If salt loses its taste, what is the point in adding it to food because you would not notice any difference? If we do not stand out from the culture around us because of our faith, we are like tasteless salt. We would be like tasteless salt if we compromised our faith to be like the culture around us. If we watered down our faith to be like the culture around us, we would be like tasteless salt. When you read the Old Testament, you see that the people loved the false prophets because the false prophets said what the people wanted to hear. The false prophets were lovely, really lovely people. But they were false. Their salt was tasteless. They had compromised and watered down the faith and said what the people wanted to hear. An example is the false prophet Hananiah (Jer 28). Two years later it was clear that what he said was false. On the other hand, God’s prophet Jeremiah said what the people didn’t want to hear so they had him imprisoned (Jer 37:11-21), threw him into a muddy well (Jer 38:4-6) but he was pulled out later, and he remained in prison until the city was taken by the Babylonians (Jer4 40:1-6).
There has always been tension between the Church and world because the ways of the world are not always the ways of God. If there were no tension between the Church and the world, that would be a sad day because it would mean the Church had compromised and watered down the faith. This is what Jesus said to the apostles during the Last Supper in John’s Gospel: “if you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you.” (John 15:19) A little later, when Jesus was praying to his Father, he said about the apostles: “I have given them your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” (John 17:14)
There are warnings in the New Testament about compromising with the ways of the world, warnings about watering down the faith. In Paul’s letter to the Romans we read: “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom 12:2) In Paul’s second letter to Timothy we read: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths. As for you, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” (2 Tim 4:3-5) If there were no tension between the Church and the world, that would be a sad day because it would mean the Church had compromised and watered down the faith. If we do not stand out from the culture around us because of our faith, then we are like tasteless salt.
Jesus said we are to allow our light shine before others that they may see our good deeds and give glory to our Father in heaven. Our good deeds are our light shining before others and our first reading today gave examples of good deeds allowing God’s light to shine (Isa 58:7-10). Good deeds naturally are not for our glory but for God. That’s why Jesus said when people see our good deeds they will give the glory to our Father in heaven.
As well as good deeds, we allow our light to shine before others when we witness to Jesus. In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus said: “Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.” (Matt 10:32-33)
We acknowledge Jesus, allowing our light—which is really the light of Jesus—to shine before others when we have a pleasant encounter with others. There are people who, even though they have faith, are unfortunately not always uplighting to meet. Meeting them does not always leave a good memory. But there are also people who are always so pleasant to meet; they allow the light of Jesus to shine through them. Those pleasant people remind me of the first words of Our Lady’s prayer, the Magnificat: “My soul glorifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:46-47) They are living those words in their lives and allowing the light of God to shine through. After people meet you, do they have a pleasant memory of you or is their memory of encountering you something less than pleasant? Can you be unselfish and give of yourself to bring the love of God to others?
If we water down our faith and compromise our faith to be like the culture around us, we are like tasteless salt. Jesus said we are to allow our light shine before others that they may see our good deeds and give glory to our Father in heaven.
© Fr. Tommy Lane 2026
This homily was delivered in a parish in Ireland.
More Homilies for the Fifth Sunday Year A
You are precious to Jesus 2023
Keeping your taste and letting the light of Jesus shine 2020