We, and the Holy Spirit...

WORD 2day: Thursday, 2nd week in Easter time

April 16, 2026: Acts 5: 27-33; John 3: 31-36

The presence and coming of the Spirit and witnessing to the Lord and his resurrection, are very closely knit and that is what the Word presents to our reflection today. If we have to witness to the salvation that we have experienced in the Lord - firstly, it is possible only with the Spirit: for no one can proclaim that Jesus is Lord except through the Spirit. Secondly, it is the Spirit that makes the witness efficacious.

When we submit to the Lord, the Father fills us with the Spirit, says Jesus today in the Gospel today... and that is what is needed utmost in our lives. It is happily surprising to see the way the Apostles looked at, understood and related with the Spirit... in the Word today we have an interesting and inspiring episode.

The Apostles declare, 'We and the Holy Spirit are witnesses to these things!' It was not so easy for them to witness to the Lord until a particular point of time in their lives, when everything changed. There was something within them, with them and around them, that made them extraordinarily strong, fearless and passionate about the Lord. It was so clear for them that it was the Spirit. 

Indeed, for them the Spirit was someone who lived with them, within them - just like anyone of them. That is why they spoke of the Spirit as one who lived with them, to be taken count of: we and the Holy Spirit. Today, our Christian witness would go a long way in bringing the Lord to the people and bringing the people to the Lord, if the Spirit becomes our constant life companion, as someOne who lives with us!

Conformity, Conflict, Convenience or Conviction?

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 2nd week in Easter time

April 15, 2026: Acts 5:17-26; John 3:16-21

For everyone who does wicked things hates the light; whoever lives the truth comes to the light! Light is given as an imagery of openness, transparency, outspokenness, integrity, conviction and courage. Darkness is hiding, double play, people-pleasing, hypocrisy, convenience and comfort seeking.

The world contains four categories of people in relation to right things.

The first category are those who do the right - they are people of Light, courageous and convinced. The second category are those who assist those who do the right - they are people for the the Light, convinced and seeking the truth! 

The third type are those who hinder anyone doing the right, these are people tending towards darkness and they stand for spreading that darkness. There is the fourth category, and the worst - they are those who are involved in doing the evil directly and acting against any light! We find all the four categories referred to in the readings today.

The primary call we have today is to analyse our choices, our preferences and our priorities and see for ourselves, sincerely, to which of these four categories we would belong. Secondly, there is a lesson for us today, that while we strive to be people of the light and do the right, we can come across persons of all the four categories. What would our reaction be? What would guide our response in situations such as these...

Conformity? or Conflict? or Conviction? or Convenience?

Life in the Spirit!

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 2nd week in Easter time

April 14, 2026: Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7b-15

Unless you are born in the Spirit, you cannot enter the kingdom of God... but how do you notice that one is born in the Spirit? It is only through the life that is lived. There can be no space between belief and life... we are expected to live what we believe! What we believe has to be translated into our lives - that is the essence of a life that is Christ-like, the only formula for life in the Spirit.

What do you call those who claim to be people-of-the-Spirit but have their selfish interests, hidden agenda and connived plots? How about those who consider themselves 'very religious and pious' who panic at the earliest pressures, lose heart at the easiest of burdens and give up at the first of trying situations? How do you understand some one who is deemed by the society as an atheist or an agnostic, but is ready to even give his or her life for the wellbeing of the other and for the common good? Isn't there a paradox involved here? That paradox is the secret... the Spirit is like the wind that you know not where it comes from and where it goes... but you feel it, your experience it, you sense it!

Life in the Spirit has to be verified on a daily basis. As Jesus said, a tree is known by its fruits; so the signs of our life in the Spirit has to be seen in our day to day choice for love, our capacity for sharing, our willingness to give up for the sake of the Lord, our readiness to think of the other before ourselves and our sense of oneness in the Risen Lord!

Let us examine our daily choices: do they reflect a life in the Spirit? Or are we living a life born from below? Let us be born from above, let us be born of the Spirit! Let us remember, we are called unceasingly to grow in our life in the Spirit.

Let the earth be shaken up

WORD 2day: Monday, 2nd week in Easter time

April 13, 2026: Acts 4:23-31; John 3:1-8

With Christ having risen from the dead and the disciples having realised its effects, history opens to the next phase! The people of God who were made into Easter people, now get ready to put on another identity as the people of the Spirit... "a Spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline" (2 Tim 1:7). 

