HAPPY NEW YEAR: 3 Messages for 2016

Here are 3 messages we can start the year with...

1. Obey the Mother; Follow the Son:

We start the year with Mary the Mother of God. She is intent always on leading us to her son...Do whatever he tells you (Jn 2:5) : that is her refrain all the while. When the Church Fathers at Ephesus, in 432, thought of resolving the confusion whether Jesus was God or Man, they thought of defining a dogma on Mary...what a way to understand the nature of Jesus through the vocation of Mary! She was called to be Mother of God and that is what she is...Mother of God, Mother of us all, Mother of the Church. Obey the Mother, and you will automatically be following the Son.

2. Open your hearts; Begin with God:

Happy New Year we wish each other: just look around and tell me, what is new? Same old house, same old people, same old things and same old problems...aren't they? I met this kid last week after Christmas and found him very sad about Christmas...and I asked him why? Did you parent not give you gifts? No they gave, he said. Did they not buy you new clothes? Hmm..that is the problem, he said. They bought ...but the same colour as last year! I could not help smiling at it and say to myself: how often we think as that kid did. We are so adamant not to see things in a brighter light. Every time we have something that would stop us from being happy. We are so judgmental with everything, specially with people, that we cannot see anything new. As Mother Teresa would say, we are busy judging and so we do not have the time to love. Look at every person every time with a new open heart and you will see life will be much more blessed.

3. Overcome Indifference; Win Peace:

Today is also 49th World Peace Day celebrated by the Church. Pope Francis gives this as his Peace Day Message: Overcome Indifference and Win Peace. If the peace that we have has to be true and real and god-given, it has to arise from mercy, solidarity and compassion. There can be no indifference there. The call is to overcome indifference, indifference about God, indifference about Others and Indifference about those who are suffering! It is in keeping with the Jubilee Year of Mercy...we are called to be merciful as the heavenly Father. God is never indifferent, says the Holy Father. Let us overcome our Indifference and we will grow more and more peaceful!

Happy New Year 2016! May God be with you and grant you peace!

WORD 2day : 31st December, 2015

The end and the Beginning

7th day within Christmas Octave 

1 Jn 2: 18-21; Jn 1 : 1-18

The first reading today speaks of the last days and the Gospel speaks of the beginning with the Word! What a beautiful message to behold on the last day of the year! Things may appear as if everything is lost, but with the Lord nothing is lost. Any number of Anti Christs and evil forces may come, we will never lose: for we have with us a Lord whose love for us is more powerful than any power of this world! A Christian is one who is convinced of this to that extent that even in the middle of a life threatening crisis, he or she is ready to face it with serenity for the Lord is with him or her. The Word has become flesh and dwells amidst us, what do we have to fear! Let us welcome the new year with that unwavering hope in the Lord.

WORD 2day : 30th December, 2015

Maturity,  Wisdom and God's Favour
6th day in the Christmas Octave
1 Jn 2: 12-17; Lk 2: 36-40

Luke alone pictures the life of the Holy Family at Nazareth and the boyhood phases of Jesus. Today he notes that the Word become flesh and grew up to be a holistic human person.

Speaking of holistic growth,  I am reminded of the categories with which we were helped and evaluated for our growth when we were in initial formation towards priesthood. Maturity,  Wisdom and God's Favour, that Luke speaks of today actually refers to the of those criteria of growth: Physical, Intellectual and Spiritual.

I wonder why parents today should not take up these as their criteria to help their children or their wards in their growth. An all round growth is what the society stands in need of.

WORD 2day : 29th December, 2015

Secrets laid bare

5th day in the Christmas Octave
1 Jn 2: 3-11; Lk 2: 22-35

One of the key elements of an authentic spirituality should be to lay bare all secrets.  Jesus was meant to be doing that and that is one reason the pharisees and the Scribes could not put up with him. 

The way Jesus did it, was by making the criteria cut and dry. He stood far from multiplying requirements and rituals. He simplified the commandments and kept to the basics. He brought everything down to one commandment and this laid everything bare. No amount of beating around the bush would matter anymore... do you love or not? That was the only question which had to be answered and St John so plainly brings it out in today's first reading.

Let your love be genuine(Rom 12): St. Paul too understood this key to being Christlike.

THE WORD AND THE FEAST

The Feast of the Holy Innocents

28th December, 2015

1 Jn 1:5 - 2:2; Mt 2: 13-18

Today as I reflect on this event, I feel I have to gainsay my post the day before! Is Stephen truly the first martyr? What about the innocents who gave their life up for the sake of Christ!

