PURE AND UNSPOILT RELIGION

XXII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 7:1-8,14-15,21-23

The gospel presents the Pharisees and some scribes quarrelling with Jesus on account of his disciples because they did not the tradition of washing their hands before eating. In Zambia, people wash their hands before and after a meal. It is a question of good manners and mainly of hygiene, which has no religious significance. It was not so for the Jews. Going for their daily tasks, they would be in contact with a great variety of people, many of whom did not keep the rules of purity. So their washing was for purification. This is the reason why they questioned Jesus, giving him the opportunity to challenge them and to point out the futility of that external purification. There is always the danger of reducing religion to the keeping of rituals, which give an appearance of holiness, in spite of not touching the heart and not leading to conversion.

The second reading presents the answer to a question that arises from all the three readings: what is pure and unspoilt religion? There are people who see religion and faith as being the opposite of each other. For them, religion is the human attempt at being justified by their actions, while faith is a total reliance on God, recognising that we are justified by his grace. And so they uphold faith as paramount while considering religion as a vain attempt at salvation. However, it seems that St. James, in his letter, did not see things in that way. Religion refers to establish a relationship with God, which is always a gift of his grace that implies and demands an attitude and a certain type of behaviour. Faith demands that we answer God’s call and that we remain committed to an attitude of listening and answering throughout our lives. 

In the second reading, St. James stresses what is essential: 

1. Listen to God’s word, accept and submit to it; 
2. put it into practice (“and not just listen to it and deceive yourselves.” - James 1:22)
3. pay attention to all those who suffer and come to their help;
4. “keeping oneself uncontaminated by the world” (James 1:27).

In the first reading, Moses teaches the people to keep God’s commandments, if they want to have life. We are continuously being contaminated by the wisdom of the world, which presents power, wealth, glory and pleasure as the greatest values and the easiest and quickest way for a life full of happiness. However, the ways of the world are treacherous and full of lies.

In the gospel, answering the Pharisees, Jesus presents the false values and attitudes that spoil and soil our hearts: “For it is from within, from men’s hearts, that evil intentions emerge: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within and make a man unclean” (Mk 7:21-23).

Psalm 15 presents essential attitudes needed to be accepted in the presence of the Lord:

Lord, who shall dwell on your holy mountain?

He who walks without fault;

he who acts with justice

and speaks the truth from his heart;

he who does not slander with his tongue.

He who does no wrong to his brother,

who casts no slur on his neighbour,

who holds the godless in disdain,

but honours those who fear the Lord.

He who keeps his pledge, come what may;

who takes no interest on a loan

and accepts no bribes against the innocent.

Such a man will stand firm for ever.

MARRIAGE, A COVENANT OF LOVE

XXI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Ephesians 5:21-32

In his day, Paul’s teaching about marriage and about the relationship between man and woman sounded like revolutionary, affirming the dignity of marriage and the dignity of those involved in it. Nowadays, there are people who accuse Paul of misogyny, ignoring his message, which they consider to be outdated. However, when Paul said: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28), he could be considered a feminist who defended the equality of men and women. Surely, in his time and for a long time afterwards, feminism would be unthinkable and that shows how fresh and new Paul was. Nowadays, feminism demands not only equal rights but insists in banishing all differences between men and women, trying to prove that women can do everything the men do and do it better. They prefer to speak about gender equality and gender came to be considered as fluid. For many of this post-modernist era, gender is not determined by biology, but by social construct. When someone is born, that someone is a blank slate, on which the gender roles are going to be imprinted. There are people who suffer from gender dysphoria, that is they feel to be trapped in the wrong body. If they have a male body but feel like a woman, then they have the right to be treated like a woman and vice-versa. Instead of looking at that feeling as a delusion and seeing the person as someone who needs to be treated, that feeling is accepted as the reality and society is forced to recognise that person in the way that someone wants to be recognised. The doctors are ready to put those people on hormone treatment and to perform operations on them to erase the external signs of womanhood or manhood. However, all those changes are cosmetic and superficial; they are like a mask that hides the reality behind. The marks of manhood or womanhood remain imprinted in all cells and there is no way of eradicating those marks. The way someone perceives reality is being accepted as the reality, even though it is a lie. And a lie always comes back to daunt those who build their lives on it.

