Homily - XXI Week in Ordinary Time (B) - Sunday 25 August 2024

 

Homily - XXI Week in Ordinary Time (B) - Sunday 25 August 2024

Mass Readings: Jos 24: 1-2.15-17.18   Ps 34   Eph 5:21-32   Jn 6: 60-69

Key verse to Meditate: "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life (Jn 6:68).

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

The Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time comes with the final part of the sixth chapter of John, focusing on the ‘bread of life’ discourse that we have been meditating on for the past five weeks. The discourse, which began with the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand, ends with some of the disciples leaving Jesus. The false disciples stop following Jesus and abandon Him. But Peter makes a faith-filled, million-dollar response: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (Jn 6:68). Jesus, the Lord who is the bread from heaven, is the one who has the words of eternal life. The liturgy of the Word of God this Sunday invites us to consider the choices that we make in our lives-whether to follow Jesus and serve Him alone. When we hear God’s word, God’s Spirit cleanses our minds and hearts, and when we walk with Christ, we find eternal life.

The First Reading: In today’s first reading, Joshua, having gathered all the officials, reviews God’s gracious acts for His people. Gathering all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, the place where God first promised to give Abraham the land (Gen 12:6-7), Joshua explains to all the people how their forefathers served other gods and how God had been faithful despite their unfaithfulness. Joshua also reminds them of God’s saving acts in Egypt (Josh 24:5-7). Having recalled these mighty acts of God, Joshua strongly exhorts them to be faithful to the Lord, who has been their Savior and protector.

If the Israelites thought serving the Lord was evil, Joshua listed the two choices for the people (v.15): whether they should choose between the gods of Mesopotamia, whom their ancestors served, or the gods of the Amorites (i.e., Canaanites), among whom they were living. But after recounting the wonderful handiwork of God throughout their salvific journey, Joshua now invites the people to fear Yahweh and to serve Him totally and faithfully, turning away from the gods their fathers served beyond the rivers and in Egypt. Whether they choose to follow Yahweh or the gods of the Amorites, Joshua declares, "But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Josh 24:15).

Here, Joshua stands as a good leader who led the people of Israel by his good example. Regardless of the people's choice, Joshua decided to move ahead and commit himself to serving the Lord. We can say that his bold example undoubtedly encouraged many Israelites to follow the Lord and serve Him faithfully. Having witnessed the mighty hand of the Lord in driving out all peoples, including the Amorites, the people of Israel promised, "We also will serve the LORD, for He is our God" (Josh 24:18).

God’s Choice of Israel: It was the Lord who chose Israel from among the nations to be His people (cf. Deut 4:37; 7:6-7; 10:15; 14:2). But now, in the context of today’s second reading, Joshua asks the people of Israel to choose their loyalties between the pagan gods and the one true God. If they decide to love and serve the Lord, it would be mandatory for the people to reject all others (cf. Josh 2:9-11). What we admire in Joshua is that he laid out the choice for Israel without threatening or coercing them. The choice he gave was simple, and he set an example by his own choice.

The Second Reading: In today’s second reading, we explore the first part of the Christian household structure, focusing on husbands and wives (Eph 5:22-33). (The second part deals with parents and children (6:1-4), and the third part addresses masters and slaves (6:5-9).) In this section, St. Paul compares the relationship between husbands and wives (cf. Col 3:18-19) to the relationship that exists between Christ and the Church.

Behaviour in the Christian Household: St. Paul outlines three important characteristics for the Christian household. First, obedience is necessary for the smooth running of the Christian household. Addressing husbands and wives, Paul exhorts them to be subject to one another in the bond of love. Just as Christ is the head of the Church, the husband also becomes the head of the wife in the Christian family. Obedience to the head of the family is a virtue, just as the Church is subject to Christ, its head (Eph 5:24).

The second great quality of the Christian household is the commandment of love (cf. Jn 13:34f), which should prevail among the members of the family, especially between husbands and wives. Husbands are to love their wives just as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for it. St. Paul tells Christian men that he who loves his wife loves himself (Eph 5:28). Total commitment to the growth of the other is expected, just as Christ sacrificed Himself for the birth of the Church. Thus, St. Paul stresses the centrality of the commandment of love.

