20161029 PROCLAIMING CHRIST AT ALL COSTS
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Philippians
1:18-26 ©
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Christ is proclaimed;
and that makes me happy; and I shall continue being happy, because I know this
will help to save me, thanks to your prayers and to the help which will be
given to me by the Spirit of Jesus. My one hope and trust is that I shall never
have to admit defeat, but that now as always I shall have the courage for
Christ to be glorified in my body, whether by my life or by my death. Life to
me, of course, is Christ, but then death would bring me something more; but
then again, if living in this body means doing work which is having good
results – I do not know what I should choose. I am caught in this dilemma:
I want to be gone and be with Christ, which would be very much the better, but
for me to stay alive in this body is a more urgent need for your sake. This
weighs with me so much that I feel sure I shall survive and stay with you all,
and help you to progress in the faith and even increase your joy in it; and so
you will have another reason to give praise to Christ Jesus on my account when I
am with you again.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
41(42):2-3,5 ©
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My soul is
thirsting for God, the God of my life.
Like the deer that
yearns
for
running streams,
so my soul is
yearning
for you,
my God.
My soul is
thirsting for God, the God of my life.
My soul is thirsting
for God,
the God
of my life;
when can I enter and
see
the face
of God?
My soul is
thirsting for God, the God of my life.
I would lead the
rejoicing crowd
into the
house of God,
amid cries of
gladness and thanksgiving.
My soul is
thirsting for God, the God of my life.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.Col3:16a,17
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Let the message of
Christ, in all its richness,
find a home with you;
through him give
thanks to God the Father.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Mt11:29
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Shoulder my yoke and
learn from me,
says the Lord,
for I am gentle and
humble in heart.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 14:1,7-11 ©
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On a sabbath day
Jesus had gone for a meal to the house of one of the leading Pharisees; and
they watched him closely. He then told the guests a parable, because he had
noticed how they picked the places of honour. He said this, ‘When someone
invites you to a wedding feast, do not take your seat in the place of honour. A
more distinguished person than you may have been invited, and the person who
invited you both may come and say, “Give up your place to this man.” And then,
to your embarrassment, you would have to go and take the lowest place. No; when
you are a guest, make your way to the lowest place and sit there, so that, when
your host comes, he may say, “My friend, move up higher.” In that way, everyone
with you at the table will see you honoured. For everyone who exalts himself
will be humbled, and the man who humbles himself will be exalted.’
PROCLAIMING
CHRIST AT ALL COSTS
We all want to be
successful in life but we lack focus and singularity of purpose. Because
we do not have any real goal in life, we give up easily, especially in times of
trial and difficulties. Indeed, without passion, we cannot expect
people to persevere in what they do. Without conviction, no one is going
to sacrifice their time, energy and their life for anything.
Without conviction, there
is no passion to persevere. Indeed, this is true in everyday life;
whether it is the student, worker or even a priest or religious.
When we are not passionate about what we do, or have any real convictions
and dreams in life, we will just wander and drift along each day. When
nothing engages us passionately, other things in life will distract us. Instead
of studying, the student will spend time on his computer and phone, playing
games and chatting the whole day. He studies only because he is forced
to; not because he enjoys acquiring knowledge, which is good for his personal
development and for the service of humanity in the future. The
smarter ones are motivated to seek good grades so that they can earn the praise
and acceptance of his peers, teachers and parents. A worker without
passion for his or her job, is unable to see his or her place in the company,
or is not even convinced of the project or service the company is rendering,
cannot be expected to contribute towards the building of the business. At
most, he or she is motivated by financial remuneration and promotion.
Even priests and religious are not exempted. When they lack passion in
their ministry, they will spend their time, or rather waste their time, doing
trivial things just to kill time rather than doing something beautiful for God
and His people. Otherwise, they will carry out their ministry so as to
gain recognition and love from their parishioners.
Those who are driven by
such low goals will not realize the best in themselves. Instead, the
worst of them is brought out because they are motivated solely by an ambition
for power, material benefits, recognition, glory and status. This can
make us competitive and ruthless, jealous and envious of others. Instead
of seeing and exploring what we can do and be creative and proactive, we are
always planning, conniving and strategizing how to eliminate our
opponents. Such people are always anxious and never at peace.
They are quarrelsome, always picking faults in others and divisive.
In the first reading, we
see that St Paul is very focused in his mission and ministry. He was a man
with a vision and a mission. He was focused and determined in what
he was called to do. His entire life was spent in spreading the
gospel of Christ. All he desired was to make Christ known for the
salvation of humanity. He wrote, “Christ will be exalted now as always in
my body, whether by life or by death.”
