RETURN TO THE REIGN

1st December, 2013: New Liturgical Year - 1st Sunday of Advent

Let us begin with wishing each other a blessed New liturgical year! And right at the outset the Lord invites us today, to RETURN to the REIGN of God. The Church is the sign and the sacrament of the Reign of God. We are the Church, the people of God! Therefore we are expected to be the signs, the bearers, the heralds of the Reign of God today to the world. And how can this happen if we are not people of the Reign, if we are not mindful of ushering in the Reign of God here on earth, or making the Reign felt concretely, if we do not really believe in what Christ said: 'The Reign of God is amidst you!' (Lk 17:21) Hence, the invitation today, to return to the Reign is basically a wake up call, to wake up to the reality, to wake up to our real identity, to wake up to our dignity as the People of the Reign and to live up to that identity on a daily basis.

It is an invitation to CLIMB the mountain of the Lord... yes, to walk in the way of the Lord, to walk in the light of the Lord...as the first reading repeats in different words. It is fundamentally an invitiation to climb, to go up, infact to grow up. We are invited to go up, grow up, above our tendencies of conflict and our feelings of rivalry and jealousy, above our petty considerations of ourselves and self centered strivings for pleasure. It is a call to transcend what is popularly considered to be 'desirable' and reach the thinking worthy of the Reign - where swords can turn into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks; where all manipulation and exploitation will give into genuine love and sincere goodwill for the other.

It is an invitation to CONDUCT ourselves worthy of the Reign. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, invites us St. Paul. And in doing it, let's not wait for an opportune moment... for "now is the acceptable time, now is the time of salvation!" (2 Cor 6:2). Waiting for another moment will be a mistake, a blunder, a foolishness on our part. Let us make the choice, a choice for God, a choice for the light, a choice for the good, a choice to be awake, a choice to be the people of the Reign. Let us not blame the world, the society, the times... the choice is ours, and let us make it now - To accept the invitation of the Lord and "walk in the light of the Lord"(Is 2:5). We will find the joy that the Lord can give, the joy that the Light can shed, the joy that cannot be taken away from us, and in that joy we will find the Reign of God amidst us!

It is an invitation to CELEBRATE the Reign of God amidst us, not waiting to reach the end but celebrating it all the way. Advent is not a preparation towards a celebration, it is a celebration in itself, a celebration of the peace, the prosperity, the security and the salvation that the Lord brings us. The Reign of God becomes a reality when we celebrate our love and joy together as brothers and sisters in the Lord. This is the meaning of the phrase, All the way to heaven is heaven! As we pray in the responsorial psalm, we are walking, walking towards the Reign, but all through the way we are called to celebrate the Reign of God..celebrate the love we share, celebrate the equality we have, celebrate the justice we stand for, celebrate the brotherhood and sisterhood that we work to establish forever - that celebration is returning to the Reign!

As we begin the year, and the wonderful season of Advent, let us pay heed to the invitation from the Lord - to Climb the mountain of the Lord, to Conduct ourselves worthy of the Reign and in that joy, to Celebrate the Reign of God, every day in our relationships in our family, in our communities, in our parish, in our localities and wherever we are. May the joy of the Gospel, the joy of the Reign, fill our hearts all through this new year. 

WORD 2day

30th November, 2013: Remembering St. Andrew, the Apostle.

"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" St.Paul quotes this word from the scripture (from Is 52:7), to insist upon the blessedness of being an apostle of the Lord, being sent to bear forth the word to the others. We celebrate St. Andrew, the apostle today - a person who just left everything and followed the Lord "immediately" when he was called; and according to the Gospel of St. John, he was the first one to announce to someone else, "we have found the Messiah" and he was the one who brought Peter to the Lord (Jn 1:40,41). This commemoration reminds us yet again our call to be proclaimers of the goodnews to the world... each of us, without any exception, ofcourse each in our own way. We will do well here to remember the words of St.Francis of Assisi, 'Preach the Gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.'

WORD 2day

29th November, 2013

The final word will always be the Lord's! Calamities, Persecutions, Demoralisation these are what we see in the case of all those who had to pay with their blood, the price for their faith in Christ. The first reading foretells the same, finishing however with a note of hope on the eternal dominion of the Son of Man. The Gospel reaffirms the hope, from the mouth of the very object of that hope: the Word made flesh. Perseverance is a virtue in imitation of the faithfulness of God. 'Let us never grow tired of doing what is right' (2 Thes 3:13), as the Lord himself who never gets tired of loving us!

WORD 2day

28th November, 2013

From the lions' mouth the Lord delivers Daniel. In the Joy of the Gospel, the exhortation that the Holy Father has just released, he explains, a Christian has to be joyful but that joy will not be experienced in the same way all the time. Today's readings present us with the same message. At times there will be troubles that threaten to overpower us, temptations that tend to drown us, sinful tendencies that vouch to ruin us, concerns that refuse to leave us... but even at the worst of these moments a true Christian will not lose heart, will never give up! Because at the core of his or her heart, there is joy, the joy that Christ gives, a joy that no one or nothing can take away(Jn 16:22)!  That is infact what Jesus tells us today in the Gospel - even if you find yourself at the mouth of a lion, or at the threshold of destruction, or at the brink of death - all that you need to do is - believe in the Lord, trust in the mercy of God and "stand up and hold your heads high, for your liberation is at hand!"

WORD 2day

27th November, 2013

"The writing on the wall" - the familiar phrase in English, has its origin in the first reading today. The meaning is very clear and that is precisely the message of the Word today. It is clear to all of us even as we choose things on a daily basis, to what consequences they will lead us. None of us can claim a total ignorance while most of us do not want to really accept the fact that we do know the consequences of our choices; unfortunately we feign ignorance and desperately look for someone or something to blame it on. In all sincerity we know, what we sow, we reap. Our choices of negative tendencies like manipulation, disrespect, abuse, violence and exploitation cannot but lead to situations of hopelessness, darkness and death - King Belshazzar is sadly made aware of it today by Daniel. But there is yet another writing on the wall that is presented: Jesus says, if you choose to belong to me, if you choose to be called my disciples, if you choose to respond to my call, you will be derided, persecuted and even killed, but do not fear; in your endurance you would have won life, life in all its fullness, life in the very author of life, life everlasting!

