Advancing God’s Kingdom Through Good Leaders

HOMILY: Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Luke 6: 17, 20-26

13 February 2022

Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA 

Do you have those moments when you come to mass and listen to the readings in the liturgy of the Word and you get a sudden flash of illumination?  Have you ever felt like the Word of God has simply spoken to you giving you a moment of clarity over something that has been weighing on you? I feel that way about today’s gospel especially because the campaign period officially began a few days ago. Let me explain. 

In the Gospel today, which is Luke’s version of what we have known as the Beatitudes, Jesus assures the poor, the hungry, the bereaved, the despised, the marginalised, and the maligned as those who will possess the Kingdom of God and its manifestations. “Blessed are you who are poor, the Kingdom of God is yours. Blessed are you who are hungry, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh.” (Luke 6:20-21) All of these are promises of better things for those who are experiencing some tough times. They are promises of a brighter tomorrow. I don’t know about you but to me it sounds very similar to promises made by candidates running for the top positions of the executive and legislative branches of our government. All of them give us promises for a better future. Jesus, however, was not a political leader and we can be assured that He never makes an empty promise. How do we know this? It is because Jesus speaks the truth ALL the time. He can never contradict Himself. He cannot go against His nature for He IS the truth. 

Jesus tells us that this beautiful scenario of a just society all comes together in the Kingdom of God. In Matthew, He refers to it as the Kingdom of Heaven. Either way, the future tense in Jesus’ statements make it seem as though it is a distant reality that we can only come to grasp if we get to Heaven — where God is King and where He reigns supreme. I quote… “you WILL laugh…. you WILL be satisfied, etc”. Everything is in the future tense. This explains why we vaguely perceive ‘the Kingdom of God’ in terms of its future fulfilment.  We think of it as something that we all have yet to experience. Something far, far off in the distant future.  After all, heaven as we understand it, is a reward attained only in death — a condition we all hope comes for us later than sooner. No one here is in a rush, am I right? 

Does this mean that the poor in spirit, the hungry, the weeping, the persecuted etc, will never catch a break in this life? If we look at Luke’s Gospel, there are instances where Jesus explicitly speaks of God’s reign as already in our midst, in the here and now. Jesus tells the Pharisees: “For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” (Luke 17:21) Are you confused? Don’t be. He is actually trying to invite everyone to look closely and see that the very proof of the Kingdom is standing right in front of them. He invites them to recognise that He is the embodiment of the presence of God among them. Jesus’ feeding of the hungry, healing of the sick, teaching with authority, freeing of those possessed by the evil spirits and showing compassion for the sinner and the outcasts are all very clear evidences that the reign of God is real and something to hope for.  Jesus, Himself, was the personified proof that He was telling the truth. People who witnessed His teachings and His miracles were given a foretaste of what the Kingdom of Heaven would be like.  

My dear parishioners, candidates are going to court you with their beautiful words and their grand promises of a brighter tomorrow. I urge you to make the effort to learn about your candidates and see if they have given unmistakable proof that they are the most qualified people for these positions. Look at their track records and verify their accomplishments. If you owned a business, would you hire someone qualified or someone who simply looks and speaks confidently? If you are buying an item that promises to make life easier for you, don’t you ask the sales person to demo it in front of you to prove that it will deliver on its promise? We ought to be even more discerning when selecting which candidate to support. 

The coming elections are important to us, because we are choosing the leader of our nation — someone who will set the tone as to how the government will be run, and devise plans that ensure the best interests of the Filipino people and the nation. I urge you to be cautious in selecting your candidates. Jeremiah, in the First Reading (Jeremiah 17:5-8) reminds us that we should not place our faith in human beings. He asks us to put our faith in the Lord. How are we to apply this advice when obviously all candidates are human beings with their respective strengths and weaknesses? The church enjoins us to select a candidate who is God-fearing. Let us get to know who among the candidates put God FIRST in their lives; who among them has the agenda and platform that incorporate Christ-like values. Brothers and sisters, such is the candidate who will advance the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. 

Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God, and gave undeniable proof to anyone who would listen.  He saved humanity because He got people to repent of their godless ways and open their eyes to the Truth. He was killed by people who saw Him as a threat to their security — people who put their security in their positions of power, influence, material possessions, and in themselves. Many saints and martyrs lost their lives following Jesus and proclaiming the Kingdom of God. Would you make sacrifices for the Kingdom?  The poor, the hungry, the bereaved receive the blessing because they belong to a society where they are protected, fed and cared for. When God reigns in the hearts of all, there can be no rich or poor because those who have more will always find it in their good hearts to share with those who do not have enough. And so, no one is left wanting. 

Our society has still a long way to go in making this Kingdom of God a reality. There is still so much injustice in our midst. Many are wanting of even the basic necessities of life while others have so much that they can afford to be extravagant and wasteful. This is why we have so much to do as God’s people to make this Kingdom of God come in our midst. It is important for us thereby to discern who we vote next to be our leaders. May Jesus’ teachings be our guide in choosing those who will lead our people, those who will head our country.

Let us pray then that we may put God first in our lives. May God make us true disciples so that one day we all can rejoice and be glad together in God’s Kingdom!