MY
REFLECTIONS (Sunday, September 29, 2013)
Today’s
readings: Amos 6:1a, 4-7. 1 Timothy
6:11-16, Luke 16: 19-31
“The Sufficiency
of the Gospel Message and the Surety of the Last Judgement”
I was amazed at how two popes, one
reigning and one emeritus would respond to the letter of an Atheist. It dawned
on me that in the West (perhaps I am wrong in my assumptions), atheism,
agnosticism and religious indifference is so prevalent, that it catches the
attention of popes. This is the reason
perhaps why the Holy See launched the program of “New Evangelization”, that is
to convert to re-introduce Christianity once again to the countries/peoples that
once knew Christ but has abandoned or neglected the faith. Sometimes the cares of this world has a power
to overshadow whatever trust we need to have of God. Not only the cares, but the confidence that
financial success brings about has the ability to deaden whatever need of
faith. In casual conversations with friends and even with some of my students,
I sometimes try to bring out the topic of last judgement, that there is a need
for us to be responsible for our actions because there is a day, when we shall
die and after that comes the judgement. I often receive a variety of responses when
bringing out this subject for conversations.
Some would feign that they do not hear me, while some would plainly
ignore the topic and some will express unbelief. One of my students even said that if we know
what we do and if we like what we do, then there is no sin. Another would say, “Why bother about heaven
or hell, we do not even know if they really exist.” Another expresses such unbelief when asked
are you not afraid to see the consequence of your action after you die, to
which he replied, “When I am dead, then I am nothing so why worry?” While some say, “are you sure that there is
life after death?” Indeed, the pride of
this life and its cares have the power to drive away our perspective and vision
of the afterlife. Must it take someone
who has died to come back to life to tell us that there is life after death and
that there is heaven to gain and a hell to shun?
The gospel reading for this Sunday,
reminds us that the message of the gospel and the mission of the church is
sufficient enough to warn us of the last judgement day. Faith is a gift. No one can come to God unless the Father draw
him near (John 6:44). The only way that
faith can come to us is by faith. And
faith comes about by hearing the Word of God (Romans 10:17). The implication of this is that, there is no
need for extraordinary events to happen before we believe. God has given us all the means to be saved. Thus, when asked the question, are you saved?
My answer is, “I am working out my salvation with trembling and fear.” (Philippians
2:12). For nobody can really tell if you
are saved. No converted Christians even
in the New Testament ever said that they were saved, but everyone believes that
they will be saved. I believe too that
the gospel message is sufficient enough to warn us of the dangers of sin and
hell. It is only sad that now a day in
homilies, sermons and the printed word, seldom do we hear about hell, sin and
the devil. Many seemingly want to be
entertained with jokes and funny stories and many would resent being reminded
of hell and sin. But the reality is
there. As Abraham said to the rich man
in hell, “if they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they
be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.” Amen.
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