29th SUNDAY (B) 18 October 2009

傳教節: 依撒意亞先知書 53:10-11 致希伯來人書 4:14-16 聖馬爾谷福音 10:35-45【長式】

In recent weeks we have met people in the gospel who approached Jesus, looking for ways to secure a place in the kingdom of God that he had been talking about. On each of these occasions Jesus noticed their generosity of spirit and praised them for it; but then he pushed them a little further about their commitment. When he did this he gave them a bigger understanding of the kingdom of God. Sadly, these people couldn’t always take up the challenge. You’ll remember that last week the man who questioned Jesus went away sad because he was a man of some wealth.

In today’s gospel the focus is on James and John, two of the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples. They come straight out with their request: they want places at his left and right hand. I’m sure Jesus saw their sincerity, their goodness and their enthusiasm. It was the sort of enthusiasm that often characterises people who have first heard of something that seems really appealing and worthwhile. It was not that they became enthusiastic before they knew all about Jesus and his message: they thought that they did know him and understand his message. Jesus asked them if they could drink from the cup from which he would drink, or be baptised with the baptism with which he would be baptised. They seemed to have no hesitation in saying that they could. Jesus accepted their word and recognised their generosity and sincerity. But we see by the way he continued to talk to them that he wanted to educate them a bit further about the kingdom of God.

The way they had asked the question suggested that they saw the kingdom as a territory over which someone powerful and influential – like Jesus – would rule. This has been a common understanding among those who have approached Jesus: they saw belonging to the kingdom as a way they might achieve power and influence. Three times already in the gospel Jesus had spoken about his impending death and resurrection, but they didn’t seem to fully comprehend what he was saying. We should notice how he pushed the two disciples further in the encounter in today’s gospel. He spoke about drinking from the cup that he would drink from. They were probably thinking of a great banquet where there would be fine food and wine. But of course, we know that as he sat in the Garden of Gethsemane he prayed to the Father that the cup might pass him by. The cup he was referring to was his death. It was a cup of sorrow. Could they drink from this cup of sorrow? They had asked for places at his right and left hands. We know that the most powerful image of thrones at the right and left of Jesus is really the crucifixion, where two others were on crosses, on his left and right sides. The message should be clear: the kingdom of God is not about power and influence. In fact, it seems to diminish power and influence!

This is where Jesus’ saying about the first and the last is important. If we apply it to the image of the kingdom then we would have to say that real power and influence are found exactly where we would normally not expect to find them. Jesus is a king; yet he reigns from a cross. He was crucified as a robber and a thief; yet we are told that his death brings about life and salvation for the multitude. The kingdom of God preached by Jesus shone a light on the corruption of many of the interpretations of the religious law; it shone a light on the powerful of this world, who placed themselves and their own fortune before the most needy in the society. The kingdom of God preached by Jesus pointed out that there was more virtue in serving others than in having them serve you. Jesus’ own life is the best example of the meaning of the kingdom. It seems that it was almost a lifetime’s task for the disciples to learn this. But they did learn it, and the kingdom did shine through in their actions.

As we listen to the gospel today I believe there are a few lessons in it for us. These lessons come as words of encouragement. The first thing is to acknowledge Jesus’ affirmation of our commitment to the kingdom of God and the gospel preached by Jesus. Any advance in the spiritual life that we might hope for will only happen if we graciously receive the encouragement that Jesus gives. It is his encouragement that helps people keep going. The second lesson for us is that any advance in the spiritual life always entails a purification of our religious commitment. Purification comes about through the normal course of our daily life. By this I mean that whatever is happening in our lives gives us a context for listening to the word of God, so that we might hear more clearly Jesus’ teaching about the kingdom of God. It is not just a question of knowing more facts, but of knowing in our heart how to live in this kingdom. The third lesson is that we can only advance in the spiritual life if we move ahead in trust. James and John did not really know what they were asking for, but they trusted Jesus enough to say that they were willingly to drink the cup with him and be baptised with his baptism. It is probably just as well that we don’t know what the future will look like; otherwise we might be too overwhelmed to face it. The message today is that the Christian way to face the future is trusting in God. When we trust God we are empowered to serve rather than seek to be served.

Fr. Gerard Kelly

The New Chairman

Cameal Liu is the newly elected Chairman for Camperdown from the AGM 4 Oct 2009. She can't talk right now but I am sure she will give everyone her new direction soon.

Peter Wong took a step back to be the coordinator. Barry Wong is now the secretary after being the coordinator for many years.

