Humble Dependence on God, not Man
25TH SUNDAY YEAR B/ CULTURAL DAY; 22ND SEPTEMBER 2024, HOLY CROSS PARISH, GWARINPA. HOMILY BY ARCHBISHOP I. A. KAIGAMA.
Readings: Wisdom 2:12.17-20; James 3:16-4:3; Mark 9:30-37
Humble Dependence on God, not man
My dear people of Holy Cross Parish, Gwarinpa, I wish you the peace of the Lord and bring you greetings on this twenty-fifth Sunday in ordinary time, as you gather to celebrate your unity in the diverse cultures in your parish.
In Christian anthropology, we see culture as a gift of God to be cherished, but only if we take what St. Paul says in Philippians chapter two properly – the attitude of Jesus, though He was in the form of God He did not count equality with God. Paul advises that you must not think you are better than others. You must put others first. If you do not have these attitudes, your culture will constitute a barrier, a reason for violence instead of being a blessing; it turns into a stumbling block to progress.
The parents of Jesus, Joseph and Mary, were culturally sensitive. Their traditional marriage was according to Jewish cultural norms. They presented Jesus in the temple according to their cultural practice. Some cultural norms provided the basis for Christian traditions: the agricultural feast in Acts of the Apostles became the birthday of the Church. Jesus rejected any culture that imprisoned the individual, such as hypocrisy, externalism, etc, or any culture that terrorized the weak and the marginalized.
As you celebrate cultures in your parish, St. James in our second reading admonishes us to avoid those vices that bring division in our lives. For where envy and strife are, where these are cherished in the heart, and especially where they break out into action, in families, neighborhoods, societies, or churches, there is confusion and every evil work. These occasion disturbances, raise uneasiness, cause tumults and encourage doing everything wicked, and so, a spirit of strife prevails. In such a hostile environment, love and harmony are banished; happiness disappears; and prosperity is at an end. In place of the peaceful virtues that ought to prevail, there springs up, every evil passion that tends to mar the peace of a community. It is of course impossible to expect any progress in divine things and justice, or to do good; to be transformed by the renewal of minds, to discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect (cf. Romans 12:2).
In the gospel of today, Jesus continues His teaching on the cross, the symbol of our salvation. It is quite providential that we are here, in the parish of Holy Cross. It is my prayer that we may appreciate anew and profoundly, the Cross of Christ, and willingly embrace ours, for the sake of Christ, that we may also share in His Glory.
St. James in the second reading tells us that, “where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.” This played out in the first reading when the evil and ungodly men sat, plotting against the righteous. They said: “Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law….” But the good news is that the Psalmist reassures us that even when evil men plot to pull us down, the Lord is the upholder of our life. Hence, we have nothing to fear.
Since we are celebrating culture today, let us consider these various aspects of culture as we reflect on our readings of today:
Culture of service
When people vie for leadership positions and positions of honour, what is their motive? Is it to serve or to be served? That is the question our leaders should ask themselves today. Jesus says, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” If we are guided by this divine wisdom we will become more humble, serving one another in love, and thus, we will make our country and indeed, this world a better place. This calls for self-examination.
Greatness does not depend on our possessions or positions; greatness consists in our attitude and disposition towards the poor and lowly. Thomas Carlyle said, “A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men.”
Hence, going by this understanding of greatness, it is time for greatness – not for greed; it’s time not just for compassionate words, but compassionate actions. Let us be humble as a child and serve our fellow human beings.
Culture of wisdom and honesty
In the process of acquiring power and position, human pride, greed and ambition set in, and these often parade under the guise of human wisdom and, as a result, some foolishly indulge in all forms of evils and atrocities. Therefore, instead of relying on earthly wisdom, we must look up to the “wisdom that comes from above” (James 3:17) which alone can show the way to equality in economics, decency in politics, prosperity in society and peace among all men and women.
Culture of civility
We see people fighting themselves; brother killing brother, all because of position and possessions. St. James would ask: Where do the conflicts among us originate? Is it not your inner craving that makes war within your own selves?” (4:1). Our silly pride and petty jealousy stir up hatred which cries out for vengeance even against the innocent, saying, “Let us beset the just one; let us condemn him to a shameful death” (Wis 2:19-20). Martin Luther King Jr once said: We must learn to live together as brothers and sisters or die together as fools.
Culture of humility
Christ Himself spelled out this way when He told His disciples who were arguing among themselves, “Who is the most important?”, that “If anyone wishes to rank first, he must remain the last one of all and the servant of all” (Mk 9:35). This means that the way to the peace of Christ is first humility. Humility is acknowledging one’s human limitations and depending upon divine providence. The person who often looks up to God rarely looks down on any neighbor and hence a humble person will naturally respect and care for fellow human beings. A humble person sees a brother and a sister in the eyes of any man or woman, offering loving service to all, especially to the weak and to the poor.
Jesus taught a very important lesson on humility. By placing the little child in the midst of His disciples, Jesus means to underline our need for humble dependence on God as the child depends on its parents, and calls us to serve others especially those who are small and like little children. We, who are small, aspire to appear great, to be among the first, whereas God who is truly great is not afraid of humbling himself and putting himself last. The Virgin Mary is perfectly in tune with God. Let us call upon her with trust, so that she may teach us to follow Jesus faithfully on the path of love and humility.
Culture of discipline
I had an experience at the Lagos airport on Friday. A Rev. Sister who arrived with me from a trip abroad asked why things are like this (so chaotic) in Nigeria. We have all it takes to do things normally but we seem to enjoy disorderliness. All we need is a little more discipline.
Culture of corruption
When we are busy arguing amongst ourselves as to who is the greatest, we will often reason in terms of worldly possessions and positions, and that is when we veer to the culture of corruption.
If we dedicate ourselves to loving service, even at a great cost, the risen light and the peace of Christ will fill the earth. The best way to serve God is not necessarily to give up everything. The best way to serve God is not necessarily to turn our back on the world and go off to a monastery. The best way to serve God is not necessarily to spend hours in prayer, contemplating heavenly visions. The best way to serve God is to reach out in service to our brothers and sisters, especially those less gifted than ourselves, serve them sincerely, selflessly and seriously.
Let me conclude by emphasizing that sometimes persecution comes our way not because people hate us for believing in Jesus Christ, but because our actions make them guilty of their bad ways of life. Our first reading today, points at the plot of the ungodly to destroy those who believe and practice faith in God, because the truly righteous man is a living witness against the sinner. The sinners say the righteous refuses to turn in their immoral direction. They are incensed that this is in itself a witness against them; he is contrary to their doings.
The unrighteous think it strange that you run not with them into the same confusion of riotousness. St. Pope John Paul II in Veritatis Splendor #93 said that by witnessing fully to the good, they (martyrs and saints) are a living reproof to those who transgress the law. We are persecuted by our enemies and even by our friends for being just. However, we must remain steadfast because God will surely vindicate us as He vindicated Christ.
As you perhaps know, the Catholic Church worldwide just concluded the 53rd International Eucharistic Congress in Quito, Ecuador. I am glad to make my first parish pastoral visit to you after just returning yesterday and to bring you greetings and blessings from the wonderful Eucharistic Congress. I prayed for you, our Archdiocese, country and the world. May the Eucharistic Lord keep blessing each and everyone, both now and forever.
