Get back to Galilee...

MONDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 06, 2026: Acts 2:14, 22-33; Matthew 28:8-15

Easter people are people filled with hope, a hope that never fails. Things had gone bizarre for the disciples - the three years spent with Jesus seemed waste of time, Jesus seemed to have just disappeared into a thin air, their life seemed in danger, they looked like they were fugitives from the law, they were all restricted to their limited spaces - afraid of something, but they knew not what!

Added to the confusion, some where claiming Jesus is risen, at least his body is not in the tomb where it was placed and no one has reportedly taken it away from there... what to make of it no one knows. And there were conspiracy theories spun around it, as it is done today with any possibility that presents itself - be it in the local politics or in the international affairs! 

In spite of the plotting against the resurrection of Christ, Jesus never gives up! Just like he was, when he was moving around with them, Jesus keeps to his singular focus: doing the will of the Father! Until the time that people in their desperation give up all these attempts of thwarting the Truth and believers were showered upon with grace after grace.

On the Monday of the Easter Octave, we hear the plan of those who wanted Jesus dead and gone,  now were planning to deter further any spread of the Good news of Christ. What does Jesus tell them: Get back to Galilee... that phrase means... you have seen the Lord, you have seen what the Lord did in your life and in the lives of those around, you have seen the glories and the blessings that the Lord brought wherever he went - GET BACK TO IT... go be a blessing to the other, go be a beacon of hope to the world, go shine as light to those in the darkness of doubt and fear! Get back to Galilee, get back to your great time with the Lord and you will regain the strength to start your life again.

BEING EASTER PEOPLE TODAY

Know, Make and Live the Difference!

EASTER SUNDAY: April 05, 2026

 

He is risen and he goes before you to Galilee, announces the angel today! Yes, the Lord is Risen! Alleluia! And he has resumed his life… we have to keep pace with him today! He goes before us to Galilee… when even the local Ordinary was refused entry into the Holy Sepulchre, the Lord precedes, and the Lord knows what lies ahead. No dominations, no powers, not even death can stop the Lord… for the Lord is Risen. Realising that and being convinced of that, is being Easter People.

 

The Risen Lord invites us to be Easter People Today. Amidst the cry of uncertainty and distress that arises from a world that is stricken with violence and warfare today, we need to cry out with hope and joy, reinvigorating the world, rejuvenating humanity. We are called to be Easter people today, here and now!

 

The world is in need of Easter People; if I am not an easter person there is one hope less in the world. The Resurrection of the Lord invites us to a life of difference, to know the difference, to make a difference and to feel the difference! We cannot conform to the world, the Lord calls us to a transformation of the mind and spirit (cf. Rom12:2), that we may challenge the world - that is what we have been preparing for all this lent – Listening and Fasting! This non-conformity to the world is what marked the Early Christians from the rest of the people… the world recognized they were a different people, that they were easter people!

 

Knowing the Difference: from the unreal to the Real

The world today is filled with deceptions – the AI generated news, pictures and videos that flood the media making it so hard to distinguish the real from the unreal, is just a representation of the myriad of other deceptions in the air about human life and experience today. However, a closer look at the situation will let us know the real face of the unreal. There are deceptive forces in the world today that make you slog with a promise of a great future till you suddenly realize, that future never comes… you slog, slog and slog only to finally leave everything behind with a heavy heart and a resentment of the lost past. From these unreal scenarios and promises, the Risen Lord invites us to the Real: to know the difference, the difference between the fleeting promises and the promises that stand forever! 

 

Being Easter People Today demands that we know this difference, the difference that the Lord wants to make in our lives. He has risen precisely for that… that he may enable us to know the difference! Shifting our focus from the unreal promises of an unreal happiness, the Lord invites us to focus on the Real promises of joy: that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete (Jn14:11). It is in living our life in union with the Lord, experiencing the love of the Lord and sharing it generously with our brothers and sisters, that our joy can be real, lasting and permanent. Don’t you think as Easter people we have something concrete to offer to the world in this regard?

