20240122 UNITY AND COMMUNION CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED THROUGH PRAYER AND ADHERENCE TO CHRIST
22 January 2024, Monday, 3rd Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
2 Samuel 5:1-7,10 © |
'You shall be shepherd of my people Israel'
All the tribes of Israel then came to David at Hebron. ‘Look’ they said ‘we are your own flesh and blood. In days past when Saul was our king, it was you who led Israel in all their exploits; and the Lord said to you, “You are the man who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you shall be the leader of Israel.”’ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a pact with them at Hebron in the presence of the Lord, and they anointed David king of Israel.
David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years. He reigned in Hebron over Judah for seven years and six months; then he reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.
David and his men marched on Jerusalem against the Jebusites living there. These said to David, ‘You will not get in here. The blind and the lame will hold you off.’ (That is to say: David will never get in here.) But David captured the fortress of Zion, that is, the Citadel of David.
David grew greater and greater, and the Lord, the God of Hosts, was with him.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 88(89):20-22,25-26 © |
My truth and my love shall be with him.
Of old you spoke in a vision.
To your friends the prophets you said:
‘I have set the crown on a warrior,
I have exalted one chosen from the people.
My truth and my love shall be with him.
I have found David my servant
and with my holy oil anointed him.
My hand shall always be with him
and my arm shall make him strong.
My truth and my love shall be with him.
My truth and my love shall be with him;
by my name his might shall be exalted.
I will stretch out his hand to the Sea
and his right hand as far as the River.
My truth and my love shall be with him.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps24:4,5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Teach me your paths, my God,
make me walk in your truth.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Tim1:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Our Saviour Jesus Christ abolished death
and he has proclaimed life through the Good News.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Mark 3:22-30 © |
A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand
The scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, ‘Beelzebul is in him’ and, ‘It is through the prince of devils that he casts devils out.’ So he called them to him and spoke to them in parables, ‘How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot last. And if a household is divided against itself, that household can never stand. Now if Satan has rebelled against himself and is divided, he cannot stand either – it is the end of him. But no one can make his way into a strong man’s house and burgle his property unless he has tied up the strong man first. Only then can he burgle his house.
‘I tell you solemnly, all men’s sins will be forgiven, and all their blasphemies; but let anyone blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and he will never have forgiveness: he is guilty of an eternal sin.’ This was because they were saying, ‘An unclean spirit is in him.’
UNITY AND COMMUNION CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED THROUGH PRAYER AND ADHERENCE TO CHRIST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 SM 5:1-7, 10; MK 3:22-30]
Unity is the only way to peace because without unity, we will not have the strength to defend ourselves from potential enemies of unity in life. It is this realization that the tribes of Israel came to King David at Hebron and appointed him king over Israel and Judah. Only with unity could they withstand their enemies.
The mission of the Church is ultimately the mission of unity. Like King David, we are called to be promoters of unity. Of course, such a calling demands that we must already be promoters of communion now.
Truly, the testing ground for whether we can be truly bearers of unity is determined by how we live a life of communion, especially with difficult people in our midst or those whom we do not like.
More than anyone else, Jesus surely knows what it means to experience disunity, especially in family and community life. Last Saturday, we read that Jesus was rejected by His own family and was misunderstood as “mad.” He must have felt terribly lonely and hurt. The gospel also tells us that He was also rejected by His bigger family when His townsfolk did not accept Him. It is within such a context that we can understand better when He spoke of the unity needed in every household.
What, then, are the obstacles to unity? Fear and pride are the primary reasons. The offspring of fear is jealousy. It was fear that made the scribes and Pharisees defensive of their profession and religion. It was also jealousy that made them accuse Jesus unfairly, making hurtful and presumptuous judgment about Jesus’ power to cast out demons. However, it was pride that caused them to be unreasonable in concluding that Jesus cast out demons through Beelzebub, the prince of devils. For the same reason, they committed the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit by refusing to engage in dialogue.
To overcome the obstacles of unity, we need to be able to recognize that we are all brothers and sisters, firstly on the human level. Isn’t that what the tribes of Israel said to David, “‘Look, we are your own flesh and blood.” In saying this, we are not simply saying that we are relatives of each other but that because we share in the same human nature, we should very well know that we all want to be treated with respect, justice, love, compassion, and forgiveness. As Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount said, “Do unto others what you would like others to do unto you.” Conversely, as Confucius said, “Do not do unto others what you would not like others to do unto you.”
Secondly, on the spiritual level, do we recognize that we all belong to the same house with Christ as the Head of our household? This is what Jesus is asking of us. We must move beyond the human relationship to that of spiritual relationship. If we are members of the Body of Christ and members of God’s household, we must remain united at all costs, for as Jesus reminded us, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot last. And if a household is divided against itself, that household can never stand.”
Thirdly, can we recognize that in this family of God, the Holy Spirit has apportioned gifts to each of us according to His wisdom and authority for the sake of unity? Could we then be humble and generous enough to recognize God’s gift in each one of us? Would we be humble to someone who has been appointed to lead us, saying as the leaders of the tribes said to David, “You are the man who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you shall be the leader of Israel.” Or would we become jealous of the authority and the gifts of our brothers and sisters, which then causes us to pass uncalled for remarks, such as he has “an unclean spirit in him” as was imputed to Jesus by His opponents?
The truth is that preserving and fostering unity cannot simply be a human endeavour. If the work of Christ and the mission of the Church is to promote unity, then the work of the devil is to destroy unity, beginning with the individuals, the family, the Church, and society.
That is why we need a strong man to deal with the power of Satan over us. As Jesus advised us, “no one can make his way into a strong man’s house and burgle his property unless he has tied up the strong man first. Only then can he burgle his house.” Who could be this strong man who can overcome the power of Satan, the master of deceit and temptation, if not Jesus our Good Shepherd and our King?
King David could do a good job uniting the different tribes of Israel only because the Lord was with him. The responsorial psalm tells us, “I have found David, my servant; with my holy oil I have anointed him, that my hand may be always with him, and that my arm may make him strong.” Indeed, the Lord remained faithful to David and His mercy was with him. Indeed, the first reading noted, “He grew greater and greater, and the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him.”
Christian unity can only come about through prayer. Without prayer, we cannot speak of dialogue, mutual understanding, and respect; much less about fraternal love and fraternal correction. This explains why at the end of His life, Jesus’ final prayer was a prayer for unity among His disciples. He knew too well that if His disciples were divided, everything would be undone no matter the good that each individual does. Without communion, there is no mission to speak of since our mission is communion.
Living in communion is indeed a challenging task. Community meetings, talks, homilies, fellowship alone cannot unite us. These are superficial forms of promoting unity. The heart of unity demands that we are all rooted in Christ, especially in prayer, so that we will always be humble in accepting correction and even humiliation, courageous in accepting the truth, open to the opinions of others, and sensitive to each other needs; and most of all, willing to forgive and heal situations.
Pray for unity daily. Pray especially to the Holy Spirit, the principal of unity, as Jesus asks us, so that we will always be humble and courageous enough to seek dialogue, forgiveness, and healing. Intercede every day for each other that we might always be in communion. Pray for your fellow brothers and sisters and all those in authority, that we will always be bearers of unity and communion.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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