Sunday, February 5, 2017
Readings for Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
Saint Agatha, Virgin and Martyr – Memorial
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.” Matthew 5:13
Do not become “salt” that loses its taste! The end of this kind of salt is that it is thrown out and trampled underfoot. So how is it that we lose our taste?
First of all, let’s start with the purpose of salt. It’s an amazing seasoning that adds flavor to food. Salt by itself is not that tasty. But when added to a variety of food, it enters in and adds much.
We are called to be the “salt of the earth.” And just like salt, we are not made to simply be the star and center of attention. We are not made only for ourselves. Instead, it is our Christian duty to enter into our world and add to it, helping to transform it into a world of grace and mercy, full of the “flavor” of God’s Kingdom. This is done, especially, by the building up of relationships. It’s done by striving to touch one person at a time so as to enhance their lives and help them to be closer to Christ. The love of God that we bring into our world, and into the lives of those whom we encounter, can be seen analogously as salt entering into food and enhancing it.
Now back to our first question. How do we lose our taste? In other words, how is it that we fail to be the “salt of the earth?” We do this when we enter into our world, encounter various people, and fail to truly enhance their lives. When our presence in the lives of others has little or no effect upon them for the good, then our actions are like tasteless salt that is only good to be thrown away and “trampled underfoot.” This reveals to us that we have a duty to have an effect on the lives of others. We have a duty to enhance the goodness and faith of those whom we encounter on a regular basis. If we fail to make a difference in the lives of others, we are missing the point of those relationships and we are failing to be the salt of the Earth.
Reflect, today, upon this duty that you have been given by Christ. Reflect upon the calling you have been charged with to make a difference in the lives of others. When others grow in faith and love as a result of your presence in their lives, you are fulfilling this most basic command of Christ. Commit yourself to being the salt of the Earth so that this world of ours will be a better place, filled with the flavor of the Kingdom of God.
Lord, I offer myself to You for Your service and for Your glory. I pray that You will use me to transform our world into a holy place and a place where Your goodness dwells. I thank You for the privilege of being used by You and pray that You will use me in any way You desire. Jesus, I trust in You.