It is like asking the believers to grow up and take charge, not to live in the shadow of fear and timidity but to speak up with courage the Good news of the Lord. It is like we are challenged today with all the crises that surrounds us: how are you going to live up to your faith amidst all these? The situations of widespread inhumanities and violence - are they going to dominate you and make you a totally defeated person or are you waiting to proclaim joy, optimism and renewal? 

If we have to proclaim new life, that needs a transformation - a real, total, concrete personal transformation leading to a transformation as a believing community. The courage and the conviction of faith of a true believer will shake the earth, describes the readings today. People have to look at us and wonder, how do they manage it: optimism in the face of suffering, hope in the face of anxiety, love in the face of all the turmoil that could come their way!

Let the earth be shaken up today, because of our convictions. Let the humanity which seems to be on a down-slide with regard to its spirit, and more regard to its values and morals, be shaken up because of our Spirit-filled lives. Let us not be overcome by evil; but let us overcome evil with Good (cf. Rom 12:21).

To be recognised as his companions

SATURDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 11, 2026: Acts 4:13-21; Mark 16:19-15

"They recognised them as companions of Jesus", says a verse (13) in the first reading today. From the things that happened around them, from the words that the disciples were proclaiming and from the life that they were living, 'they recognised them as companions of Jesus.'

Mark summarises the week after Easter in the passage that we read today in the Gospel. Again, the crux is to speak of, to announce, to proclaim Christ, whom they have experienced. Mary of Magdala 'went and told his companions'; the two of them 'returned and told'... Finally the Lord gives us the command: Go and Proclaim!

The two fold call that we have today is...

First, to identify ourselves as companions of Jesus, to know that we are walking everyday with the Lord, that we are not alone on our life's journey and that all that happens in our daily experience has a tremendous impact on ourselves and others; that we need to be attentive to every little thing that is happening and see what the One who is with us wishes to communicate to us in and through them.

Secondly, the call is to 'proclaim'...to begin with, through our mindsets, attitudes and lifestyle and then explicitly through our words and speech. Look at the statement of the apostles at the Sanhedrin, "it is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard!" It was so strong in them that they could not but talk about it - if we do not speak of God, or manifest our attachement to God, could it be that we have really had no strong experience with God? It is an important element to think about.

Here is the point: have we seen and heard, that is experienced Jesus personally? How compelling a need is it for me to speak of Jesus to others? Are we really filled with the zeal to stand for Christ and speak of Christ today? Only if we feel that strong bond with the person of Christ, will the world ever recognise us as his companions, his friends, his associates, his disciples, his ambassadors.

In whose name?

FRIDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 10, 2026: Acts 4:1-12; Luke 21:1-14

In whose name?...that is the crucial question today in the readings. The question was alive and agitating in Jesus' times, as every one kept asking him in whose name was he doing all that he was doing! The question lingers on even today, as each of us live our Christian call - in whose name do we do all that we do!

The first reading while notifying us of how the apostles were posed with that question, explains to us how the rejected stone turns into the corner stone, a name which they wanted to wipe off from the history of humankind was rewriting history. There is a twofold lesson given to us here:

One, to grow to be cornerstones and the other, to recognise our corner stone, here and now!

We are called to imitate the life of the Corner Stone, becoming ourselves corner stones to the Reign that the Lord wishes to establish within us and through us. Just as Jesus lived to do the will of the one who sent him, we are called to discover the unique plan that God has for us and live it to the full. Just as Jesus was who he was and did what he did, all in the name of his Father - so are we called to do everything in Jesus' name, that we become, grow to be the corner stones that humankind needs today to stay firm.

Secondly, we need to readily recognise the corner stone of our lives, the Risen Lord Jesus! That feeling, "it is the Lord" and the readiness to jump into the waters of daily life to encounter the Risen Lord standing on the shore, are but just two of the many compelling examples that the apostles and their early communities give us. How prepared are we to recognise our corner stone and accept Him to be truly our firm foundation: it is the Lord! How ready are we to jump into the chores and anxieties of our daily life, certain that the Lord awaits us on the other bank!

When we live our life "in His name" on a daily basis... we not only recognise the corner stone of our life but also train ourselves to be corner stones that create communities of joy and hope, wherever we are and in whichever situation we are!

