20250614 IS OATH-TAKING CHRISTIAN?
14 June 2025, Saturday, 10th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 |
From now onwards we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh
The love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them.
From now onwards, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now. And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here. It is all God’s work. It was God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the work of handing on this reconciliation. In other words, God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself, not holding men’s faults against them, and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled. So we are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the sinless one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 102(103):1-4,9-12 |
The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
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, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
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.
His wrath will come to an end;
he will not be angry for ever.
He does not treat us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our faults.
The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
For as the heavens are high above the earth
so strong is his love for those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west
so far does he remove our sins.
The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:18 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open my eyes, O Lord, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
Alleluia!
Or: | Ps118:36,29 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Bend my heart to your will, O Lord,
and teach me your law.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 5:33-37 |
Do not swear: say 'Yes' if you mean Yes, 'No' if you mean No
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not break your oath, but must fulfil your oaths to the Lord. But I say this to you: do not swear at all, either by heaven, since that is God’s throne; or by the earth, since that is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, since that is the city of the great king. Do not swear by your own head either, since you cannot turn a single hair white or black. All you need say is “Yes” if you mean yes, “No” if you mean no; anything more than this comes from the evil one.’
IS OATH-TAKING CHRISTIAN?
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 COR 5:14-21; PS 103:1-4, 9-12; MT 5:33-37]
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus seems to prohibit His disciples from taking oaths. He said, “You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not break your oath, but must fulfil your oaths to the Lord. But I say this to you: do not swear at all.” On this basis, some Biblicists claim that it is wrong for Christians to take any kind of oath. As the Lord said, “All you need say is ‘Yes’ if you mean yes, ‘No’ if you mean no; anything more than this comes from the evil one.”
However, not only do the secular world take oaths, but so do most Christians. Cardinals take oath at the Conclave in the election of the Pope. Bishops and priests also take oath at their ordination. Religious take vows to God. Even in Church matters or at work, staff are sworn to secrecy if they are dealing with sensitive and personal matters, under the threat of immediate expulsion if they break the oath. In courtrooms, before someone gives testimony, he or she must take the oath ‘to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. For those who are believers of religions, whilst holding the ‘Sacred Scripture, they conclude by saying, “So help me, God.”
How, then, do we reconcile oath-taking with fidelity to the teaching of Christ? As Christians, St Paul says, we are a new creation: “From now onwards, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now. And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here. It is all God’s work.” As Christians, we are called to live differently from that of the world. Our judgement should be in line with the judgment of God.
However, we must understand the context of what the Lord is saying. He was referring to the oaths taken by the Jews in the Law of Moses, with the Ten Commandments in mind. He was alluding to the third commandment, which forbids us to use the name of God in vain, since oaths by definition call upon God as a witness. Breaking an oath brings about untold consequences and curses because one insults the name of the deity by whom one swears. We dishonour God, and therefore the Bible prohibits anyone from taking false oaths.
But what is also unacceptable is that when we take oaths lightly, without reflection, we not only show disdain for God but for others and ourselves as well. Many swear too easily and never think through what they promise. This is true especially for politicians and those in business who make empty promises to deceive their patrons. At times, those who make promises may be sincere but fail to count the cost or consider whether they can fulfil the promises. In daily life, lovers and married couples swear before God and each other that they will love each other unto death, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health until death do them part. Yet, many relationships do not last.
So, is there still value in taking oaths? Yes, provided we are sincere about it. In other words, before we take an oath, we must truly search our hearts and ask whether we genuinely intend to keep that oath. If our conscience is clear and our intention is sincere, we are, in truth, asking God to help us to be true to our word. This is why we always add the phrase, “So help me, God.” It is not within our power and strength to be true to our word at all times because we are sinners. We are weak in the face of trials and challenges. We fear for our safety, our families and our lives. Only God can give us the strength to fulfil what we promise. In taking an oath, we must not think that we can fulfil it by our own will alone, but we are asking God to remind us of our commitment and grant us the grace to remain faithful.
Of course, the ideal is to be truthful at all times. This is precisely how we must read the teaching of Jesus in today’s gospel. The context is the Sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes and the rest of the teaching of the Gospel from the Sermon on the Mount present the ideal we should strive to live as Christians, as a new creation. The three chapters of Matthew 5-7 are a collection of our Lord’s teachings. These are precepts rather than laws, except for some, such as the indissolubility of marriage, which is also taught by our Lord outside the Sermon on the Mount. No one can live out the precepts of our Lord perfectly unless granted the grace of God. Yet, we should try and desire to grow deeper in our spiritual life.
We must also not forget that the Lord challenges us to go deeper than mere obedience to the laws, to understand the spirit of the laws. On one hand, He affirmed, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfil. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.” (Mt 5:17f) On the other hand, He urges us to go beyond the law when He says, “I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt 5:20) So we must go beyond mere oath-taking. It is not simply a question of whether Christians may take oaths; rather, we need to understand the spirit behind oath-taking, if we take them at all.
Ideally, we should live our lives in such a way that we do not need to resort to oath-taking, unless it is a solemn undertaking with implications for the larger community. It is not so much to satisfy ourselves, but to give assurance to those who trust us, believing that we will uphold what we solemnly promise. Of course, if those who take the oath are merely doing so out of routine, without understanding the gravity of their commitment, that oath-taking will not bear fruit. If others can believe our word alone, that would be the highest compliment to our character. If that is the case, no oath is necessary.
However, the real question is, can we trust any man today? Not only are politicians are not trusted, but so too, are professionals – including lawyers, doctors, police, priests and religious. We see so many breaches of the law and scandals that we can no longer trust any man completely. The psalmist says, “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in mortals. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” (Ps 118:8f) The Lord said to Jeremiah, “Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord.” (Jer 17:5) Even the prophet Micah understood the weakness of man. He said, “Put no trust in a friend, have no confidence in a loved one; guard the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your embrace … your enemies are members of your own household.” (Mic 7:5f)
Still, we need to trust in our fellowmen to some extent, otherwise it would be impossible to live. Only in God can we give absolute trust, but not our fellowmen, because we are sinners. As far as possible, we must strive to live lives of integrity and honesty. As Christians we need to set an even better example of integrity, especially Christian leaders and public servants. This is why when leaders are exposed for dishonesty, they lose their credibility completely. If they cheat once, how can we be sure that they have not cheated in other ways and not will continue to cheat us, since as the saying goes, a leopard does not change its spots.
This is why, as Christians, if we are to be truthful at all times, we must stay close to the Lord. We must be one with Him. Unless we are reconciled with Him, as St Paul urges us in today’s reading, we will be divided within ourselves. Truth can only come from a heart of peace, selfless love and singleness of mind. Truth comes from the deepest self, which we call the conscience. A man in sin is divided within himself and so he lies and cheats, misleads and speaks falsehood. Sincerity and humility are virtues that help a person to be true to himself and to others. We must ask Jesus to help us to be totally sincere and courageous like Him in standing up for the truth before Pilate and His enemies.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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