Paul calls us back to true wisdom - the wisdom of God. In marriage, the relationship between a man and woman has a sacred dimension. That relationship was planned by God and manifests the mystery of God’s love. The covenant of love between husband and wife is a sacramental sign of the covenant of love between God and his people or between Christ and the Church. It is a relationship built on love and respect, having Christ as the role model. Indeed, Paul speaks of the relationship between husband and wife in comparison with the relationship between Christ and the Church. In that comparison, the woman stands for the Church and the man for Christ, never forgetting that, in Paul’s theology, the Church is the body of Christ. From this comparison, Pauls takes the affirmation that the husband is the head of the family as Christ is the head of the Church. This statement may be, and it has been, understood as discriminatory and oppressive. However, that is not the conclusion taken by Paul. For Paul, to be the head in Christ’s manner implies service and not power. And that is straightforward and clear: “Husbands should love their wives just as Christ loved the Church”. And Christ died for the Church: he “sacrificed himself for her to make her holy” (Ep 5:25-26). For the man to be head, he must be the first in service, being ready like Christ to suffer for his beloved.

Paul understood that men and women share the same dignity, the same call to holiness, the same hope and the same promise. Each one needs the other to achieve his/ her fulfilment according to the measure of Christ. We are the same, yet we are different - and those differences come from our biological ground upon which everything else may be built. It is this difference that makes possible that makes possible the communion which makes of them one body in marriage. Paul pays attention to our different reactions as men and women and stresses the need of love for women and the need for respect for men. Women feel respected when they are loved and men feel loved when they are respected.

If we want to build families and to educate the children, we need stable marriages, marriages in which husband and wife live in a covenant of love. And we must recognise marriage as sacred. It is the duty of the State to promote and protect stable marriages.

Let us pray for all married couples. May the Lord strengthen their love for one another.

THIS IS MY BODY FOR THE LIFE OF THE WORLD

 XX SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - John 6:51-58

We go on reading the chapter 6 of John’s gospel, in which we are presented with a catechesis on the Eucharist. The Eucharist is presented as a meal, in which we are served the bread of life, a special bread that comes from God. When the Jews heard Jesus speaking about the bread of life, they remembered that God had fed the people of Israel bread from heaven, during their stay in the desert, where they had a very tough experience, with their faith being put to test. Suffering from a shortage of food and fearing for their lives, they revolted against Moses and against God, deciding to choose another leader who would take them back to Egypt. It seems as if they forced God’s hand, leaving him no alternative: either he feeds them or they ignore and abandon him. They looked to God as their enemy, in spite of having been their saviour at every turn of the way and he proved himself faithful, loving and caring. And so God provided the manna, that special food, which kept them alive. Through the generations, the people of Israel kept the memory of that food, which proved to them that their God is the God who works wonders. Turning to Jesus, the Jews asked him: “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you?” (Jn 6:30). Jesus had fed a huge crowd, but that was not enough. They wanted more and bigger signs to satisfy their curiosity. They behaved like their ancestors, treating God as a tool in their hands, who should always be ready to answer their needs. Jesus unmasked their intentions, going straight to the point, by telling them: “you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves” (Jn 6:26). And he pointed out their misconceptions, telling them that the manna was just food, earthly food, and not the true bread from heaven. Then, he presented himself as the bread of life. However, only those who have faith may eat that bread. If we believe in Jesus and accept him as Lord and Saviour, then he will satisfy our hunger and quench our thirst - hunger and thirst for love, justice and peace. In the sermon on the mountain, Jesus proclaimed: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Mt 5:6). This bread is the bread of life, since all those who are fed with this bread will share in the resurrection of Jesus, thus living forever: “This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day” (Jn 6:40).

And Jesus makes it very clear that there is no distinction between the bread of life and himself. In the Last Supper, breaking the bread and sharing it with his disciples, Jesus said: “This is my body” (Lk 22:19; 1 Co 11:24), a body that is going to be given for the world. Jesus offered his life in sacrifice for the redemption of the world. In John’s gospel, Jesus uses similar words: “The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” (Jn 6:51). 

