Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

First Reading

Is 58: 7-10

Thus says the LORD:
Share your bread with the hungry,
shelter the oppressed and the homeless;
clothe the naked when you see them,
and do not turn your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
If you remove from your midst
oppression, false accusation and malicious speech;
if you bestow your bread on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
then light shall rise for you in the darkness,
and the gloom shall become for you like midday.

Second reading

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

When I came to you, brothers and sisters,
proclaiming the mystery of God,
I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom.
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you
except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling,
and my message and my proclamation
were not with persuasive words of wisdom,
but with a demonstration of Spirit and power,
so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom
but on the power of God.

Gospel

Matthew 5:13-16

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.
You are the light of the world.
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.
Just so, your light must shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your heavenly Father."

Sermon

Jesus says: “You are the salt of the earth” – “You are the light of the world.” He does not say: You should be the salt of the earth! – You should be the light of the world! Jesus addressed the words “You are the salt of the earth” – “You are the light of the world” to his disciples, and he addresses them to all those who have followed him and continue to follow him to this day. We are among them. But when I look at myself with all my shortcomings, I find it hard to believe that I am the salt of the earth, that I am the light of the world. Perhaps you feel the same way.

Let us leave Jesus' words as they are for now – despite all the resistance we may feel within ourselves. And before we ask ourselves how we can be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and why we are capable of being so, let us first consider the two metaphors “salt” and “light.” For Jesus uses them to apply them figuratively to his disciples, to us. Let us look at these two metaphors with which Jesus expresses this.

There is the image of the light of the world. Light, whether it means sunlight, candlelight, or electrically generated light—light is indispensable. Without light, we could not live. There would be no oxygen. Plants that do not get enough light die. Without light, it would remain dark.

People who believe in God can be “light” in many ways. Just as light finds its purpose when it brightens rooms, we only become Christians when we live for others. We are not meant to live simply for ourselves.

This is particularly evident in the image of the salt of the earth. Without salt, many foods would not be tasty, they would be bland. On the other hand, too much salt should not be added. It must be sprinkled sparingly. Salt serves to season food. It is not there just for itself. Salt alone is worthless. Salt only has meaning when it is used for something. We are all Christians, not for ourselves, but for others. We are Christians by living for others. Often this happens inconspicuously, quietly, in small ways. This is the image of salt, which must be sprinkled very sparingly. Often, just a few grains are enough. Often it is the small deeds, the small words, that make the lives of others palatable.

We must note how Jesus says it: “You are the light of the world.” And not “You should be the light of the world!” or “Try to be the light of the world...” “You are” – for me, this means that Jesus trusts us to truly be the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world.” Because Jesus trusts us to do this, he also encourages us with his words. The world should be increasingly shaped by God's love, through us. Jesus trusts us to do this!

For Jesus, salt and light are images of the inner power and luminosity of his disciples.

But with images and metaphors, we should always listen for the “how.” When we orient ourselves toward Jesus, toward his liberating message, then we are like salt of the earth, we are like light of the world. Our lives as Christians are made palatable by the Gospel we proclaim, above all by the Gospel we live.

And speaking in terms of light: insofar as we ourselves are light, we also bring light into the lives of other people, making them brighter. We become transparent to the light that comes from God.

However, as Christians, we would be completely overwhelmed if we had to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world on our own. Jesus says of himself: “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). No human being is the light of the world in the same way that he is. In Jesus, the uncreated light that comes from the circle of God's light shines forth. We are light from the uncreated light of God. When this light begins to shine in us, we ourselves can be light for other people.

Jesus calls on us to let our light shine and not to hide our light under a bushel. But it is very important to note that the light we let shine, the light that we are, comes from the light source of God. It comes from the one who is the light of the world in a unique, incomparable way. This means that we are all dependent on God. So no self-reflection, no self-glorification. Rather, glorification of God through our deeds and actions.

If we keep both of these things in mind—where our strength to do good comes from and why we should do good—then we don't need to hide our light under a bushel.

But we also don't need to be “power Christians.” Jesus' call to let our light shine does not mean that we have to be great luminaries. It is often the inconspicuous people, those who do not make a big deal of themselves, who are more convincing than those who have a lot to show for themselves.

Cardinal Suhard, who was Archbishop of Paris in the 1940s, answered the question of how Christians can be credible—today we would say “authentic”—by saying that they should live in such a way that others ask themselves: Why do they live like that? Why do they care for those in need? Why do they stand up for others in their social environment? Letting our light shine does not mean that we have to accumulate good deeds. Let us do what we can. Roger Schutz, the founder of the Taizé Community, once said: “Live what you have understood of the Gospel, even if it is only a little. But live it.”