Fresh Dew Media

 5^th Sunday, Year A: Homily by Fr Isaac Chima

Theme: You Are the Salt of the Earth

Readings: Is 58:7–10; 1 Cor 2:1–5; Mt 5:13–16

Dear friends in Christ, for several Sundays now, our readings have reflected on Christ as the light of the world and on our vocation as Christians to reflect that light wherever we are. Today, the first reading and the Gospel continue this theme of light, but the Gospel adds another powerful image: salt. In this gospel, Jesus says, “You are the light of the world,” and also, “You are the salt of the earth.” Since we have spoken much about light in the past weeks, let us focus today on salt.

Let us try to understand what Christ meant when he told his disciples that they are the salt of the earth. When Matthew recorded this statement, he assumed that the disciples already understood what being “the salt of the earth” implied, so he offered no explanation. However, when Luke (14:34–35) and Mark (9:50) recorded the same saying, they added clarifications about salt to help their audiences grasp what Christ expected from his followers. Both evangelists began by affirming that salt is good and then explained what Christ wanted his disciples to do as the salt of the earth.

It is therefore helpful for us to consider what salt does in order to understand what Christ meant when he used this metaphor. Let us survey some uses of salt in the Old Testament and in the ancient world to unravel what Christ means when He calls us the salt of the earth.

Salt as a Preservative: Salt is one of the earliest and most common preservatives known to humanity. To prevent food from decaying, people added salt before storing it, because salt keeps bacteria, ants, and insects away. In ancient times, cereals and other seeds were preserved with salt. For the ancient Greeks, salt was seen almost as a “new soul” breathed into dead things; without it, something corrupts and decomposes, but with it, freshness is retained. In other words, salt defeats corruption, decay, and decomposition wherever it is introduced.

So, when Christ said that we are the salt of the earth, he was telling us that just as salt preserves things from decay, Christians are meant to preserve the world from every form of moral and spiritual decay. We are called to protect society from ideologies and practices that lead to corruption and decadence. Dear friends, we are preservers of the good things in society. Just as salt keeps food fresh, we Christians are to keep our society fresh with love, peace, charity, and fraternal correction. We are to uphold and preserve the good moral standards of our communities.

Just as salt defeats corruption wherever it is introduced, Christians are to confront and overcome corruption wherever they find themselves. We are to swim against the currents of corruption already present or emerging in any institution or society we enter.

To defeat corruption and preserve freshness, salt must mix well with what it is meant to preserve; it allows itself to be absorbed. In the same way, Christians are not to isolate themselves from society or withdraw from social life. We are called to engage in the social, economic, and political life of our communities so that we can heal society from within. Yet, as salt does not allow itself to be corrupted by what it touches, we too must not allow the corruption around us to defeat us as we participate in the life of society.

Salt as Seasoning/Condiment: Job 6:6 says, “But no one can eat tasteless, unsalted food.” Salt is a substance found in every kitchen. It adds flavour to food and seasons what would otherwise be bland. Without salt, even the richest dish becomes insipid and unappealing.

Dear friends, salt gives flavour to food. Without it, a well-prepared meal becomes tasteless. In the same way, the world becomes tasteless without the flavour of Christianity. Christians have the duty to restore the divine flavour—the divine taste—that the world lost through sin. To those who have lost the joy and taste of life, Christians are called to be restorers of joy and hope. We are meant to be diffusers of joy in a depressed world. God sends us to restore the flavour of joy, love, compassion, peace, happiness, tolerance, and mercy to families, relationships, and communities torn apart by hatred, war, selfishness, and intolerance.

One remarkable thing about salt is that it leaves an unmistakable mark on food; it does not lose its identity. You do not need scientific analysis to know when food has been salted—the taste is evident. In the same way, Christians must not lose their identity in the world. We are Christ’s disciples and restorers of divine taste. This identity should be visible to everyone who encounters us. If we fail to live according to our identity, we lose our “taste” in the world.

Let us ask ourselves what kind of flavour we are adding to the lives of our friends. Is it a positive flavour or a poisonous one? Are we adding goodness to society or negativity? Are we making the lives of others sweeter or more bitter? Salt does not lose its saltiness; let us not lose ours.

Salt and Health: Medically, a deficiency of salt or sodium in the body leads to depression, weakness, nausea, vomiting, cramps, headaches, irritability, confusion, seizures, coma, and even death. During the Nigerian–Biafran War, salt deficiency in people’s diets contributed to widespread cases of kwashiorkor. Salt is essential to human health. In the same way, Christians are essential to the moral and spiritual health of the world. Christ is telling us that without our good works, the world will suffer terrible deficiencies with painful consequences. He warns us that if we lose focus on the good things he has sent us to do, the world will suffer greatly.

Salt as Purifier: The prophet Elisha used salt to purify the river of Jericho (2 Kgs 2:19–22). Salt has long been used to cleanse materials of germs. Its association with purity is strengthened by its glittering whiteness. The ancient Greeks called salt “divine,” while the ancient Romans considered it the purest of all substances because it comes from the purest of all things: the sun and the sea. In the Old Testament, salt was sprinkled on temple offerings to make them clean before being presented to God (Lev 2:13).

Dear friends, just as salt purifies whatever it touches, every disciple of Christ is called to be a purifying agent in the world. We are to purify the world of sin through our good works, through our loving admonitions to friends, by refusing to support evil, and by refusing to compromise our Christian identity. Christians are meant to have a cleansing, antiseptic presence wherever they find themselves. But if we do not first cleanse ourselves of our own sins, we cannot hope to cleanse the world of its sins. Let us therefore repent, seek God’s mercy, and then extend that same cleansing grace to others.

Our Vocation as Salt: Just as salt makes a positive difference wherever it is placed, so too should a Christian make a positive difference wherever he or she is found. Light should overcome darkness; love should overcome hatred; mercy should overcome cruelty; charity should overcome selfishness; peace should prevail over conflict; meekness should temper arrogance; humility should defeat pride. This is our vocation as the salt of the earth.

Peace be with you.

Rev. Fr. Isaac Chinemerem Chima