The Innocence of the children and the innocence demanded of us: the difference is what is underlined in the first reading today. The innocence of the children was forced on them, they were helpless and vulnerable, but they were all for the Lord and the Lord's Reign. 

The innocence expected of us has to be of choice, a choice that is well informed of one's own goodness and limitations. I am expected to make a choice for the Lord in spite of the weaknesses, overcoming them with a sense of total surrender to the Lord and the Lord's Reign.

The TIN Team

Growing after the HOLY FAMILY

Feast of Holy Family: 27th December, 2015

1 Sam 1: 20-22,24-28; Col 3: 12-21; Lk 2: 41-52

The Feast today presents to us the model of the Holy Family... especially in the year when we have reflected so much upon the theme of family, we have a clarion call today: to grow after the Holy Family. 

The Question is, what makes your family HOLY?

It's Humble, Obedient and Loving You that makes your family H.O.L.Y.

It is You who have to make your family holy! Rarely do we take that onus on our own selves. We look for someone who is failing in his or her duties, someone with some weakness to shove all the responsibility. 

Humility versus Blame Game

Humility is the first ingredient of holiness. Humility is all about truthfulness and there can be no holiness without truthfulness. Humility is to understand the reality that is me and accept it as it is. It is neither overrating myself nor trampling myself. Joseph and Mary, stand out in this  humility, as they knows exactly what their role is in the holy family and play just that. They never overdo, nor do they shirk their responsibility.

Obedience versus Ego Trips

Most of the times the fights in a family are not about what is right and what is wrong, it is about who is right and who is wrong. Authority is what is contended here... who has the final word? Should the wife always obey the husband? Or is it fine to have an henpecked husband? The solution is not wife obeying husband or husband obeying the wife; it is not about children obeying the parents or parent complying in everything with children; it is about husband, wife and children all obeying God! Knowing exactly what God wants of me, and doing that in peace and unity. It is important to be on our Father's Business!

Love versus Self Seeking

Whether Mary or Joseph or Jesus, there is something that dominates the picture - true and genuine love. Love never seeks its own good! Love is always concerned about the other: Joseph about Mary, Mary about Jesus, Jesus about the people... it is always about the other, not about oneself! The less I concern myself with my self, the more loving I become. Jesus who is Word made flesh, Joseph who takes charge of the holy family merely because God wanted him to, Mary who said that yes without even calculating the risks involved...all the three are epitomies of the love of God. 

The Year of Mercy has a special invitation today - to grow into holy families...each of us holy unto the Lord, each of us into a humble, obedient and loving you!

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

Feast of St. Stephen,  the first Martyr

26th December, 2015

Acts 6: 8-10,7:54-59; Mt 10:17-22

I was amused when I looked at this picture of St. Stephen when I was looking for something to post... amused because the picture spoke what came to me as a reflection of the readings today.

If anyone read the Gospel of today and complained that they did not understand what exactly it meant, they could be directed to the first reading and that would make an elaborate and concrete explanation with example, of what Jesus says in the Gospel. 

Holding the Book (the Word) and the Stones together, with such serenity in the face and an olive branch in the other hand... portrays Stephen to the detail. Accepting to be a disciple, to belong to the apostolic community and to proclaim Jesus through service (Stephen was a deacon), was a bold acceptance of the consequences that Jesus spoke of already. Stephen seems to have accepted that demand, along with a firm faith in the promise of the Lord : do not search for what to say or what to do...the Spirit will enlighten you as to that! Stephen, enlightened by the Spirit, does exactly what Jesus did on the Cross: prays for those who persecuted him! 

To celebrate the feast of St Stephen immediately after the Christmas day also brings out a sharp message: yesterday was the birth of Christ, today is the birth of Christians...first time some one died to belong to Christ forever.

HOPE, LOVE, JOY & PEACE

Christmas 2015

Christmas means Hope: the Hope of a second chance, an endless second chance that God gives me. God has never expected me to deserve God's mercy! How blessed am I! To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God (Jn 1:12). That is Hope! I receive hope as I receive the Lord today!

Christmas means Love: God so loved the world that he sent his only son (Jn 3:16). There is no end to the Love that God has for me. The Mercy of God abounds all around me! When I receive this love, when I truly receive this love, I will be transformed into love. If I am not transformed into love, I have not received that love. Today the task for me is to receive that love truly... become merciful, as merciful as the loving Father.

Christmas means Joy: The joy of the Saviour...the joy that cannot be taken away from me, the joy that I have in coming to understand that I am never alone. That your joy may be complete (Jn 15:11). A joy that comes from the right perspective to life, right priorities in life and the Lord's principles for life : a life of true mercy and forgiveness.