Jesus invites us to his table and offers himself to us as the bread of life. By eating this bread, we become one with Jesus: “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me” (Jn 6:56-57). We must approach his table in an attitude of thanksgiving and praise, for the Lord feeds us with the bread that strengthens us for the long journey until we may reach God’s Mountain and be received in his house in the company of Jesus.

FED WITH THE BREAD OF LIFE, WE WILL HAVE THE STRENGTH TO WALK UPO TO GOD’S MOUNTAIN

XIX SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - 1 Kings 19:4-8

The first reading presents Elijah’s experience. He was a bold and courageous prophet, who spoke fearlessly against the idolatry of the people and the injustices of the king. Moved by a strong zeal of God, he had got rid of the priests of Baal, thus drawing upon himself the wrath of the queen, who swore to have him killed. Realising that his life was in real danger, Elijah decided to run away and hide in the wilderness. As a run-away, tired, hungry and thirsty, he lost the zest for life and wished he were dead. Then, he said to God: “O Lord, I have had enough. Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” He felt as if he had spent the usefulness of his life, doing whatever he could and failing. He looked upon himself as a failure and considered that life was not worth living any more. Others commit suicide when they reach such a stage, but Elijah left it in God’s hands. So many times, we start with big dreams and big plans, having the idea that we will do better than all those who came before us; then, we hit our heads against the walls of real life and we are forced to realise that we are no better than our ancestors. When discouragement and disappointment take over, we ran away and give up, as Elijah did. That’s when we need God to come into our lives to breath new impetus and new hope so that we can move forward. Left to our own, we will not go far. Feeling tired and in despair, we may cry out to be relieved of the mission we failed to accomplish.

God intervened in the life of Elijah, calling him, strengthening him with food from heaven and then ordering him to proceed his journey. Our final journey, like Elijah’s, is to God’s mountain and for us to walk up to the top, we need to be fed with God’s food. And that is the kind of food that Jesus promised to give us. He is the bread of life. “Anyone who eats this bread will live forever” (Jn 6:51). Jesus promised to give us the Eucharist and he invites us to his table, putting himself forward as the bread of life. In the Church assembly, when we get up and approach the table of the Lord, we are given the bread that will make us walk up to the mountain of God. That bread will transform us from within, uniting us with Jesus Christ to be with him one body. We should not despise God’s gift by staying away from the Lord’s table and we must prepare ourselves to be worthy of the bread of life.

PUT ON THE NEW SELF CREATED IN GOD’S WAY

XVIII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Ephesians 4:17,20-24

In the letter to the Ephesians, we are invited to live according to our call, that is to live according to what we learnt from Jesus. Jesus is presented as the role model. In him, we find direction and meaning for our lives. We must not live “the aimless kind of life that pagans live.” We must not be afraid or ashamed of our difference, that is, we should not conform with the wisdom and the behaviour of the world, which is dominated by lust for pleasure, craving for wealth and struggle for power. All that leads us to a hopeless life in which we battle for things that cannot satisfy our thirst and our hunger for truth, uprightness, justice, love and peace. We may try to inebriate ourselves with pleasure and drown our sorrows in the pride of our useless achievements, but our hearts cannot find rest and peace. That’s why the letter to the Ephesians tells us very clearly:

“You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts” (Ep 4:22).

For the Ephesians, to get rid of the old self, built upon the model of the Greek and Roman way of life was not an easy task. Nowadays, there are many who glorify the Greco-roman world, spreading the idea that all the evils of the world come from Christianity and that we should go back to the model of the classic culture. They forget that the Greco-roman culture glorified violence and got used to the shedding of blood. It was a society built upon slavery and the exploration of the conquered nations. Their gods were bloody gods, never satisfied with the shedding of blood. That’s why, in the letter to the Ephesians, the classic culture is called “corrupt and deluded by its lusts”. The Christian who has Jesus as his role model needs to “be renewed by a spiritual revolution”, in order to “put on the new self that has been created in God’s way, in the goodness and holiness of the truth” (Ep 4:24).

