June 8, Tuesday

TENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 

LIGHT IS ITS OWN PROOF: SALT AND LIGHT

During the communist regime in Poland, only a dozen or so Catholic secondary schools for girls remained under the direction of religious sisters. They had to follow the state program without any religion. When asked whether there was still any sense in their work, a sister directress answered: “We stay with the girls, we are a presence among them. If we try to be good Christians, we automatically let the light shine. Light is its own proof. One has not to talk about it.” Her words echo those of Christ in the Gospel. A Christian has not necessarily to preach from a pulpit. Authentic Christian living is a proclamation all by itself.

 

First Reading: 2 Corinthians 1:18-22

Are you now going to accuse me of being flip with my promises because it didn’t work out? Do you think I talk out of both sides of my mouth—a glib yes one moment, a glib no the next? Well, you’re wrong. I try to be as true to my word as God is to his. Our word to you wasn’t a careless yes cancelled by an indifferent no. How could it be? When Silas and Timothy and I proclaimed the Son of God among you, did you pick up on any yes-and-no, on-again, off-again waffling? Wasn’t it a clean, strong Yes?

Whatever God has promised gets stamped with the Yes of Jesus. In him, this is what we preach and pray, the great Amen, God’s Yes and our Yes together, gloriously evident. God affirms us, making us a sure thing in Christ, putting his Yes within us. By his Spirit he has stamped us with his eternal pledge—a sure beginning of what he is destined to complete.

 

Gospel: Matthew 5:13-16

Salt and Light

 “Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavours of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

 “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

 

Prayer

Lord our God,

your Son asks of every disciple
to be the salt and the light of the world.
Season our lives and words
with the salt of the Gospel,
that all those who encounter us
may taste how good it is
to live in your love
and to work in joy and hope
towards a world and a heaven
of justice, peace and friendship.

We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Lord. Amen.

 

Reflection:

“for others”

Can pure salt lose its taste? In fact it will not! But when we buy salt from the market, on the package, you may find the dates of manufacturing and expiration. The reason is, because in the process of producing and packaging the salt, the manufacturers also add some chemicals for various reasons. If the product is not used within the time-frame, there could be chemical reactions and make the product no more edible.
In Jesus’ time in Palestine, salt had the chances of getting contaminated with other substances that, over time, react with it and bring about chemical change, resulting in the salt’s destruction. Therefore, the point of Jesus may have been a word of caution to disciples, not to take their faith for granted. He had just proclaimed the promises of the Beatitude. But, the disciples who are living in a corrupted and corrupting world must be on constant watchfulness and conversion, to obtain the happiness of the Beatitude.
In this context of the blessings and happiness which we reflected on yesterday, the example of salt losing its taste could well refer to the power of the world to corrupt the disciples, to lead them to doubt the power of God to intervene in human history to bring about the promised happiness. If we lose hope in the certainty of the promises of the beatitude, we would, indeed, be no longer good for the purposes of God’s Kingdom.
We, disciples of Jesus have a mission: to show in our lives, as individuals and as community, the possibilities of the Kingdom. Like salt and light, the purpose of our life is “for others”. Inevitably, our behaviour would affect our world, our society which is already sunk in corrupt ideologies, provided, we do not lose our saltiness and become like the rest among whom we live. For better or for worse, like the town built on top of a hill, we would be noticed. The Christian community is not to confine itself but become a beacon of hope for the corrupt world around.

From the inevitability of being noticed, Jesus explains the opportunity and responsibility of the disciples. Discipleship is not a private privilege. It is a duty. Just as light is not light if it does not shine, so love is not love if it does not reach out, if it is not shared. Good works are not any additional job asked of us/ disciples of Jesus; instead, they are the practical expressions of God’s Kingdom.

 

Video available on Youtube: “for others”