Alarming or Life-giving; Hyper-action or Inaction?

Last day in the Ordinary time of the Year

December 1, 2018: Revelations 22: 1-7;  Luke 21: 34-36

Behold I am coming soon! At times it annoys when I hear people go hysteric about this statement. It is not a statement to make every one panic, but a gentle reminder as to how one should live one's daily life. St.Paul understood this well and instructed the Thessalonians: "For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ...But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness" (1 Thess 5:2,4).

We are on the last day of the liturgical year, from tomorrow we begin a whole new cycle. Last day, last days, last chance and last moments... these are words with a bit of alarm inbuilt. Jesus does shake us up a little, warning us of things that will happen in the last days. Alarming yes, but at the same time life giving, says the Word today. 

These words mean that neither inaction nor hyper action is expected of us; neither panic nor drowsiness! It is not a call to live your life on pins and needles, anxious about the next moment; nor is it a call to live our life in mourning and bewailing for the lost moments. The call is to make the best of this moment and live the 'here and now' to the full, conscious and loving. That is the sense that the Gospel presents us: be vigilant at all times! Neither inaction, which is the product of lamentation of the past, nor hyper-action which is a frenetic preparation for an unknown future at the cost of the present, would help us says the Word today. 

If we are prepared, holding on to the Lord and living in perfect communion with the Lord, then we need not be alarmed, we can remain firm with our heads high, we can rest assured whatever time it be, our experience will only be life giving. When there are, or there have been, compromises in our way of life and our choices, then the alarm is natural and eventual.The secret is to live our lives as children of the light, calm and composed, but awake and vigilant!

Signs of the times...

Friday, 34th week in Ordinary time

November 30, 2018: Revelations 20: 1-4, 11- 21;  Lk 21: 29-33

One of the key terms insisted upon by the second Vatican Council is "signs of the times" and the Council itself tried its best to be true to the spirit of that term. The Council challenged the faithful and the church as a whole to learn to read the signs of the times and respond to it.

We think today that signs from the Lord are few and far between. The truth instead is, the signs abound: in our daily lives, through things that happen around us, through persons who live with us, those who live worthy lives, those who suffer for no cause of theirs, those who are oppressed, those who have scores and scores of woes to meet on a daily basis, through the  crisis we see in the nature around us, through the humanity that is pushed into a hue and cry that is so artificial and human made... there are signs aplenty, provided we are ready to perceive them.

Our responsibility is two fold: first to learn to gather these signs, as coming from the Lord! At times even the crises that come all against us will serve its purpose and have a whole lot of meaning, if we have this attitude towards gathering the signs from the Lord, from everything that is and happens around us. 

Secondly to act upon these signs, respond to them, regardless of the risks and the sacrifices that are involved. We are so negligent in this second part that we habituate ourselves to become blind to the signs that are around. We prefer to pacify ourselves saying, 'do not expect extraordinary signs' rather than say, 'be attentive to every sign and diligent in working on them'. 

Whether we gather them or not, respond to them or not, they are there! We would do well as true sons and daughters of the Reign, if we are present to them and through them strive to build the Reign here and now.  

Judgement: Our Choice!

Thursday, 34th week in Ordinary Time

November 29, 2018: Revelations 18: 1-2, 21-23, 19:1-3, 9A; Luke 21:20-28

Happy are those who are called to the wedding feast of the Lamb...the final banquet, the moment of redemption...the end of days, the judgment seat... these are the pictures that the Word paints before our eyes today. These are not some horror stories or shake-up narrations. They are logical ends towards which we are all journeying. 

In fact, it need not be always an end time phenomenon, instead it has to be an everyday experience...the judgment is a continuous happening and it is not entirely an act of the Lord; the choices that we make at any given point of time, at any moment of a given day, the choice of words, thoughts, actions, decisions...that is the judgment we bring upon ourselves (cf. Jn 3:18).

We are all called to the wedding feast, that is to unite with the Lord and enjoy the eternal bliss. But the choices we make on a daily basis, at a particular point of time, is our response and that decides whether we enter the banquet or not. The simple message is a challenge to make a choice, a choice for God. 

Amidst all the dreadful things that happen around, we are called to remain firm in the Lord. Amidst all the inexplicable evil around, we are called to side with the truth and fearlessly face the consequences. Amidst all the dark powers that seemingly dominate the scene, we are called to firmly believe that the victory and power belong to Our Lord!  

Hence, instead of yarning tales of suspense and horror, let us realise our responsibility in making right choices in our daily life, right choices of thoughts, words and deeds: Judgement is our choice, indeed!

Christ-ian Perseverance...Ready!?!