I picked up yet another memorable movie quote from Evan Almighty (2007) last night. God (Morgan Freeman): Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If he prayed for courage, does God give him courage, or does he give him opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for the family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other?

A position in the committee was never meant to be a chance to demonstrate one's talent or skill. It is an opportunity to serve and to grow into holiness. To serve God, to serve man and to serve oneself can be very blurry at times and requires a lot of prayers for discernment.

A big thank you to Tony Chau who was serving as the secretary for the last 3 years (since 2006).

27th SUNDAY (B) 4 October 2009

創世紀 2:18-24 希伯來人書 2:9-11 聖馬爾谷福音 10:2-16

From time to time you can read comments that suggest that the institution of marriage is under threat. People produce statistics that show the number of church weddings declining. I also meet young people from time to time who say that they don’t want a church wedding because they don’t want all the expense and fuss that goes with it. When I question them on this I discover that they equate a church wedding with what they call a traditional wedding. They don’t want the hassle that seems to go with this – things like the fancy reception, the intricate planning, the flowers, the music, the expensive dresses and suits, the invitation list where you have to decide who to invite and often haggle over who can be left off. In short, they are reacting against the commercialisation of the modern Australian wedding. It seems that some young people today (not all) are rejecting what has become a wedding industry.

As I listen to these comments I always want to reply by telling them that I haven’t heard anything here about a church wedding. In fact, you don’t need any of that if you don’t want it. I have often wanted to tell young people that they can get married in the church without all the fuss of flowers, fancy clothes, musicians, and a church full of people. You can wear your street clothes and be married with just two people as witnesses to the vows you make to each other before God. In other words, I try to challenge them to think what they are rejecting. Is it the church wedding or is it the modern wedding industry that in fact has nothing to do with the church or with God?

Of course, once people come to the church they have already made up their mind that they want a church wedding. Sometimes even these people get so caught up in the secular wedding industry that the church wedding becomes a minor prelude to the big party.

The question I ask myself in both of these scenarios is how can we better understand Christian sacramental marriage. I think there are some clues in today’s gospel. We need to remember that Jesus was responding to particular questions that arose in his day, and these are not our questions. The religious leaders were trying to trick him by wanting him to take sides in a rather esoteric dispute about divorce. They were trying to trick him about an interpretation of the law. He was good at avoiding these types of trap and managed to turn the question around so that rather than get involved in an internal dispute among the scholars he spoke in a positive way about the meaning of marriage. So while the dispute is of little interest to us, the teaching on marriage is of great interest. If we listen carefully to what he said we may find a way of deepening our understanding of marriage and its place in our world today.

The first thing that Jesus says when he responds to his questioners is that they will never fully understand marriage as long as they see it simply as a legal entity – in other words as a contract. The Pharisees had asked him about the Law of Moses. Jesus wouldn’t answer on these terms and switched it back to God’s plan in creation. The positive thing he said was that marriage is part of God’s creation. He quoted from the Book of Genesis where it says that it is not good for someone to be alone, and that God has made man and woman for each other. In other words, God has made us so that we achieve our fulfilment by being in relationship with someone else. Rather than seeing this in terms of a legal contract Jesus saw it as a sacred covenant. The problem with the contract idea is that all it does its set out the bare limits of what has to be honoured by both parties. A scared covenant, on the other hand, sets people in relationship in such a way that they reach their full potential. If a contract sets out the bare minimum, a covenant opens up a vast horizon of possibility for the relationship. The covenant Jesus was referring to is made before God, who has made human beings for fullness of life and happiness. It is in this sense that he referred to the man and woman leaving their father and mother and becoming one flesh. Their unity is what the covenant looks like in concrete terms. It is never something that is simply offered as a gift and received, but is achieved over a lifetime together. Good marriages are good because the couple work at them together.

There is one other thing that we should say about Christian sacramental marriage. Jesus does not make a big thing about it in this conversation because it would have been completely understood among those listening to him. It is that marriage is never a private matter, never just about two people. Marriage is social, and it affects other people beyond the couple. In the first place we can speak of the children of the marriage. But even beyond that, we can say that the way a couple live their marriage becomes a sign to others. In the context of today’s gospel and the gospel readings of the last few weeks we have a fuller picture of marriage in God’s plan. As a couple live the sacrament of marriage day-by-day they become a sign in the world of what the love of Jesus looks like. The reign of God is not just a nice idea; we’ll never understand it if we can’t recognise it around us. In Jesus’ mind, married couples should be a sign of that reign, a sign of hope for our world.

Fr. Gerard Kelly