Salt
At the start of last week, I realised that I had an ulcer in my mouth. While usually harmless, an ulcer can cause terrible pain and discomfort. They are wounds that we'd normally prefer to heal as soon as possible. I was getting rather annoyed with having that ulcer, especially as I was on holiday. I wanted to enjoy my food in peace, but my ulcer was preventing me from doing so. I found myself wanting to rid myself of the ulcer at once.
When I was young, I was taught that the quickest, but most painful way to heal an ulcer would be to apply salt to it. It had been a while since I had tried this, but since I was on holiday and wanted to rid myself of the ulcer as soon as I could, I decided to do it. I went to the kitchen in my Airbnb, found some salt, and went to the sink. I applied some salt to my ulcer, and at once, I was filled with an immense and stinging pain. The pain was so great that it instantly made me regret my choice of applying salt to my wound. I was reminded of the old phrase "don't rub salt on wounds".
However, by the next morning, the pain from my ulcer had subsided tremendously, and I found that while it was still there, I was able to enjoy my meals with much more comfort. It seems that the salt did the trick, and my ulcer had cured.
In last Sunday's gospel, Jesus challenges us to be the salt of the earth. Common household salt helps to preserve food, and helps to season our food, to give it flavour. Most of the time, if our food had not been seasoned with salt, it would be bland and tasteless. Salt also does not attract attention to itself. Nobody in their right mind would eat plain salt.
It's pretty clear that the challenge from Jesus in this gospel is for us to add flavour to the earth, to season the world with living out our Christian identity, our baptismal call. He calls us to do this, without drawing attention to ourselves, reminding us once again that not everything is about us. We are called to live our lives for him, and at the service of our neighbour. He issues this challenge during his sermon on the mount, the same sermon where he gives us the teaching on the Beatitudes, which is the Gospel used every year during All Saints Day, reminding us that the Beatitudes are the blueprint for us to get to heaven, to become saints. I'd like to think that being the salt of the earth is also a blueprint for us on the path to sainthood.
While this Gospel commissions us to add flavour to the world through our good works, we must also not forget that salt has other functions. One function would be to heal wounds, even though it may sting, just like what happens when you add salt to an ulcer. As much as we are called to be kind to one another, we must also remember that we are called to love one another. Tough love is still love. There will be times where we will be called to be the salt on our neighbour's wound, even though it may sting. We are also called to speak words of truth, even if they may hurt, and to bring about healing through this. For instance, if we know someone who is wallowing in self-pity, even though he may have been through something which has brought him much pain, taking up the call to be salt to the earth would not mean allowing that friend to continue wallowing. Quite the opposite. It would mean speaking words of truth, and challenging that friend to move past it, even though our words may sting. If they are truly life-giving words, and if our actions are life-giving, they will help that friend to heal, even though the salt may sting. I'd like to think that Jesus' message is also that there's a difference between rubbing salt on one's wounds, and tearing the wounds open further. We must remember that being life-giving does not always mean being "nice" to the people around us. Like I mentioned, tough love is still love.
However, a word of caution. Too much salt can cause a cholesterol problem. We must also remember that while we are called to add flavour to others, while we are called to love others, and bring about healing for others, we are called to touch lives in a human manner. We don't need to do anything extraordinary to be Christ to others. Simple acts of compassion, living life as humbly as possible, sharing what we have with others rather than clearing the shelves for ourselves at the supermarkets during this difficult time, that's how we be salt to others. Being condescending to others who are struggling with living a truly authentic Christian life, looking down on them, and ostracising them from the community, that probably too much salt. That could cross the line between being salt to the earth, and being salty to the earth.
Let us strive to be salt to the earth, to love others just like how we are loved by Christ, and to touch lives in a human way. This is the call of all baptised Christians, and our primary mission given to us at the end of each Mass.
When I was young, I was taught that the quickest, but most painful way to heal an ulcer would be to apply salt to it. It had been a while since I had tried this, but since I was on holiday and wanted to rid myself of the ulcer as soon as I could, I decided to do it. I went to the kitchen in my Airbnb, found some salt, and went to the sink. I applied some salt to my ulcer, and at once, I was filled with an immense and stinging pain. The pain was so great that it instantly made me regret my choice of applying salt to my wound. I was reminded of the old phrase "don't rub salt on wounds".
However, by the next morning, the pain from my ulcer had subsided tremendously, and I found that while it was still there, I was able to enjoy my meals with much more comfort. It seems that the salt did the trick, and my ulcer had cured.
In last Sunday's gospel, Jesus challenges us to be the salt of the earth. Common household salt helps to preserve food, and helps to season our food, to give it flavour. Most of the time, if our food had not been seasoned with salt, it would be bland and tasteless. Salt also does not attract attention to itself. Nobody in their right mind would eat plain salt.
It's pretty clear that the challenge from Jesus in this gospel is for us to add flavour to the earth, to season the world with living out our Christian identity, our baptismal call. He calls us to do this, without drawing attention to ourselves, reminding us once again that not everything is about us. We are called to live our lives for him, and at the service of our neighbour. He issues this challenge during his sermon on the mount, the same sermon where he gives us the teaching on the Beatitudes, which is the Gospel used every year during All Saints Day, reminding us that the Beatitudes are the blueprint for us to get to heaven, to become saints. I'd like to think that being the salt of the earth is also a blueprint for us on the path to sainthood.
While this Gospel commissions us to add flavour to the world through our good works, we must also not forget that salt has other functions. One function would be to heal wounds, even though it may sting, just like what happens when you add salt to an ulcer. As much as we are called to be kind to one another, we must also remember that we are called to love one another. Tough love is still love. There will be times where we will be called to be the salt on our neighbour's wound, even though it may sting. We are also called to speak words of truth, even if they may hurt, and to bring about healing through this. For instance, if we know someone who is wallowing in self-pity, even though he may have been through something which has brought him much pain, taking up the call to be salt to the earth would not mean allowing that friend to continue wallowing. Quite the opposite. It would mean speaking words of truth, and challenging that friend to move past it, even though our words may sting. If they are truly life-giving words, and if our actions are life-giving, they will help that friend to heal, even though the salt may sting. I'd like to think that Jesus' message is also that there's a difference between rubbing salt on one's wounds, and tearing the wounds open further. We must remember that being life-giving does not always mean being "nice" to the people around us. Like I mentioned, tough love is still love.
However, a word of caution. Too much salt can cause a cholesterol problem. We must also remember that while we are called to add flavour to others, while we are called to love others, and bring about healing for others, we are called to touch lives in a human manner. We don't need to do anything extraordinary to be Christ to others. Simple acts of compassion, living life as humbly as possible, sharing what we have with others rather than clearing the shelves for ourselves at the supermarkets during this difficult time, that's how we be salt to others. Being condescending to others who are struggling with living a truly authentic Christian life, looking down on them, and ostracising them from the community, that probably too much salt. That could cross the line between being salt to the earth, and being salty to the earth.
Let us strive to be salt to the earth, to love others just like how we are loved by Christ, and to touch lives in a human way. This is the call of all baptised Christians, and our primary mission given to us at the end of each Mass.
Comments
Post a Comment