Our Love Is Not Perfect 我們愛得不圓滿

Twelfth Ordinary Sunday, Year A
Theme: Our Love Is Not Perfect 我們愛得不圓滿

Though the truth will set us free (John 8:32), speaking the truth may make the speaker unpopular and even a martyr! Today’s gospel picks up where we left off last week but skips a few crucial verses. Last week, we read of how Jesus Christ gave the Twelve authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to heal all sorts of diseases (Matthew 10:1). Then He sent them off proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven (10:7). If the Twelve were sent by the Lord to proclaim messages, they (the messages as well as the messengers) were expected to be received without opposition. However, life is rather complicated. For various reasons, many people reject the truth and powerful people may even kill the messengers! Such is the reality of life! Before the gospel reading today, there are eleven verses of warnings about the difficulties and persecutions awaiting the Twelve and all evangelists in the future!

To begin with, Jesus says, “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves” (10:16). “Sheep in the midst of wolves” is not a bloody image but rather an eschatological and positive image. It describes the Messianic age in which “The wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat” (Isaiah 11:6). Therefore, the apostles were messengers of the coming of the Messianic age. But before the actualization of the Messianic age, the messengers will encounter difficulties and persecutions because they will crash head on against established institutions! That is why they must remain shrewd as serpents but simple as doves!

Men live in communities. They develop traditions and institutions to facilitate smooth interactions among individuals. However, those customs, traditions and institutions might not follow and even go against the will of God! For example, abortion, polygamy and slavery. Power institutions are supposed to serve the people but legal experts who know the technicalities of the rules will be able to embezzle without being caught! Thus, God’s messengers will be persecuted in courts and synagogues by governors and kings (Matthew 10:17-18). To contain damages even family members and friends have to severe their ties (10:21) with messengers of the truth. How deplorable a world we are living in! Then, we come to the three “Be Not Afraid” sayings in today’s gospel.

“Therefore do not be afraid of them” (10:26a). From the context, Jesus is referring to the secular authorities. Do not be afraid of kings and governors because they are powerful people and even usurpers of God but they are not God after all. Jesus elaborates further, “And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul” (10:28a). Now, we know why we don’t have to be afraid of them because they are mere mortals and they cannot kill the soul which is the image of God. Who then can kill the soul? Obviously it must be God. Who else? Can Satan or its demons? From the example of Job, we see that without God’s permission, even Satan can’t do harm on a man (Job 1:12), nor his life (2:6). So, we should fear only the Lord who is able to put our soul to death, though He does not want to! He desires rather that sinners “turn from their evil way and live” (Ezekiel 18:23).

The story of Jeremiah is a depressing one. God told Jeremiah the fate of Judah, “Your own eyes shall see them fall by the sword of their enemies. All Judah I will hand over to the power of the king of Babylon, who shall take them captive to Babylon or strike them down with the sword” (Jeremiah 20:4). It is the most unpalatable message one can deliver to one’s own country. You will be accused of sedition; become a public enemy and be put to death! Who in his right mind does not reject such a message? Jeremiah was in a dilemma, “All day long I am an object of laughter; everyone mocks me … The word of the Lord has brought me reproach and derision all day long. I say I will not mention Him, I will no longer speak in His name. But then it is as if fire is burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones; I grow weary holding back, I cannot!” (20:7-9) Jeremiah is truly an authentic spokesman of God. Unlike false prophets who speak on behalf of God to please the audience so as to save their own skins, Jeremiah speaks the truth at the expense of his own life. Consequently, even his friends denounced him and watched for any misstep of his (20:10). Jeremiah had full confidence in the Lord to take vengeance on his enemies (20:12) but in the end, he was murdered. Don’t expect swift vengeance from God. Remember, the Lord is patient and He desires the wicked to repent and live (Ezekiel 18:23)!

