BLESSED TO BECOME LIGHT

Homily for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Fr. Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch

Isaiah 58:7-10; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:13-16

Last Sunday, in the Beatitudes, Jesus described the kind of people who are truly blessed in God’s kingdom: the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, the pure of heart, the persecuted. Today’s Gospel is a natural continuation of that teaching. Having told us who the blessed are, Jesus now tells us what they are meant to become: salt of the earth and light of the world. In other words, the Beatitudes are not private virtues; they are meant to shape a visible, transforming Christian life.

To call disciples “salt” and “light” is to speak of influence, not dominance. Salt does not draw attention to itself; it disappears into food so that everything else may have flavor. Light does not exist for itself; it exists to illuminate what would otherwise remain hidden. Jesus is clear: the disciple does not live for self-display but for quiet, faithful impact. Yet He also issues a warning - salt can lose its taste, and light can be hidden. A Christianity that remains inward, comfortable, and inconsequential has betrayed its own identity.

The First Reading from Isaiah deepens this point by correcting a common religious illusion. God rejects a piety that is content with rituals but indifferent to suffering. True worship, Isaiah says, is concrete: feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked. Only then does God promise, “Your light shall break forth like the dawn.” In other words, light is not generated by words alone but by lives poured out in love. The Church shines not when she speaks loudly, but when she loves faithfully.

This helps us understand the final line of the Gospel: “that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” The goal is never self-glorification. Christian witness is credible only when it points beyond the disciple to God. Works of mercy, integrity, and justice are not optional accessories to faith; they are the very medium through which God becomes visible in the world.

Saint Paul’s reflection to the Corinthians protects us from misunderstanding this call. He insists that his preaching relied neither on eloquence nor human wisdom but on “Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” Christian light does not come from brilliance or power but from the paradox of the Cross. The disciple shines not by appearing strong, but by remaining faithful in weakness. This is why the Beatitudes remain the foundation: only the poor in spirit can truly be light, because they know the light does not originate from themselves.

Taken together, the readings present a single movement: interior conversion leads to outward mission. The Beatitudes form the heart; salt and light describe the life that flows from it. The Church does not change the world by strategy alone, but by holiness that takes flesh in compassion, humility, and courage.

So the question today is not whether the world is dark enough - Jesus assumes that it is. The real question is whether we are willing to shine. Not by drawing attention to ourselves, but by living the Beatitudes so faithfully that others encounter God through us. When that happens, the world is not merely informed about God - it is illuminated.