February 9^th 2020. Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Matthew 5, 13-16

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini broadcast on Vatican Radio

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Don Fabio’s homily follows the Gospel

GOSPEL: Matthew 5, 13-16

Jesus said to his disciples:
“You are the salt of the earth.
But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned?
It is no longer good for anything
but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket;
it is set on a lampstand,
where it gives light to all in the house.
Just so, your light must shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your heavenly Father.”

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . In the Gospel, Jesus asks us to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth. Without this light, the world be in darkness. Without this salt, life will have no flavour. But what are we to do so that we can become salt and light for others? We must look to Jesus! He became the light of the world during an eclipse of the sun on Good Friday. He is the light of the world because he allow his relationship with his Father to sine forth and reveal that God is love: he loves each one of us. People are very critical of the Church nowadays. Maybe it is because they expect us to be the light of the world but they see that we are not! If I live a life of egoism, then I am living in darkness. I might think that my life of fun, entertainment, security, good company and success is very illuminated, but it is a life of darkness if it is not lived with reference to Christ. A father who lives this sort of self-referential life leaves emptiness in the hearts of his children. A priest who lives an existence of this sort does not bring life to his parishioners. We can be salt and light for our families and the world only if we do the kind of works that Jesus asks us to do. He says, “Your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father”. It is very important that these words of Jesus be understood properly! What kinds of works do we need to do? Works that show my great talents and heroism? No, these works do not bring glory to the Father! The works that light up the world are works that shed light on God, that show my relationship to God, that cause people to praise God, not me! By trusting in God, by abandoning myself to God, I show the world the love and power of the Father. When people see works of this sort, they say: I see the power of the Father in you: what you are doing cannot originate in you but must originate in the goodness and glory of God.

We are not just biological organisms. There is something “more” to us. There is substance, life, that goes beyond the biological

St. John Chrysostom says of the Gospel this Sunday that, if the earth needs salt and the world needs light, then it means that the earth is tasteless and the world is dark. Bare existence on earth is not enough: we need to find the “flavour” of life. Just living is not enough. We are not simply a biological organism, made up of four buckets of water combined with the necessary amount of minerals. We have an innate need for something more. We do many things, but what really remains is the meaning of what we do. If salt loses its flavour then it will be trampled on by people, says the Gospel. If a person loses his flavour, others steer away from him. If a father is not a true father, he will leave an emptiness in the hearts of his children. If a priest is bland, people get bored. In fact, the faithful expect substance in their parish priest. Children expect substance in a father, in a friend, in a sister. In everyone. But what flavour does a man's life have if it is truly lived?

Jesus becomes the light of the world on the cross when he died for love of us. If we live lives of egoism then we are in darkness. Success, security, entertainment, good company might fool us into thinking that we live in the light when we are really living in darkness. It is the relationship between Jesus and the Father that is the true source of light.

The same Gospel of Matthew speaks of light and darkness at a precise moment in history: "At midday it became dark over the whole earth, until three in the afternoon" (Mt 27.45). The brightest hours of the day became dark at the moment of Christ's crucifixion; the world revealed its hidden darkness and Jesus of Nazareth was raised as a light to the world upon the chandelier of the cross. There is no other light for humanity: if we really put ourselves first then we are in the dark and only the tenderness of the One who is willing to die for us saves us from our misery. We can delude ourselves that culture, well-being, security, success and good company illuminate life. These things are never enough! Instead, it is the relationship with the Father that shines in Christ who is "the true light, that which illuminates every person" (Jn 1: 9). But this light is seen by the world only if it reverberates in someone.

Why do we have faith? Because the light of Christ has shone through the works of others down the centuries.

We are Christians because we experience the love that illuminates the darkness of our hearts. Yet we were not present on Calvary ... why is that light in us? How did we hear about it and experience it? Because this light has had the opportunity to shine through, to emerge, to manifest itself in the works of Christians over the centuries, and for this we have faith: someone has shown it to us.

The works that show the light of God are not works that highlight my talents and heroism! Rather, the works that give light are those that manifest my relationship of trust and abandonment in the arms of God

How does this light manifest itself? "Let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven". This saying must be understood properly, because Jesus does not say for us to do works so that others see that we are good. Rather, we must do works that show the glory of the Father. The works that give light and flavour to life are not those that glorify those who do them. Rather, if the works indicate that we have a relationship with the Father, then they give light to others! Such works are not opportunities for us to show our great qualities and personal heroisms. Rather the works that give light are when we perform acts of trust in God, abandonment to God, and mercy towards others. It is those works that make others say: I see the power of the Father in you: what you are doing cannot originate in you but must originate in the goodness and glory of God.