You might feel being unfairly treated. Why should we Christians be scapegoats? Why should we suffer and be taken advantages of? Jesus’ word is our only support. He says, “You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 10:22). Jesus assures us that the Father is in full control because “Not one of them [sparrows] falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted” (10:29b-30). You may find counting hair useless and trivial. Yet, it reveals how far and minute God’s love can go. “So, do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (10:31). God cares about us, in particular, the well-being of our souls. He will go to any length to ensure that we will be saved and thus, we should not be afraid in speaking the truth and proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven.

John’s meditation sheds light on fear from another angle. He says, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love” (1 John 4:18). Here, John uses the word ἀγάπη, to love for the good of the loved ones. Incidentally, it removes my worry about Simon Peter because Jesus Christ says, “But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father” (Matthew 10:33). Simon Peter immediately comes to mind. Luckily, the gospel of John recorded an incident in which Jesus Christ asks Peter three times whether he loved Him (John 21:15-17). For the first two times, Jesus uses ἀγάπη but Peter could only respond with φιλέω, to befriend. I suppose the Master-Disciple relationship has prevented Peter as well as all of us from loving the Lord more intimately. Jesus understands and doesn’t want to impose His will on us. So when He asked the third time, He uses φιλέω for the good of Peter. I suppose we don’t have to worry about the fate of Simon Peter any more. His position is secure.

Brethren! How much do we love God? Do we love as much as Jeremiah? Or as much as the Psalter who says, “Because zeal for your house has consumed me, I am scorned by those who scorn you” (Psalms 69:10). When the love of God is strong enough, we’ll have no fear. Moreover, how much do we love our family members, our neighbourhood, our society and even our country? Do we care about the fate of our family members and friends, colleagues and comrades, even our president and king? When our love for them and for their fate is strong enough, we’ll have no fear. Then we’ll be able to speak the truth without worry. Our hearts will be in peace. Amen.
2020 Reflection
Picture Credit: the1foundationdotcom

Let Us Pray For A Eucharistic Life

Let Us Pray For A Eucharistic Life

Deacon Alex Kwok

After nearly a month of relocation preparations, our church renovation is in full swing. Masses are celebrated in two different venues: OLMC at Star Street 1 and St. Francis’ Canossian School Chapel next door, less than a hundred metres away. Our parish priest Fr. Thomas Law ensures that there are enough priests to celebrate; sufficient number of extraordinary ministers, acolytes, lectors, choristers and ushers to serve masses because the Eucharistic celebration “is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed; at the same time, it is the font from which all her power flows” (SC #10)¹. The parish has the obligation to provide enough number of masses in a solemn and decent environment for all parishioners and visitors to draw strength from so that “Nobody is left out”.

Our Lord who promises to give us living water (John 7:38) is the font. To honour His pledge to accompany us until the end of the age (Matthew 28:20), Jesus Christ who is now seated at the right hand of the Father, defending us as our Mediator (Isaiah 53:12; 1 Timothy 2:5) against Satan’s accusations day and night (Revelation 12:10), makes Himself present among us in at least four different manners.

1. John the Apostle and Evangelist tells us that Jesus Christ is the Word of God with whom the Father created the known universe (John 1:1-3). For our sake, God inspires elected people to write and hand down His Word for posterity. We encounter Jesus Christ when we read the Bible in a prayerful manner.
2. “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). Thus, when Catholics come together to pray, Jesus is present among us. The Eucharistic celebration is the most comprehensive manner of community prayer. We confess our sins, listen to the Word of God and sing psalms to thank and praise the Lord together.
3. During the Last Supper, Jesus Christ instituted the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist (26:26-28). When we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in mass, we become one with Him (John 6:56) and one with all who participate in the same Eucharist all over this planet.
   
4. Lastly, Jesus reveals to us that we are able to serve Him among the poor, the needy, the marginalized and the abused, “And the King will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’” (Matthew 25:40). Thus, we continue to visit the homeless at eleven different locations all over Hong Kong during the renovation project on Friday evenings.

