20231129 TAKING STOCK OF OUR LIVES
29 November 2023, Wednesday, 34th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Daniel 5:1-6,13-14,16-17,23-28 © |
The writing on the wall
King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for his noblemen; a thousand of them attended, and he drank wine in company with this thousand. As he sipped his wine, Belshazzar gave orders for the gold and silver vessels to be brought which his father Nebuchadnezzar had looted from the sanctuary in Jerusalem, so that the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women could drink out of them. The gold and silver vessels looted from the sanctuary of the Temple of God in Jerusalem were brought in, and the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women drank out of them. They drank their wine and praised their gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone. Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared, and began to write on the plaster of the palace wall, directly behind the lamp-stand; and the king could see the hand as it wrote. The king turned pale with alarm: his thigh-joints went slack and his knees began to knock.
Daniel was brought into the king’s presence; the king said to Daniel, ‘Are you the Daniel who was one of the Judaean exiles brought by my father the king from Judah? I am told that the spirit of God Most Holy lives in you, and that you are known for your perception, intelligence and marvellous wisdom. As I am told that you are able to give interpretations and to unravel difficult problems, if you can read the writing and tell me what it means, you shall be dressed in purple, and have a chain of gold put round your neck, and be third in rank in the kingdom.’
Then Daniel spoke up in the presence of the king. ‘Keep your gifts for yourself,’ he said ‘and give your rewards to others. I will read the writing to the king without them, and tell him what it means. You have defied the Lord of heaven, you have had the vessels from his Temple brought to you, and you, your noblemen, your wives and your singing women have drunk your wine out of them. You have praised gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone, which cannot either see, hear or understand; but you have given no glory to the God who holds your breath and all your fortunes in his hands. That is why he has sent the hand which, by itself, has written these words. The writing reads: Mene, Mene, Tekel and Parsin. The meaning of the words is this: Mene: God has measured your sovereignty and put an end to it; Tekel: you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting; Parsin: your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.’
Responsorial Psalm | Daniel 3:62-67 © |
Sun and moon! bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Stars of heaven! bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Showers and dews! all bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Winds! all bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Fire and heat! bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Cold and heat! bless the Lord.
Give glory and eternal praise to him!
Gospel Acclamation | Lk21:36 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Stay awake, praying at all times
for the strength to stand with confidence
before the Son of Man.
Alleluia!
Or: | Rv2:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Even if you have to die, says the Lord,
keep faithful, and I will give you
the crown of life.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 21:12-19 © |
Your endurance will win you your lives
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name – and that will be your opportunity to bear witness. Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost. Your endurance will win you your lives.’
TAKING STOCK OF OUR LIVES
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Dn 5:1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28; Dn 3:62-67; Lk 21:12-19]
As we come towards the end of the year, many stores are taking stock of their goods as they begin afresh for the new year. So, too, the Church invites us to take stock of our life so that we know where we are lacking and found to be wanting. The prophet Jeremiah told his people, “Stand at the crossroads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.” (Jer 6:16) In view of the day of reckoning, the scripture readings focus on the end, whether of our life, or the end of the kingdom or the day of persecution.
The first scripture reading taken from the book of Daniel is an indictment on the last Babylonian King, his noblemen and wives. They were merry-making, indulging in their glory and wealth and power. “King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for his noblemen; a thousand of them attended, and he drank wine in company with this thousand.” But as if it was not enough, he abused the sacred vessels taken from the Temple. He had no sense of the sacred. “As he sipped his wine, Belshazzar gave orders for the gold and silver vessels to be brought which his father Nebuchadnezzar had looted from the sanctuary in Jerusalem, so that the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women could drink out of them. The gold and silver vessels looted from the sanctuary of the Temple of God in Jerusalem were brought in, and the king, his noblemen, his wives and his singing women drank out of them. They drank their wine and praised their gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone.” They showed utter disrespect for the God of Israel.