A Roadmap to being witnesses

THURSDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 09, 2026: Acts 3:11-26; Luke 24:35-48

You are witnesses of these things... says the Gospel today. We are witnesses of the great works that the Lord has done in and through us! We are going through some tough times looking at the war helplessly and fearing that it would escalate to feared heights or even more! But should we be giving into despair and fear? As true sons and daughters of God and the disciples of the Risen Lord, we are called to witness to something different! And the readings today give us three steps towards being such witnesses. It would do us good to reflect on these steps.

To See - The first reading reports the discourse of the apostles to the Jews gathered in Jerusalem after the cure of the crippled man. This is the first step: to see our history through the eyes of faith. They were able to interpret things from the past, the things of history from a new light - the light of faith. How prepared and capable are we to see things and interpret them the true light of faith?

To be Challenged - The second step is to be challenged by understanding history from the perspective of faith. It does not begin actually with interpreting for others, but primarily from within oneself - sincerely being critical with oneself. The apostles who deserted Jesus, hid themselves away and looked to escape into their past, were challenged by the Risen Lord as we see in the Gospel. And they accepted the challenge and managed to understand, relearn everything that happened, from the perspective of faith that Jesus opened up to them.

To Challenge - The call, thirdly, is to challenge the others towards a commitment of faith! What Peter does today is not to accuse the Jews of anything, but challenging them towards a personal experience of the Risen Christ. He was mindful of the weak person that he was, the act of cowardice that he fell in to in moments of crisis - but he has risen from those moments and now he is able challenge his own brothers and sisters. We need to become aware of our moments of weaknesses, grow out of them and never cease to challenge each other to perfection - only through that we can become true witnesses.

To see, to be challenged and to challenge - that is the road map to be true witnesses!

Recognising the Risen Lord

WEDNESDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 08, 2026: Acts 3:1-10; Luke 24: 13-35

To know that Christ is with you, is an incomparable potential. I shall be with you till the end of times, is the promise that Christ gives and keeps! Regardless of whether we realise it or not, acknowledge it or not, recognise it or not, the presence goes with us. In moments uncertain such as what the world is going through right now, with the war escalations and resultant economic crises, do we really make the effort to realise the divine presence with us!

We see in the Gospel, the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, who did not recognise Jesus nor acknowledge his presence. We have in the first reading Peter and John, who were mindful of the fact they had nothing much to offer on their own. The two disciples walk all the way back to Jerusalem and the two apostles make extraordinary things happen, the moment they become aware of the presence of the Risen Christ with them.

It is so clear what really made them realise that presence... the breaking of the bread. Jesus' life-style was that of self-giving, not that of self-preservation! When things get more threatening, Christ would inspire us to get more loving, more generous, more seeking to build peace. That is the presence that the Risen Lord wants us to experience and live by, draw strength from and share with others.

When I know and am conscious of the presence of the Lord with me, I become capable of living life with an incredible serenity! The Lord's presence with me is a gift; recognising it on a daily basis, is my responsibility!

"My Father and your Father!"...

TUESDAY of the EASTER OCTAVE

April 07, 2026: Acts 2: 36-41; John 20:11-18

"My father and your father" - what a beautiful expression to hear from Jesus today. The first reading presents repentance and baptism as a way of being accepted as children of the God who raised Jesus from the dead: Jesus' father and our father. Our faith is all about relationship: the relationship of a covenant that has been lived from eternity, between God and God's own.

There is a problem that sometimes faith can be reduced to what has to be carried out as an obligation, as demands, without really understand why something is done and what is being accomplished is the process of doing it. It is a sad situation to behold that rules and regulations take the dominant place in these considerations - and not the persons who are involved - me and my God! Me and my God - that is where the relationship begins!

There is another danger that a true Easter faith warns us of. At times our vision of God can be blurred, when we are too focused on our own whims and fancies and are stuck to our own selfish desires and decisions. Openness to hear what the Lord wants to communicate, is fundamentally the openness to a strong relationship with God, which presumes a cordial, responsible and loving relationship with each other, with one's brothers and sisters in Christ.

Fundamentally, this is what the Risen Lord and the Easter faith wishes to communicate to us: fix your gaze on your relationship with God, the person of God, the person who loves you without ceasing, the person who has given up everything for your sake - even oneself in the Son who was sacrificed. Jesus calls that person: My father and your father!

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.