5th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year A
The Lord says: “You are the Salt of the Earth. You are the
Light of the World.”
In some older villages of Israel, some still use clay-ovens to
cook. Some prefer the clay-ovens over the common electric oven, or
propane gas stoves.
Usually, the villages have a shared and common oven used by most
people.
The common fuel for the oven was something more plentiful than
wood, because wood is scarce. They would use camel or donkey dung.
One of the duties of a young child was to learn how to collect the
dung, mix salt in it, mold it into patties, and left in the sun to
dry. The dung patties were used to heat the ovens. So at a young
age, the children learned how to survive, and learned how to get
their hands dirty.
You are the Salt of the Earth. Salt is a catalytic that causes
the dung to burn. But eventually, the salt loses it catalytic
ability, and is rendered useless. So the salt is thrown into the
ground, and provides a sure footing on a muddy or slippery road. It
is just like salt is used on the streets on a snowy day.
Being disciples of Christ, salt of the earth, means that we belong
to Almighty God in Christ Jesus. It also means that we live in the
context that there is eternal life with Almighty God. Being with
Almighty God, the Most Holy Trinity is our final destination.
And it is to be fully aware that God orders all creation. In
other words, the manner in which we operate, the way we live our
life, must always be done in with Almighty God in mind. To be salt
of the Earth means to be fully aware that Almighty and Eternal God is
the final judge. When we operate in that manner, we naturally become
salt of the earth and light for the world.
If we belong to God, it means to see everything that happens is a
blessing or a blessing in disguise. Reflecting the Light of Christ
means to be grateful to Almighty God in good times. But also in
times of perceived misfortune, it is also an opportunity to be purged
and purified of pride, so as to develop a humble need for grace from
God. And it is to help develop spiritual muscles of fortitude and
perseverance.
A person who belongs to Almighty God, baptized into Christ Jesus,
knows that even in the worse situation, Almighty God is in control.
A person of Faith can perceive a bad thing as a good thing. Because
their eyes have already been attuned to eternal life.
For instance, St. Therese of Liseux, Doctor of the Soul, when
contracted TB, instead of feeling self-pity, she was grateful to
Almighty God because eternal life is soon knocking on her door.
Because we are not extremely dualistic like the Gnostics or
Docetists. It is like one of my brother priest who told me: “I
want to go to heaven, but I don't want to take the express way to
heaven.” Certainly, we don't want to treat the world as if it is a
bad thing because God has made creation, and saw that it is good.
But this means that God orders all creation, and we belong within
that order. Fully aware that God is in the driver's seat, bringing
us to the majestic and glorious kingdom.
To be the salt of the Earth and the Light of the World, is to
first of all know that we belong to Almighty God.
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