However, those who failed to respect God and make a mockery of Him will ultimately face judgment. The Persian king thought he was very powerful but little did he realize that his kingdom was coming to an end and so too, the power and luxurious living of the nobles. “Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared, and began to write on the plaster of the palace wall, directly behind the lamp-stand; and the king could see the hand as it wrote. The king turned pale with alarm; his thigh-joints went slack and his knees began to knock.” The writings were on the wall as the saying goes. Indeed, when we fail to live a responsible life, make good use of our resources, talents and time, we will have to bear the consequences of our negligence. What we sow is what we will reap. As St Paul wrote, “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.”
It is true of people in the world today when they think so highly of their achievements. They do not need God and some even make fun of those who believe in God, accusing them of being superstitious and naïve. They act as if they are in control of the world and their lives. They do not realize how weak and puny we are in the face of illness, disasters and misfortunes. No man can determine his own life because God is his author and creator. Therefore, those who are cynical of God will meet their end confused, lost, disillusioned and frightened. More so when they meet tragedies which no one in this world can resolve, then they will come to understand the fragility of life.
Indeed, the Lord through the prophet Daniel made this judgment on them. “You have defied the Lord of heaven, you have had the vessels from his Temple brought to you, and you, your noblemen, your wives and your singing women have drunk your wine out of them. You have praised gods of gold and silver, of bronze and iron, of wood and stone, which cannot either see, hear or understand; but you have given no glory to the God who holds your breath and all your fortunes in his hands.” Indeed, because they had no respect for God and for the sacred, and for defiling the sacred vessels of the Temple, they would be punished accordingly. When man rejects God and makes himself his own god, he becomes full of himself.
This is what St Paul meant when he spoke about the wrath of God in his letter to the Romans. “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of those who by their wickedness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse; for though they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools; and they exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling a mortal human being or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles.” (Rom 1:18-23)
The consequences of failing to make use of the blessings will result in the loss of our privileges. These have been given to us not for ourselves but for the service of the glory of God and His people. When we use them only for ourselves and our enjoyment, we have not used the gifts rightly. All that we have come from Him alone. And so this was the judgment given to the Babylonians, “That is why he has sent the hand which, by itself, has written these words. The writing reads: Mene, Mene, Tekel and Parsin: The meaning of the words is this: Mene: God has measured your sovereignty and put an end to it; Tekel: you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting; Parsin: your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.”
Hence, we are called first and foremost to acknowledge the sovereignty of God. The responsorial psalm invites us to “Give glory and eternal praise to him! Sun and moon! bless the Lord. Stars of heaven! bless the Lord. Showers and dews! all bless the Lord. Winds! all bless the Lord. Fire and heat! bless the Lord. Cold and heat! bless the Lord.” We are not sovereign in this world no matter how powerful we are. We did not create the sun, moon and stars. God’s sovereignty does not come to an end, unlike earthly glory, wealth and power. Hence, no matter how smart, intelligent or successful we are in life, all these things will pass in time because we are but human beings. We will go back to the grave and for those who have faith, they know their life will end in God. We can only take ourselves with us, not anything or position we have in this life.
Realizing this truth, we must therefore give an account for the life that we live. Like the Parable of the Talents, we would be held accountable to God for the way we make use of our time, resources, money and energy in life. If we have used them for His glory and His service, we can be at peace with ourselves because we have given all that we have received back to Him by using them well for His people. In the process, we will find also great joy, meaning and satisfaction knowing that we have been good stewards of God’s grace. This is our greatest joy and knowing that what we do today, the rewards of good works will continue to the next life because we have grown in kindness, generosity, tolerance and forgiveness. Let us not be found wanting when we appear before the judgment seat of the Lord.
In the meantime, the Lord promised to be with us in all our trials in this life. “You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends; and some of you will be put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but not a hair of your head will be lost.” He will stand by us as we seek to be true to our calling. We should use all trials and challenges as opportunities to stand firm in our faith and to prove our fidelity to the Lord. Jesus said to His disciples, “Men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment, and bring you before kings and governors because of my name – and that will be your opportunity to bear witness.” Yet, let us never forget that we do not give witness to Jesus alone because He promised us the Holy Spirit who will lead us to the truth. Hence, the Lord said, “Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you an eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict.” By being faithful to the Lord and His gospel, life will triumph over death, love over hatred. “Your endurance will win you your lives.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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