Mother Church celebrates Sunday, November 05, 2023 as the thirty first Sunday of Ordinary Time in the Church’s Year A. In the Entrance Antiphon we pray “Forsake me not, O Lord, my God, be not far from me! Make haste and come to my help. O Lord, my strong salvation.Amen.”
In the Old Testament passage, the prophet Malachi, in the first reading, speaks of the evil effects of the bad example the priests of his day give to the people of God entrusted to their pastoral care. He attacks the common ills of his day, that is, the oppression of the poor, the laxity of the priests in the execution of their ministry, and the non-payment of the Temple dues. In contrast, Saint Paul, in the second reading, shows us how the example of one Christian life has led many to share in the divine life of the Father. He and his companions have worked hard to hand over to his converts of Thessalonica not only the Good News but their entire lives as well. In the Gospel, Saint Matthew presents Christ, not only as a good teacher but a good shepherd as well, against the background of the hypocrisy of the elders of the people, who impose burdens on their people and do nothing to help lighten them.
First Reading: Malachi 1: 14-2:2. 8-10
A great King am I, says the Lord of hosts, and my name will be feared among the nations. And now, O priests, this commandment is for you: If you do not listen, if you do not lay it to heart, to give glory to my name, says the Lord of hosts, I will send a curse upon you and of your blessing I will make a curse. You have turned aside from the way, and have caused many to falter by your instruction; you have made void the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts. I, therefore, have made you contemptible and base before all the people, since you do not keep my ways, but show partiality in your decisions. Have we not all the one father? Has not the one God created us? Why then do we break faith with one another, violating the covenant of our fathers?
Comment
The prophet Malachi is one of the Twelve Minor Prophets of the Old Testament. The others are Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, and Zechariah. They are classified as Minor, not because their works are of less importance than the works of the Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel) but because their works are generally shorter. Malachi, for example, is only three chapters long as compared to the prophecy of Isaiah, which is 66 chapters long.
The prophet Malachi wrote in about 450 BC shortly before the arrival of Nehemiah as governor in Jerusalem. He spoke to condemn, in the name of God, the neglect and the indifference that had crept into the worship the priests offered in the temple, and to denounce other sins that violated God’s covenant and so made temple worship futile.
The second temple had been completed in 515 BC to great enthusiasm. However, the people soon became uncaring about the kind of worship they offered to God. The priests became unfaithful to the duties of their office; the men were marrying pagan women, even divorcing their Jewish wives to do so. Some were even beginning to question the justice of the God of Israel and others even stopped paying the tithes to the temple treasury, as required by law.
That is when Malachi stepped in to condemn the casual attitude the Jews had adopted to worship in the temple, especially the priestly class. In this reading, he attacks the common evils of his day, especially the oppression of the poor and the laxity of priestly worship. The priests were the rulers of the community in his day. Their task embraced secular administration as well as their priestly duties. They seemed to have paid more attention to their secular duties to the detriment of their priestly responsibilities and by so doing led many people away from the worship of God. The prophet complains about their teaching of the Law and their general attitude that stood in sharp contrast to the prescriptions of the Law they taught. He warned them that if they did not repent and resume the priestly duties they were ordained to carry out, God’s anger would fall on them. He also warned the whole people that they too must mend their unjust ways or they too would fall under God’s anger.
What is the relevance of Malachi’s message to us today? His message is clear. We sometimes put so much money and time to build beautiful church buildings to the detriment of true worship of the Lord. We forget that it is not the beauty of the cathedrals or churches that we build that impress our Lord. Rather, it is the kind of worship we offer in those buildings that gives glory to God and makes us acceptable to God as his people. Malachi condemns his people for making offering to God with things that have no value to them, instead God deserves the very best a person can offer, that is, a contrite heart and the love of one’s neighbour.
What surpasses the material offerings we take so much pride in making in church is the spiritual worship that God expects from us. Intimately linked to our worship of God is the love of our less fortunate brothers and sisters. We are also called upon to remember to intensify our acts of charity towards the migrants and refugees, especially in the city of Douala, those fleeing this senseless war in the northwest and southwest regions of our country. Let us pray to God for the courage to turn away from worldly attachments and focus our gaze on our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, he who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen.
Second Reading: 1 Thes 2: 7-9. 13
Brothers and sisters: We were gentle among you, as a nursing mother cares for her children. With such affection for you, we were determined to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our very selves as well, so dearly beloved had you become to us. You recall, brothers and sisters, our toil and drudgery. Working night and day in order not to burden any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. And for this reason we too give thanks to God unceasingly, that, in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received not a human word but, as it truly is, the word of God, which is now at work in you who believe.