THE JOY OF THE GOSPEL

The first Apostolic Exhortation from Pope Francis: EVANGELII GAUDIUM

Pope Francis presents to the Church the reflections on the basis of the Synod held last year on the theme of New Evangelisation. At an immediate glance this exhortation is the key note address of his papacy... as we know by now in his first 258 days (until today)... the oft repeated sentiments are - never losing Hope, total trust in the Mercy of God, never ending Forgiveness of God, going to the Peripheries in search of the last, least and the lost... these are all joyful presentation of the Gospel... the Holy Father emanates the same joy in the exhortation, inspite of taking stock of all the problems and crises that do exist!

The letter beckons our reading, as it comes from the heart of some one who has already won the hearts of such a vast number of persons in the world..specially his children in faith. Let us pay heed to the words of this shepherd and unravel in our lives the secret treasures that are in store for us, in living and proclaiming the Gospel in our daily lives!

Will soon post summaries of the chapters..one by one...

and for now, 

READ THE DOCUMENT HERE: click on the link below.

THE JOY OF THE GOSPEL - Apostolic Exhortation from Pope Francis: EVANGELII GAUDIUM

WORD 2day

26th November, 2013

This week's readings have a bi-dimensional orientation - a preparation towards advent (a new beginning) and at the same time a reflection on the end times. This is a truly Christian disposition: a bi-dimensional approach to life. A reflection on the end times has to be radically open to the new beginnings, lest it becomes a vain curiosity. A focus on the new beginnings, the new earth and new heaven, on the definitive coming of the Reign should have a mature openness towards the end time perspective, lest it remains a simplistic dream of an all-bright future, without any personal commitment to it. Dreams, visions and extra natural phenomenon have no value in themselves, unless they help a better living here and now, and a preparation for a more holistic future. The first reading and the Gospel today remind us of this need - the need to question ourselves on our life style, our criteria and choices in daily life - whether they are really worthy of the Reign, that we are called to announce to the world as disciples of Christ!

WORD 2day

25th November, 2013

The world has a stereotypical standards of what is good and what is better; social standards of what makes one good and what makes one better than the other! The temptation to conform to that social stereotypes is very high and dangerously subtle. Many a times we fall into the trap, though the Word very often warns us, "Do not conformed to this world" (Rom 12:2). Because, "the Lord does not see as the mortals see" (1 Sam 16:7). That is why, the two tiny coins that the widow drops quietly into the treasury seems more valuable to Jesus than the bags and bags of wealth that the others dump there. To be his disciples, "let the same mind be in you, as it was in Christ Jesus" (Phil 2:5) instructs St. Paul. Daniel was special because of this, God's mind was in him, the wisdom of the Lord was in him, that made him shine to the rest of the world. Maybe, I need to ask the Lord today, to give me that wisdom to see things as the Lord does, with the same mind that was in Christ Jesus.

Another date with Pope Francis

24th Nov, 2013:Christ the King Sunday: Closure of the Year of Faith

JESUS CHRIST IS KING...

24th November, 2013: Solemnity of Christ the King

Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever! Jesus Christ is the king - yesterday, today and forever! We celebrate the Kingship of Christ this Sunday - what a wisdom for the Church to invite the faithful to end the year with their King. And next Sunday we begin a new liturgical year. Today, the readings invite us to reflect on the kingship that Christ holds and the way he exercises it! St. Paul summarises the entire feast in just three verses in the second reading - Col 1: 17,18,20.

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together(Col 1:17). The first reading establishes the kingship of Jesus in the line of David - God makes David the king of Israel and promises that his line will never end. Infact, in God's mighty plan, the kingship seems eternal, without beginning or end, for God places David a king, to rule in God's name and for Israel it was always Yahweh, who was the King! Every leadership in Christian community therefore derives from God; it is an invitation, a commitment to act on behalf of God, at the service of God's people! Jesus Christ is King, Jesus Christ has been king from eternity, as the first-born of all creation, to him all glory and majesty!

Through him God is pleased to reconcile all things on earth or heaven (Col 1:20). The verse speaks to us of a future, of the universal harmony in One Lord, One God, the new earth and new heaven where only Love will reign, that is, only God will reign, for God is love (1 Jn 4:8). Jesus Christ is King, Jesus will be forever the king. Everything, everyone is moving towards that union with God, in Christ our Lord. It fills us with a hope, despite all the tribulations we go through here and now. But it is not automatic, it all depends on the choices we make today. If we choose the Lord, we endear the Lord. On the contrary, if we choose the passing glories and fleeting pleasures of the moment, that is what we will have. As St.Paul instructs us elsewhere, if you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit (Gal 6:8).

He is the head of the body, the church (Col 1:18). The Gospel presents us a strange sort of a King. Jesus is the one who rules...who rules from the Cross as his throne, who rules with the thorns as his crown, who rules  not with the sceptre in his hands but with the marks of nail on his hands, who rules not with laws but with love, a love that abounds without any measure whatsoever. Today the ruler has appointed you and me as his ambassadors - the ruler is not understood, so will we be not understood; the ruler is not welcome into the schools and public places and the moral arena in the world today, so will we be not welcome to voice our opinions for truth and for justice. But as his ambassador, what am I doing? What am I ready to do? Yes, Jesus is King, but  I am his ambassador, wherever I am... in my service of love, in my witness of faith, in my joy of hope, in my testimony of humility, in my commitment to truth and in my yearning for justice, I have to prove myself that I am the ambassador of that Eternal King. 

Today we celebrate the Kingship of Christ - yes, Yesterday, Today and Forever, Jesus is King, but I am his ambassador. How worthy am I to the king whom I represent! How faithful and loyal am I to the King who has died for me, and who calls me to do the same! You are the people of God, Royal Priesthood says the Word, yes, that is what we are...we share the kingship with Christ - a kingship that consists in loving service to humanity and loving surrender to the Lord!

Long live my King! And let me live everyday worthy of my King!