Christmas means Peace: The Lord be with you is synonymous to Peace be with you! Where the Lord is there is peace. Let our hearts not be troubled (Jn 14:27), for the Lord is always with us. That is the message of Christmas, that the Lord came to be with us, to stay with us, to live amidst us, to dwell among us. Peace comes where Mercy resides.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th THURSDAY

The Advent Task: To Behold the fulfillment of the promises

24th December, 2015

2 Sam 7: 1-5,8-12,14,16; Lk 1: 67-79

You need special eyes to behold the fulfillment of the promises of the Lord. At times we implore the Lord for something and we see it doesn't come immediately. But let us be very clear, the Lord answers every query: the Lord either says yes and gives, or says no and forbids, or says wait and responds at the right time. But when it delays, we tend to lose our focus and be at our own business. We lose our sight so much that we are not prepared to behold them when the promises of the Lord are fulfilled... we are still busy complaining about something else.

We are on the last day before Christmas, Christmas a moment when humanity beheld the eternal promises of the Lord, the promise to be amidst us. Today let us take some moments off our busy preparations and sit in reflection for a while, going over our lives thus far and thanking the Lord for all the promises that have been fulfilled in our lives. That would be a beautiful preparation in itself to behold the Child of Eternal Promises tomorrow!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th WEDNESDAY

The Advent Task: Read the Message

23rd December, 2015

Mal 3: 1-4, 23-24; Lk 1: 57-66

This is an age of whatsapp and instagram. I, for an instance, receive close to over 200 messages everyday. But how many of them do I read fully? Most of them I do not even open, some of them I read just the beginning and by then know what it is about. Just a very few I read with attention. At times our attitude to life too becomes this way: we get so used to life and daily events of life that we do not pay attention to any but just a few things around us. New people, new events remain merely strangers and strange happenings, familiar people become 'same old people' and not worth paying attention to, just a few whom we consider 'important' we attend to. Is that a Reign attitude? 

The Word today says, NO! To Read the Message in every event and in every person, is the task given to us. If we miss this task we would miss Jesus when he comes. The Messenger is sent. The Messages are all around. It is there for our taking. We need to receive them, read them with care and respond to them with life. 

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th TUESDAY

The Advent Task: Abandon yourself at the hands of the Lord 

22nd December, 2015

1 Sam 1: 24-28; Lk 1: 46-56

Two women, two different experiences, but the response is the same: they give praises to the Lord and abandon themselves at the hands of the Lord. That is the task given to us in the few days that remain - to grow in our capacity to abandon ourselves at the hands of the Lord. 

Hannah, cried and begged from the Lord for a child and when she got it, she did not forget the Lord, nor does she possess the gift and leave the Lord. She took that child and gave it back to the Lord. She was ready to abandon her desires and wishes, dreams and longings at the feet of the Lord as she prays today at the Temple. 

Mary had an advantage, she had a forerunner in the person of Hannah. She had already learnt from her formation, how best to respond when calls as such come our way. When the Lord wanted to do mighty things in and through her, she just said: behold, here I am, I abandon myself wholly to your Holy Will. Her greatness shone to the best at that moment when she abandoned herself at the hands of the Lord. Right enough she borrows words from Hannah and makes it her own, singing that greatest canticle of all: My soul magnifies the Lord! 

When we magnify the Lord, our life becomes clear and we see our littleness without fear... we are able to abandon ourselves at the hands of the Lord and say, Here I am, I come to do your will.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th MONDAY

The Advent Task: Reach out to Receive

21st December, 2015

Song 2: 8-14; Lk 1: 39-45

To long for the Lord and to receive the Lord with true love in the heart: that is the objective of the season of Advent. At the fag end of this season the first reading brings that longing strongly to the fore. But the Word taken together offers us an insight totally different. 

To begin with, it is not enough to long for the Lord and imagine that the Lord will come to stay with me, as if the Lord has to come from somewhere... the Lord is already in our midst and we need to feel the presence of the Lord. The way to feel the presence of the Lord is to Reach Out to those in need, those in want, those in struggles, those in loneliness, those in grief. See our Blessed Mother reaching out, in the Gospel.

Secondly, when we reach out, that is when we go to do something for someone in need, we feel that we are giving - the Word today says, No! In reaching out, we receive! In reaching out to the other who is in need, we actually receive, we receive meaning to our life, we receive peace in our hearts, we receive the Lord who is in our midst. In reaching out, we infact, receive!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th SUNDAY

THE WAY TO PEACE

20th December, 2015

Mic 5: 1-4; Heb 10:5-10;Lk 1:39-44

The past three weeks have inspired us to reflect on Hope, Love and Joy. This week we have Peace as the point of focus. The world stands in need of peace and many offer this peace at the cost of various things. No matter what cost we pay, the peace seems to exhaust in a while. Where do go in search of a lasting peace. We need not go anywhere because the Peace has come to us. He himself will be peace, promises prophet Micah in the first reading today. 