The third element that St. Paul emphasizes in his epistle to the Ephesians is the sanctity of each of its members. Since we are members of His holy body, the Church, we also need to maintain holiness in Christian families (Eph 5:30). Christ has made the Church holy by cleansing it with His life-giving word in order to make it holy and blameless.

Equal Mutuality: The theme of equal mutuality takes center stage in the second reading of St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. The concept of mutuality among believers is a recurring theme in the New Testament, especially in the Pauline corpus (cf. Rom 12:10, 16; 15:5, 14; 1 Cor 12:25; Gal 5:13; 6:2; Col 3:13, 16; 1 Thess 3:12; 4:18; 5:11, 13; Phil 2:2; cf. 1 Pet 5:5). Authority and mutuality are to be realized through the genuine practice of the commandment of love in the Church and in families. In this passage, though difficult, St. Paul clearly indicates that mutual subordination among believers could lead to the removal of hierarchical distinctions.

The Gospel Reading: The first reading and the Gospel reading are connected by a similar line of thought and situation. When Joshua asked the people whom they preferred to serve—the Lord or the gods of the Amorites—the people of Israel chose to serve the Lord along with Joshua and his family. Similarly, in today’s Gospel reading, the last part of the sixth chapter of John, we see a similar situation. The discourse that started with five thousand people is now finally left with the twelve chosen ones, including even Judas. It seems strange, and we wonder what teaching of Christ caused these people to leave.

Jesus as the Bread of Life: The Jews who had followed Moses and the Torah were not happy with Christ’s proposal that He was the life-giving food. This was a difficult challenge for them. The Jews, who had enjoyed eating the miraculous bread and fish, were initially happy to make Jesus their king, believing He could provide bread for everyone equally. However, when Jesus began to teach that He was the bread of life that came down from heaven, they started to grumble against Him. They knew His humble origin and refused to accept His divine origin. Finally, when Jesus said, "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life" (Jn 6:54-55), they said it was a very hard teaching, and they began to leave. Jesus did not change His message because the people failed to understand or accept Him.

The Difficult Teaching: When Jesus said that He is the bread that came down from heaven, the Jews remembered the manna, which came down from heaven and fed the hungry Israelites in the desert. The difference was that the Israelites who ate manna died in the desert (Jn 6:49, 58), but Jesus promised that those who eat ‘Him,’ the bread of life that came down from heaven, will have eternal life (Jn 6:58). Jesus confronted the Jews and clarified that it was not Moses who gave them manna in the desert but His Heavenly Father (Jn 6:32). They could not accept this teaching, especially the claim that He had seen the Father and proceeded from Him: "Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father" (Jn 6:45-46). This claim of Jesus, equating Himself with God the Father, was too much for the Jews and was considered blasphemy.

From this point, Jesus proceeded to the promise of eternal life. He openly declared, "I am the bread of life. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life" (Jn 6:47). The final point of contention that led many to leave Jesus came when He said, "The bread that I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh" (Jn 6:51). This statement troubled the Jews, and they questioned, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" (Jn 6:52) and said, "This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?" (Jn 6:60). For those who do not believe in Jesus, this teaching was hard and unacceptable, but for the believer, it was the truth and a revelation.

“The Holy One of God”: When the so-called disciples who followed Jesus left Him, it was Christ Jesus’ turn to question the chosen apostles, asking whether they too would like to go away. Peter confessed and said, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." (Jn 6:68-69). Peter understood and confessed that Jesus was indeed “The Holy One of God” (Jn 6:69; cf. Lk 4:34b; Mk 1:24). Peter stands as the epitome of possessing eternal life for having believed in Jesus: "He who believes has eternal life" (Jn 6:47; cf. Jn 20:31). This confession of Peter in the Gospel of John parallels his confession at Caesarea Philippi in the Synoptics (cf. Mt 16:16; Mk 8:29; Lk 9:20).

Words of Eternal Life: Just as the multitude grumbled in Jn 6:41, the disciples of Jesus also rejected His teachings on eating His flesh and drinking His blood (Jn 6:61). With many of Jesus’ disciples already having left, Jesus was left with the twelve apostles. At this point, Jesus asked them a crucial question: "You do not want to go away also, do you?" (Jn 6:67). Like the Israelites who responded to Joshua’s queries, Peter, as the head of the group, made a profession of faith in Jesus, saying, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (Jn 6:68). It is the word of the Lord that gives faith and hope in Jesus.