Wednesday, 34th week in Ordinary time

November 28, 2018: Revelations 15:1-4; Luke 21: 12-19

Perseverance in terms of targets and achievements in the world is, holding on endlessly. The same, when it comes to our relationship with God is, giving up limitlessly. It is to give up totally into the hands of God, regardless of the successes or failures, gains or losses, happiness or sadness, prosperity or misery! 

Faith is all about this giving up, giving up everything and walking with our hands in the hands of God. Indeed it's a challenging feat. Specially considering the fact that today there is a great pressure laid on people to hoard up things, keep striving to prove oneself, ensure one's career or well being in competition with each other...the times are difficult. 

It takes true faith and strong hope, to remain calm and unperturbed even amidst such tribulations. That is true perseverance. Imagine the scenario around you. Truth is heckled at globally, values are sidelined, rights are taken for granted and dignity is reserved only to those who can afford it. It seems like the plagues that we read of in the hands of those angels have been let loose on to humanity! What are you going to do?

Neither hyper-reaction nor frustration can help! Neither counter aggression nor silent witnessing will serve! Neither over confidence nor a sense of hopelessness can strengthen us. Yes, we need perseverance... but not that of the world, which advocates an aggressive, obsessive, success-centered, control seeking obstinacy; but a hopeful, transcendent, serene and child like perseverance, which is truly, Christ-ian perseverance. Are you ready for it?

The Harvest: Curiosity or Care to Change?

Tuesday, 34th week in Ordinary time

November 27, 2018: Revelations 14:14-19; Luke 21:5-11

Harvest is joyful but it involves sickles and winnowing chaff. Harvest is a welcome end but anyway it's an end.  Harvest is the end of a process of growth but it is a moment when one shall be judged to be gathered or to be thrown away! 

It is the same with faith... that too is an harvest.  We keep growing.  All absurdities and adversities notwithstanding, we grow but it is upto that moment of reckoning when we shall be judged worthy or not,  for  the king who has chosen us to belong to him. But we are prone to think of that moment as something unconnected to the here and the now, as if it is to happen from nowhere, as if it is a magical event to be expected with curiosity. 

When will these things happen?  We are more interested in knowing when certain things will happen and curious about predictions and premonitions,  than understanding what is the right thing to be done here and now, and make the right moves in life at the right time. Mistakenly we postpone the necessary and crucial transformations in life for an opportune time which sometimes does not come at all or it gets too late by the time they come by.  

The month of November insists on the urgency that is involved in personal conversion and community dedication to growth and maturity in faith. And specially this week leading us to the season of advent gives us a better understanding of the end time spirituality that we are called to live in these times: not with curiosity but with care to change!

Mindful of the short time that we have, we have a calling to live: live our lives to the full, here and now.

Holistic Humanity: Hand, Heart & Head

Monday, Last week in Ordinary time

November 26, 2018: Revelations 14: 1-5; Luke 21: 1-4.

We have begun the last week of the Ordinary time following the feast of Christ the King, and the Word this week is going to invite us to fasten our seat belts and gear up for the Reign, a call of the special season of Advent! It is like the account closing days of banks, as they say these days. Or like the 'assessment period' in the IT and the Outsourcing fields. The Word invites us to take stock of all that we have been reflecting through these long weeks of the Ordinary Season, before we begin a brand new liturgical season coming Sunday.

John speaks of his vision of paradise: how many faculties he enlists! He saw the vision, he heard the singing, names written on forehead... all of them put together - eyes, ears, mouth, forehead...imagine the head there! And the responsorial reminds us of another pair of faculties: clean hands and pure hearts...hand, heart and head -in short, the entire person is involved in entering into the dwelling place of God. 

The Gospel gives us an illustration of a person as such: whose entire self, with all faculties involved in thought, word and deed. The widow whom Jesus compliments is a model of someone who acts in total submission to the Lord, while her hand dropped those two copper coins, her heart and head were in unison - that is, she did, she never regretted, she never went back and mourned for the loss of the little that she had. However small you judge that act to be, she was integral in it: thinking, speaking and doing going so perfectly together - a holistic human person! 

If we wish to be part of the 144000 that John visualised in the Reign, we got to be holistic human persons. Thinking what is right, speaking what we think and daring to do what we say and think! In a world where lies abound, falsities fester and showbiz thrives, we are called to build up the kind that begets eternity: the holistic humanity!

CHRIST THE KING

One, True and Good

25th November, 2018: Solemnity of Christ the King

Daniel 7: 13-14; Revelations 1: 5-8; John 18: 33-37

Monarchy... Kingship...Royalty... though monarchy in its ancient form is almost obsolete in today's world and even the remnant societies that uphold monarchy have a newer interpretation of monarchy, the tendencies of the age old monarchy has not disappeared by any means. What do I mean?

