Twentieth Ordinary Sunday, Year C
Theme: What Kind of Division Is Good? 怎麼樣的「分裂」是好的？
Christians are called to become saints and in following the commandments of our Lord Jesus Christ, loving each other as He has, we form a community of saints. He leaves behind His Body and Blood so that when we celebrate the Eucharist and receive the sacrament of Holy Communion, we become one in the Lord (John 17:11, 21-23). We treasure this communion and see division as a bad thing. However, in the gospel reading today, Jesus says, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” (Luke 12:51) Let us meditate on this apparent contradiction.
Let me make myself clear. I believe that not all divisions are bad. Times and again, division is beneficial for the well-being of a community. Why? The book of Genesis tells us that we were created in the image of God. Each and every one of us is unique but we are not omnipotent like God. It follows that we are incomplete simply because while we are good at doing one thing, we are inefficient in doing other things. That’s why after creating Adam, God says, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suited to him.” (Genesis 2:18). Then came the first division, the division of genders and division of labour! Division of labour helps a community grow and prosper. More groupings are welcome.
Men live from the produce of the earth. They live in groups to support each other. Some gather fruits while others hunt. Some plough the field while others keep cattle etc. Their population grows until the land is no longer able to feed them all. Regrettably, resources are scarce. Further division is necessary for the survival of all. Some groups need to move away to look for new resources. Otherwise, the community need to start killing off the weaker ones so that the whole community might continue to survive. Therefore, natural division is beneficial. It’s only when people in power start imposing arbitrary divisions that unnecessary sufferings multiply!
On the other hand, we see that peace in the form of stability is actually very fragile. The world is changing all the time. Worse still, with the advancements of technology, changes are taking place in an accelerating rate so that many people are unable to catch up! At the same time, our wants are insatiable and we are depleting resources very quickly so that many people are competing with each other in order to maximize their benefits and fight for the control of essential resources. Disputes and conflicts arise among factions. Sometimes they even resort to violence which leads to bloodsheds of the innocent. In order to resolve disputes among individuals and groups in a peaceful manner and to protect the innocent, governments pass laws to settle disputes. However, some empires don’t trust the subjects they govern. So, they build up invincible armies to crush rebellions and pass laws beyond reasonable proportions, turning the empire into a mega-prison. They pride themselves and give it a beautiful name: Pax Romana! Probably, Jesus was referring to Pax Romana when He says, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?”
No! Jesus intends to build the Kingdom of Heaven on earth in justice and love. That’s what He meant when He says, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” (Luke 12:49) He is going to accomplish this mission through His Passover, viz. His Passion and Resurrection. He calls His crucifixion, burial and resurrection “a baptism with which I must be baptized” (12:50). Out of love, He willingly obeys the will of the Father to die on the cross to redeem us. He defeats Satan’s scheme of disobedience with total obedience, defeats evil with goodness! “And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself” (John 12:32) Only when evil is banished can genuine peace then be established. It is peace in Christ.
Pay attention to the description of division in Jesus’ words. He talks about two against three and not one against four. It was because one against four would give a superficial peace either in the form of democracy in which the majority rules and the minority exploited, or in the form of totalitarianism in which the minority rules and the majority exploited. Both forms of peace are fragile.
Why does Jesus mention only the division within the family and not some bigger groupings? It is simply because if you are unable to manage yourself and your family, how are you able to manage your country? The first reading today illustrates this well. It was a tragic story.
Brethren! We have chosen to follow Jesus Christ or rather Christ has attracted and chosen us to follow Him. Do we share the same passion for the building of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth as Jesus does? If we do, we will be disrupting the status quo because the secular world is made up of structures of sin to exploit the disadvantaged. If we do, we will surely meet oppositions and cause divisions! If we do, we will be marginalized or persecuted by abusive government officials. If we do, we’ll be receiving a similar baptism Jesus has undergone (Mark 11:39)! The second reading today says well, “Consider how He endured such opposition from sinners, in order that you may not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:3) Yes, for our sake, He’s been there. So, don’t lose heart. Persevere to the end and we’ll be saved (Matthew 14:13)
Bear in mind that the Father has chosen us to be ambassadors of Christ to reconcile the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:20) Have faith in the Lord that divisions will only be temporary. In the end, in the justice and mercy of God, genuine peace will prevail in the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen.
2019 Reflection
Picture Credit: landofredemption.com
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