True Love is Sacrificial (HOMILY FOR MONDAY OF THE HOLY WEEK APRIL 2023

HOMILY FOR MONDAY OF HOLY WEEK

Isaiah 42:1-7; Ps.27; John 12:1-11

True Love is Sacrificial

True love is priceless. If you love someone, you will judge the person as deserving any sacrifice. You will find it difficult to make excuses when dealing with the person because the person’s joy is your joy and the person’s sorrow is your sorrow. One who loves will not be deterred from showing unmerited and unexpected favour.

This was the experience of Mary in today’s gospel whom Jesus had accepted as a disciple. That love transformed her, and gave her the ability to recognize Jesus as her Saviour and God. She tried to reciprocate this love by anointing Jesus’ feet. Usually, when the Jews have important guests in their homes, they anoint their heads and kiss them. For Mary, Jesus is more than an important guest. He is her Lord; and so she goes beyond the expected and anoints his feet. Also, she uses a costly perfume that is made of pure nard; for no sacrifice is too great in reciprocating God’s love.

Jesus, on his part, not only receives this awesome gestures; he further exalts it by giving it a more significant interpretation. Mary is not just welcoming Him, she is also preparing him for his death and burial. In the burial ceremony of the Jews, the feet of dead bodies are anointed before they are buried. To bury the dead is a corporal work of mercy; and so, Mary’s action unites her with Christ’s passion.

On the contrary, Judas has no love and so he sees Mary’s action as a waste. He pretends to care for the poor. But then, the fact remains that only those who have a true devotion to God will have a genuine and respectful love towards the poor. Our attention to the poor could be for self-aggrandizement, or to cover up for unrepented sins if we have not learnt to love God. The emptiness of Judas’ claim will be exposed when he finally betrays his Master.

And so, today’s liturgy calls us to pay attention to what goes on in our hearts. If you truly love, it will always manifest; if you only pretend to love, you cannot pretend for long. As we search our hearts, let us present to Jesus the selfishness we harbour inside. Whatever we present will be transformed beyond our imagination because the Paschal Mystery is all about transformation.