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Homily for the fifth Sunday
of the year - Year A - Mt. 5:13-16
by
Canon Dr. Daniel Meynen
" Jesus said, «You
are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall
its saltness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to
be thrown out and trodden under foot by men.
" «You are the light
of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a
lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to
all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.» "
Homily:
" Jesus said, «You
are the salt of the earth.» "
Jesus speaks to his
listeners, saying: "You are the salt of the earth." Whoever listens to
the word of Jesus is "salt", the "salt of the earth". There is no
exception. This is true of everyone, of everyone who listens to the
Word of God. It is true of me, as it is of you. It is true of the man
or woman who has already given his or her faith to Christ; it is also
true of he or she who listens to him today for the first time...
You who read these words,
you who hear these words, this is for you: "You are the salt of the
earth." Now, this very day, God has chosen you to be the salt of the
earth! You must be the salt of the earth! You must give your body and
your spirit to the Lord in order to do good and to avoid evil, to live
as a true son or daughter of the Father, who is in Heaven! You are
called to give the earth its spice: hope in eternal Life!
" «If salt has lost
its taste, how shall its saltness be restored? It is no longer good for
anything except to be thrown out and trodden under foot by men.» "
If you have heard, if you
have listened to the Word of God, and if you then reject it, woe to
you! For you have lost your taste... You have become like those who are
called "lukewarm" in the Book of the Apocalypse. Now, the lukewarm are
vomited out by God: "I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot.
Would that you were cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and
neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth." (Rev. 3:15-16)
Certain Catholics no longer
go to Mass, but they still pray, they say, at home rather than at
church... How terrible! Are they still "salt of the earth"? I fear they
are not... Where are today's martyrs of the faith? For is it not a
martyrdom to publicly go to Mass in a world that is semi-pagan,
mercenary, debauched by every kind of pornography? I ask myself what
would have become of the Church of Christ if all the martyrs of the
first three centuries had stayed home on Sunday, rather than get
massacred in the circuses and the arenas...
" «You are the light
of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a
lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to
all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.» "
Enough talk about those who
sleep, about those who do not want to demonstrate their faith. May
those who still want to bear witness to their hope in eternal Life do
so loud and strong! Even if they are but two or three, God sees them!
If I were to light a candle at the top of the Eiffel Tower, for
example, no one would see its light, since the many lights that
decorate the monument will overwhelm it. But there is nonetheless
someone who would see the light of my candle: that someone is God!
Let us always do a little,
let us always do something, no matter what happens. But above all, let
us never do nothing at all! If a little is done with faith and with
love, then that little will be something great in the eyes of God!
Besides, it is what the Most Blessed Virgin Mary had always done on
earth: one day, she said "yes" to God, a "yes" that gave Christ to the
world!
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