? It is better that they get to enjoy the popularity of the people now, and be secure in their position. For the benefit of wealth and power, many of us would sell our faith, compromise our values so that we can get promoted, be popular, be accepted by influential people and be honoured in the eyes of the world. Indeed, many Catholics in public life would not hesitate to speak against the teachings of the gospel, betraying our faith, set a bad example to fellow Catholics and in so doing, become counter-witness to the gospel.
In the gospel, Jesus shows us another side of true leadership. He took the path of non-violence. He, too, was equally zealous for the gospel and for His Father’s House, but instead of reacting to his enemies with violence and holy anger, He was long-suffering and forgiving. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.” (Mt 5:38f) Again, He reiterated, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” (Mt 5:43-45)
Indeed, this was how the Lord reacted to the rejection of His people to the Good News He was offering them. He did not get angry but only felt sorrow for them. “As Jesus drew near Jerusalem and came in sight of the city he shed tears over it and said, ‘If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and the children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you.” In fact, Jesus felt for them more than he was angry with their stubborn refusal of God’s message. He saw the dangers ahead of them and the sufferings that they would have to carry because of their infidelity and the lack of repentance from their sins and wickedness.
But the Good News is offered in freedom. He would not force them to accept the Gospel. He would not use force or a show of power and might, unlike the Roman authorities. He never used miracles to bolster His position as the Messiah. Most of the miracles were performed out of compassion and love, not for display and glory. For that reason, most of the time, Jesus would tell those whom He had healed not to broadcast His miraculous powers. Jesus came to save His people seated on a donkey, a symbol of meekness and lowliness, when He entered Jerusalem and was proclaimed the King of the Jews.
He knew that the people in the final analysis were ignorant. He lamented and cried, “all because you did not recognise your opportunity when God offered it!” Isn’t this what most parents and leaders feel when their children or those under their care continue to insist on having their way when we see the disasters ahead of them? From our experience and wisdom we know that they would repeat the same mistakes that we probably made before. But alas, we are not given foresight like Jesus; only hindsight. We do not see the deadly consequences ahead of us because of our foolish decisions. So like all parents and leaders, we will have to bear the greater pain of seeing them punished by their own unwise decisions. But that is the reality of life.
We are helpless. We can only pray for them. We cannot do much other than bear our sufferings patiently and hopefully, one day, they will wake up from their slumber. We must listen to St Peter’s exhortation to imitate our Lord when going through persecution. He said, “But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’ When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. ‘He himself bore our sins’ in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; ‘by his wounds you have been healed.'” (1 Pt 2:20-24)
Indeed, by our wounds, we will heal and enlighten people. By our love, patience and forgiveness, we will heal the wounds of such people who are close to the truth. By our righteous living, we will enlighten people to walk in the way of truth. So we must be like Mattathias and our Lord who led by example, walking the path of truth and love, staying firm to their faith and mission the Lord had given to them so that our children will follow after us.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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