There are times when daily readings seem to be compatible with our
current circumstances. There are also times when the readings seemingly do not
connect with us. Then there are times where the readings are neither of the
two, but seem to invoke disagreement. That was what happened to me on 8
February 2016, on the night of Chinese New Year.
Note the readings were taken from universalis.com (http://www.universalis.com/20160208/mass.htm,
though the link is already dead; it was Monday, the
fifth week in Ordinary Time).
The first reading was taken from 1 Kings 8:1-7,
9-13. I will omit most of it for brevity’s sake, but would like to
highlight the verse that rubbed me the wrong way: “I
have built thee an exalted house, a place for thee to dwell forever.”(1 Kings 8:13).
The subsequent Psalm seem to further press this point. Taken from Psalm 131:6-10, paired with its antiphon “Go up, Lord, to the place of your rest!” gave the
image of the house of God being confined to a physical place. Since when, was
my immediate thought, has God and His Presence been, or to be, confined by man?
The Gospel that day was taken from Mark 6:53-56.
Quoting directly from website, “No sooner had they stepped out of the boat than people
recognised him, and started hurrying all through the countryside and brought
the sick on stretchers to wherever they heard he was.” My
immediate thought was: Is Our
Lord merely a miracle worker that we go running to Him every time we want a
favour, and disappear as soon as we obtain what we want?
Did they (and by extension, believers today) not intend to build a close
personal relationship with God?
To sum it up, I had issues with all 3 readings, something that has never
happened to me before.
When I pondered upon it rationally, the
first reading I could explain it away by referring to the culture of the Jews
at that time, and being God’s chosen people He dwelled specifically in their
midst (in the Ark of the Covenant). In addition, the Jews needed affirmation
that God was (especially) there with them.
As for the Gospel, that was how I myself
somewhat started off: in need of healing, I came and surrendered to the Lord
and His grace and mercy.
Yet with all those in mind, they still did
not fill me with conviction and left me wanting for a more satisfactory
explanation.
Was it something to do with our heart? Perhaps
in the first reading the message is that God looks at the state of one’s heart?
Why was I not inspired by
God’s abundant grace and mercy in those passages?
I found my
answers in the following day’s reading: 1 Kings 8:22-23,27-30; Psalm 83:3-5,10-11 (with the
response “How lovely is your dwelling-place, Lord, God of hosts.”); Mark 7:1-13. Another reminder that I should always read and consider a passage or
an event in its entirety.
Continuing
from where it left off, Solomon clearly put it in the first reading, “The heavens and their own heavens cannot contain you. How
much less this house that I have built!” This verse suggests the house was not built for
the sake as God’s physical residence; rather it served a reminder to his
people, to look towards God at all times, to look to him in all sincerity, and
that He is always near us. Such allusion can be found further back in the first
book of Scripture: the Spirit of God wanders throughout the universe, yet He
stopped to take pleasure in Abel’s offerings. Just as Abel offered the
firstborn of his flock, in the same way the Temple which Solomon built was
meticulously made, with the finest materials and craftsmen, and dedicated with
offerings and sacrifices. Thus it was a symbol to the Israelites to dedicate
themselves wholly to the Lord.
As Solomon continued his prayer in
the reading, the Temple was not a device contain God, but as a house dedicated
to God, his prayer was rather that God may pay special attention to it, just as
He had for Abel’s offering, to watch over His chosen people. Years later Jesus
would say, “For where two or three are gathered in
My Name, there am I in the midst of them (Matthew
18:20).”
As for the Psalm, rather than the
literal “Go up, Lord, to
the place of your rest!” of the previous day, since
God’s special attention is present there, it is rather for our sake, for us to
dwell in his lovely presence. Similarly in this age as we have Adoration in Churches today before the Blessed
Sacrament, before the Real Presence nonetheless.
Comparing the
Gospel readings of the two days, on one hand you have the people coming to Him
for healing; on the other people who come to Him to find some fault. God would
rather us come as the former, for they at least have faith in Him (else He
could perform no miracle – Mark 6:5-6), while
the latter continue to doubt till their deathbeds. At the very least those that
come to rely on Him, the seed which received the waters of grace may have
opportunity to grow. After all, the hungry are more receptive if you feed them
before preaching. Humans tend to seek fulfilment of their immediate needs
before moving on to other matters.
Though the
Gospel explanation did not fully satisfy me; then again, perhaps the whole
exercise is a reminder to myself, that the house I built for God is not to be
made by human hands that would one day collapse but in my heart, a heart always
sincere for Him. That I came to Him in need of healing, and being made well to
nourish this relationship I have with Him, taking it to a more personal level each
day, instead of some dry daily habit.
As I review
back what I have written, my initial reasoning and subsequent explanation from the
following day’s reading are not so different – or rather, very similar to each
other, perhaps just differently phrased and expounded. Yet somehow, the latter
seemed more convincing to me than my initial reasoning. I guess it goes to show
that an answer, once personalised is far more impactful than a straight and “precise”
one.
RFG always.
