Salt and Light of the World

Fr. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara CSsR

Homily for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Church of St. Rita, Cottage Grove, MN

Sunday February 9, 2020

In today’s Gospel (Matthew 5:13-16), Jesus used two vivid images to describe what it means to be a Christian: “You are the salt of the earth,” “You are the light of the world.” Salt is a very common seasoning, and unless for medical reasons, it’s something we put in everything we cook. Of all the seasonings we use for cooking, salt is the most important. Without it, the food lacks real taste. Salt makes our food tastes better. It is a seasoning that enhances the flavor of the food. It brings out the best taste of food. Jesus wants us to be the flavor that brings out the best in everyone. He wants us to bring out the best in us, and the best in the world. He wants us to give human life a meaning. When Jesus said we are the salt of the earth, what he meant is that we are the seasoning that should spice up life. Life is not all about gloom, doom and fear. Wherever there’s gloom, we are to sow hope, hope in the Lord. We should be the most hopeful people in the world and our hope should be centered on the fact that God knows. Even in the face of trial and tribulation, we can speak with Job in Job 19:25, “I know my Redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.”

In the ancient world, salt was used as preservatives. Before refrigeration and canning became the order of the day, meat and fish were preserved either dried or smoked or it was heaped with salt. Salt was used to preserve meat and fish, to keep them fresh and free from corruption. Jesus wants us to preserve the world from becoming rotten, bad and ill. He wants us to preserve the family, to preserve human life, to preserve the church, to preserve our bodies, to preserve the truth. He wants us to have a certain antiseptic influence on life. We are to influence the world and not the other way round. 

Salt has some medicinal value. It was used as curative. Before modern medicine, salt was used as antiseptic. It was poured into an open wound to clean any impurities. By asking us to be the salt of the earth, Jesus is also asking us to be healer— to heal and cure the brokenhearted, the depressed, the lonely, the hungry, the bereaved, and those who experience the tragedy of life. We should not be indifferent to the pain of the other just because it is not happening to us. When one person suffers, we all suffer. We are the Body of Christ. The tragedy of another should be the tragedy of all. Indifference is not a virtue. Silence is golden but not when you notice discrimination and maltreatment of another person. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.” We are to spread the message of hope and forgiveness, the message of our Savior who heals all who are hurt and wounded. The best cure we can render to our offenders is forgiveness. Salt also creates thirst. We are called to make people thirst for Jesus, thirst for righteousness and goodness. 

Another image used by Jesus to describe his followers is light: “You are the light of the world” he said. He wants us to shed light on the darkness of the world. The light that shines from us is the light of Christ. We have no light of our own. Psalm 36: 9 says “For you (Lord) are the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.” So what we say or do can brighten or dim the light of Christ. A light is something that is easily seen. A Christian should be seen and known. There can be nothing like secret discipleship. Our Christianity should be visible to all. Christianity should not be visible only in the Church. A Christianity that stops at the church is worthless. A Catholic should be a Catholic in the factory, in the restaurant, in the workshop, in the classroom, in the kitchen, in the office, in the golf-course, in the hospital, in the library, and everywhere. St Augustine once closed his Mass with these words, “I am about to lay aside this book and you are soon going away, each to your own business. It has been good for us to share our common light, good to have enjoyed ourselves, good to have been glad together. When we part from one another, let us not depart from Him.” A light is a guide. We are to be the guide of the nations. Jesus wants us to be a shinning example to others.