A New Way of Living
TRADITION
August 25, 2020
OSCAR V. CRUZ, DD, JCD
August 26, 2020PITIK-BULAG: A New Way of Living
Today’s gospel is a continuation of yesterday’s theme where Jesus criticizes the religious leaders for their lack of coherence between word and action, between what is interior and what is interior. Only this time, He used the image of the “whitewashed tomb which on the outside look beautiful, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead and of all kinds of filth (Matthew 23:27).”
Jesus continues to challenge the Pharisees to prioritize the beautification of the heart or soul, rather than exerting all their efforts in putting up a “holy image” which is nothing in the eyes of God but an illusion. God sees the heart, not the external. In reality, the religious leaders are pursuing praises and honor for themselves, and not really on true worship and true to desire to come closer to God. It’s pure selfishness under the guise of honoring God.
When the Lord confronts the Pharisees and scribes, He wants them to think differently in their lives. He wants them to search for the right treasure, in other words, to please God and not themselves. They give priority to things that won’t last and has no meaning. They get their happiness from the people’s praises and attention, but not from God who can give them an inner joy that lasts. They are basically living in an illusion that one day will surely burst and nothing will be left but total emptiness and darkness. They need to wake up from pursuing false dreams and search for something that is eternal and not temporal.
The COVID crisis is a wake-up call to many of us. We realize that everything could be nothing at all. For many years, gave great importance in improving our external lives. We proclaim that God is our priority, yet our action speaks otherwise. We are distracted, tempted, and deceived by the world that says that wealth, power, and honor are important. Day and night, the world is spending a huge amount of time and effort to get all the luxuries of life. But today, we realized, in the midst of countless news of death and sickness, that everything on earth can easily crumble with one deadly virus. Our lives are hanging. The world almost lost everything it established for decades. Our mighty economy and exponential progress are crumbling in front of our eyes. Yet, we remain unmoved.
Yes, like the Pharisees and scribes, we remain unmoved. We are slow learners to accept that material wealth is not everything. God should be our everything. We should desire to seek eternal treasure and not earthly treasure. We should think of the others, and less of ourselves. Today, we may be rich from the external, but poor in spirit. We still insist on seeking security from wealth, but not in the eternal God. We remain spiritually blind. We choose to remain in our dark prison of selfishness. We are deceived by the evil spirit because of our love for earthly treasures.
In the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, he insisted on the necessity of the discernment of spirits. The evil spirit, the father of all lies and deceits, have mastered the way to tempt us. He takes advantage of our weaknesses and inordinate attachments, set a trap leisurely, and we easily fall to it.
God is offering us a new way of living. To desire lasting things. To seek for inner joy and not simply pleasures. To recognize that mercy, justice, and faith is the real treasure. To please God should be our focus and desire. To think more of the others and less of ourselves. To renew our spirits and not to simply beautify our physical bodies. To deeply desire to bring glory to God and less for ourselves. But everything is possible only through discernment of spirits.
In this pandemic, we are called to embrace the new normal. Let’s do away with our useless questions like, “When will this pandemic end? Why did God allow it? Where is God?” Be more pro-active and other-oriented. Think of answering more important and life-defining questions such as, “Lord, what do you want me to do for you? What can I do today to lessen the pain of others? How can I help someone? Do not let the immensity of the crisis discourage you. Little acts of kindness mean a lot today. One baby steps to move forward to new normal is better than remaining in our anxieties, fears, and regrets.
Where is your heart now? Where do you spend most of your time, wealth, and talent? What is the state of your inner self? Are you happy about it? Any inordinate attachments that block you from doing God’s will? What stops you from listening to the voice of God?
As the Holy Scriptures says, “If today you hear God’s voice, harden not your hearts. (Psalm 95:7).”
– Fr. Willy M. Samson, SJ
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August 26, 2020 – Wednesday
