Once I prepared a soup for a friend. However, at the very first sip, her face registered surprise. It was because I had flavoured the soup with too little salt. When Jesus pronounced that "you are the salt of the earth" (v 13) - Jesus expected Christians to be in the world: 1) to be preservers of all that is good and holy; and 2) to add flavour - that we bring joy and love wherever we are. If as Christians we do not make a difference and continue to live colourless lives, then we end up like the soup that I made for my friend, tasteless. We lose our influence and we become irrelevant to a world searching for the real presence of God.

Jesus also pronounced that "you are the light of the world" (v 14).

Do those around us know we are Christians or are we underground Christians? Jesus says, "your light must shine before others" (v 16). Let us pray that clergy, religious, and laity will come together in unity to effectively "counter the growing secularization and individualism in our society" (new evangelization and mission; Herald, Jan 7, 2018, pg 1). And let us own "the daunting mission of proclaiming Jesus as the Lord and Saviour (by word and action)" and "to be a more Christ-experiencing and Christ-witnessing community" (10th Federation of Asian Bishops Conference (FABC) Plenary Assembly, 2010; Herald, Jan 14, 2018, pg 3).