Brethren! What else has our Lord not done to make Himself accessible and available? Now, the ball is in our court. If you are unable to spare time reading the Bible on a daily basis, you can at least stop to pray for a mere five minutes a day. If you don’t know what to pray for, look around you to see what is happening in your neighbourhood, in this city or even a wider region. Matthew 25:40 quoted above might inspire your prayer. If you are overwhelmed by so many things happening around you that you are tired of making choices, why don’t you join the Pope to pray for the challenges facing humanity? At the beginning of each year, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network (aka Apostleship of Prayer) will publish the Papal prayer intentions for the whole year for us to pray.

What a remarkable coincidence! While we start renovating our church, the Apostleship of Prayer will pray for a Eucharistic life in July, namely that Catholics may place the celebration of the Eucharist at the heart of their lives, transforming human relationships in a very deep way and opening to the encounter with God and all their brothers and sisters. I suggest you make this your prayer intention during this renovation project. If you would like to know more, check out the following website². God bless!

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¹Sacrosanctum Concilium, Vatican II Constitution (1963)
²https://popesprayerusa.net
Photo Credit: scholarblogs.emory.edu/candlerdmin/

Pray For Vocation 為聖召祈禱

Eleventh Ordinary Sunday, Year A
Theme: Pray For Vocation 為聖召祈禱

The first thing in the gospel reading today that catches my attention is the familiar phrase, “Like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36c) which can be found in the gospel of Mark as well (Mark 6:34b). With this phrase, Mark narrated the miracle of “Five loaves and two fish”, whereas Matthew switches to another famous phrase “The harvest is abundant but the labourers are few …” Then Jesus sent the Twelve to proclaim the Good News (Matthew 9:37-10:1). There are at least two points worth meditating.

First of all, I do not question the validity of Jesus’ uses of shepherds and fishermen images in conveying His message though He is only known to be a carpenter. Since the gospels fail to account for the eighteen years missing in Jesus’ life before His public ministry, it was not impossible for Jesus to have worked as a hired out fisherman or shepherd in those years! Even if we were able to prove that Jesus had never been a shepherd, that would not negate His comprehensive knowledge of the Bible as it is demonstrated by how He quoted the scriptures to overcome the temptations of Satan in the wilderness and fought away challenges from religious authorities in Jerusalem. Though His miracles are not earth shaking enough, they reminded His contemporary Jews of miracles worked by prophets in the Old Testament. No wonder John the Apostle bears witnesses that Jesus Christ is the Word of God and Jesus Himself says that He came not to abolish but to fulfil (Matthew 5:17). For example, when Jesus claims to be the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:11, 14), He is fulfilling the prophecy of Ezekiel 34! In fact, Jesus’ use of different images enriches our spiritual life and the path to sanctification is unique to each and every one of us. God’s mercy allows for diversity because uniformity fails to glorify the Lord. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the works of His hands” (Psalms 19:2)!

Secondly, many people find the Bible irrelevant to the modern ears because since post-industrial revolution, few people find resonance any more in biblical images most of which came from agricultural societies, namely kings, fishermen, shepherds, sowers, potters, foolish bridesmaids and mustard seeds etc. Nowadays, there are only a handful of surviving monarchs. Agriculture is highly mechanized and is less labour intensive. Very few urban people have had experiences tending sheep or ploughing the fields. People are able to meet evangelists online without any need of physical contact … I totally agree that if we force people to accept only one official interpretation without allowing for some latitude of openness, there is only one consequence, namely people will feel that the very message you want to convey becomes distant and irrelevant. For example, the Bible was penned by men more than two millennia ago and gives readers a patriarchal impression. How would any female reader today, say a working mother in an office trading stocks and bonds, be able to feel what Jesus felt, namely pity, for the followers when “At the sight of the crowds, His heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36)! Unless she identifies the crowds as her own children and herself as Jesus Christ, she will not be able to feel the pity Jesus felt for the crowds! It seems rather challenging for modern Christians to make use of their imagination and put themselves into the gospel narratives. But this spirituality practice has been a proven formula for more than a thousand years promoted by many religious orders.