WORD 2day

23rd November, 2013

It is easy to glory in a God of the past, recount miracles and remember feats. It is also not difficult to think of a God of the future, dream dreams of prosperity and share stories of great tidings. The real challenge is to believe in the God of the present, the God of the moment, the Lord of my life, the God of the living. The strength of my spiritual self is seen in my ability to relate to God on a daily basis, on a momentary basis. When Jesus today reminds us of the God of the living, and not a God of the dead, he is inviting us to experience God and live with God every day, every moment! We are fond of living on a spiritual nostalgia of an experience 'once-upon-a-time' or we are fond of looking at a bright light some time, some day. Like the people we see in the bible who thought of their ancestors or thought of a future splendour, but missed the great and moving presence of the Lord amidst them, in their daily events and difficult moments, let us not end up making up stories and throwing questions at the Lord. Let us be still and experience the presence of the living God, the God of the living, living right next to us!

St. Cecilia... the third-century martyr

The statue of the martyrdom St. Cecilia in the Church...
a replica of the same statue is found in the Catacombs of St. Calistus

The Church of St. Cecilia in Rome

Santa Cecilia in Trastevere

Happy feast to all Singers and Musicians

WORD 2day

22nd November, 2013: Remembering St. Cecelia

Zeal for his house will consume him - Ps 69:9 - that is what John refers to when he recounts the event that we hear in the Gospel today from Luke! Judas Mattathias in the first reading and Jesus in the Gospel are presented as burning with zeal for God, for God's house. When we accept God as our king (the theme of this entire week) we should be burning with zeal for God, for things that belong to God, for values that stand for God, for persons and their dignity that directly springs from God, for life and love that signify God...we should burn with zeal to preserve, promote and uphold these! The saint we celebrate today, St. Cecelia is a third century martyr, who suffered for the absolute love that she had for her king, Our Lord Jesus Christ. If we think of it in terms of king-subject relationship, it is our allegiance to our King...let us be filled with zeal for our king, that is if we accept our Lord as our King!

WORD 2day

21st November, 2013

Who is your king? – that is the crucial question that will be asked these days of the week running up to the Solemnity of Christ the King. The parable we heard yesterday of the return of the king who demands an account, the siege of Jerusalem that Jesus speaks of today in the Gospel and the call of Mattathias to gather in his leadership against the persecuting forces… all these present a crisis situation; a situation demanding a definitive choice. Sometimes external pressures like the work ambient, the political milieu, the personal addictions or the overpowering temptations can present a crisis situation to us… a situation to make a radical choice for God or against God! Even a simple affair like the choice of words we use, or an ordinary decision we make on a daily basis, can determine the radical belonging to or rejection of God in our lives! May our everyday choices be such that the Lord never need to weep over us, as he did over Jerusalem!

WORD 2day

20th November, 2013

The urge to be faithful to God is never a question of maintaining the status quo. As spiritual masters always warn us, not to progress in spiritual life is to regress! Faithfulness to God is not lived or manifested in remaining where we are or merely in moments of legal fulfillment of rules and routine practices of piety. It takes fundamental radical choices at crucial moments to tell not just the Lord but the world too, that I belong to the Lord, to the One who has created me, the One who has called me and commissioned me. Like the young lad, as his mother and 6 brothers, in the first reading chooses God over everything that the king promises and over his very life, our choices need to speak for themselves; not just the choices of life and death, but the choices of what we want to do with the talents, the gifts that the Lord has given us, the choices of what we want to do with every moment of life that God has gifted us with. We can choose to enrich them and enhance them, or to just bury them and be inactive! The choice today, is mine!

WORD 2day

19th November, 2013

Zacchaeus' episode in the Gospel is an evergreen example of an encounter that transforms a person. As St. Paul would say, 'if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation'(2Cor 5:17). When we allow the Lord to really encounter us, the Lord transforms the whole person. Nothing remains the same, everything is new because we begin to see everything from the perspective of the Lord. As Pope Francis says in his recent encyclical Lumen Fidei, Faith is not just to see Jesus, it is to see with the eyes of Jesus (LF 18)! When our faith is authentic, the whole perspective changes. What seems to be important, what seems to be necessary for someone may seem totally secondary to me, because I see as the Lord does, because I think as the Lord does, because I love as the Lord does. Eleazar in the first reading demonstrates the same to us - 'such pretense is not worthy of our time of life' (2 Mac 6:24), he says, caring the least to preserve his life, because he did not want to lead the others astray from God. The primacy of God in our life defines the quality of our faith.

WORD 2day

18th November, 2013: Dedication of the Basilicas of St. Peter and St.Paul

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican

Basilica of St. Paul outside the Walls

 Peter did not mind the turbulent sea, the raging waves, the frightening darkness... all that he heard was the call of his Lord, beckoning him, "Come." He steps on to the sea and begins to walk. The limitedness of his faith notwithstanding, he was a man who trusted the Lord blindly! The first reading presents to us Paul, arriving in Rome! Not a pilgrimage or a tour, he reaches as a prisoner..and remains in house arrest. He doesn't seem to bother at all about that, because his only concern was to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ - and that he was able to do, peacefully! For him that was all which mattered. In prison or free, under prohibition or not, he could not but preach the Gospel. "Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel," he said (1 Cor 9:16). Today we remember the Basilicas dedicated to these two Pillars of the Church - to Peter at Vatican (the famous Vatican St.Peter's Church) and to St. Paul outside the walls of Olden Rome. Just last week we celebrated the memory of the dedication of the Basilica of St. John at the Lateran! Here are two more(of the 4 major basilicas). As we thank the Lord for the gift of these great apostles Peter and Paul, let us pray for the gift of the blind trust they had in the Lord and total dedication they demonstrated for the WORD.

The Pharmacist Pope : MISERICORDINA

This is what we call catechesis!
The holy Father today, as a gift for the Year of Faith... 
presented to the faithful, what he called a medicine:
very creatively christened "Misericordina"...
it is a simple way of inviting the people 
to remain united with the Lord in prayer..
in praying the rosary, 
in praying the rosary of Divine Mercy..
or just contemplating on the mercy and love 
that God fills us with, everyday!

With just one week to the end of the Year of Faith...the Holy Father is already feeling nostalgic about this wonderful opportunity we had to thank the Lord for the gift of our faith...and what better way than to unite ourselves with the Lord, in prayer!

Here is the video of that moment when he released that new medicine, commenting - "some might say, now the Pope is playing the pharmacist." Ofcourse, dear father, you are a God given pharmacist, for the well being of our spiritual selves. God bless you.

click the link for the VIDEO

The END times...

