5th Sunday Cycle A

Cycle A - 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Is 58:7-10; 1 Cor 2:1-5; Mt 5:13-16

Hubert was the eldest son and apparent heir of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine. As a youth, Hubert was sent to the Neustrian court of Theuderic III at Paris, where his charm and agreeable address led to his investment with the dignity of "count of the palace". Like many nobles of the time, Hubert was addicted to the chase.

Hubert retreated from the court, withdrew into the forested Ardennes, and gave himself up entirely to hunting. But a great spiritual revolution was imminent. On Good Friday morning, when the faithful were crowding the churches, Hubert sallied forth to the chase. As he was pursuing a magnificent stag, the animal turned and, as the pious legend narrates, he was astounded at perceiving a crucifix standing between its antlers, while he heard a voice saying: "Hubert, unless thou turnest to the Lord, and leadest an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into hell". Hubert dismounted, prostrated himself and said, "Lord, what wouldst Thou have me do?" He received the answer, "Go and seek Lambert, and he will instruct you." This brought about a great change in him. He distributed his revenues among the poor, and dedicated himself for the service of the poor.

When Valerian and his brother Tiburtius believed in Christ and were converted to Christianity, they distributed their inheritance to the poor.

Bernard, a rich man of Assisi, was very much attracted by the life of Francis of Assisi. He joined Francis, and placed all his wealth at the altar of God. Eleven others also joined Francis. They distributed all their wealth to the poor.

The acts of these men were looked upon with great wonder and admiration by all. About such men of great compassion Isaiah wrote:

Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover them,
and not to hide yourself from your own kin?

Then your light shall break forth like the dawn.

Jesus told his disciples
“You are the salt of the earth.” and
“You are the light of the world.”

Salt is connected with purity. The Romans considered salt as the purest of all things, because it came from the purest of all things, the sun and the sea. When Jesus spoke to his disciples, “you are the salt of the earth.”, he wanted his disciples to be the purest of all men. Association with Jesus transformed people. When Mary Magdelene came to Jesus she changed her life circumstances. Moved by the audacity of Jesus's unconditional love and acceptance, Zacchaeus publicly repented of acts of corruption and vowed to make restitution for them. A murderous Pharisee and persecutor of Christians, was thrown to the ground and blinded by a streak of light....eventually to become a Christian and soon after beheaded for the faith. That was St. Paul!

A Jewish atheist of the 20th century pursued studies in philosophy and by the witness of many, including the life of St. Theresa di Avila, became a Carmelite cloistered nun and eventually led with her sister to a concentration camp and killed in a the so called gas chambers. That was Edith Stein!

The life of all these people show that their association with Jesus caused tremendous change in them. From darkness they turned to light, and from impurity to purity. Today, our mission is to be the salt of the earth - to uphold the noble principles of love and concern for others.

Secondly, in the ancient world salt was the commonest of all preservatives. The mission of a Christian is to be the preserver of Christian values in his age. The world tends to dilute the standard of moral values. We are part of a consumerist society. The only satisfaction we know is the satisfaction derived from consumption. So there is a frantic chase to amass wealth at any cost. But, there is a great joy derived from sacrifice and sharing. The lives of St.Hubert, St. Valarian and Bernard are testimony for this. They found joy in giving. There are many things that can be given besides physical objects. Many people need time, attention, acknowledgment, the chance to be right about something. Practice giving freely. Do it in little steps at first. Let the car behind you pass you, let the person go first at the checkout counter. Give someone a hand with their bags, open the door for someone at a building. Practice being there for another. The more you do it, the more your joy will grow.

When these things are done, we will be the light of the world.

A light is to be seen. Our work must be seen by others. When the early Christians lived in unity the others wondered. Look, how they live in unity! Our life must attract others. There is an old proverb “A drop of honey catches more flies than a cup of vinegar.” Our little acts of kindness are like drops of honey. They are able to attract others, and motivate others to show acts of kindness. “A good example has twice the value of good advice”.

Secondly, a light should be a guide. Our life should be able to guide people to the light. One day a man visited Mother Teresa’s home for the poor and the dying in Calcutta. He arrived just as the sisters were bringing in some of the dying off the streets. They had picked up a man off the gutter, and he was covered with dirt and sores. Without knowing that she was being watched, one of the sisters began to care for the dying man. The visitor kept watching the sister as she worked. He saw how tenderly she cared for her patient. He noticed how as she washed the man she smiled at him. She did not miss a detail in her attentive care of that dying man. After carefully watching the Sister the visitor turned to Mother Teresa and said, “When I came here today I didn’t believe in God, and my heart was full of hatred. But now I am leaving here believing in God. I have seen the love of God in action. Through the hands of that Sister, through her tenderness, through her gestures which were so full of love for that wretched man, I have seen God’s love descend upon him. Now I believe.” (Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday & Holy Day Liturgies’).

God wants us to be the salt and light for everyone around us.

some useful anecdotes

Choosing Life: Dr. Victor E. Frankl, survivor of three grim years at Auschwitz and other Nazi prisons, has recorded his observations on life in Hitler’s camps. ‘We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way. -Victor Frankl in ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’


Be good for something!: Alexander Solzhenitsyn recalls, as he says, ‘with shame’ an incident he witnessed at the front when he was a captain in the Russian army. “one day I saw a sergeant of the secret police, on horseback, using a whip on a Russian soldier who had been captured serving in a German unit. The man, naked from the waste up, was staggering under the blows, his body covered in blood. Suddenly, he saw me and cried out: “Mister Captain, save me!” ‘Any officer in any army in the world should have put a stop to this torture, but I was a coward. I said nothing. I did nothing. This picture has remained in my mind ever since.’ He could have brought light into that dark situation but he didn’t. “Be not simply good,’ says Thoreau, ‘be good for something.’ -Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday & Holy Day Liturgies’

Now I believe!: One day a man visited Mother Teresa’s home for the poor and the dying in Calcutta. He arrived just as the sisters were bringing in some of the dying off the streets. They had picked up a man off the gutter, and he was covered with dirt and sores. Without knowing that she was being watched, one of the sisters began to care for the dying man. The visitor kept watching the sister as she worked. He saw how tenderly she cared for her patient. He noticed how as she washed the man she smiled at him. She did not miss a detail in her attentive care of that dying man. After carefully watching the Sister the visitor turned to Mother Teresa and said, “When I came here today I didn’t believe in God, and my heart was full of hatred. But now I am leaving here believing in God. I have seen the love of God in action. Through the hands of that Sister, through her tenderness, through her gestures which were so full of love for that wretched man, I have seen God’s love descend upon him. Now I believe.” -Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday & Holy Day Liturgies’