The readings today trace the way to peace, a true lasting peace: Stop thinking about yourself, start thinking of the other, peace will automatically happen.

The model of Incarnation: God began to think of us, God began to think of us so much to the extent of giving up the divine form and become a human person... the Prince of Peace was born.

The model of Jesus: Here I come to do your will - that was the disposition with which Jesus lived his life here on earth as the letter to the Hebrews bring out so clearly. Jesus, did not only speak of doing the will of his Father, but lived it right upto the death on the cross.

The model of Mary: We have yet another closer model, a model that showed how this whole process can work - forgetting oneself, making a journey all that distance and being of service to Elizabeth.

The more I think of myself, there is a tendency that rises to prove myself, compete with the others, look at others as a threat and thus a lack of peace and serenity. The less I think of myself, there is a possibility that my life will be lived in communion with the One who sustains my life and with those who are around me, sharing the same experience of humanity. 

Let us begin to lessen thinking of ourselves, increase the thinking about others...then peace will have its chance.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd SATURDAY

The Advent Task: Be Fruitful

19th December, 2015

Judg 13:2-7,24-25; Lk 1: 5-25

We have two episodes of miraculous fruitfulness narrated today... both bring out an advent task, a Reign trait expected of us: to be fruitful. 

When the Lord is with us, and we acknowledge and appreciate that presence and found our lives on that presence, we become fruitful in a miraculous way. From where we do not expect and from circumstances that are most unlikely we will  see shoots of new life - that is Lord's doing. There are two verses that have struck this note very strongly in my mind: First from John: Apart from me you can do nothing (Jn 15:5). And the second, a corollary from Paul: I can do everything through him who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). How true! With my Lord around, it is not difficult at all, to be fruitful.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd FRIDAY

The Advent Task: Grow in Integrity

18th December, 2015

Jer 23: 5-8; Mt 1: 18-24

There is one name that is common in both the first reading and the Gospel...David! David was such a loved person to the Lord, even after the blunders that he made and received the deserved punishment! What was so special about David? Obviously, he was not the perfect of the people available. But he was the most integral of all, because when he made and mistake and that mistake was pointed out, he accepted it and repented. When we talk of integrity, we are not speaking of a spotless perfection in a person, but of the capacity to look at reality and accept it for what it is. Even Joseph had his own plans of keeping Mary away, but when Lord God revealed his plan, he was able to look at the divine plan and accept it, and carry out the task entrusted to him.

Not just the Messiah, but the Lord wishes that each of us come in the line of David, in his humility, in his docility, in his availability, in short, in his integrity.When we begin to grow in our integrity, we would be earning more and more critiques or even hate mongers. What is going to be our response - merely find fault with these critiques or grow more and more in our personal and collective integrity! 

Happy Birthday Pope Francis

On the birthday of Pope Francis...
let us make a simple prayer for him...
every one of us..before we go to bed today...

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd THURSDAY

The Advent Task: Realise your lineage

17th December, 2015
Gen 49:2, 8-10; Mt 1: 1-17

The readings today remind us of how important it was for the Jews to know their lineage and how it played a crucial role in their understanding of the coming of the Messiah. In a traditional society too, people place a great importance on the lineage of a person and the historical background that a person hails from. Issues like clan and caste...how dear and important they seem for so many!

The Word today insists on the one lineage that alone matters: that we come from God! It is God who formed us and created us;  it is God who willed us into existence;  it is God who has a plan for us; it is God who waits to make sense for us and through us to many others. If only we realise this lineage and that this lineage alone matters, we would find God very close to us, and find ourselves genuinely close to each other.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd WEDNESDAY

The Advent Task: Believe, the Lord is around!

16th December, 2015

Is 45: 6-8, 18, 21-25; Lk 7: 18-23

The most unchristian thought at a time of trouble is that I am all alone! It may be difficult to see, it may be hard to perceive but I have to believe that the Lord is with me, simply because the Lord has promised me that! At times when I wait in the railway station or in the bus stops and it looks like the required bus or train is never coming, I am used to telling myself, even the minute before the train appears or the minute before the bus comes around looks like that - as if it is never coming! 