17th November, 2013: 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today is the last Sunday in the Ordinary Time, and next week we celebrate the solemnity of Christ the King. And the Word this week reminds us of the second coming of the King, that is the END times! Some get a strange a kick out of talking about the end times and spiritually terrorise those who listen to them. There have been cases of people who had bought trenches to secure themselves when the recent mystery stories did their rounds in 2012! Let us remember dear friends that we have been living in the end times for the past 2000 years!!! Even St. Paul had to warn the Thessalonians not to make too much of these!

For a true Christian what should the 'end time' mean? Should it be terrorising? Should it make one go into a delirious tantrum or a plaguing paranoia? Those are in no way Christian responses to the thought on end times. Because for the one who believes in Christ, the Lord who has overcome the world (Jn 16:33), the Lord who has gained victory over death(Rom 6:9), the end time is not dreadful, it cannot be a threatening darkness! The first reading says so plainly, "but for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays!" (Mal 3:20). 

The readings today instruct us, on how we should confront the end times. What if the end of times were tomorrow, or today or now! We have begun our life journey, a journey of perfection towards union in Christ and this journey has to necessarily end, and that end is nothing but union with Christ - how my soul should long for that: Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul longs for you, my God! (Ps 42:1) 

The first reading tells me, all that I need to do to prepare myself for the end times, is to LEND my ears to the Lord. When I hear the word of the Lord and live it with all my heart (Jas 1:22), not beset by occasional set backs but ever trusting in the mercy and goodness of the Lord, I need to fear no one; I need to fear nothing, not even the gates of hell! But the secret is eagerness to lend my ears to the Word of the Lord.

The second reading challenges me to AMEND my ways in the Lord, go on living my every day life with serenity and peace. There is nothing to worry or fret as the Thessalonians did, for my soul finds rest in the Lord, and my salvation comes from God (Ps 62:1). All that I need to do is remain mindful of my ways! A sincere humility and daily conversion leads me to a genuine Christian life. When I begin everyday in the presence of the Lord planning my life and end it in God's presence evaluating it on the basis of God's teachings, I come to know of the things that I can be happy about and the things I need to grow in. A saint is not someone who has never failed, but is someone who has never remained the same after a failure! The secret is my willingness to amend my ways to walk in the light of the Lord.

The Gospel invites me to TRANSCEND all fears and trust in the Lord. Humanly speaking, I cannot end all my fears, but I can transcend every one of them. When my heart trusts in the Lord, when my eyes are fixed on my Saviour, when my hand rest in the hands of the One who leads me, I can transcend all my fears - like Peter who dared to step on to the turbulent sea and walk, like Paul and Barnabas who stood before the angry Sanhedrin and spoke, like the apostles who defied every authority and spread the message of Christ... they were all once filled with fear... they were the same weak men but with the Spirit they could transcend all fears! Nothing - no threat, no punishment, not even death - could frighten them. The secret is my capacity to transcend all fears with the Spirit of power, love and self-discipline (2 Tim 1:7). 

The End of times is near... infact we are living in the end times... it is not a matter to be spoken of in alarm or in whispers... the message of end times is, a call to lend my ears to the Word of the Lord, a challenge to amend my ways in the way of the Lord and to transcend all fears with the Spirit of the Lord! Let us live every day of our life, as if it were the last day of our life, every moment as if it were the last. Let us live our lives to the full, ever acceptable in the eyes of the Lord!

WORD 2day

16th November, 2013

Our help is in the name of the Lord, proclaims Psalm 124. The Lord alone is our refuge and our strength. The Lord knows when we sit and when we stand, even before a word is on our mouth, the Lord knows it all. This trust is called the attitude of prayer - a total abandonment into the hands of the Lord! At times when we pray, we sound like knocking at the door of the Lord as the last resort...'I have tried everything Lord; and now I have nothing more to try and so I come to you!' Instead, it has to be from the first moment: "You are everything Lord and I surrender myself to you; guide me along and accompany me, that I may never stray from Your will and guard me from all those which plot to take me away from You and Your holy will." Let us live our life with the Lord - every bit of it - our duties, our desires, our trials, our preoccupations; let us live them all with the Lord and be prepared always to say: Not mine, but Your will be done, O Lord! (Lk 22:42)

WORD 2day

15th November, 2013

'Fools say in their heart, 'there is no God',' goes Psalm 14:1. Though it is not the spirit of the times to get into an argument with people with variant religious convictions, sometimes it is important to challenge the insincere ones which are held with hidden motives and contrived plots. The readings today are quite strong against those who probably have religious choice of convenience, than conviction. But leaving alone the tendency to point a finger at someone, it is important for me to evaluate my faith! Faith is not merely saying 'yes' to a set of truths, but it is a personal relationship with the person of Jesus Christ, with the God that he revealed to us, with the Spirit who lives on with us. Is it not an ample opportunity for me today to raise this question in my heart: What does my faith mean to me? What are the SIGNS of real faith in my day to day life? 

WORD 2day

14th November, 2013 

The Reign of God is within you! (Lk 17:21) - this was the statement, they say, that provoked, sustained and gave meaning to Liberation theology in the 70s. Not only that. This was also the teaching that took Jesus to the cross. What is so provocative about it? To answer that question from the Gospel, we need to listen to the first reading and the psalm. They speak of the Wisdom of the Lord, the Word of God, that abides with us, the Lord who has come to live amidst us, the whole grace of incarnation. Jesus' proclamation of the arrival of the Reign, or the year of the Lord or the fulfilment of the Word (Lk 4:19,21) was looked at as an offence, because Jesus underlined the proximity, the closeness of God to human beings. Even today, if we choose to we can see God as some one far, distant, removed and isolated. But if we are sincerely observant, we can feel the presence of the Word, the Wisdom, the Incarnate Son walking beside us and we can feel God close and intimate to us because, "God loves nothing so much as the man who lives with wisdom" (Wis 7:28).

