4TH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR A

4TH SUNDAY, 29 JANUARY 2023: ZEPH 2.3; 3. 12-13; 1 COR 1. 26-31; MATTHEW 5. 1-12a Pivot: Seek the Lord! Pointer: Our greatest priority is seeking the Lord and his kingdom. When we seek and promote the right values, his kingdom is established 1. Man can be defined as a relentless seeker. The dynamism of human life is marked by the spirit of seeking. But all seeking need not be right and praiseworthy. It can be wrong and blameworthy. So what we seek determines the quality of our seeking. 2. Sadly, there is a great human tendency to seek what gives temporary pleasure and gratification. Many times the criterion for seeking is the principle of pleasure, ease, and convenience. But today the Word of God makes it clear about what to seek and why to seek what is sought. 3. The first reading highlights three objects of seeking. They are namely seeking the Lord, seeking justice, and seeking humility. Then it explains what are the implications. This “triple seeking” implies taking refuge in the name of the Lord, observing His Law, doing no wrong, and speaking no lies or deceit. 4. The other two readings further elaborate and elucidate what is this triple seeking. The second reading clearly rules out any self-seeking. The reason is all our greatness, our very vocation, our faith, our sanctification, and redemption are due to God. They are no one’s credit or merit. Therefore there is nothing to boast about. Hence seek humility. 5. The gospel of the day comprises the Beatitudes. It lays before us what to seek and what is the effect of that seeking. The Beatitudes are not some teaching among the many teachings of Jesus. They are also not merely some values to be followed. Rather, they denote a fundamental mode of being. They are essential tenets of right living. They are the essence of right and productive seeking. 6. Seek to be poor, that is be humble and surrendered to God. Seek to be mourning, that is both being ready to suffer and to be sensitive to those who suffer. Seek to be meek, that is gentle, and courteous. Seek to be righteous, that is upright and blameless in the sight of God. 7. Seek to be merciful, that is forgiving and reconciling. Seek to be clean and pure of heart, that is without guile, malice, and pretension. Seek to be peacemakers, that is, avoid all grudges, aggression, and retaliation, and maintain peace and harmony. Seek to be persecuted for righteousness, that is enduring trials and afflictions for the Lord’s sake. 8. All these modes of being are a contrast to the standards and norms of the world. So they will certainly be challenging. And many times it may appear to be a losing and futile battle. But the Lord tells us to rejoice and be glad because there will be a reward and that will be incomparably great. 9. These rewards are: We will obtain God’s own comfort, satisfaction, and mercy. We will see and discover God. We will become God’s own children and inherit the kingdom, the heaven itself. Orientation: Seek God and higher things. The higher we seek, the blessed will be life. Blessedness is the highest reward! (REFLECTION 2 FROM 2021, 07 JUNE) Focus: We are destined for blessedness and the only way to obtain such bliss is to follow the way of the Lord. A life of happiness is a way of godliness and goodness 1. In today's gospel, we have the famous Sermon on the Mount of Jesus with the solemn Beatitudes. They are beatitudes because their end is bliss and happiness. They are the confirmed means to attain such bliss. They are not merely some religious teaching or spiritual doctrine but they are fundamental human principles to follow. They are not only some guidelines to apply or some useful ways of doing, but much more essential modes of being. 2. They are in fact a total contrast to the standards and ways of the world. They are considered as "devalues", "inabilities" and "inadequacies" in the sight of the world. So, certainly, they are a "difficult lot" to follow. Those who follow them will certainly face suffering and affliction. 