 

Making the Difference: from the darkness to the Light

The world today reports darkness and darkness everywhere – war, bombardments, stand-offs, political instabilities, economic escalations, conspiracies, dominations, superpowers, exploitations, killings, direct and indirect terrorism, crisis, abuse, deception, suicides and such news of desperation fill the dailies and the news-tubes on a daily basis. There is darkness everywhere because people have gone a long way with the unreal images and misleading guideposts. But the Risen Lord fills us with hope that there is nothing called the point of no return, if we are in the Lord! There is always hope, if we as Easter People accept our call to move from the darkness to the Light. The same Lord who said, “I am the Light of the world” (Jn 8:12) looks at each of us and says, “You are the light of the world” (Mt 5:14). Arise! Shine! For your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you, says Prophet Isaiah (Is 60:1). 

 

No, darkness cannot overcome the Easter People… we are people of the light and this light we have to let it shine, we have to let the world see, let the world be guided by it. Often times, the sad fact is that we do not realize who we are and continue to lament on the darkness that surrounds. Not only lament, but spread it ourselves too… there is unrest, there is crisis, there is hatred, there is desperation… yes, they are there, but what have I done to make a difference! Let us look at Pope Leo XIV today – the lonesome voice that keeps pointing out the fallacy of the human arrogance. However bleak it could be judged, it is indeed a light that makes a difference. Maybe, I need to begin from the question - what have I changed within myself? What have I contributed to my immediate setting (my family, my community, my parish)… what have I changed around me to make a difference? Without really having done anything to make a difference can I claim myself to be an Easter Person? What meaning would it have to celebrate Easter then?

 

Living the Difference: from death to New life

The world today is rushing into a culture of death, warned us Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, long long ago. Hopeless pessimism, inhuman utilitarianism, exaggerated materialism, heartless skepticism and limitless consumerism… these are signs of the reign of the Evil one, that of the kingdom of death!  The Risen Lord invites us from this reign of death to the glory of eternal life. An unfailing optimism, peace-promoting mentality, love filled relationships, balanced understanding of development and advancement, use of things and love for people…these are the signs of eternity, because they will never end. We are called to be people who feel the presence of these signs within us and witness to these in front of the world today. 

 

An Easter person has to be filled with life and has to fill those around him or her with life. Standing against the culture of death we are called to witness for optimism rather than desperation, to opt for love rather than exploitation, to liberate ourselves from slaveries and challenge the world to a liberated life style. The Risen Lord fills us with this life… a life that is filled with Joy, a life that is lit with Truth and a life that is defined by hope. Let us take it to the rest of the World as the disciples took the risen Lord to the rest of the world.

Being Easter people today demands that we know the difference between the unreal and the Real, that we make a difference and lead the world from darkness to Light, and that we live the difference that the Risen Lord offers us: the promise, the gift and the hope of Eternal Life.

 

WISH YOU A VERY HAPPY EASTER...

BE FILLED WITH THE HOPE OF THE RISEN LORD!

BE EASTER PEOPLE WHEREVER YOU ARE!!!

 

The Strength of Loving Silence

Holy Week 2026: SILENT SATURDAY

April 4: In Sacred Silence…

What happened after Jesus died and before he rose? What was he going through?

He was silent!

He was waiting!

He just remained!

This is the call of this unique day of the year in the Church: this is the only day in the whole of the Church when no Eucharist is Celebrated...the altar remains stripped, the tabernacle remains empty and the Church remains silent: waiting in patience to see what is going to happen next.

The Lord rests in the tomb this day... everything is silent! There will be a dawn very soon... but until then we are invited to Remain Silent, Remain Patient and Remain Waiting.

It is not so easy to remain silent in a moment of crisis. Multitudes of questions, thousands of thoughts will pass by our mind breaking our silence. One could see that - in these moments of quarantine - how many issues, how many conspiracy theories, how may fake messages doing their rounds and how many stress creating discussions! Only the one who has an unwavering faith in the Lord can remain silent at these moments.

We have grown slaves to instant results. We seem to have have lost the natural patience of our forefathers, in the name of development and technology. Only the one who hopes in SomeOne greater than oneself, can remain patient and see things happen.

Compare waiting for a public utility, may be a transport or one's turn in a crowded office, with waiting for one's beloved! While former seems irritating, the latter looks exciting. The difference is the love that is involved: Only the one who loves the Lord immensely, remains waiting, for the Lord to act on his or her behalf.