WORD 2day

13th November, 2013

The readings seem to converge on one thought today... that the Lord wishes, expects, and demands a response from us! Our God is a self revealing God... through signs and wonders and prophets and wise persons and finally through God's only Son, and continuously even today in and through God's Spirit, God continues to reveal Godself to us in various ways. The more we are given, the more we are expected to respond! It is not that God gives, so that we would repay! No! But it is that, we are given so much, we are filled with such goodness, we receive "grace upon grace" (Jn 1:16), that we realise it is right and just to give God thanks and praise! To know the right thing to be done at the right time and choosing to do it, is a gift of the Holy Spirit...we would be blessed to possess it. And the Lord says today, "set your desire on my words; long for them, and you will be instructed!" (Wis 6:11). 

WORD 2day

12th November, 2013

The first reading today states a tremendous truth - we are made for eternity, incorruptible by nature, because we carry the image of God within us! That is the fundamental truth of salvation. We are all saved in the core of our being, none of us is destined to destruction, none of us is rushing towards perdition! But we have a responsibility to keep that truth alive, because it all depends on the choices we make. By nature we are God's own children, but if we by our daily decisions and life choices, resolve to break away from God and from the gifts that God has placed within us, we are ruining our own salvific core. We are called every day, every moment to go on living in faith founded on hope and guided by love, to live a life of love and mercy; and at the end of it say, 'we are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty!' God who loves us will never desert us, unless we decide to break away from God.

WORD 2day

11th November, 2013: Remembering St. Martin

Holiness is a matter of the innermost being. It does not consist merely of the external signs and shows. Words not said, thoughts not expressed, acts merely contemplated, reactions withheld... these determine my holiness more than what the world around perceives me to be. That is why the strange link between faith and forgiveness in the Gospel today. While Jesus teaches the disciples to forgive brothers and sisters, they respond saying - 'increase our faith!' Can sound strange, but only apparently so! One cannot consider oneself to be a person of faith, holy and spiritual, if one's relationships with others is not right. If faith is relationship with God, forgiveness is relationship with my fellow beings! If the latter fails, the former is meaningless; St. Martin whom we celebrate today was someone who lived this in his life! If we want really to be spiritual, we have to forgive, accept, and love our brothers and sisters, as God does with us! Lets ask the Lord to "Increase our faith" (Lk 17:5).

We are people of RESURRECTION

10th November, 2013: 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

"And I will raise them up on the last day" declared Jesus regarding those who partook of him. Resurrection is our hope, Resurrection is the foundation of our faith. The crux of the salvation that Jesus offers us is Hope, and hope is the confidence of things that we are yet to receive and the greatest of all that we look forward to is resurrection! This is what Jesus in his incarnate self showed us - he lived his life for God, he died for God and by God he was raised; when we live, we live for God; if we die, we die for God, and we will be risen in the Lord! This is the foundation of our faith; for as St.Paul says, "if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile" (1 Cor 15:17). The readings today, help us understand what resurrection can mean to us. 

Resurrection is a REWARD, a recompense that God sets before us for the commitment with which we live our life. We come from God, and it is our destiny that we return to God. We are loved into existence by God and we bear God's image in the core of our being. Every day of our life is an opportunity to cherish that image within us and bring it to fulfillment within us. Every person we come across is a companion on this journey and every situation we live through is a means to nudge towards the destiny. There are moments that are trying and those are moments to stride across, as we see in the first reading. When we find ourselves in such moments as those, when we have to choose between God and godlessness, between righteousness and injustice, between good and mediocrity - and we decide to choose God, righteousness, goodness - we can proudly say with St. Paul, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown"(2 Tim 4:7,8).

Resurrection is RECONCILIATION, a reunion with my creator, an experience of my oneness with my God, whose child I am. In the letter to the Colossians, we are told, "you have now been reconciled in the body of his flesh, so as to present you holy and blameless before God provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in faith"(Col 1:22,23). Just this morning some one remarked to me, 'Oh after all, would we live another 25 years!' Absolutely true, that we are on an earthly sojourn and our eternal abode beckons us. That is why St. Paul prays in the second reading today, 'May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.' It is in that love of God and the faithfulness of Christ, that we are assured of 'eternal life' which is participating in the nature of God, who alone is eternal. In our resurrection we become one with God, we are reconciled to God, and we become eternal like God!

Resurrection is REALISATION, a concrete experience of what has been promised. We are called to live as the people of Resurrection. Christians are Easter People... while there is in store the eternal life that has been promised, we are invited to live that resurrection every day, every moment, specially in those moments when we are prone to hopelessness and desperation. We need to realise who we are, we need to realise who our God is! Jesus says of us - "they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection" (Lk 20:35). As Paul explains to the Romans (ch.6), we have died with Christ, in his crucifiction and we will live with him! We are called to live our lives, as people of resurrection, not losing heart on any trial, not giving up at any temptation, not desperate with any failure, not bogged down by any evil - but people filled with hope, comfort, courage, steadfastness, strength and love of God.

We are people of resurrection; let us live our lives mindful of the reward that the Lord has set before us, preserve ourselves holy and blameless to be reconciled to the Lord in eternal life and realise the fruits of that resurrection right here and now, in our daily lives.

Commemorating the Lateran Basilica

9th November, 2013

Today we commemorate the dedication of the Basilica of St. John the Evangelist at the Lateran. This basilica is special because it is one of the four major basilicas of the Church in Rome. It becomes more special because it is the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, which is the Holy Father himself.

Moving around in Rome, one can see churches, one mightier than the other, in every other lane of the city. An unofficial statistics says that the city of Rome alone has more than 2500 churches. Though at an apparent observation it might look to be an exaggeration of a period in time, still there is an insight that it can offer. Why did the people go on building churches after churches?

Churches meant for them, not just a place of gathering for worship; if it were merely that, they would surely not have needed so many. Churches, were temples, buildings from where the glory of God shone forth! That is why they built more and more of them, that the glory can shine forth more and more!

Today's readings, and any feast of dedication of a Church, remind us of this important vocation that we have. From the temple of the Lord goes forth the glory of that Lord, "and that temple you are!" (1 Cor 3:17). From the temple of the Lord flows the water which gives life, which brings healing, we read from Ezekiel today! From our lives, from our words, from our acts, from our very being, should flow the grace of God towards others! 