The Lord says, believe that the Lord is around and you have enough evidences for it. You only need to look around and observe the things that are happening. The goodness of people around, however limited it could be; a simple gesture of care from a stranger, however unplanned it could be; a smile or a single word of gentleness from a fellow passenger, however short it could be...a loving hug from a child at home, a caring look from a loved one in the family...these are enough signs to gather the presence of the Lord around. Let us capitalise on these, but for that we need to begin to believe that the Lord is around.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd TUESDAY

The Advent Task : Humble yourself to holiness

15th December, 2015

Zep 3: 1-2, 9-13; Mt 21: 28-32

The easiest way to holiness is humility. The first reading underlines the fact of the Lord's choice: a humble and lowly people. Jesus reiterates that choice and warns the so called 'chosen' people that they have every likelihood of losing their prospects with God, due to their pride and obstinacy. Humility here is not a needless abasement of oneself but a truthful acceptance of how gratuitous it is to be considered people of God, and how incredible it is to be known as children of God. Once we realise and recognise that, we would start making conscious efforts towards making ourselves worthy of it, in our own tiny steps. Those tiny steps are our sure way to holiness. This Advent calls us to those tiny steps towards holiness...the time is very short, just 10 days to go for Christmas!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd MONDAY

The Advent Task: To see what God makes you see

14th December, 2015

Num 24: 2-7,15-17; Mt 21: 23-37

A prophet is someone different from the rest of the crowd because he not only sees what everyone sees, but sees what God makes him see. That is the experience of Balaam that is referred to in the first reading today. And that is the call that we are given by the Word today: to see what God wants us to see. 

We fail to see it many a times because we are busy seeing only what we want to see. Worse still we refuse to see it at times, because it causes inconvenience to our regular way of life. In some other cases we deny that we have seen it because it demands a change on our part, a new way of thinking and a new way of acting. My mind is still in the experience of the floods in our city...we could observe all the above three categories of response from people...who failed to see the suffering, who refused to see beyond themselves, who denied to themselves even that they have seen so much of need and suffering around them!

Jesus is trying to educate such groups in the Gospel today, but finds himself at a loss! He will not give up so easily, He goes on. He extends that invitation even today - to us! To see what God makes you see. Are we willing?

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd SUNDAY

THE CALL TO REJOICE IN THE LORD

13th December 2015: 3rd Sunday of Advent

Zep 3:14-18; Phil 4: 4-7; Lk 3: 10-18

Rejoice, again I say rejoice, rejoice in the Lord, rejoice without ceasing, rejoice with the joy of the Lord!

The three aspects of the joy given here are: 

1. It is a Joy in the Lord: It is not because of an affluent condition or a material addition, but because of the presence of the Lord that we are filled with joy. Like Mary, like Elizabeth, it is the presence of the Lord and awaiting the Lord's doing, that gives us true and unparalleled joy.

2. It is a universal call to rejoice: The call to rejoice is given to all... a Christian cannot be gloomy, says our Holy Father. That is why the reflection, Evangelii Gaudium, the joy of the Gospel. Joy is one essential sign of the Lord's presence with us. As the apostles who shared their lives with Jesus, as the first Christian community found their identity in the Lord, so are we called to find our living, our moving, our very being is in the Lord.

3. The call to rejoice is against all odds: We are called to rejoice but that does not in anyway guarantee a smooth life, a peaceful existence...definitely no! But the call is to rejoice against all odds. There may be problems and difficulties, encouragements and despise, criticism and challenges, but the call to rejoice remains. 

Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say Rejoice!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 2nd FRIDAY

The Advent Task: Live Upright

11th December, 2015

Is 48: 17-19; Mt 11: 16-19

Most of our happiness is short lived because much of it depends on whether or not others accept me, whether they affirm me or not, recognise me or not, appreciate me or not! Even if not dancing to the tunes of the others, we are most of the time conditioned by what the others say, what the others feel and how the others judge me. At times this goes to the extent that I forget to live my life, I live someone else's opinions and prejudices!

The Lord bares the foolishness of this way of life as he says in the first reading today - that the Lord himself has taught us how to live and how not to. If we follow the precepts of the Lord, we would live an upright life and we would not need to cringe at anyone's feet! This is one of the hardly found Reign value among the so called people of the Reign...whether Christians or not, we are unduly conditioned by the opinions and judgments of the others. Would we dare grow out of it and begin to think only of living upright?

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 2nd THURSDAY

The Advent Task: Suffer for the Reign

10th December, 2015

Is 41: 13-20; Mt 11: 11-15

The poor and needy ask for water and there is none, their tongue is parched with thirst. These lines from the first reading today, brought to my mind the scenes of flood relief in places around here, when people were in dire need of food and water...looking upto to someone who would come to their aid. Why did they suffer? Due to natural calamity? Yes, but that is only partly true... they suffered due to the human made calamity more than the natural. Lakes were not lakes and ponds were all plots, and the water had nowhere to go but the houses and flats, streets and avenues. The ones who suffer are not merely the greedy and the trespassers, but majority of them are the innocent, the poor and the vulnerable! 