What mattered to St Paul
was that Christ was proclaimed in every way, regardless of
situations. It did not matter who proclaimed Christ or who sowed
the seed, but that Christ was proclaimed. It was not about himself, but
about the Lord. To the Corinthians, he said, “What then is Apollos? What
is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to
each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So
neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who
gives the growth.” (1 Cor 3:5-7)
St Paul was very clear about his role. He was not promoting himself in
any way but he was totally focused on the proclamation of Christ. He
said, “What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way.”
In life or death, St Paul
wanted to serve the Lord and was intent on making Him known and loved. St
Paul was indifferent with regard to his personal preferences. Although he
would have preferred to return to the Lord, yet he chose to be with the people
because they needed him more. “For to me, living is Christ and
dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me;
and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire
is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the
flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I
will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so
that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you
again.” St Paul was selfless in the proclamation of the gospel.
How many of us can be like
St Paul in the way we do ministry? How many of us are unconditional in
our love for our spouse, parents and children? More often than not we
serve with much egotism in us. How else do we explain parents who
apportion their love and appreciation for their children by how well they do in
their studies? Or priests and Church leaders who are welcoming and caring
only for those who help them in their ministry? Or Church members who are
given privileges and access to the priests’ services because of what they do in
Church? Indeed, there is much division within the Church because we all
want things our way, our voice to be heard, our plans to be endorsed and our
leadership to be accepted and recognized. It is not about Christ and the
Church first, or the greater good of the community, but about our narrow
interests. This was what Jesus was talking about in the gospel.
Most of us seek honour. We like to be recognized and appreciated. But
Jesus warns us about harboring vain desires. Instead, we should remain
humble and choose the lowest place.
Nevertheless, what is
significant is that St Paul recognized that many of us who serve Him might not
have sincere or pure motives. Yet, St Paul accepted their service and
contributions as well. He wrote, “whether out of false motives or true;
and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that
through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn
out for my deliverance.” That was how focused St Paul was. He did
not expect his collaborators to be perfect and completely noble in
service. He knew that God will make use of us for the spread of the
gospel even if our motives are not pure. St Paul was realistic enough to
know the limitations of man. Although he himself strove to serve the Lord
with pure motives, yet he did not pass judgment on others and despise those who
do not. In fact, with humility, St Paul even admitted, “I am not aware of
anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who
judges me. Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord
comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will
disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive commendation
from God.” (1 Cor 4:4f)
This should be a source of
encouragement for us. The truth is that many of us, even when serving the
Church, do not always have sincere motives. We are motivated by praise,
recognition and appreciation. There is the human side of us that craves
for honour and praise for the good works that we do. God accepts whatever
we can offer to Him. He will make use of whatever we can offer for His
greater glory. He is patient with us in our purification of love.
As St Peter exhorted the Christians, “Now that you have purified your souls by
your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one
another deeply from the heart.” (1 Pt 1:22) So we
should not be discouraged even if our services are not rightly motivated,
whether out of fear, egotism or needs.
How, then, can we purify
our motives? St Peter wrote, “You have been born anew, not of perishable
but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.” (1 Pt 1:22) Only love
can purify our motives and make us do everything for the one we love.
Isn’t this the way we love our children and loved ones? Parents are
willing to sacrifice all, whatever they have, money, resources and time for
their loved ones. Nothing is too difficult for us to sacrifice for those
whom we love. In the same way too, when we fall in love with Jesus,
we would do anything and everything for Him. Those who are passionate
about the gospel and in announcing the Good News are not theologians but the
simple people who have encountered the love of God in their hearts. This
was what drove St Paul in his ministry. He made it clear that his desire
was “to depart and be with Christ.” Like the psalmist, we must seek the
love of God instead. “Like the deer that yearns for running
streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God. My soul is thirsting for
God, the God of my life; when can I enter and see the face of God?”
When love of Christ and the
spread of the gospel is our motive, then we will not spend too much time
squabbling over positions in the Church, over the right rubrics and the application
of the laws. Indeed, some of us spend too much time fighting over such
petty matters when the real work of the proclamation of the gospel is neglected
and the works of charity forgotten. What ultimately matters is that
people are brought to Christ, regardless of who and how they are brought to
Him; some through us and some through others; some through Mary and some
through a healing service; some through the charismatic renewal and some
through the Extraordinary Rite of the Mass. In the final analysis,
without love, charity and humility, all that we do are done in vain, even if we
have the right doctrines and the right liturgy. Anything that brings
people to Christ is all that matters.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