In fact, Matthew and Mark wrote their gospels for different communities to meet their needs. Mark wants to assure his community that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who is more powerful than other usurpers to the “Son of God” title, namely the Roman Caesars and their likes! Therefore, the Markan Jesus is a Saviour in action and works many miracles. When He saw the “sheep without a shepherd”, He acted immediately to feed His hungry sheep and it was only natural for Him to work the “Five Loaves and Two Fish” miracle!
Matthew was more concerned with the life of his Jewish Christian community. His narratives attempted to prove that Jesus was Messiah foretold by the prophets. Thus, we find Matthew quoting many prophecies to prove his point. Matthew also wanted to demonstrate that Jesus was a teacher with greater authority than Moses. For example, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus demands His followers to follow the spirit of the Law rather than the letters. Moreover, He teaches them a lot about how to forgive one another, e.g. the Christian way to win back the soul of a strayed brother (18:15-17); the authority He gave the Church to forgive sins (18:18); true forgiveness forgives seventy-seven times (18:22) etc. In short, reconciliation protects a community from schism.

Thus, in this particular circumstance, the Matthean Jesus was more concerned with the spiritual well-being of the crowds than satisfying their hunger. Jesus knew very well that later He had to return to His Father. He would not stay on earth forever. Otherwise, human autonomy would be trampled on. In other words, Jesus must leave behind His unfinished mission to the Church to accomplish. Which means she needs a team of spiritually mature and capable civil servants to govern, to sanctify and to teach the People of God. Where do these civil servants come from? Of course, they should be elected from within the community. Thus, instead of multiplying the loaves of bread, Jesus told His disciples to pray to the Father “to send more labourers for His harvest” (9:38). Remember that God only invites. He does not impose because He respects our autonomy. Then, how can we guarantee that there will be sufficient number of clergy to pastor the People of God? No, there is no guarantee that young people will respond positively to God’s call to become priests and nuns but we trust that God will provide.

Then, what is the proper attitude to pray for priestly vocation? Let us be frank. We have been praying for vocation year after year without any success. Thus, something must have gone wrong! I think we have missed some crucial orientations in our routine prayers for MORE vocation. When we see priestly vocation thrives in underdeveloped countries, we should not lay the blame on economic prosperity for the lack of vocation. Have not many saints in the Middle Age come from the nobility class and wealthy families? Do we pray to fill up vacancies in the Hierarchy? Or rather, do we pray because we feel what Jesus feels? In other words, do we see the parishioners like “sheep without a shepherd”? Do we thus feel pitiful for the Church community because of a lack of clergy to administer sacraments, to teach catechism and to run the Church hierarchy? Do we feel pitiful because some clergy are thieves and robbers that steal, slaughter and destroy (John 10:10)? Do we care about sheep that do not belong to this fold (10:16)? I believe that when our hearts synchronize with that of Jesus’, the Father will hear our prayers like His only begotten Son’s. Amen.
2020 Reflection
Picture Credit: afkimel.wordpress.com

We Love Too Little 我們愛得太少

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body & Blood of Christ, Year A
Theme: We Love Too Little 我們愛得太少