You either stay off from being part of the causes of the problem, that is being  part of the group of exploiters and oppressors, or be part of those innocent sufferers who is able to experience the salvific fruits of suffering. It is a divine task to learn to suffer for the Reign.

THE WORD IN ADVENT- 2nd WEDNESDAY

The Advent Task : Be Strong

9th December,  2015

Is 40: 25-31; Mt 11: 28-30 

The Lord says,  come to me all who are heavy laden and take upon yourself my yoke and my burden. He never promised,  come to me and have no burden or no load. The call today is two fold :

One, to be strong to bear our burdens. Strength is seen not in moments of celebration and victory but in moments of trials and heartaches. To be strong is to feel the closeness of a support, to feel I am not alone and to be sure of a shoulder to lean on. That is what the Lord promises in the Gospel today. 

The second call is to be strong and look square at the troubles we are facing and understand whether they are really meant for us or if they are unnecessary. Because each of us has our own legitimate share of troubles to face. If we are truly strong in the Lord we will run and not wear out;  we will walk and still not tire. Because the burdens from the Lord are light and the yoke that the Lord offers is sweet.

Let's be strong... in the face of everything that is around us and the Lord will give us light to live on. 

THE WORD AND THE FEAST

8th December, 2015

The Lord chose Mary in eternity to show God's eternal mercy through her. Let the year of Mercy that begins today communicate this mercy in immensity to the world...May we be worthy instruments of that Mercy...

The Immaculate Conception of Blessed Virgin Mary

THE BEGINNING OF THE JUBILEE

YEAR OF MERCY

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 2nd MONDAY

The Advent Task: Perceive

7th December, 2015

Is 35: 1-10; Lk 5: 17-26

I found a whatsapp message circulated these days after the Chennai Floods. It read thus: FOUND MISSING: CASTE and CREED in the CHENNAI CITY. Those who find them do not bring them back, please! Going around with a group of youngsters to reach out to the flood affected areas, what sights of humanity we witness! Just an instance to quote: a person, from 120 kilometers away from Chennai all on his own brought 4000 bottles of drinking water dropped it at our place for the affected people and left back to their place! 

The Prophets have always been giving the indications of the Messianic times. The dumb speaking, the lame walking, the possessed freed and the captives liberated...the people saw all these happening with Jesus around. But they stopped with seeing. The people around could not perceive the message beyond all that was happening around them!

Today we are called not just to see, but to perceive; to perceive the signs that the Lord is giving us - to build up the true Reign of God...not our petty kingdoms, not our ego centers, not our brand building and not our monopoly. 

If we do not begin to perceive, we will miss the whole message! Without perceiving, miracles wont be miracles... we will only see strange things, as in today's Gospel!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 2nd SUNDAY

A Call to Prepare in True Love

6th December, 2015
Bar 5: 1-9; Phil 1: 4-6,8-11; Lk 3: 1-6

'PREPARE' is the call that dominates this season! One of the posts I could not agree more with, these days on the facebook, was a prayer posted by Fr. Joe Andrew an inspiring salesian priest. He had begun it thus: 'Lord we prayed for rain and you gave it. Sorry that we were not prepared for  it!' The whole world's attention is drawn towards the calamity that has just descended upon Chennai (which should by now include within it Cuddalore and other parts affected too). There is a widespread feeling we were not prepared enough for it in spite of the warnings we have had. The second reading and the Gospel today invite us to prepare, while the first reading and the Gospel tell us how to prepare! We are preparing to celebrate the coming of the Lord, and we are preparing for the coming of the Lord too, that is the coming of the Reign of God!

The Call: Recently, after the bomb blasts in Paris, the discussion on violence in the world and the need to tackle them, had escalated to a great intensity. And all of a sudden, in our part of the world, the present calamity of the deluge befell. And we seem to have all forgotten about the earlier discussions - the violence, the terrorism, the anti terrorist attacks, the need to joint military action etc. Today what dominates is the compassion towards the suffering, reaching out to those battling the floods, garnering efforts towards rescuing people and joining hands towards feeding the hungry. Time has yet again proved that goodness has the sweetest sway over humanity. The calamity has taught us, we are one and we need to stand and feel as one! The call is in the air, not just up and above, but surrounding us, in every experience, in every tear, in every smile, in every outstretched hand, in every heart that bleeds with compassion!

