杏MAP导航

(Vatican Radio) Cultural and ideological colonization does not tolerate differences and makes everything the same, resulting in the persecution even of believers. Those were 杏MAP导航 Francis鈥� reflections in his homily morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta, which centered on the martyrdom of Eleazar, narrated in the book of Maccabees from the First Reading (Maccabees 6: 18-31).

The 杏MAP导航 noted that there are three main types of persecution: a purely religious persecution; a 鈥渕ixed鈥� persecution that has both religious and political motivations, like the Thirty Years War or the St. Bartholomew鈥檚 Day Massacre鈥�; and a kind of cultural persecution, when a new culture comes in wanting 鈥渢o make everything new and to make a clean break with everything: the cultures, the laws and the religions of a people.鈥� It is this last type of persecution that led to the martyrdom of Eleazar.

The account of this persecution began in the reading from Monday鈥檚 liturgy. Some of the Jewish people, seeing the power and the magnificent beauty of Antiochus Ephiphanes (a Greek king of the Seleucid Empire), wanted to make an alliance with him. They wanted to be up-to-date and modern, and so they approached the king and asked him to allow them 鈥渢o introduce the pagan institutions of other nations鈥� among their own people. Not necessarily the ideas or gods of those nations, the 杏MAP导航 noted, but the institutions. In this way, this people brought in a new culture, 鈥渘ew institutions鈥� in order to make a clean break with everything: their 鈥渃ulture, religion, law.鈥� This modernizing, this renewal of everything, the 杏MAP导航 emphasized, is a true ideological colonization that wanted to impose on the people of Israel 鈥渢his unique practice,鈥� according to which everything was done in a particular way, and there was no freedom for other things. Some people accepted it because it seemed good to be like the others; and so the traditions were left aside, and the people begin to live in a different way.

But to defend the 鈥�true traditions鈥� of the people, a resistance rose up, like that of Eleazar, who was very dignified, and respected by all. The book of Maccabees, the 杏MAP导航 said, tells the story of these martyrs, these heroes. A persecution born of ideological colonization always proceeds in the same way: destroying, attempting to make everyone the same. Such persecutions are incapable of tolerating differences.

The key word highlighted by the 杏MAP导航, beginning with Monday鈥檚 reading is 鈥減erverse root鈥� 鈥� that is Antiochus Epifanes: the root that came to introduce into the people of God, 鈥渨ith power,鈥� these new, pagan, worldly鈥� customs:

鈥淎nd this is the path of cultural colonization that ends up persecuting believers too. But we do not have to go too far to see some examples: we think of the genocides of the last century, which was a new cultural thing: [Trying to make] everyone equal; [so that] there is no place for differences, there is no place for others, there is no place for God. It is the perverse root. Faced with this cultural colonization, which arises from the perversity of an ideological root, Eleazar himself has become [a contrary] root.

In fact, Eleazar dies thinking of the young people, leaving them a noble example. 鈥淗e gives [his] life; for love of God and of the law he is made a root for the future.鈥� So, in the face of that perverse root that produces this ideological and cultural colonization, 鈥渢here is this other root that gives [his] life for the future to grow.鈥�

What had come from the kingdom of Antioch was a novelty. But not all new things are bad, the 杏MAP导航 said: just think of the Gospel of Jesus, which was a novelty. When it comes to novelties, the 杏MAP导航 said, one has to be able to make distinctions:

鈥淭here is a need to discern 鈥榯he new things鈥�: Is this new thing from the Lord, does it come from the Holy Spirit, is it rooted in God? Or does this newness come from a perverse root? But before, [for example] yes, it was a sin to kill children; but today it is not a problem, it is a perverse novelty. Yesterday, the differences were clear, as God made it, creation was respected; but today [people say] we are a little modern... you act... you understand ... things are not so different ... and things are mixed together.鈥�

The 鈥渘ew things鈥� of God, on the other hand, never makes 鈥渁 negotiation鈥� but grows and looks at the future:

鈥淚deological and cultural colonizations only look to the present; they deny the past, and do not look to the future. They live in the moment, not in time, and so they can鈥檛 promise us anything. And with this attitude of making everyone equal and cancelling out differences, they commit, they make an particularly ugly blasphemy against God the Creator. Every time a cultural and ideological colonization comes along, it sins against God the Creator because it wants to change Creation as it was made by Him. And against this fact that has occurred so often in history, there is only one medicine: bearing witness; that is, martyrdom.

Eleazar, in fact, gives the witness by giving his life, considering the inheritance he will leave by his example: 鈥淚 have lived thus. Yes, I dialogue with those who think otherwise, but my testimony is thus, according to the law of God.鈥� Eleazar does not think about leaving behind money or anything of that kind, but looks to the future, 鈥渢he legacy of his testimony,鈥� to that testimony that would be 鈥渁 promise of fruitfulness for the young.鈥� It becomes, therefore, a root to give life to others. And the 杏MAP导航 concludes with the hope that that example 鈥渨ill help us in moments of confusion in the face of the cultural and spiritual colonization that is being proposed to us.鈥