Jesus sets us the example, by being so conscious of being the Temple of the Lord. If we are his brothers and sisters, if we are to be known as his disciples, we need to be conscious too, that we are God's temple and God's spirit dwells in us (1 Cor 3:16)!

WORD 2day

8th November, 2013

Living life as a ministry - this was the inspiration that sprang within me reflecting on the Word today. Ofcourse, it is easy to brush it aside saying its a 'clerical' or 'priestly' or religious' way of thinking. But looking at the readings of today we can understand the words that Pope Francis has repeated in several modes: We cannot be part time Christians. We are called to live our life as persons of God every moment of our life, at home, in the neighbourhood, at work, on the way, in company, alone or at Church! If not, we will be caught unawares at a moment when we will have to frantically set things right as the dismissed steward does in the parable today. We should work out our own salvation, as St.Paul says to the Philippians Phil 2:12), not only in fear and trembling, but on a daily basis living our life with a consciousness that we are sent with a definite mandate, a concrete call by God to be God's stewards, to be sons and daughters of God in the world.

WORD 2day

7th November, 2013

God never gives up on us! Like the shepherd who lost his sheep and the woman who lost her coin, the Lord is after us, in search of us every time that we get ourselves lost. That a Christian should never lose sight of this fact, is what St.Paul wants to impress on us today. That has two major implications: First of all, never to give up on ourselves, because there is someone who believes in us, there is someone who loves us come what may, there is someone who is constantly present with us participating in every moment of our life - be it success or failure, joy or sadness, life or death! Secondly, it implies that we give up on none of our brothers or sisters, because there is someone who loves them unfathomably and we have no right to judge them on our whims and fancies. I am invited to trust, that God believes in me more than I myself do, and that God believes in my brothers and sisters as much as God believes in me! 

WORD 2day

6th November, 2013

'The fullness of law is love,' says St. Paul today. It can be confusing apparently if both the readings of today are taken together. The first speaks of the primacy of love and the Gospel says, unless you hate your father and mother, spouse and children... Aren't they contrary to each other? No... they are not contrary but complementary. The first reading with no dubious terms establishes the primacy of love and speaks of loving one's neighbour. The problem arises with the verb "hate" in the Gospel... which bible scholars say is a simplified (infact over-simplified) translation of the word in the original text which would actually mean, "to love less". The point is made. Christian love draws from God - God has to be the foundation for any love and that cannot be overlooked! When God is overlooked, "love" can dissipate itself into 'liking', into a mere objectification, a desire to possess, a seeking of self gratification. Even our so-called 'most-loving choices' should be checked in these terms: Is God at its foundation?

WORD 2day

5th November, 2013

Jesus has the table spread; where the saints of God are fed; he invites his chosen people come and dine! The spread that Jesus has is joy, hope, love, sharing, caring, helping, encouragement, honour, respect, service, hospitality, empathy - all that we see in the first reading, from Paul's letter to the Romans (a  profile of a perfect Christian from chapter 12). But we are too busy with our own choices, too busy setting ourselves up, towards selfishness, envy, pride, jealousy, insensitivity, avarice, competition, hatred, enmity... we choose not to pick from the spread that Jesus has - but later blame the Lord, complain against the Lord when things go wrong! It takes courage to choose God, to say 'yes' to God's invitation and partake in God's banquet. Only when we dare do that we can meaningfully pray the verse from the responsorial today, "In you, O Lord, I have found my peace!"

Life... a gift and a mystery!

Nera...one of my guppy friends in the room, gave birth to her young ones...
had the extraordinary opportunity of witnessing it live...
here I share with you one moment... 
a moment of awe! and a moment to praise the Lord of life!

click here: FOR VIDEO
nera giving birth

WORD 2day

4th November, 2013

Calculations of gain and loss, returns and rewards make an action limited to these considerations. Jesus, not only taught us a consideration different from these, but lived it himself and challenges us to live by it. The consideration is -'what God wants of me here and now'! Adopting that as my decisive criterion in life, requires of me two important attitudes: the first reading speaks of the first of the attitudes - it is, an immeasurable awe and absolute entrustment to the Wisdom of God; secondly - placing others, especially the weak, the poor, the least and the last, the needy as the center of my perspective on life, not looking at my own selfish and egoistic ends. When these two become my attitudes, I can worthily say as St. Paul says in the reading today: 'From God and through God and to God are all things. To God be glory for ever. Amen.'

SALVATION...today, here and now!

3rd November, 2013 - 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Salvation is the theme that dominates the liturgy today. The two days that have preceded help us to get into the theme readily. The first day when we celebrated those who shine as stars having reached the due destination; the second day when we remembered those who have completed their earthly lap and are bound towards the eternal abode; both these made us reflect on our future, as something certain and glorious. That is salvation. The word salvation, sometimes can be understood in terms of salvaging something that has gone wrong. Though this dimension is definitely present in the Salvation that Jesus wants to offer us, Salvation for a Christian should mean much more, much broader and more holisitic. It is wholeness, fullness, oneness, where nothing is lost, nothing is dissipated, everything is intact, everything is reconciled into One, whole cosmos reconciled in God, in and through one Saviour Jesus Christ. It is not merely an other-worldly phenomenon, but a concrete experience here and now, says the Gospel today through the example of Zacchaeus. 

An essential eligibility for this salvation is an Eagerness towards it. This eagerness is present in every person, every being. As St.Paul says in his letter to the Romans, the whole creation longs for it, as in a labour pain (Rom 8:22). It is God's will that nothing should be lost (Jn 6:39), that everything should be reconciled in Him (Col 1:20). The first reading expresses it in simple terms, that the Lord loves all things that exist and wills that they be united in the Lord. This is the oneness that we long for with the eagerness that is exhibited in the whole creation, and we as sons and daughters of God, have this longing much more. This longing is manifested in Zacchaeus in a gradually intensifying degree... first as a mere curiosity to see Jesus, then as an openness to listen to him and then as a longing to have him under his roof! Our eagerness too has to grow in these degrees... from a willingness to know, through an openness to listen to the Lord, to a longing to belong to Him for ever.