To Prepare: To make ready already in advance for the sake of facing a situation, that is what it means to prepare. It is important, the Lord has instructed us time and again, to be prepared for the coming of the Lord in glory. The Coming is going to be glorious and demanding too... because we would have to render an account for everything that we were given with and the way we have responded to it. I remember when we were kids, we dreaded the visit of one of our aunts...she was a nun. When we knew she were coming, we would be pushing dust under the carpet, stuffing clothes into the closet, dumping books into our cupboards and make the rooms look presentable. Invariably every time she would pull out everything that was in disorder and give us a mouthful! Preparing is not a cosmetic alteration that stays just skin deep. It is a fundamental transformation and that is why only true love can afford it.

True Love: To love as Jesus loves...that is the task that St. Paul entrusts to himself and to us. The only preparation that is good enough for the coming of the Lord or the only preparation that can truly lead us towards the coming of the Reign of God, is that which is inspired by true love. It is giving and not getting, it is reaching out and not receiving, it  is leveling and not proving oneself, it is straightening and not manipulating, it is simplifying and not complicating, it is feeling for and with another and not feigning sorrow, it is making life better for the other and not making a life out of the other. True love is a forgetfulness... a forgetfulness of harm done or good left undone, a forgetfulness of the struggles one has gone through while coming to face with the present struggles of another, a forgetfulness that does not so much think of repaying as of responding to the present need of a person. 

Let us prepare...prepare ourselves in true love towards growing into God's people, towards being signs of God's Reign here on earth. 

THE WORD IN ADVENT- 1st SATURDAY

The Advent Task: Be Compassionate

5th December, 2015

Is 30:19-21,23-26; Mt 9:35 - 10:1, 5,6-8

The City of Chennai is going through a moment of real crisis while it is also witnessing some thing beautiful about itself. The crisis is about battling the rains and the havoc caused by its effects. The beauty is about the numerous cases of individuals who go out of their way to do something to make the situation better for those who are suffering... those who are ready to accommodate the homeless in the little space left in their homes, those who are ready to share the little that they have with those who do not have anything, those who are out there wading through the waters just to make the suffering populace feel that they are not left alone, those who are far out of this zone but staring at the TV screens with a genuine droplet of tear in their hearts for the sake of those who are battered by this calamity - that is the sign of the Reign!

We need to discover and build on that sincere feeling for and feeling with the other... Being Compassionate is an essential task on the way to building God's Reign here on earth.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 1st FRIDAY

The Advent Task: Open your eyes and see

4th December,  2015

Is 29: 17-24; Mt 9: 27-31

They had their house filled with 3 feet water... rendered homeless they stood with their two children on the road with knee high water flowing past them. I was wondering what sort of bitter experience they would harbour, after all  such scenes of misery and vulnerability. To my surprise they said,  God be praised for so many things far worse from which they have been spared!

He shall see what my hands have done in his midst, says the first reading today. It is a special capacity to be able to see the hand of God in our daily experience. We should be given the vision, healed from our blindness and the Lord alone can enable us in this regard. Lord that we may see!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 1st THURSDAY

The Advent Task: Trusting in the Rock

3rd December,  2014

Is 26: 6-10; Mt 7: 21, 24-27

The way things are done today and the things that practically work today seem to suggest that there are ways and means to get things done rather than trusting them into God's hands. We worry about things as if everything depended on us and as if they are totally within our capacity. We tend to think of God only at the end of it all,  when we feel nothing else had really worked!

Trust in the the Lord forever, the Lord is the everlasting Rock, says the first reading; while the Gospel challenges us to move from a fake and shallow relationship with God towards founding our lives on the rock! Founding our lives on the Rock,  trusting the Lord our Rock,  does not mean an empty jargon or a figure of speech. It is a concrete dependence on the Lord and the Lord's will on a daily basis, convinced to do just what the Lord wants and whatever the Lord wants!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 1st WEDNESDAY

The Advent Task: Hope in God

2nd December, 2015

Is 25: 6-10; Mt 15: 29-37

What a day to think of this message: from 5 in the morning I have been getting calls and following updates of floods in our part of the State. People are stranded, held up,  locked in, left without anything to eat... at these moments despair can get the better of us. The whole heated discussion of the rising level of intolerance in India and the debates and demonstrations for and against it is yet another despair inducing scenario. The increasing conditions of inhumanity and violence in the world and the lack of transparent and righteous coalitions against evil, is an alarming state of affairs! But I was pleasantly surprised to receive a message from someone explaining all private initiatives to help the flood affected...the message from a non-Christian but ended with a quote: 'if God is for us who can be against us'!