Each one of us is unique. Our maturity level, if there is such a scale, is also unique. By maturity, I mean how much we are able to leave behind our infantile mind and acts. Psychologists believe that when a child is born, it is not aware of itself. Through interactions with the environment and others, it begins to build up boundaries, what is within reach and what’s not. Internal sensations such as hunger, thirst and heat trigger acts. Crying is able to summon some beings to relieve its needs. Smiling is able to reinforce more actions from the same beings to gratify its needs. Need gratification brings pleasure and good feelings. Pain is uncomfortable and therefore it is bad. Some beings who always bring pleasure become the “significant others”. Gradually, an ego is built up … The infant is really busy all the time to explore, to discover and even to manipulate the beings and the world around it. Psychologists believe that thumb-sucking is a sign of intelligence and self-awareness! Seeking pleasure and avoiding pain are natural actions for an infant when it is aware of itself.
But no man is an island. We’re living in a community together to support each other. Times and again, we need to give up our own benefits, interests and pleasures etc. for the greater good, namely the good of the community. Altruism becomes a virtue because the community sanctions such acts that facilitate its survival into the future. Therefore, a person is mature when he/she is able to think and act for the good of the others to a certain degree. Some may focus exclusively on the immediate family members for their whole life. Others may care for a bigger neighbourhood after they are rich enough. Yet others are prepared to forfeit even their lives for the defence of their fatherland! Of course, this is not the one and only one absolute scale of maturity. I’m sure other ways to measure maturity are possible as long as they are based on the most essential element of life, namely love. What is love, if it is not acting for the good of the others? Parental love, I believe, is the first love everybody encounters. How mature one will be is partially determined by the parental love that has nurtured and continues to nurture him because many human acts are conditioned by memories.

In the first reading today, which is an excerpt of a discourse in which Moses invoked the memories of the Israelites to exhort their observance of the Sinai Covenant. “Remember then the Lord, your God, for He is the one who gives you the power to get wealth, by fulfilling, as He has now done, the covenant He swore to your ancestors” (Deuteronomy 8:18). Firstly, the Lord is faithful. He honours the pledge He made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by multiplying the Israelites in the land of Egypt and then liberating them from slavery. Secondly, the Lord loves them by providing them with good things in the Promised Land, “a land with streams of water … of wheat and barley … where you will always have bread and where you will lack nothing, a land whose stones contain iron and in whose hills you can mine copper” (8:7-9). To a certain extent, parents are faithful and they love their children like the Lord within their means and power! But the Lord is almighty and His love is infinite.

Then Moses warns the Israelites of the danger of becoming complacent and ungrateful! They must not forget the Lord who provides all the good things for them. What indicators show that they have forgotten the Lord? “Be careful not to forget the Lord, your God, by failing to keep His commandments and ordinances and statutes which I enjoin on you today” (8:11). Thus, keeping the commandments means they remember and are grateful. Jesus further clarifies, “Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him” (John 14:21). As far as we know from reading the gospels, Jesus only gave one new commandment to the disciples in the Last Supper (13:34). In 14:21, Jesus uses the plural form of the word “commandment”. Obviously, He is speaking in the capacity of the Lord God. Jesus is teaching us to love God by keeping the commandments given by Him. For the Jews, there are 613 commandments, laws, rules and precepts. How is it possible to keep them all? So, Jesus highlighted and summarized them all in the two greatest commandments (Deuteronomy 6:4-5, Leviticus 19:18b) when He was being challenged. The essential element is going out of oneself to do whatever is beneficial and good for the others.

In all civilizations, there are legends of heroes. They went through challenges and trials to prove their worthiness to go down into history, to be remembered and admired by all. The very existence of such legends in all civilizations refracts a universal desire deep down the psyche of every person: that we want to be remembered in posterity. Now, what incident in Abraham’s life is best remembered? Of course it is the story of his offering up of Isaac as a human sacrifice to God! The Israelites were proud of their ancestor who passed God’s test in flying colours. The side-effect is that they had so bad-mouthed God that Yahweh was made into a deity of domestic violence, ill-treating both the elderly and the juvenile! In the light of hero legends, we are able to interpret our afflictions and sufferings in a more positive manner, namely an opportunity to prove our worth so that we’ll be remembered in posterity! “Remember how for these forty years the Lord, your God, has directed all your journeying in the wilderness, so as to test you by affliction, to know what was in your heart: to keep his commandments, or not” (Deuteronomy 8:2). Wait a minute! Isn’t God all-knowing? He already knows what is in our hearts. Why bother to test us by affliction? Of course God knows but we don’t! Therefore, all those tests are opportunities to make us know ourselves better, and to prove our worthiness. In Jesus’ words, to allow us to prove how much we love Him!