Comment
In Saint Paul’s days, Thessalonica was the capital of Macedonia, a Roman province north of Greece. It was an economically prosperous city and an important trading center due to its geographical location as a big seaport. It was an important trade route across the Balkans and was consequently a cosmopolitan city with a very varied population. Besides the temples to the Greek gods, many Roman and Egyptian temples were also there dating back several centuries. The city also had a sizeable Jewish population and at least one synagogue. True to his tradition, the first thing Paul did when he arrived in that city was to preach in the synagogue.
Paul had established the Church in Thessalonica around the year 50 AD as we hear in Acts chapter 16 and forward. His success in gaining followers to his preaching aroused the jealousy of prominent Jews, who organized a riot against him and he had to leave the region for Athens. He continued to worry about the church in that city and so he sent back Timothy to find out what its condition was. The report Timothy brought back moved Paul to write this first letter to his converts of Thessalonica.
His enemies had been accusing him of being out to gratify his own ego and to make economic gain at the expense of the people. Paul is eloquent in his reply to these accusations. He argues that he was never a burden on the community; on the contrary, he had done all he could to win them over to God. He worked so hard that he was practically offering them his life. He compares his relationship with them as one of parents to their children, so that it was not proper for his detractors to charge him of making self-gain from such close ties.
Paul’s insistence on working to support himself, instead of expecting the community to support him, should be a lesson for us too. Manual labour, which is highly esteemed in many traditional African societies, is increasingly despised as fit only for the uneducated lot. Our young ones flock from the villages to the already overcrowded cities and, when they find no jobs, they loiter aimlessly about, begging, taking drugs, engaging in prostitution and even committing acts of aggression for a livelihood. They end up in pits of despair as they sink into drugs, prostitution and subsequently prison or untimely death. Saint Paul’s encouragement to his converts to work for a living, instead of relying on others, is a lesson for us. We pray that the powers-that-be should create employment opportunities for our young ones so they can earn an honest living. We make our supplication through Christ the risen Lord, who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.
Gospel acclamation: “Alleluia, alleluia. You have but one Father in heaven and one master, the Christ. Alleluia.”
Gospel: Mt 23: 1-12
Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, "The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people's shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.' As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.' You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called 'Master'; you have but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."
Comment
Our Lord’s hostility towards the religious leaders of Israel is evident in this Gospel message. He presents the scribes and the Pharisees as bad examples of religious leadership that the leaders of Christian communities should not follow. We are reminded of Malachi’s condemnation of the religious leaders of his day in the first reading of this day.
Jesus begins his indictment of the scribes and Pharisees by addressing himself to his disciples to warn them against the conduct of the leaders of their people. He recognizes the authority of the scribes and the Pharisees to preach and teach the Law of Moses, but he warns the people and his disciples to be sure to make a clear distinction between the Law as read out and taught in the synagogues and the practical interpretations of the Law as seen in the lifestyle of their leaders. He criticizes them for craving too much attention and expecting to be treated with deference by the ordinary people. He strongly condemns their yearning for honorific titles principally because they introduce distinctions among people. One would think he had in mind the Cameroonian leadership, be it religious, civil, or political!
Saint Matthew is clearly opposed to Christian leaders arrogating to themselves titles that divide the family of the Church into a hierarchy. To do that, he warns, is to imitate the mistakes of the scribes and the Pharisees. If religious leaders are eager for any title, it should be that of “servant” and not master. Real religious leadership is humble work in the service of the Gospel. The true style of any Christian leader must reflect the style of Christ, the servant of God. He must be ready to go down on his knees and wash the feet of the people he leads. “He who is greatest among you shall be your servant” (Mt 23:11). He must carry on him what Pope Francis calls ‘the smell of the sheep’ he leads.
As Jesus severely criticizes the leadership of the people, he demonstrates the sorrow and compassion he feels towards the ordinary people, who have been ill-used, and are “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Mt 9:36). He warns that the requirements of the Law as laid down by the scribes and the Pharisees are a burden which the people cannot bear. Not only are the burdens imposed too heavy, but religious leaders absolve themselves from all responsibility of removing them. Belief in Jesus Christ should bring a new freedom which many have not experienced in Judaism, a religion that is under the yoke of the Law of Moses.
Jesus stresses the need of true humility for anyone who is to be his follower. As Saint James says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (Jas 4:6). Let us pray for the grace of humility in all we do today. We make our prayer through Jesus Christ, the risen Lord, who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.
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