That is hope and Christian living and thinking is all about hope. Waiting for the Lord is all about hope. Hoping in the Lord is not a leap in the dark, it's seeing the light that comes through or being determined to pick up the first streak of light that pierces through. Hope makes us authentically Christians... fear strips us of it!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 1st TUESDAY

The Advent Task: Knowing God

First Tuesday in Advent: 1st December, 2015

IS 11: 1-10; Lk 10: 21-24

The task outlined today towards preparing for the Kingdom is knowing God. When we know God for real, our attitudes will be different. There will be no harm done to another in the presence of the Lord. Just because someone is different from me, I find a reason to hate that person or keep that person away from me - that is the tendency of the world today. It is a clear sign of people having moved far from the real knowledge of God. We have become too sophisticated to perceive the Lord, who is revealed precisely in simplicity. Let us grow to be children and we will get to know God!  

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

The feet of those who bring Good News

30th November, 2015: Remembering St. Andrew
Rom 10: 9-18; Mt 4: 18-22

St. Andrew has played a special role during the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Andrew as a disciple of Christ always had the role of bringing good news to persons... he brought the good news of having found Christ to Peter (Jn 1:41); along with Philip, he brought the Greeks to meet Jesus (Jn 12:22); and he brought that boy who gave the five loaves to feed the five thousand (Jn 6:9). Amidst all the opposition and threat, the apostles bore witness to his name: they were the beautiful feet which brought the good news to the world. 

Today Andrew is proposed as the patron of social network...because he used every opportunity to make Christ known to people and to bring people to Christ. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI described social network as the modern day pulpit and invited us to proclaim Christ not merely from the housetops but also from the laptops...and here we have a great role model for it. May we dedicate today every effort of ours to proclaim the Kingdom through the social network. May we dedicate the social network which offers us such a great promise, that it may forever be an instrument in the hands of God, to bring God's will to fulfillment. 

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 1ST SUNDAY

STANDING ON THE PROMISES OF THE LORD

29th November, 2015
Jer 33:14-16; 1 Thess 3:12 - 4:2; Lk 21: 25-28, 34-36

A fresh new liturgical year at hand! Let us begin to celebrate it. The first day of this liturgical year reminder from the Word is: we are standing on the promises of the Lord. Advent is a season of waiting, waiting on the Lord for the fulfillment of promises. Just as the people of God waited for the centuries, we are called to wait for the Lord. The world however is growing increasingly impatient. 

I am reminded of a documentary I viewed sometime back... of an 8 year old boy in Armenia, who was at school when a treacherous earth quake occurred. To the absolute dismay of the father of this boy who rushed to the school premises immediately,the school was nothing but rubbles, piles and piles of stones in a heap. But the father chose a spot and started removing the stones bit by bit...in spite of all the discouragements offered and despair thrown at him, he went on constantly doing it for the next 38 hours! After 38 hours of rummaging, suddenly he heard this voice from the rubble: 'see,didnt I tell you my father will surely not abandon us' and he was stunned to see his son with 12 others trapped under the debris.

The challenge is to remain with HOPE...that we are standing on the promises of the Lord, the Lord our integrity.

1. PROMISES

Promises give meaning to life, they add an element that is not yet but already. A promise to a child will get that child do anything. A promise to a youngster will motivate that youngster into action. A promise to an employee will draw the utmost from the situation. A promise to the polity will gain parties votes. Promise is something that inspires action. We begin with a promise, a promise of a whole year of the Lord's accompaniment. The first reading invites us  to a hope that the Lord is serious about fulfilling the Lord's promises.

2. STANDING

Stand with confidence before the Son of Man, says the Gospel today. We are standing - that takes three dispositions: One, that we are alert. We do not allow people to deceive us, or we do not permit the situation around us to have the better of us. We remain awake and perceive everything that is going on, picking up every sign that the Lord gives towards action. The second disposition, that we are ready and on the move because our liberation is at hand reminds the Gospel again. It is time that we see not only the history but the Lord of history in action, that we perceive the hand of God in things that are happening around us. Thirdly, that we are firm, strong and standing erect! That we are not overcome by fear or trepidation. We are standing, sure of our steps because we have a promise from the Lord and we need not be shaken.

3. THE LORD

The Lord our Integrity...it is the Lord who gives us these promises and we are sure that they will be fulfilled because we are referring to the Lord our integrity: Yehova Tsidkenu, the Righteous one. We have a sure foundation because it is the Lord who promises, the Lord who is Integrity, the Lord who is Righteousness. The Lord is faithful forever.

We are standing on the promises of the Lord; we have nothing to fear however dark and dreary the situation may seem. The Lord our integrity is constantly watching over us and waiting to fulfill all God's promises!