It is revealing to read of the verse which Jesus used to rebuke Satan in the first temptation. “It is not by bread alone that people live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord” (8:3b). But the context is, “He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna, a food unknown to you and your ancestors, so you might know that it is not by bread alone …” Therefore, what are “anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine (hunger), or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?” (Romans 8:35b) but opportunities to prove our love of God. But humanity is fragile and sin-prone. How is it possible for us to take up all these challenges and trials to prove our worthiness? Don’t worry. Read the context. What’s the full text of this verse? “What will separate us from the love of Christ? ...” (8:35a) Paul assures us that Christ’s love is always there to support us in demonstrating our love. Thus, in answering Satan in the first temptation, Jesus was actually teaching Satan the mystery of God’s love, the Holy Eucharist. What is “all that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord”, if not the Word of God, Jesus Himself? Jesus is actually telling Satan, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (John 6:51)!

Like the manna which the Israelites did not understand, the Holy Eucharist is also difficult to understand though theologians have come up with the idea of “transubstantiation” to explain it. I suspect the difficulty lies in the level of maturity one has attained. By the time we love more and struggle against God less, we’ll appreciate how immense and overwhelming God’s love can be! After all, hero legends are wrong because they promote a wrong idea which Moses rebukes, “It is my own power and strength of my own hand that has got me this wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:17). No! It is God’s love that enable and empower us to succeed in whatever we do, including loving Him in return.
Brethren! “We love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Amen.
2020 Reflection
Picture Credit: blogs.getty.edu

How Does God Love Us?天主怎樣愛我們？

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Year A
Theme: How Does God Love Us?天主怎樣愛我們？

Like all other global monotheist religions, the God we Christians believe in is one. However, our God is more “refined in details” in the sense that Jesus Christ reveals to us that there are three divine Persons in one Godhead. They are God the Father, the Creator who is the source of everything. God the Son is the Word of God who participated in the creation of the known universe. Moreover, the Son of God, Jesus Christ also takes up another role as the Redeemer to deliver humanity from the bondage of sins. The Father loves His only begotten Son and the Son loves the Father and obeys Him unconditionally. The love between them is the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth (John 14:17) and the spirit of love because love is the essence of God! John the Apostle and Evangelist beautifully summarizes it, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). If God is love, how does love harmonize with His meting out punishments?

The first reading today highlights God’s love in the Torah by emphasizing God’s mercy and readiness to forgive. “The Lord, the Lord, a God gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love and fidelity” (Exodus 34:6). Mercy is bestowed when sins are forgiven. God’s mercy is shown by His readiness to forgive. Even notorious kings such as Ahab was spared the punishments he deserved for the murder of Naboth when he showed signs of repentance (1 Kings 21:29). In this particular story, God had stayed the punishments until Ahab died. The punishments still descended on Ahab’s children, thus showing God’s righteousness. In selecting today’s reading, the Liturgical Commissions emphasize God’s mercy by skipping the next verse in Exodus, which says, “continuing His love for a thousand generations, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin; yet not declaring the guilty guiltless, but bringing punishment for their parents’ wickedness on children and children’s children to the third and fourth generation!” (34:7) This verse echoes the first Commandment (the second Commandment according to the Protestant way of counting) mentioned in Exodus 20 (20:5-6). If God brings punishments for parent’s wickedness to children (such as the case of King David and King Ahab) and children’s children to the third and fourth generation, how does this verse square with the prophets’ teaching on God’s righteousness? For example, “Only the one who sins shall die. The son shall not be charged with the guilt of his father, nor shall the father be charged with the guilt of his son. Justice belongs to the just, and wickedness to the wicked” (Ezekiel 18:20).