In many ways, our post-modernist culture may be called as well “corrupt and deluded by its lusts”. It is in need of the newness brought by Jesus Christ. We must present Jesus as the role-model and that role-model will be seen as credible if people see in us, the followers of Jesus, the fruits of “goodness, holiness and truth”.

TO SHARE WITH THANKSGIVING

XVII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - John 6:1-15

The experience of starvation is very old. In old and modern times, there have been periods of scarcity, during which whole regions suffer from famine. The Scriptures present the experience of Jacob and his family. Several times, they made the long journey to Egypt in order to get some supplies of food and, then, in order to survive, they went to live there as economic migrants. During their wandering through the desert, the people of Israel suffered from lack of food, leading them to revolt against Moses. And they would rather go back to slavery in Egypt than suffer from famine. God found a way out of that suffering, providing them with manna from heaven. Throughout the history of salvation, God revealed himself as the Provider. And many peoples of the world have made that experience as well. In Bemba culture, one of the titles attributed to God is Mwansa Bamba, that is Master Hunter, who brings plenty of food and keeps his household well fed.

Among the prophets, we have the extraordinary story of Elisha, who asked a man to share the food he had, which was enough to feed a big number, still leaving a surplus. In the gospels, we find Jesus doing something similar. Far away from their homes, a big crowd of people were following Jesus, and he had pity on them. A young boy had some bread and a little fish. And from that little food shared out in an attitude of thanksgiving, enough food was found to feed the crowd. In Bemba, people say: Ificepa, fyakufwala; ifyakulya taficepa. Clothes may be short, but food does not fall short. Even little, it can be shared. This attitude of sharing is very important. The food produced in the world is enough for the whole population, but a few overeat and throw away any leftover. In some places, there is overproduction, and then what cannot be sold is disposed of or allowed to rotten, leaving countless numbers of people in a precarious situation. And besides agricultural products, sold at affordable prices, we must share as well the technologies which make possible to increase production. We live in a world of plenty, plagued by obesity in a growing number of countries. The body succumbs to the weight of gluttony, and the soul becomes the prisoner of an unbridled desire for self-satisfaction.

We must pay attention to what Jesus did: He "took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them." The sharing of the bread was done in thanksgiving. He would do the same in the Last Supper, for us to learn that communion is only possible when there is sharing. With Christ let us learn to share in thanksgiving.

THE KIND OF LEADERS WE NEED

XVI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Jeremiah 23:1-6

Since long ago, the figure of the shepherd has been used as a model for the leaders and rulers of the people, be it religious or political. And so Jeremiah’s criticism against the shepherds is a criticism of the leaders of the people.  A true shepherd, who is in charge of his flock, must take good care of the sheep, leading them to good pastures and refreshing waters. He must keep them healthy and well-fed, without suffering from the fierce heat of the sun or from heavy thunderstorms. In dangerous times, he must lead them to the sheepfold and provide them with food. While in the open countryside, he must keep them together, being attentive to the stray one, so that she does not get lost. And he must protect the flock from the fierce animals that are always lurking in the shadows to catch and kill the sheep. The shepherd’s life must be at the service of the sheep. However, the rulers of Israel are only concerned with their personal welfare; they do not care for the well-being of their people. They abandon them and they remain on their own, disperse and defenceless. Worse still, feeling trumped upon and oppressed, the sheep get scattered. Those leaders lived off the people. And so God will call them to account and take their positions from them and then He himself will take care of his people and choose shepherds according to his heart, who will “practise honesty and integrity in the land”.

In this Sunday’s gospel, we see Jesus as the one who came to fulfil that promise and to be that shepherd who takes good care of his people. And this is made clear with two incidents: first, Jesus cares for his disciples and sees that they have time for rest and for reflection; second, seeing the crowds coming to him, he realises that they “were like sheep without a shepherd”, scattered and lost, without anybody to gather them and give them direction. And Jesus, having “pity on them”, “set himself to teach them at some length.”