A Challenge and an Assurance

WORD 2day: Saturday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 12, 2025: Genesis 44: 18-21, 23-29, 45: 1-5; Matthew 10: 7-15

By the grace of God, I have come across so many youngsters who are so inspiring by the absolute choice that they have made for God and the will of God. People who have had great ambitions and plans, but have just thrown them into the air for the sake of a vision that God inspired. Persons who have had prospects so promising, but have ignored those just because they felt they have been called for a specific mission, a mission in the footsteps of the Master-saviour. Daring individuals who have made choices for which they are being derided, called names and have suffered worst experiences of want and willful deprivation. A challenge!

When this challenge is taken up, one could find oneself on a tossing sea or a troubled sky, but nothing would disturb the person, for he or she has found a ground so firm, a base so strong, a root so deep - the Lord who calls, commissions and walks one through. At the end of all the tribulations, pervades a serenity, a sense of accomplishment, the same sense with which Jesus gasped on the cross, "It is accomplished." That is the tone in which Jacob (aka) Israel speaks today of his end and what should come after.

The Lord does not leave us merely with the challenge; the Lord attaches an assurance to every one of those situations: the assurance of God's caring presence with us! Pope Francis in his first encyclical Lumen Fidei had called this, 'the accompanying presence of God' (LF 57). It is an assurance that arises from the fact that God loves us, that God values us, that God cares for us, and above all, that God counts on us!

The challenge is to belong to God, come what may. It is not an easy task considering the prevailing atmosphere today... how prepared are we?

To stick till the end...

WORD 2day: Friday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 11, 2025: Genesis 46: 1-7, 28-30; Matthew 10: 16-23

Enduring till the end is the test of the strength of one's faith. Israel (Jacob) today expresses that great satisfaction in having endured till the end, on seeing Joseph alive..."Now let me die!" - a sense of fulfilment! As later we would hear Simeon exclaiming in the Temple of Jerusalem on seeing the child Jesus, "At last all-powerful Master, let your servant go in peace. For, my eyes have seen the salvation you have prepared for the nations!"

Jesus teaches the same to us his followers, "the one who endures till the end shall be saved" (Mt 10:22). Endurance that Jesus demands is for two reasons - first, because all the troubles that a follower of Christ faces is for such a noble purpose, a cause so great, that anything can be given up for its sake - the Reign of God on earth. Seek first the Reign of God... even if you have to give up your home, your dear ones, your belongings or even your life, for you will be rewarded hundred percent, says the Lord, here on earth and in the eternal life!

Secondly, because the mission entrusted to us is so vast and so immense that these troubles can measure nowhere in comparison to it. He says with a tinge of humour, even if you have to run from one town to the other due to persecutions, "you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes." Such was the determination of the early Christians and the Apostles who led them from the fore - to stick till the end, the very end.

To proclaim through our daily lives the Reign of God and if we have to face hard consequences due to it, to be prepared to endure it all the way - that is the call for me today.

SHALOM - Carrying God's message...

WORD 2day: Thursday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 10, 2025: Genesis 44:18-21, 23b-29, 45:1-5; Matthew 10: 7-15

The theme of yesterday continues still: Being sent, and being sent on a mission! The Lord sends the twelve to carry his message to all the people of Israel, a message of gladness, healing, restoration, peace and joy... in short Shalom!

As Joseph notes in the last verse of the first reading today, "it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you". It was with a mission that Jesus was sent to us and it is with a mission that Jesus sends us today - he says to each of us: "As the father sent me, so I send you"(Jn 20:21).

Each of us is sent! Sent with the promise of Shalom; Shalom which is fullness of blessings that we wish for every brother or sister in the Lord, or for that matter that is what we wish for the whole world as sons and daughters of the Good Lord. We may wonder, why the whole world... is it not only those who are good to me; those who are my well-wishers? But the Lord and the Word today have it otherwise.

We are presented with the example of Joseph who in spite of all that they did to him tells the rest of the sons of Jacob, “I am your brother"! Isn't that the true Christian attitude expected of us? This is possible only if we look at everything from the perspective of God as did Joseph, and of course Jesus! That is Shalom... not just being good to those who are good, but being good and... period! ...irrespective of what others are and what the world around me is.

Let this day be another opportunity for us to carry the Lord's message: Shalom to you!

His band... of brothers and sisters

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 9, 2025: Genesis 41:55-57, 42:5-7a, 17-24a; Matthew 10: 1-7

The Twelve... that is the common element in the two readings today. The 12 tribes and the 12 apostles, was not a mere coincidence, it was more than that. It was a choice to resemble because the Lord was raising a new people of God, the New Israel, a new band of brothers and sisters.