Salvation is not only something that happens at the end of time or at the end of my life... but it is the moment of truth that is occasioned every time the Lord encounters me - through daily events, through persons around, through a challenging situation, a needy person or a moment that demands a choice from me. As both the first and the second readings explain, the Lord strives to make the creation worthy of its original nature, the perfection which the Lord willed them. It is in this framework we understand every intervention of God, especially that in Jesus Christ, the Word made human. Once the Lord encounters me, I can never remain the same! That is why we keep dodging and avoiding the gaze of the Lord. But when it does happen, it is a moment of reckoning. It was so for Zacchaeus, he was encountered by Jesus at the Sychamore... an encounter that transformed him totally, initiated in his life a salvific process. He listened to Jesus' call, obeyed and came down from the tree, and his life was changed for ever. We are invited to listen to the call of the Saviour, come down from our obstinacy and our life will be changed for ever!

Salvation is not an imaginary state of life...it has to be seen in concrete living. It should be seen in our Enthusiasm for life. We see Zacchaeus enthusiastic about his new life...he is ready to return whatever he has unjustly extorted, not just that, but four times! This is what we call enthusiasm. The word enthusiasm, comes from the root 'en' and 'theos', which combine to mean, 'being filled with God'...being enthusiastic in life means to be filled with God every moment of our life. Salvation has to be evidenced in this enthusiasm to live life to the full... not ever compromising with the unjust state of affairs, not giving into selfish considerations of me and mine, but looking at everything from the perspective of God, from the perspective of wholeness that consists of reconciling everything, the whole creation, in God. 

We are people of the salvation, as St. Paul says, "God chose you from the beginning for salvation" (2 Thes 2:13); Let us live our life with a never ending eagerness for this wholeness in God, ever prepared to encounter the Lord and be corrected and made perfect by the Lord. Let our enthusiasm in our daily life proclaim to the world that we are people of salvation. Today, the Lord offers, as he did with Zacchaeus, to be our guest. If we receive the Lord with our whole hearts, TODAY, we will experience the power of God's salvation.

HAPPY DIWALI TO YOU !!!

Diwali: The Festival of Light

Light...

... as light illumines
... as fire burns
... in the hearth warms
... in the furnace purifies

Illumining it dispels darkness
Burning it destroys the unwanted
Warming it removes coldness
Purifying it eliminates impurities

May your life be filled with every light that is necessary for the moment...
that is my prayer, as I wish you, a

HAPPY DIWALI

HOPE - a sign of the SAVED

All Souls Day - 2013

What is the difference between a Christian and an unchristian outlook on anything? It is hope. It is hope that makes us see a possibility even in the worst of our daily problems. Hope gives one the serenity and tranquility to approach every day problems with grace. One big unsolved question for the whole humanity is how to understand the end of life and beyond. For a Christian, life is changed, not ended, says the preface of the Mass for the dead. Jesus' resurrection fills us with hope and that hope does not disappoint us. The hope is towards eternal life, it is the eternal destination that characterises the culmination of this journey on earth. Death is just the horizon beyond which we are not able to see what really exists; for if we see, there is no more place for hope (Rom 8:24). All that we see is the Risen Lord, who lives with us and lights our path. And in the Risen Lord is our hope. We hope to see every one of our brothers and sisters gone before us, united in the Risen Lord, as do the saints we celebrated yesterday and our prayer today is that these brothers and sisters of ours join their ranks and that we, at the end of our journey, join that wonderful family, the family that is founded on faith, united in love and kept alive in hope!

நம்பினோர் பேறுபெற்றோர்

எட்டாம் நூற்றாண்டின் தொடக்கத்தில் தான் ஆற்றும் திருப்பலியில் உண்மையிலேயே அப்பம் உடலாகவும், இரசம் இரத்தமாகவும் மாறுகிறதா என்று ஐயம் கொண்டவராகவே திருப்பலியாற்றிய ஒரு துறவியின் கண்ணெதிரே வெண்மையான துண்டாயிருந்த அப்பம் தசையாய் மாறியது; திராட்சை இரசம் இரத்தமாய் மாறியது! இக்காட்சி கண்டு உரைந்துப் போனார் அந்த துறவி... அவருக்கு மட்டுமல்ல அன்று அவராற்றிய திருப்பலியில் பங்கெடுத்த அனைவருக்கும், ஏன் இன்று வாழ்ந்து கொண்டிருக்கும் நமக்கும்  ஒரு இயற்கைக்கு அப்பாற்பட்ட சான்றாக இன்றும் நம் கண்முன்னே தோன்றுகிறது அந்த தசையும் குருதியும். இலஞ்ச்யானோ என்று அழைக்கப்படும் இத்தாலியின் இப்பகுதியில், 12 நூற்றாண்டுகளாய் தசையாய், இரத்தமாய் எவ்வித வேதியியல் உதவியும் இன்றி இன்றும் வைக்கப்பட்டிருக்கும் இவை நம் நம்பிக்கையை ஆழப்படுத்துகின்றன, அதன் அசைக்க முடியா அடித்தளங்களை நினைவுப்படுத்துகின்றன.

இத்தசை இதயத்திலிருக்கக்கூடிய ஒரு திசு என்றும் அது அப்பமாயிருந்து மாறியபோது உயிருள்ள தசையாய் இருந்தது என்பதற்கு அது சுருங்கிய நிலையில் காணப்படுவது ஒரு சான்று என்றும், அறிவியல் ஒப்புக்கொண்டுள்ளது. 5 சிறு உருளைகளாக திரண்டு காணப்படும் இரத்தமும் இத்தசையும் ஒரே உடலை சார்ந்ததாய் உள்ளது என்றும், AB வகையை சார்ந்த அந்த இரத்தம் மனித இரத்தத்தின் எல்லா உள்ளடக்கத்தையும் கொண்டுள்ளது என்றும் 1973 வெளியிடப்பட்டுள்ள அறிவியல் ஆராய்ச்சியின் முடிவுகள் கூறுகின்றன. அது மட்டுமன்றி இதை உலக சுகாதார அமைப்பு ( WHO ) தனது அளவீடுகளின் படி ஆராய்ச்சிக்கு உட்படுத்தி அதன் வாயிலாகவும் இதே முடிவுகளை உறுதிப்படுத்தியுள்ளது.