Today is the day to remain...to remain silent, to remain patient, to remain waiting, because the Lord is getting something beautiful ready for us! The Lord waits...and let us wait on the Lord too!

Love dies for you and me!

Holy Week 2026: GOOD FRIDAY 

April 3: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12; Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42

We are at the peak, the peak of our Christian faith, the peak of the eternal salvation plan of God, the peak of Calvary which has transformed human history forever and from eternity. From this peak today speaks to us the love of God - telling each of us: I died for you! I emptied myself for you! I gave totally of myself for you!

The liturgy today invites us to dwell on three C's...

The first is the Cross - the centre not merely of the liturgy of today, but of our entire Christian life, theology and spirituality. The Cross is the true symbol of love, not the heart with a piercing arrow! The cross is the symbol of that total self-giving, total to the extent of the last drop of blood and water. Suffering accepted for the other, suffering taken up as a mode of self-giving, suffering endured as an act of love, is salvific! This is both an inspiration and an invitation that we need to hear every time we look at the Cross. Father forgive them, for they know not what they do!

The second is the Crown - When sufferings come our way, when trials visit us in our days, when burdens weigh down our shoulders, when disease and death threaten us from the dark corners, we need to remember the crown promised by the Lord! Just imagine an athlete running a race, if right at the beginning he is given a crown and said, all that you need to do is reach the finish line... the crown is certainly yours, it is guaranteed! That is actually a real Christian vision of life... yes, we have to run, yes, we have to toil, yes, we have to strive... but the crown is ours, already! Any crisis, any suffering, any temptation, any trial, is there just to be endured and traversed; let us remember, we are all running with the crown already on our head...if only we are ready to live through them all in faith! Nothing can overtake us, nothing can overcome us, for there is someone who has overcome everything - sins, world, even death and his crown we have on our heads, the crown of salvation. Into your hands Lord, I commend my Spirit. 

The third is Calvary - the hill of grace, the mountain of salvation! The first time I visited Calvary, I was disappointed. When the programme of the visit said, Calvary, my mind had imagined an impressive hilltop up there - but all I beheld was a dozen steps to climb with the place of crucifixion marked. We had already made the climb walking the gradually rising slope leading to the Church of Crucifixion. But that is precisely the message: Calvary is not that one hill perched high right in the middle of our life - it is one whole life, it is a lifelong experience, something that we gradually climb and come to grips with every day. Amidst the daily chores, amidst the experiences of failures and faults, amidst the trying relationships and discouraging life situations, we behold our Calvary - the hill of grace, the mountain of salvation. All that we need to do is, be ready is go through these mindful of the fact that there is God's Holy Will which is guiding us and be ready to surrender ourselves totally. Thus, we can finally say, 'it is accomplished!'

Let us heed to the call of the Cross and understand the role of suffering in our personal salvation and the salvation of the humankind. Let us behold the crown of salvation and live the mystery of Calvary every day in our lives, firm in faith, filled with hope and fired by love

Love serves in every way!

Holy Week 2026: MAUNDY THURSDAY

April 2: Exodus 12:1-8,11-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; John 13:1-15

Love is basically a willingness to submit oneself to a way of life that wishes the good of the other. Knowing the needs of the other, without having heard from him or her is a sign of love. Committing myself for the good of the other, without ever thinking of what I would gain, is an attitude of love. Being ready to lay down one's life for the good of the other is the ultimate act of love. There can be no love better that one being ready to lay down one's life for the other and it all begins in being at the service of, the other and the good of the other. The world has grown so callous to 'the other', all that matters to one is oneself and one's own - where is love here? and where would service be here at all!

Maundy Thursday is the day on which the Lord gave us the famous mandate, the mandate of love: love one another as I have loved you; love in action - wash each other's feet; love to be identified as belonging to Christ. The day is filled with so many things to thank the Lord for. 

First of all, the Eucharist instituted today is a loving service in action, by the Son of God who gives himself up for our good. Love serves by making itself the food for the other, by destroying oneself that the other may live!

Priesthood that is initiated today is a service, a ministry of bringing the Lord to the people. It is an offering of love that persons chosen and called make for the Lord, to the Lord's people, for the Lord's mission towards the Reign of God. 