Let me organize it this way. One group of Jews showed God’s righteousness by stressing that God would punish a person’s wickedness to the third and fourth generation. Therefore, be forewarned of the consequences of your wickedness to your children and children’s children! The Torah and even the Former Prophets, namely the books of Judges, I & II Samuels and I & II Kings seem to advocate this position. This moral position is more communal because your responsibility lies beyond your lifetime! The other group insisted that God’s punishments were confined to the wicked person concerned. Children would not bear the brunt of the punishments of the wickedness of their parents! Their children would only be responsible for their own wickedness. The major and minor prophets buy this position. This moral position is more individualistic. There seems to be an evolution of morality. The importance of individuals is gaining an upper hand. Following the tradition of prophets, the gospels take up a more personal stance. Everyone is held accountable for his own iniquities.

The gospel passage for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity is chosen well even though the Holy Spirit does not show up explicitly in the text like the narrative of Jesus’ baptism in the River Jordon does. However, bear in mind that the Holy Spirit is the love between the Father and the Son whose love is manifested in the Holy Spirit. If “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son …” (John 3:16a), then the Father’s love will go where His only Son goes, namely the world. Where else but the world must the Holy Spirit be present as well! The most holy Trinity is present in this often-quoted passage from John, which harmonizes the love of God with His righteousness. The Father sent His only begotten Son to humanity and invited us to believe in the Son to receive salvation. The Father does not force us to accept Jesus Christ and leaves it open for us to accept or to reject the invitation. We have the choice. This is the modulus operandi of God. The parable of the Prodigal Son conveys this message most beautifully. This parable does not tell us whether the elder son accepts the father’s explanation and reconciles with the younger brother. The ending is left open for the audience to decide for themselves whether they are willing to reconcile with “other sinners”. If they don’t genuinely believe in Jesus, they won’t be able to reconcile with “other sinners” who have entered eternal life before them (Matthew 21:31) while they refuse to enter unless “other sinners” are removed. Who made you the judge of the living and the dead? Therefore, we only have ourselves to blame if we insist on our own righteousness. “Whoever believes in Him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18).

Alas! It is difficult to keep trusting in the love of God because many terrible things are happening around us and even to our loved ones. As of this writing, two women were brutally stabbed and killed in a bustling shopping mall in less than two minutes the afternoon before. The police quickly arrived and apprehended the perpetrator. Many passers-by were shocked and the government appealed to the mass media and social media not to forward the videos because the scene was too disturbing! Naturally one wonders where God was when this incident took place. How can we hold on to the belief that “The Lord will guard you from all evil; He will guard your soul. The Lord will guard your coming and going both now and forever.” (Psalms 121:7-8)
To be candid, had God appeared to us and explained, like the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son did why He allowed such a brutal killing to happen in broad daylight, we would not have accepted it either because the reason is too complex beyond our intelligence or our prejudice has clouded our charity so much so that we are unable to tolerate “other sinners”! Such intolerance persuade us to question God and His love! However, I opine that questioning God is better than becoming indifferent because God is still relevant in our lives.

Today is also the anniversary of the June 4^th incident. It has been thirty-four years and one wonders if the Lord cares about the mothers whose children were run over by tanks. In Hong Kong, a deafening silence is broken by a prayer supposed to be composed by our bishop. Allow me to translate and post it here. It reads,
“Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. But for many Hongkongers, this is a day for deep-reflections. We beseech the Lord’s mercy to receive the dead in His eternal bosom. We pray for those whose hearts have been hardened. Lord, soften and liberate them gradually from the abysses of fear and anxiety. May the eternal mercy of the Trinity give our society and our country the grace of healings so that we may proceed to a brighter tomorrow. Amen.”
+Stephen Chow Sau Yan, S.J.
Bishop of Hong Kong.
2020 Reflection
Photo Credit: hongkongfp.com