Our Lord speaks of salt and light, metaphors for what we should be, so let’s consider their meaning.
Salt has various uses. Most of us, especially those of my age and size, understand that salt can mean trouble if we do not limit its intake. Yet, I can’t resist the temptation to use it to give greater flavor to food. It is a seasoning and Our Lord is urging us to “season” the world, if you will, with the beauty, joy, and hope that faith brings. As a saltless diet makes for a rather bland meal, so, a world without the salt of faith, will become bland, gloomy, and despairing. How well do we convey the beauty, joy, and hope of our faith?
Salt is not only a seasoning, but a preservative. It was and is used to cure or preserve meat. In this sense, Our Lord would have us preserve all that is good, right, and true in society. A disciple must have the courage uphold and protect the morals and virtues of the Christian life even when these are misunderstood, ridiculed, or discarded by our culture. It is the courage to resist the temptation to go along with the crowd. Pope Benedict said that “We have lost the sense that Christians cannot live just like ‘everybody else’.” We must be different. It’s much easier to blend in. But when we look the same, hold the same opinions as anyone else, who needs us? When we become as unfocused as anyone else, becoming an echo of the prevailing culture, what difference do we make in the lives of others? We need the courage to preserve and uphold.
We have it said, “Don’t’ rub salt into a wound.” It is a way of saying, “Don’t make a painful experience even more painful for someone.” Yet, salt has healing properties and it is in this sense that Our Lord sees us as salt. Should we not strive to bring healing into wounded and broken relationships? Do I see myself as a healer? Pope Francis has said that people “need more healing than judgment.” What do I bring into the lives of those who are hurting?
Do I even realize their pain? Fr. Henri Nouwen advised, “Pay attention to the people God puts in your path to discern what God is up to in your life.”
Finally, we consider the image of light, a light that is not hidden but put on a lampstand. The meaning is clear: our faith, which is a reflection of the light of Christ, is to be seen. I like how C.S. Lewis put it: “Don't shine so others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see Him.” What do people observe in us? Is it the light of Christ, the light of faith?
We may not realize it but people do observe us, especially if we are church-going people. I’m reminded of an event in the life of St. John XXIII. Before he was pope, he served as the pope’s ambassador to France and as a diplomat, he was expected to hold a number of elegant receptions. At one of these, a woman wore, shall we say, a rather “revealing evening gown.” A guest said to the future pope, “Your Eminence, aren’t you concerned that so many people are looking at that scantily clad women?” He replied, “Not at all. No one is looking at her. Everyone is looking at me to see if I am looking at her.”
People observe, and what they see or do not see can affect their spiritual life. Do they see in us the Beatitudes…the virtues…the spiritual and corporal works of mercy?
My friends, salt left in the shaker is useless. It cannot season, preserve, or heal. A light under a basket is useless. It must be placed on a lampstand. Let’s pass the salt and let’s turn on the light! Let’s be both salt and light!
