HOMILY FOR THE 6TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A. (6)

HOMILY FOR THE 6TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A.

THEME: NOT DEMOCRACY, NOT ARISTOCRACY, BUT CHRISTOCRACY

BY: Fr. Vincent Onwukwe

Jesus encountered and interacted with different groups of people in His ministry, including the crowd, whose opinion could be seen as a symbol of ‘Democracy’ because of the number factor, the chief priests, scribes and Pharisees, who were the Jewish aristocrats, and the disciples, who believed in the government of Jesus – ‘Christocracy’.

Jesus’ attitude towards the crowd was love, care, and compassion. He cured the sick, gave them something to eat, and, most importantly, taught them the truth of the kingdom (cf. Matt 14:13-21; Mk 6: 34-44). Unfortunately, only a few people among the crowds accepted the teachings of Jesus (Jn 6:66). However, this attitude did not prevent Jesus from holding on to the truth because the truth is not democratic: it is not about numbers. The majority’s opinion is not always correct, especially when this majority has been misguided. For instance, a less competent candidate for a political election may win the election by bribing his way into the hearts of the majority.

Similarly, we may recall that the crowd’s opinion during the trial of Jesus ‒ crucify him ‒ was masterminded by the chief priests (Mk 15:11). The members of this crowd were once the fans of Jesus (Mtt 21:6-11). This disposition of hatred towards Jesus was evoked by the wisdom of that age which produced people who were ignorant of God’s wisdom because mechanical traditions blinded them. In the same vein, the wisdom of our age, which, unfortunately, is the wisdom of the majority, with its rhetoric of pleasure, places little or no value on keeping the commandments of God. But evil cannot become good because many people are involved in it. Hence, Jesus teaches that whoever disobeys even the least of the commandments of God and teaches others to do the same would be the least in God’s kingdom (Mtt. 5:19).

Jesus was no friend of the Jewish aristocrats, namely, the Pharisees and the scribes, because they taught people to keep their traditions to the detriment of God’s commandments (Mk 7:8-9). They also shut down the kingdom of heaven, refusing to enter it and preventing other people from entering (Mtt 23:13). They were the Jewish cabals, making life unbearable for the people. Hence, Jesus warned his disciples and the crowd, “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Mtt 5:20).

Going beyond the righteousness of the Pharisees, who interpreted the law of Moses in the way that suited them and kept the law mechanically, Jesus came to fulfil the law and the prophets. He did that by giving the proper interpretation to the law and prophets and establishing a new government which encourages us to love God and human beings and act according to this love. He came to teach us that mechanical observation of the law makes no sense. On the contrary, keeping the law should be triggered by our love for God, inwardly and outwardly. Based on the principles of Jesus’ government, there would be no need, for instance, to say we have not killed when we are full of malice in our hearts (Mtt 5:21-26). It would also be unnecessary to say we have not committed fornication or adultery if our hearts are full of impure thoughts (Mtt 5:27-30). This government of Jesus was officially inaugurated when God exalted Him and gave Him a name above every name so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bend, confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father (Phil 2:6-11). We are all invited by Jesus to become ‘Christocrats’, subjecting ourselves to the government of Jesus.

May the love of Jesus increase in us as we surrender to Him. Amen!

God Loves you!

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