Jesus had a big following, that is, his disciples and from them he sends these 'Apostles'; we are among his disciples already by our Baptism and he wants to send each of us with a specific mission. And each of us sent, exactly to where we are - to our homes, to our neighbourhoods, to our parishes, to our societies... to establish the Reign of God, that is, to assure the needs of all, to stand by the neglected and guarantee them their rights, to stand against the ungodly forces, the unjust systems, the corrupt and inhuman dominations, to empower the people towards a peaceful, serene and human existence.

The naming of the Apostles - with a function given to them: to chase the evil spirits and to heal the sick! Apostles are those who are 'sent' (literally too, 'apostolos' in Greek); sent in the name of God with a specific mission. Joseph of the Old Testament, was an apostle too - sent ahead by God to Egypt in order to provide for God's people at a later time! So, providing for God's people, liberating them from the ungodly forces and giving them a life in all its fullness - those are the duties of an apostle, on behalf of the Lord who sends him or her.

Have I made real efforts to understand my call and my mission as an apostle, the Lord's band of brothers and sisters?

The Struggle of life and death

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 08, 2025: Genesis 32:23-33; Matthew 9:32-38

It's puzzling! Among a few puzzling details of the Old Testament is the likes of today's account from Jacob's life. The Lord (!?!) wrestled with Jacob, says the reading today - and elsewhere we see a similar account of God trying to kill Moses (Ex 4:24). Whatever may be the exegesis, the first disclaimer here is not to take these lines literally. There is a symbolic or an interpretative meaning to these happenings!

One thing we can guess here is that these men had something really to struggle with, a struggle of life and death! But they stood firm on the side of the Lord who had called them and after that struggle of life and death, there is something remarkable, a change that is radical, a happening that defines history forever. For, Jacob after that struggle comes to be called Israel, a name that would define the People of God forever. Incidentally, Moses after that struggle comes to establish a new covenant with the Lord in the sign of circumcision - again something that would define the People of the Covenant, ever since.

Jesus had the same struggle, constantly there were people who followed him as there were the others who tried their best to demonise him (Mt 9:34). The struggle went on right till the cross - the struggle of life and death, but he stood by the Father who had sent him. And after that struggle, he was not anymore merely Jesus, but Jesus the Christ; there came the event that changed the World for ever, it changed the history not only of the world in general, but of you and me in specific! Today we are saved, in his struggle, in his death, in his wounds, in his blood and in his Resurrection!

Can we say from our hearts today that we are ready for struggles that come on our way because of our faith in the Lord?

Encounter that touches

WORD 2day: Monday, 14th week in Ordinary time

July 7, 2025: Genesis 28:10-22; Matthew 9: 18-26

Encounter with God - the Word presents three of them today: Jacob's encounter with God, the ailing lady and the little child encountering Jesus. There are two messages that stand out in the entirety of today's events. 

Firstly, any encounter with God rejuvenates. Jacob was given a new vision of life; the lady with the haemorrhage was given a new life; and the little child was given back her life! One cannot remain the same after having encountered God. 

The second message, which is carried specially by the Gospel account, is about the special encounter through TOUCH - It is interesting to note the two accounts of Luke which seem to point to a fact: whether you touch God or God touches you, the fruits are the same! The lady, sad and suffering touched Jesus, and Jesus touched the little child dead and gone... the effect was the same - a new lease of life. 

Touching God or God touching us, they are the same - for they both are fundamentally an encounter and "Faith is born of an encounter with the living God who calls us and reveals his love" (Lumen Fidei, 4).

May be another important feature can be underlined too - that God met Jacob on a ground and while he slept; Jesus encountered the diseased lady on a road and amidst a jostling crowd; Jesus touched the little girl in a room and while she lay dead! It does not matter where we are, or what we are up to, the living God can encounter us anywhere and anytime, provided we are ready and willing to accept and behold the encounter. 

Behold I stand knocking at the door, says the Lord! May Lord Jesus touch us so that we may be healed by that encounter that touches our entire being!

PEACE - THE GOOD NEWS FOR TODAY

The call to conviction and commitment!

14th Sunday in Ordinary time - July 06, 2025
Isaiah 66: 10-14; Galatians 6: 14-18; Luke 10: 1-12, 17-20

What could be the Good News today to the world, in these days of unrest – anything sweeter than or more reassuring than peace? We observe unrest at all levels - Global, National, Local - at all levels there is a sense of acute unrest, a feeling of insecurity and anxiety.