The disciples who abandoned Jesus and His teachings belong to one of the categories of people in the parable of the Sower (Mt 13:1-23, Mk 4:1-20, Lk 8:4-15). They are like the seeds sown on rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; but they have no firm root in themselves and are only temporary. When affliction or persecution arises because of the word, they immediately fall away (Mk 4:16-17). Superficial faith in Christ causes people to abandon Jesus.

Hearing and Obeying God’s Word: Understanding and accepting the words of Christ is the work of the Spirit. Unless God’s grace draws or opens our minds, we will not be able to accept Jesus and His teachings: "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him" (Jn 6:44, 65). When Jesus says that His words are spirit and life, it calls for hearing and obeying His words. Listening to God’s word is an indispensable part of discipleship (Lk 1:38). It is Jesus’ words that reveal who He really is. Therefore, accepting or rejecting the words of Jesus separates true disciples from false disciples. On the Day of Judgment, the false disciples will be separated, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats (Mt 25:32). It is the Lord who separates the light from the darkness (Gen 1:4).

True Disciples: A true disciple continues in His word (Jn 8:31), which abides in the heart of the believer (Jn 15:7; cf. Jer 15:16; Col 3:16; 1 Jn 2:14). However, false disciples ultimately reject Jesus’ word (Jn 8:37, 43, 47). Embracing Jesus’ words is equivalent to receiving Him, as they reveal His person. The importance of God's word is emphasized throughout the Bible. The psalmist declares that the heavens and the earth were created by the word of the Lord (Ps 33:6-7). In the parable of the Sower, Jesus compares the seed to the word of God, and the good soil that bears much fruit to the heart of the believer (Lk 8:11, 15). Jesus also says that His mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it (Lk 8:21). Above all, Peter teaches that we are all born again through the living and enduring word of God (1 Pt 1:23). Thus, it is through the agency of His Word that believers come to know and believe in Christ.

Jesus was clear in His demands that He be acknowledged as the Bread of Life (Jn 6:33, 35, 48, 50, 51) and also insisted that it is through eating His body and drinking His blood that they will have eternal life (Jn 6:51, 53-58).What we understand here is that it is through a life of total receptivity to His life-giving words that one can be committed to Jesus. However, many chose to abandon Jesus because they were mired in their human expectations and grumbled at His teaching. This shows that those who resist or reject Jesus’ teaching cannot be true disciples of Christ. Continual obedience to the words of Jesus Christ is what makes someone a true disciple of Christ (cf. 1 Jn 2:3-5).

False Disciples: The false disciples are those who were with Jesus but were not willing to accept His life-giving words: "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life" (Jn 6:63). One of the important ways of accepting the words of Jesus is through the Spirit. The false ones place their confidence in the flesh, relying on human calculations. However, we know that spiritual life comes only when the Holy Spirit imparts Christ’s life to the believer (cf. Gal 2:20; Col 3:3-4).

Points for Personal Reflection:

Jesus has the life-giving words and has promised to give eternal life to all who eat His body and blood. It was Peter’s unshakable commitment that led him to express his strong faith in Jesus. Jesus has proceeded from the Father, and He is the one who grants eternal life. His body and blood nourish our souls and lead us to our heavenly life.

Jesus loves us all and gives us His body and blood to nourish us, just as St. Paul explains the conjugal love of spouses in comparison to Jesus’ love for the Church in today’s second reading: "He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does for the Church, because we are members of His body. ‘For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the Church" (Eph 5:28-32). The people were not willing to accept the teaching of Christ and serve the living God, just as Joshua and the Israelites decided in the Old Testament: "But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD" (Jos 24:15); "Therefore, we also will serve the LORD, for He is our God" (Jos 24:18).

Joshua gave the people of Israel the option to serve the Lord or the other gods of the Canaanites. In the Gospel, Jesus once again gave the option to be with Him or to leave Him. We see both the Israelites and the twelve apostles choosing to serve the Lord and remain with Jesus. What choice will I make today? Will I be with Jesus, or will I leave Him because I don’t understand His teachings?

What is my attitude towards the Word of God? Is it life-giving for me?

Whom do I serve in my life of Christian discipleship: Jesus or other gods of any nature?

Do I have living faith like that of Simon Peter?

Do I believe in eternal life as I receive the body and blood of Jesus in the Eucharist?

Do I seek the consolation of the Word of God in moments of trials and temptations?

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