Then comes the commandment of love - the spoken words of Jesus, that would be lived out in his action of serving the disciples, washing their feet and waiting on them at the table! A love in concrete action. 

In every one of these, that which stands out is love. Love is our identity, love is our mission and love is our meaning. Love is seen in service, true and selfless service

Let us learn to love until it hurts

Holy Week 2026: THE SPY WEDNESDAY 

April 1: Isaiah 50: 4-9a; Matthew 26: 14-25

Starting Monday, we have been hearing the three songs of the suffering servant from the book of Isaiah... a set of songs that expresses the sufferings that a servant of God or the prophet of God undergoes. It becomes a prefigurement of Christ's suffering. A servant of God, even the Son of God, finds all around him, those who plot his downfall, those who want him to fail, to be destroyed: how prepared are we to face such people and still go about with dedication and commitment to the Will of God. 

Do you think it will be possible to go on loving even at these moments? It is simple to remain with the Lord and say 'I love', when things go on well; but when things do not go the way we want them? That is what led to the fall of Judas! But look at Jesus... it hurt him to have loved these people - the one who betrayed, the one who denied and those who abandoned him... but he never ceased loving them, much less react. Yes, true love hurts! But it goes on and on. 

"From that time on, he looked for an opportunity to hand him over" ...says the Gospel today. The plot thickens and the tempo builds towards the climax. There are eyes that keep watching out for the right moment to lay hands on Jesus...and the most unfortunate fact is that it is led by one from the innermost circle of Jesus' collaborators! Yes, love hurts, but the one who truly loves, never retorts!

It is a divine quality to love, even when that love is not reciprocated, much more when it is repaid with indifference or hurt! But if we believe we take after the Lord, that we are created in God's image, that we are brothers and sisters of Christ, then as Mother Teresa would often say, we have to love until it hurts.

Let us learn never to give up on God!

Holy Week 2026: THE PREACHING TUESDAY

March 31: Isaiah 49:1-6; John 13:21-33, 36-38

"Though I thought I toiled in vain... yet my reward is with the Lord", this feeling expressed by Isaiah in the first reading fits perfectly the state of Jesus' mind, as he bids a bitter farewell to his disciples today. Arriving at the fag end of his ministry, Jesus knows what is in store and prepares himself for it. Judas' betrayal, Peter's denial... he foresees everything and forewarns them too, but everything in vain. However, he knows that in everything God works for the good of those who love God (cf. Rom 8:28). 

Just after the cleansing of the Temple and the controversy created by it, Jesus is found preaching at the Temple, for the last time. The Jews, the high priests and the scribes, have always challenged Jesus regarding the authority with which he is doing all that he does! Jesus does not care to prove his authority, not because he could not but because it was so obvious. His words were accompanied with signs, his teachings were authenticated with his living and no one needed any proof for Jesus' authority. The problem was that they were not ready see the obvious truth. But Jesus' love does not let him lose heart...he goes on. That is true love - it never gives up. 

These days, experiencing a totally strange holy week, a holy week in quarantine, there could be anxieties, helplessness, doubts and fears in the minds of all...but let us remember, Love never gives up. God has never given up on us and we shall never give up on God, if we truly love God. Let us learn to see and believe the presence of God amidst whatever the situation be.

Believing involves repentance! Believing comes from a conviction, from an experience. Repent and believe - that was the invitation with which the Lent began! 

How far have we progressed in it?

Let us cleanse our love for each other...

Holy Week 2026: THE CLEANSING MONDAY

March 30: Isaiah 42:1-7; John 12:1-11

The flame burns more vigorously as it is about to quench itself, they say. The perfume spreads itself more vivaciously when it is about to vanquish itself. The love for his father and the passion for his mission, burns ever brighter as Jesus nears the cross. Jesus is about to enter into his last few days, and more and more begin to believe in him and come to him. Even while these happen, the stubborn heart of Judas does not give way, the plotting spirit of the high priest and scribes does not change!

This day within the Holy week is called the Cleansing Monday, as we see Jesus after entering Jerusalem, paying a visit to the Temple and cleansing it! Don't make my Father's house a den of robbers, he cries. As the scripture says, the zeal for his house consumes him, the love for his father consumes him, the love for his mission consumes him.