At the global level news like the Ukraine – Russia conflict, the Israel – Iran conflict, the continuing conflicts in the Middle East such as those in Lebanon and Syria, the never ending and sometimes never considered issues of some African nations such as Somalia, Haiti, Mali and so on, the ongoing tensions in Myanmar… these signs of unrest stand out as a reminder of the loss of hope in humanistic solidarity!

At the national level, the various uprisings, the increasing polarizations, the unchecked politicisation of crimes, the exploitation of political power, the manipulation of the media platforms, these are just the tip of the iceberg of unrests that are aggressively active underground.

At the local level, the recent custodial death and the uproar against it, the varied killings and sexual harassments reported, the constant effort to create political and socio-religious unrest, these are just another set of events laying bare the unrest that rules the minds of persons in today's society.

Just to add to these instances one opinion that is being considered as a wisdom for human flourish these days: there are people who seem to say, 'it is alright to be selfish' and some even saying, ‘it is legitimate to be self-centered’! What a stage we have reached where people not only justify selfishness but propagate it as if it is a virtue, a virtue of the new age, post-truth pragmatic school, that is threatening to make all religious values meaningless!

The Word this Sunday, presents us with what could be the good news for a time that is marked by such unrests: the good news of PEACE.

"Peace" is the term that is common to all the parts of the liturgy of the Word today. The Lord promises a peace of comfort to God's people in the first reading; the psalmist hopes for the peace of the Lord and invites to pray for it; St. Paul wishes and blesses the people of God with peace; and finally Jesus highlights good news as a sharing of peace!

But what kind of a peace is the Word speaking to us about?

A peace that promises... Comfort but not Compromise

Though the Lord time and again promised the people of God peace in their borders and the justice in their homes, the Lord does not compromise on anything. Of course, the Lord has a great and true promise of comfort and well-being. But the comfort that the Lord promises does not consist of any compromise.

We see in the political arena today people who speak flabbergastingly about principles and policies and not too far within the timelines, they begin to speak and promote just the opposite of what they have been speaking a while before! There are people who speak of something but as soon as it touches them personally, do exactly the opposite things. Compromises seem to be a competence of coping with life! It is propagated as a way of gaining a peaceful life!

Instead, the peace that the Lord promises, is far from this - what matters to the Lord, matters truly and matters always, without change or without exceptions. When we are clear of what the Lord expects of us, and when we make a conscious choice for it, we are filled with a peace that comforts us, even amidst difficulties and pressures – no compromise can be justified!

A peace that is born out of... Convictions and not Convenience

The Lord as he sends his messengers ahead of him puts them through a rigorous drill, to learn to put up with inconveniences for the sake of the convictions they would live by. There is this tendency in the culture today to consider what is convenient as true! A pragmatism of sorts, which says what does matter is that which leaves you with peace of mind! But what kind of peace of mind are we speaking of – that of time being, that which keeps you under uncertainty, that which leaves you internally unsettled, that which tends to kill your conscience?  

The conviction of a provident God, the conviction of the ever-loving God, the conviction of the ever-present God... leads to a peace of mind that defeats all consumer crazy claims of the day. Like St. Paul, we would be able to say, I have learnt to live in want and in plenty (cf. Phil 4:12). That’s the key to peace.

A peace that is experienced through... Commitment and never Compulsion

Peace is the good news that the Lord offers, but the bad news is that it is upto me to accept it or not. When Jesus teaches them to wish peace to all… it does not mean an empty wish, a wish that makes no difference! “Shalom” that is wished for is something concrete and something that changes life qualitatively! But this wish can bear its effects only when it is “received”… if there is a person of peace, your peace shall remain or it shall return – that is what Jesus said. The Lord promises peace, but it depends on us to receive it, deserve it, behold it.

However, it is not all that too easy to accept that offer of peace, because it involves quite a bit of discipline and sacrifice! Again, the choice is always mine. Behold I place before you life and death: remember those words that the Lord said in Deuteronomy? It is the Son of that God who speaks to us today and he will never be less demanding. When we decide to be deserving of that peace promised by the Lord, without any external compulsion, we shall make some concrete commitments, be it personally or be it collectively – like commitment to truth, commitment to love, commitment to mercy, commitment to family, commitment to sanctity!

In summary, the good news that the Lord wants to offer us today is peace...a peace that flows from personal integrity and interpersonal solidarity! Are we ready to receive that peace, prepared to behold that peace, eager to activate that peace in our lives: we can do it only through our convictions and commitment!

To be predilected children!

