DOCTRINE & FAITH
(Isaiah 49,14-15; 1 Cor 4,1-5; Matt 6, 24-34:
8th Sunday of Year A)
The
gospel reading of today is the continuation of the Sermon on the Mount, which
commenced with the Beatitudes. This is a programmatic discourse that summarises
the Gospel, (Goodnews) which Jesus Christ came to spread in the world. Last Sunday, Jesus told
us what our attitude should be towards our neighbour and to what point we
should love them. His teaching was strong and demanding as he held that we
should love even our enemies and all who hurt us and to pray for them.
Today, Jesus tells us what our behaviour and attitudes ought to be as
regards to the goods of the earth and our sustenance in the future. Jesus said: Do not worry about what you are
to eat or drink, nor what to put on...It is the pagans that are to worry about
them. Again: Do not worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its
own. What is Jesus recommendation on these issues? Is it that we should
not be interested, at all, in earthly things? Or, that we should cross our
hands and expect everything from Divine Providence? Or, that we have to assume
a passive or fatalistic attitude? Certainly, Jesus does not recommend any of
the above! What Jesus approves is that we should neither worry, be over
anxious, excessively preoccupied over material things nor give priority to
material things over spiritual ones. Worries, anxiety, excessive concern for
earthly things and the future are attitudes or the state of mind of pagans and
those who do not place their confidence in God.
Why
should a Christian, not be worried or anxious over material possession and
sustenance in the future? This is because God is a Father to him/her, who
always provides all his/her needs and who will never abandon any of his sons or
daughters. If God cares for the birds of the air and lilies in the field, he
will surely take good care of the Christians, the disciples of Jesus. In the
first reading, Isaiah compares God to a mother who would never abandon her
child, but goes on to state that even if in any given situation a mother does
abandon her child, God will never abandon his own children. If God is there for
us and provides for us, what is expected of us then? First of all, commitment,
hard work and the spirit of sacrifice are expected from us so that we will be able
to work out the things necessary for good living in our life situations, and
seek ways to improve our social, economic and political situation? The pursuit
of our daily needs and effort to improve our life conditions should be done
without worry, anxiety, placing higher value on material things or becoming a
slave to them. In doing all these we
should repose great confidence in God, and make ourselves completely over to
him with the certainty that when we must have earnestly done our duties, God
will come to our aid and will show us the way and means to resolve our
problems. Nowadays, there is the temptation to plan and execute programmes
leaving no space for God’s Providence. Doing so, we run the risk of not
resolving our problems and not coming out of them.
Our
top priority should be to do what Jesus told us in the gospel of today; to seek
the righteousness
of God, that is to say, to seek to know well God’s ways well, his plans for us
well and to confirm our will to his own. And in the context of today’s gospel
reading, it means that spiritual goods, absolute and eternal values should take
precedence over material and earthly goods. At the end of last Sunday’s gospel,
we were confronted with the question whether, by our actions and deeds, we were
Christians or pagans. If we love those who love us, we are still on the same
level with pagans. At the end of today’s gospel reflection, we ask ourselves
the same question: Are we Christians or pagans? If we are so preoccupied and
worried about what we eat, or how we dress, if we are over anxious in our quest
for material goods, if allow ourselves to be contaminated by the mentality that
advocates worshipping wealth and seeking wealth and what it procures at all
costs (often times by cheating, fraud, injustice, killing, etc), and if we fail
to put God and spiritual values as our top priority, then it should occur to us
that we are not yet true Christians, (though baptised) and that we have notably
very close relationship with pagans. May we in this Sunday Eucharistic
celebration ask the good Lord for the grace not to pursue material goods at the
detriment of our spiritual life and the grace to repose full confidence on
Divine Providence.+John I. Okoye
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(Picture added by blogger)
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(Picture added by blogger)
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