Jesus, in this Sunday’s gospel (Mt 5:13-16), uses two metaphors to refer to his disciples, saying, “You are the salt of the earth” (verse 13) and “You are the light of the world” (verse 14).
As the salt of the earth, we are called to preserve and give taste to our fallen world. In a society corrupted by evil and sin, we must be vanguards of goodness ─ saying no to anything that threatens our moral fiber even when everybody around says yes, and standing up to defend the gospel even when the greater number choose the comfort of sitting down. We are called to prevent what is good from decaying and maintain the purity of that portion of God’s kingdom that he has entrusted to us ─ be this our family, circle of friends, co-workers, neighbors, and fellow citizens.
As the salt of the earth, we are to flavor what would otherwise be a tasteless social order. We flavor the world with kindness, humility, fairness, justice, mercy, respect, faithfulness, and most of all, love. We refuse to live a bland life stripped of meaning but rather allow God to season it with gladness and joy.
As the light of the world, we are called to pierce the darkness in our midst and fill it with the light of the Lord. We are to nurture our faith in God, fight temptation and sin, and do good works that bring glory and honor to our heavenly Father. We are expected to do the corporal works of mercy ─ feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, sheltering the homeless, visiting the sick and the imprisoned, and burying the dead. And on the spiritual level, we are also summoned to counsel the doubtful, instruct the ignorant, admonish the sinner, comfort the sorrowful, forgive injuries, bear wrongs patiently, and pray for others.
Of this salt, the gospel warns us, “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 (verse 13), and of this light, it reminds us, “A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house” (verses 14-15).
Let us then fill the world with flavor and light. Not only this month but everyday, love, not indifference or hate, must fill the air.
A Blessed Sunday to one and all.