3. But they alone are the royal and noble means to be happy and blessed: be poor - humble of spirit, be sensitive to others' pain, be patient during suffering, be gentle, be meek, be merciful, be guileless and pure of heart, be peace-loving and peace-promoting, be hungry and thirsty for good and righteousness, be loyal, persevering and committed to God. 4. Follow this mode of being and surely you will experience the bliss that is profound, authentic, and lasting. Our God is a God of comfort, and He will surely comfort us in our affliction. And being comforted by God, we need to comfort those who are in any affliction. Direction: True happiness is not the absence of suffering. It does not come from mere avoidance and escape from affliction. Rather, true happiness comes from standing and suffering for God and good, through the path of beatitudes (REFLECTION 3 FROM 2022, 01 NOVEMBER) Thrust: Blessed are you! Indicative: Blessedness is our destiny and beatitudes are our royal means In today’s gospel, we have the Beatitudes. Beatitudes lay open before us the “golden path” of holiness that leads to blessedness. Clearly, they are stark contradictions to the standards and ways of the world. The beatitudes exalt and advocate 1) “poverty” – humility, detachment, moderation, and contentment, against all greed and accumulation; 2) “mourning” – being sensitive, attentive, tender, empathetic and caring, against indifference and unfeeling; 3) “gentleness and meekness – being polite, courteous, composed and serene, against being rude, impatient, hot-tempered, aggressive and hurting; 4) “hunger and thirst” for righteousness – being passionate and relentless for justice and fairness, against all tepidity and feeding on unfairness; 5) “mercy” – being compassionate, forgiving and reconciling, against resentment, revenge, and retaliation; 6) “purity of heart” – being clear-sighted, single-minded and clean of heart, against being contaminated and polluted, cunning and deceitful; 7) “peacefulness” – loving peace and promoting peace, against all violence and mindless agitation and anxiety; 8) “persecution and insult” – bearing all misunderstanding, opposition, slander, calumny, and affliction for the sake of God and good, against seeking comfort, praise, and popularity for the sake of self. Such a way of beatitudes subjects one to tremendous struggle and suffering. But one need not lose heart because the end fruit is eternal bliss. Nevertheless, this bliss will be already foretasted here on earth, in obtaining and relishing God’s own comfort, satisfaction, mercy, an abundance of fortitude, joy, and peace. Imperative: Sanctity is a project that is worth pursuing because its fruits are everlasting. It is always more worth to strive and suffer for something higher (REFLECTION 2 FROM 2021) Focus: All are called to be saints; all may not be raised to sainthood but all can rise to saintliness. All may not receive the honor of official veneration but all can strive for the honor of actual imitation The gospel enunciates the Beatitudes, one of the world’s greatest teachings. The beatitudes indicate that we are destined people and not people without a destiny. We are people by God’s choice and not by chance. We live and move by God’s gratuitous gift and not by a fortuitous drift. We are destined for bliss and blessedness. The Beatitudes are the pathways and roadmaps to travel the journey and pursue that path. Beatitudes show us that we need to lead a heaven-directed and heaven-driven life in contrast to an earth-bound and earth-pressured life. The beatitudes are contradictory values to the false values of the world. They summon us to be humble and surrendered to God, contrary to being proud and unruly complacent. This is the way of being poor in the sight of the world but rich in God’s sight. They call us to be sensitive and caring toward others, contrary to being indifferent and self-centered. This is the way to mourn with others and for others. They call us to be gentle, meek, and patient contrary to being rude, harsh, and aggressive. They call us to hunger and thirst, to passionately crave to be righteous and fair. They call us to be merciful and forgiving, contrary to being stern and grudgeful. They call us to be pure of heart, uncontaminated by guile and malice contrary to all impurity, deception, and evil-mindedness. They call us to be peace-lovers, peace-makers, peace-givers, and peace-promoters contrary to all aggression and disharmony. They call us to joyfully suffer for God and good. There is no doubt that such a life according to the beatitudes is very strenuous and demanding. But we need not be frightened or discouraged. The Lord will himself be our rescue and refuge. And our reward is great beyond compare. It is to enjoy the abundance of the Spirit in his light and power, already here on earth and the measureless eternity thereafter. Saints are our assurances! Direction: Holiness is wholeness. The more we try to live as holistic and integrated persons, the more we become holy and saintly. Whoever strives to sanctify himself is a saint of sanctity!