"Behold I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him..." (Revelation 3:20) A collection of my Sunday homilies for Holy Mass as well as some occasional talks and reflections. May my words enable you to hear the voice of Christ, who asks that you open the door to Him. Please share this podcast with others if you benefit from listening to it.
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Who's in? Who's out? Who belongs and who doesn't? These are not only questions from the school playground but are significant human questions; questions that are made all the harder by our human nature wounded by sin. The Lord teaches us an important lesson around this topic today in the Holy Gospel. He calls us to an elevated vision of humanity; a vision that approaches the viewpoint of God, who is abundant in mercy and complete in justice.
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frpchandler@armidale.catholic.org.au
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Joshua in the first reading and St. John in the Gospel reading both made the same mistake, of presuming that only a select few are inspired and entrusted to carry out God's plans. Both of them learnt from this error though. Joshua went on to succeed Moses, and Saint John remained with our Lord to the very end on Calvary. Time and time again in history, both before and after Christ, God has demonstrated that He can and will work mighty deeds through the most unexpected and unlikely of people. This can serve can serve to remind us of the true principle that good is always objectively good. It is good regardless of the person who is doing it. Likewise with evil, it is also objectively evil, regardless of the person who is doing it. Without the moral compass that Christianity gives it so easy to fall into moral relativism in all its forms. In the context of what we hear in sacred scripture today, we have to declare again that a person and his or her deeds are linked, of course, but they are not identified with each other, so that they melt into one. However, evil done by a follower of Christ is worse than evil done by an unbeliever, because we know better, and have been given more grace to do what is right. As Christ said, To the one who has been given more, even more will be expected. Also he teaches us in today's gospel reading about how seriously we should treat sin. He uses hyperbole or overstatement to emphasize the drastic measures that are needed both to avoid sin and to avoid leading others into sin. Public sin can embolden others to sin likewise. The consequences that await those who cause scandal are worse than drowning by the weight of a great millstone. Also because mortal sins merit hell, we must take action so serious to avoid them that it can be compared to bodily mutilation and dismemberment. Following on from all that the words of Psalm eighteen make an appropriate prayer. Who can detect all his errors? From hidden faults acquit me. From presumption restrain your servant, and let it not rule me. Then I shall be blameless, clean from grave sin. We must also address ourselves to the robust words from Saint James. The apostle rails against wealthy landowners who love their belongings more than God. The problem is not with the money or riches of themselves, because even a person of modest means, or even one in poverty, could value worldly riches and goods more than God, could even hanker after them. In verse four we see the result of this disordered attachment to landowners Laborers mowed your fields and you cheated them. Listen to the wages you have kept back, calling out. Oppression of the poor and depriving workers of their just wages are two of the four sins that cry out to heaven for vengeance. They are serious sins, when done with full knowledge and full consent. In our time two issues arise from these two sins. For sure there are probably landowners, employers, and companies that do not pay just wages to their workers. But sometimes there may be workers who demand wages that are not commensurate with the work they do. Both are living self-centered lives. Likewise the plight of migrants and refugees becomes at times something of a political football, doesn't it? The biblical value of welcoming the stranger becomes used for personal or party point scoring. The catechism teaches us that more prosperous nations are obliged to the extent that they are able, to welcome foreigners in search of the security and the means of livelihood that they cannot find in their country of origin. But equally the ones who arrive in a country are obliged to respect with gratitude the material and spiritual heritage of the country that receives them, to obey its laws and to assist in carrying out civil duties. The prudential decision about who is allowed to settle and how many is left to the prudential decision of civil authorities. Just as Joshua and Saint John learnt, none of us can claim a superiority, either because of the amount of our wealth or where we were born. Good is good wherever it is, and good comes from God, who is the source of goodness. On our part we must ensure we are living lives worthy of our holy baptism, lives that give glory to God, because He deals with us and with all people according to the bounty of His mercy.