All the good that Jesus did, all the signs that marked his mission did not manage to convert that one section of the people, because they had their hearts hardened and their eyes blinded. May we hear today the yearning cry of the Lord to true conversion. May we make up our mind to truly break away from some act or tendency that we habitually fall in. As Jesus cleanses that temple, the invitation to us is clear: our body is the temple of the Lord, is it maintained as the Lord's dwelling place or has it turned into a robber's den. Isn't it time for us to take note of it and cleanse it for all its impurities. Our love for the Father, for the Lord and for being the dwelling of the Spirit, should consume ourselves!

True love consumes oneself, true wish for the wellbeing of the other shall lead a person to consume oneself. That is what is happening with the Lord - and are we ready continuously cleanse our love for each other, for the whole humanity, for God, so true as we are prepared even to be consumed ourselves!

FIND YOURSELF IN THE CROWD

Beginning a journey with the Lord

March 29, 2026 - Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday marks the beginning of a journey with the Lord, that is why the procession at the beginning of this celebration takes on an added meaning…to symbolise the journey we take on: along with a crowd of people, a crowd of people with so many varied mindsets...

Let us just have a look…

    - there were those, who were wondering whether he would come or not, for the festival;

    - there were those, who were there to find some fault with him, in order that they may arrest him;

    - there were those, who were there just curious to see some spectacle or signs;

    - there were those, who were there to see if what they heard about this man called Jesus was really true;

    - there were those, who did not have even a clue as to what was happening, they were carried away by the crowd;

    - there were those, who were there enjoying the fun of the crowd, in the spirit of a carnival, and having a great time of festivity;

    - there were those, who had made it from far places, merely to see if they can catch a glimpse of Jesus whom they heard so much of;

    - there were those, who had followed him right from Galilee, who were unable to leave his side because of the personality that he was;

    - there were those, who were so involved in his teachings, who found his words too precious to be missed;

    - there were those, who were an integral part of his life, they shared his everyday and shared his every dream;

    - there were those, who were there who were concerned about him, aware of the impending danger, but still wanted to be there for him...

How many different mindsets!

Now... just pause a while… and let us take a look within us… where do I find myself in this crowd today?

What is my mindset today... curiosity, boredom? monotony? Blind excitement? Let us remember that the week-long journey with the Lord is going to be a trying journey, a journey of sorts, a journey which is going to be a real challenge!

Among the crowd that we find around Jesus today, where do I find myself?

Life-giving death: new life, life to the full, eternal life!

Conversion – from death to life

THE WORD IN LENT 2026 – SATURDAY FIFTH WEEK

March 28 – Ezekiel 37:21-28; John 11: 45-56

Our Lenten journey of Listening and Fasting, as a time of Conversion, has practically reached its end… because from tomorrow we begin the Holy Week with the Passion Sunday. In fact, it is towards this week we have been preparing ourselves these past five weeks… the immediate objective of which is to contemplate the passion and death of the Lord. We would begin that with the solemn celebration of tomorrow…the palm Sunday, which is rightly also called the Passion Sunday.

What was the purpose of the passion…what did it achieve? Let us begin with that question: the first reading today answers that without hesitation – to bring everyone home and make them One People, the people of God. The discourse of the Shepherd returns, with Christ who offers himself to be that Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep, that no one of them shall be lost.

God never forgets the covenant made – I shall be your God and you shall be my people! And hence, even when we the people distanced ourselves from God and turned our backs, God’s response was to send God’s only Son, who comes as the Shepherd who gathers the flock into one. How does he do it – through his death. That is why that was a life-giving death.

A death that gives new life, new life as people of God, the redeemed of God, the flock gathered unto God; a death that brings life to the full, a life in abundance, in spite of the shortcomings and fragilities that we face; a death that takes us to eternal life, a life in communion with the Lord of life who is eternal, thus making us eternal too!

We see this prophesied today in the Word – not by Ezekiel whom we listen to in the first reading, but the high priest who despised Jesus. It is he who declares that Jesus would be the “one man to die for the people”; that Jesus was to die to gather together in unity the scattered children of God. It is this death that has given us life – new life, fullness of life and eternal life… life-giving death.

We enter into a holy season tomorrow… as we walk towards that death, the death on the Cross, that life-giving death, that leads to eternal life; the death that makes us people of God, people of life!