[stephenkhoo]

Scripture Reflections
04 July 2013, Thursday, 13th Week, Ordinary Time
GOOD INTENTIONS CAN ALSO BE MISGUIDED
SCRIPTURE READINGS: GENESIS 22:1-19; MT 9:1-8

When Jesus was on the cross, He prayed, “Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:34) I would tend to agree with Jesus that most of our sufferings in the world come from the sin of ignorance. Ignorance can come from a lack of clarity of the truth in terms of knowledge, understanding and perception. This leads one to being misguided in one’s actions, whether doing evil or good. When one is misguided, he labours under the belief that he is doing the right thing, or even a good thing.

Can we therefore exonerate all those who do evil? Of course not! Being ignorant of a truth can be a matter of degree. Secondly, there is the question of culpability of an erroneous judgment. Thirdly, there is also the extent of consent to something that we do. So even though ignorant people are not totally guilty of their sins, that does not make them free from guilt as they could be culpable in not taking the necessary steps to search for the truth. For example, in the question of abortion or euthanasia or same sex union, we need to search the scriptures carefully; the history of morals and current psychological and scientific studies to help us grasp the truth of what the Church intends to teach before we take such matters into our own hands. Indeed, many practice euthanasia in the name of mercy-killing; and so, too, many abort unborn children under the excuse that the child would suffer more as the parents are not ready to take care of the baby. So even in evil deeds, many are misguided as to the full implications of what they are doing. But because such actions spring from some form of ill-will and selfishness, even revenge, they cannot be acquitted from their sinful actions. To some extent, their ignorance can mitigate their sins but the consequences of their actions will unfold in their lives as they and those related to them will suffer the effects of their foolish acts.

What is true of evil actions is also true of good actions. Just as evil actions can harm oneself and others, so too, even supposedly good actions. Many parents apparently work hard for a good living for their families, but often at the expense of giving quality time and affection to their children. Pre-marital or casual sex is practiced simply because couples feel that it is an expression of love, especially when the emotional relationship is not strong. As a consequence, lovers regret and become insecure, destroying trust and confidence that are so necessary for growing the affective and emotional dimensions of the relationship. Indeed, such people, although not maliciously sinful, certainly because they are misguided, can harm both themselves and those whom they claim to love.

Wasn’t this the case of Abraham and that of the scribes and Pharisees in today’s scripture readings? In the first reading, we have the sacrifice of Isaac. This story has its primitive origin in human sacrifice, especially of children, which was practiced in ancient times but later abandoned. Indeed, some readers wondered how God could demand Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. This seems unthinkable, since God is a merciful and loving God. In its historical meaning, the story illustrates precisely that God does not want any human sacrifice. Hence, He stopped Abraham from killing Isaac.

The truth is that Abraham, obedient as he was to God, misinterpreted God’s desire that He should sacrifice his only son. It was a misguided action due to a wrong interpretation of God’s will that resulted in Abraham’s near execution of his son. Of course, in his case, the intention was right, as Abraham wanted to give everything to God and obey Him in everything, and would hold nothing back, not even his only son. So on the level of history; it was a mistake of Abraham. On the level of spirituality, Abraham was recognized as the Father of faith because of his total obedience to the Lord.

Such people do exist even in our day, such as terrorists. They truly believe that God wants them to die for their people’s freedom and justice; or for the purity and defence of their religion. Such people sincerely, although misguided, believe that their death is a martyrdom for God and His people and that a greater good will come out of their destructive actions which claim even innocent lives. But one need not be a terrorist to do such things. In the name of religion or even in the cause of justice, one can use unjust means to bring about the end, such as proselytization or religious suppression; and using evil means to destroy evil people.

In the same vein, we have the scribes and Pharisees who were also misguided as to what the Lord expected of them. They were sincere people who wanted to uphold the Law of Moses. They were right in saying, “This man is blaspheming” because no one can forgive sins except God alone. So uncompromising were they in holding this tenet of faith that they could not believe that God could work beyond the confines of theology and rules set by man. Jesus challenged this narrow understanding of God’s authority when He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go off home.” And of course, later on, in the name of God and the preservation of the Law of Moses, they thought it was the best thing to have Jesus put to death even if they had to frame Him for something that Jesus did not do or say.

Indeed, they could not break out of the theological framework that they were brought up with. In their view, Jesus was a rebel, a law breaker and because His hard teachings were so true, it was too difficult for them to accept. Pride, fear, anxiety and protectionism confused the intention of the religious leaders in their desire to put Jesus away. Should we be surprised too that many of us are similarly stuck in the cultural or religious traditions that we were brought up with, so that even in the face of irrelevancy or superstition, we find it hard to abandon our practices? We call ourselves traditionalists, meaning faithful to the tradition, when in actual fact by failing to change we observe only the laws but miss the spirit of the traditions. Thus the same sentiments come to play, namely, pride, fear, anxiety rule our minds and actions.

What is the striking contrast between the attitude of Abraham and religious leaders during Jesus’ time? In the case of Abraham, when he came to realize that he had misinterpreted the mercy and demands of God, he immediately withdrew his decision and did not go ahead with his intended plan. Abraham was docile and receptive to the cultural reversal where children’s sacrifices were then practiced by the pagans. In contrast, the religious leaders, even after Jesus’ explanation, remained hardened in their hearts, in spite of the fact that they saw before their very eyes, “the man got up and went home.” And we also noted that unlike the Jewish leaders, the ordinary people were filled with awe “when they saw this, and they praised God for giving such power to men.”

What about us, where do we stand? Are we on the side of Abraham, willing to correct our theological and philosophical positions when corrected, or are we like the Jewish religious leaders, resistant to change? By continuing to be misguided rather than being guided by truth and love, we actually cause more harm to those whom we claim to love, God and our fellowmen, as well as ourselves. Hence, we must pray for wisdom, which require humility and discernment, both accompanying pre-requisites for discerning the truth with love. With the psalmist, we must pray, “I will walk in the presence of the Lord, in the land of the living. Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name give glory because of your kindness, because of your truth.” The moral of today’s lesson is clear. It is not enough to have good intentions, but the intentions must be objectively good. Good will is not good enough!

Written by The Most Rev Msgr William Goh
Archbishop of Singapore
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