WORD 2day: Saturday, 13th week in Ordinary time

July 5, 2025: Genesis 27: 1-5, 15-29; Matthew 9: 14-17

Cursed be everyone who curses you and blessed be everyone who blesses you! To be God's "predilected" child (if I can use that term) is an incredible honour; and that is what we are. (How beautifully John expresses this in 1Jn 3:1-3!). In the corrupt culture of the day, it is pretty easy to understand this predilection... there is so much of talk about nepotism today, where a VIP's son or daughter, or a person who has the backing of a key personality in the society gets above anybody and everybody else to win favours in the society!

Jacob was the chosen one, he was the one picked to bring forth the 'predilected' people of God. And because he was chosen, everything works in his favour. Unjust! Unfair! Undeserved! - we might say all that and all that is true! God's love that is 'poured' into our hearts (Rom 5:5: not just given but poured into our hearts); it is unjustly given, unfairly lavished, undeservedly heaped on us. What a way to communicate that truth via the story of Jacob - a cheater yes, but who becomes an identity for God on earth - God refers to Godself as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and God of Jacob!

This logic is totally different! This logic will not fit into the usual logic of the give-and-take, the cause-and-effect; this is a totally different logic of God's love, God's prodigal love for each of us. And if we try to fit this into the normal logic we will be frustrated, like pouring new wine in old skin, or old wine in new skin or stitching a new cloth to an old shrunken one! The call is to be drenched in this entirely unconditional love of God, and to understand how privileged I am to receive this love; and the most important of all, to exhibit that awareness in concrete, day to day actions and attitudes.

Mercy, not Sacrifice

WORD 2day: Friday, 13th week in Ordinary time

July 4, 2025: Genesis 23:1-4,19, 24:1-8, 62-67; Matthew 9: 9-13.

Mercy not Sacrifice! Mercy and Sacrifice actually stood for two paradigms that were in confrontation as a result of Jesus' life and teaching. God and one's relationship to God was explained purely in terms of sacrifice, sacrifice which stood for fulfilment of the requirements based on regulations and customs. The challenge is alive even today - that we do not make our spirituality a sacrifice-based spirituality. Fulfilment of the precepts, keeping the commandments, making vows and carrying out the same, offering suffrages and being faithful to our prayers to be 'said' or 'done'.

Mercy, instead is fundamentally a relationship. I remember our Scripture professor explaining the meaning of the hebrew word for mercy - rahamim (or rachamim) which comes from the root, rehem (or rechem) which means "womb". Biblically, as Jesus uses, mercy thus refers to a compassion one feels to a child in the womb or a bond very intimate that arouses a warm feeling towards the other!

Far from, doing something to help the other or giving something to someone in need, Mercy is to feel one with the other, specially with someone who is really in need. That is why the statement of Jesus that follows, I have come not to call the righteous but the sinners - a feeling one with the needy!

When we really feel one with somone in trouble, or difficulty, or temptation, or a struggle, much before branding that person a 'sinner' or a 'weakling' or a 'traitor' or an 'infidel', we would strive to stay close to him or her, find out what actually is going on and share moments of solidarity that would walk that person right out of that situation. That is what Jesus did and that is what he expects of you and me: mercy, and not sacrifice!

Faith is to be Communicated!

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

July 3, 2025: Celebrating St. Thomas, the Apostle

Ephesians 2:19-24; John 20: 24-29

The first reading celebrates the unity we have as a community of faith, with the Apostles. The Apostles are the foundations of our faith says the reading and the liturgy proclaims the same truth too! Celebrating St. Thomas today, the diverse legends not withstanding, we thank God for this great Apostle, known not only for his doubt but also for his determination to go with Jesus and die with him (John 11:16)! 

Thomas is called the Apostle of India, and there are great legends regarding how faith was brought to India by the Apostle already in the first century after Christ. Not entering to the history of the events, let us remain with the event itself...

"Bringing Faith", "Passing on Faith", "Transmitting or Communicating Faith" - these terms have always interested me, personally. Faith is a gift from God, a grace, an inspired response given by a person to the Self-revealing God! If so, can faith be 'brought', 'passed on' or 'transmitted or communicated'? The question does not in anyway negate the process that is referred to here with gratitude and recognition of history; instead it offers an opportunity to bring forth a nuance that dazzles within it.

Transmitting faith or Communicating faith, means primarily testimony of one's faith, that inspires faith in others! The testimony of one's personal response to God, that inspires the others to respond likewise! The Apostles' way of transmitting faith was that, they responded to the God who revealed God's self in Christ Jesus, and in that response they challenged and invited all who were around to respond to the same Lord!

The history narrated about St. Thomas and his evangelising activity in the southern part of India, is basically a testimony lived and held out as a challenge. The Challenge is not merely to accept the testimony, but to become a testimony ourselves and continue being the salt and the light of the earth, in whichever corner we find ourselves!

May St. Thomas inspire us and intercede for us!