நற்கருணையின் புதுமைகள் 150க்கும் மேற்பட்ட இடங்களிலும் திருச்சபையால் அங்கிகரிக்கப்பட்டிருந்ததாலும் இலஞ்ச்யானோவின் இந்த புதுமை பெரும் சிறப்பு வாய்ந்ததே - காரணம் இதுவே முதன்மையாக காணப்பட்ட புதுமை என்பதும், இரத்தமும் தசையுமாய் இருவடிவிலும் நிகழ்ந்த புதுமை என்பதும், 12 நூற்றாண்டுகளாய் இதன் சான்று அழியாமல் இருப்பதுவுமே.




வானினின்று இரங்கிவந்த உயிருள்ள உணவு நானே என்று இறைவன் அன்று கூறிய அந்த வார்த்தைகளும், இது என் உடல், இது என் இரத்தம் என்று குருவானவர் வழியாக கிறிஸ்து இன்றும் கூறும் வார்த்தைகளும், உண்மையானவை, உயிருள்ளவை என்று நம்பும் ஒவ்வொருவரும் பேறுபெற்றவரே!!!










photo courtesy: Fr. Anthony Lobo sdb.

ALL SAINTS, ALL SOULS - a heritage of faith!

Reflecting on the All Saints day..and the All Souls day that follows...
what a rich heritage of faith and fellowship we have...
a small video explanation of this..i found it here...

VIDEO:
Loved this..and wanted to add it here!

The Saints and the Stained Glasses...

I haven't forgotten one beautiful anecdote I heard as a young fellow (not that I am old yet! the point is, quite a number of years back). The story is about little John who visited the grand cathedral of the city for the first time with his mother. As any 6 year old would, John kept asking mom questions after questions about any and everything that he saw on the way. When he entered the Cathedral, he was wide-eyed and open-mouthed at the spread of lights on the floor... the colourful shades intermingling with each other creating a psychedelic effect on anyone, needless to mention on John who was looking at it for the first time. He was wonder struck with sight and it took a few seconds for John to take his eyes off and look at the source of those lights... there were the big, Gothic, stained glass windows that adorned the walls of the Church, the series of stained glass windows each depicting a saint. John's curiosity could not contain itself anymore, he resumed his questioning spree. "Mom!", he cried in his wonder pointing to the stained glasses on the wall,"what are those?" Mom in her usual patient manner, as if she brought him there for specifically that question, said "they are saints, dear Johny." Surprisingly John kept quiet thereafter as if he was totally satisfied and continued looking with marvel at every bit of those colourful depictions.
The following Sunday, the catechism was on Saints!!! And the nun who spoke to the kids asked a question - who are saints? There wasn't any instant response, neither did the nun expect that from the 6 and 7 year olds. But she was pleasantly surprised by a hand that went up, not very late. It was John. And he said, "I know who saints are! They are those who let the colourful light pass through them!"

Ever since I heard that story, I have been stuck to that definition of Saints: Saints are those who let the Light pass through them! When we allow the LIGHT, the Lord to pass through us, we will automatically shine to the world. Let our light shine... and let us allow the LIGHT to pass through us! Let us be saints!!!

Saints - Being Saints...

All Saints day... reflecting on being saints...

Saints come in different shapes, forms and sizes... there are those who had been so from the beginning and there are those that turned so at the fag end of their life; there are those that formed others into saints and thus became one themselves while there are those that became saints so much due to someone else who had been after them all the time; there are those that renounced everything in life to become so and there are those who lived a busy life of a householder but through it grew to be what they were; there are those that isolated themselves in a desert or on mountains (or even on pillars) and there are those that dwelt in the din of humanity; there are those that lived upto a ripe old stage in life and there are those that died mature already at a stage so young. The message is simple: you don't need a situation that can make you a saint - you become one by recognising who you are!

BEING SAINTS

1st November, 2013: All Saints Day

O when the saints, 

go marching in, 

I want to be in that number! - 

... a simple but profound thought in those familiar lines of the song. To be saints: that is God's call to each of us. At times we think, becoming saints is reserved for a select few. May be the long and tedious process of canonisation of a person in the Church, makes us feel that way. But the fact is, each of us, all of us is called to be saints. St. Paul states that in clear and unequivocal terms in his letter to the Ephesians (1:4), Thessalonians (1 thes 4:3), and other places. 

The question sometimes is, whether it is, being a saint or becoming a saint! We are created in the image and likeness of God (says Genesis 1:27) and this image and likeness of God is a "given", a nature that we have within us, as a gift. We are reminded of this image and likeness at our baptism. All the we need to do is to remain with that image in our lives. The beautiful symbol used in the rite of baptism, where the priest hands over a white cloth to the child and entrusts the task of bringing it, as it were, unsullied, intact in its purity to the end of days.That, dear friends, is the call - "to be saints"...and not merely to 'become' saints.

The readings today, develop the same thought in three wonderful dimensions:

Being Saints means... being aware of who we are! O Christian, realise your dignity! We are children of God, reminds St. John in his letter, in the second reading. God has chosen us from eternity, before the foundation of the world! This is an initiative from God our Father and Mother, who creates us and wishes that we share in God's love and ever remain in God's image and likeness, as children of the loving God.

Being Saints means... being washed by the blood of the Lamb! The Image of God within us, sometimes is disturbed, smudged, smeared or sullied by the choices we make misusing the human freedom that is granted to us. The evil one will be more than happy when we lose heart at such moments and give up. The Son of God, our Saviour Jesus Christ shed his blood that we may have victory over sin and death. In that blood we are saved, and in that blood we are made clean, each and every time we turn to the Lord in genuine repentance and willingness to regain our original image. Saints are those who have their garments washed in the blood of the Lamb, says the second reading.

Being Saints means... being 'blessed' in the eyes of the Lord! And the only way to be 'blessed', is to live by the promptings of the Spirit who dwells within us. Paying attention to the indwelling Spirit, we will know what it means to be blessed - to be poor in spirit, to be meek, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, to be peace-loving - these are ways of being persons of the spirit. In the ordinariness of our daily life, we have to be persons of the Spirit, looking at the reality different from the way the self seeking world teaches us to. 

God's initiative in the call that I have received; Christ's redeeming act of Salvation; the Spirit's indwelling presence that guides me on a daily basis - these are compelling reasons why I need to think seriously about, not merely becoming a saint one day, but being a saint everyday, in my own way!