Consider people who are at war with each other for power and supremacy! Consider leaders who have ruled all their lives but even at their ripe old age dissent from ceding their power to anyone else. Consider political leaders and parties who make their kith and kin their political heir, and thus make the whole state or the polity their property. Consider people who wield so much power wherever they are, that they do not tolerate even the slightest criticism, much less opposition! Are these not tendencies of monarchy? A post modern era such as today, looks with despise on any form of monarchy! And today we celebrate Christ as King! Are we outdated? Are we obsolete? Are we archaic? Are we irrelevant? 

Celebrating Christ as King is to show ourselves how different a king Jesus our Lord is and to show the world, how different governing people could be! 


Our King is One... with none as second or with no need to succession! The first reading presents a king who is eternal, without end to his reign! Christ needs to contend with no one, he is the indisputable king and we will do well to acknowledge that. At the same time there is no necessity for anyone to protect the sovereignty of Christ... there is no power greater than him, there is no authority higher than him and there is no other name more powerful than his! Christ and Christ alone rules and he rules without end!
One, True, Good are the metaphysical qualities of a being; in the Indian tradition they are the transcendent qualities of the Atman...yes, Jesus, is Lord! the Lord of Lords, the King of Kings, the One, the True, the Good who gives me the very sense of my being! Christ is my King not because he rules, but because he loves, he loves me royally. He is my King, the only king, the true king, the good king, the king of my heart!

Our King is True... it is to bear witness to the Truth that he came on earth and gave his life: this is his own testimony before Pilate in the Gospel today. He is king, but not of the kind which we find in this world...those which are selfish, power mongering and pleasure seeking, but selfless, servant minded and self giving; not fraudulent, corrupt and crooked but just, true and integral! 

Our King is Good... for he loves us and gives himself totally up for our sake. Unlike the monarchs who demand everything at the cost of anything, Jesus our Lord, demands nothing costing him everything, his life, his body, blood and even his divinity! As Jesus taught his disciples, the rulers of this world lord it over the others - they are arrogant, heartless, tyrannical, cruel and obsessed with power - it cannot be so among us (cf. Mt 20:25,26)... Jesus did not only say that, he lived that. The one who wants to rule, let him serve. What a loving king we have!  

The God of the Living

Saturday, 33rd week in Ordinary time

November 24, 2018: Revelations 11: 4-12; Luke 20: 27-40

The God of the living: that is how Jesus presents his God and Father, and our God and Father. Resurrection is the foundation of our conviction that our life is not merely made of the few years that we spend on this earth. Our life is part of the Eternal Stream, that is God and we have but a few years here on earth. We come from and we are meant for, a union that is eternal and all our efforts during this life has to be towards ensuring that union for ever. 

What would be the fall out if we had this truth right in front of our minds while we live? We would not unnecessarily fret to make ourselves comfortable at the cost of the other. We would not long to possess something or someone, leading to undue striving to control the other and manipulate situations. We would not harm others or harm the nature just because at present we would like to make more money or make life more easy. We would not calculate everything in terms of gain and profit and dividends and surplus.

Should we wait for a terrifying moment to repent and reset our values, if that moment has not come already? Jesus offers us a wonderful criterion: the criterion of Resurrection. Live as Resurrection-people; live as people of the Eternity; live as people who really believe that your life does not end here and now; live as people who belong to the God of the Living!

Sweet or Bitter - All for the Reign!

Friday, 33rd week in Ordinary time

November 23, 2018: Rev 10: 8-11; Lk 19: 45-48

Jesus was attractive; people rallied around him so willingly and readily. He was interesting to listen to; so many pharisees and scribes hung on to his lips. He was famous; the mere name drew not just crowds but even prominent persons like Zachaeus. He had charming ways; even Herod wanted to see him atleast once! All these were true only in as much as they all looked at Jesus from a distance. When Jesus got near...he turned demanding.

The people came to him and he challenged them to live a life of destitution, with no place to even lay their heads. The people listened to him and he called them whitewashed sepulchers, inviting them to true personal conversion. Individuals approached him and he challenged them to total reformation of their personal and public lives. The people led him with such celebration into the city of Jerusalem and he enters the Temple and drives out the vendors and money lenders.  

The Lord's promises are sweet, but when we take it to heart they are demanding. If we truly listen to the Word of God, we cannot remain the same forever, we would be challenged to change, to transform, to become more and more like the Lord himself. 

Yes, the Word may be sweet in the mouth; but for sure it will be bitter in the stomach, but only to churn out the unwanted elements and paving way towards the Reign. The Word heals us, nurtures us and prepares us to be people of the Reign!

The Right Weeping - Christian style

Thursday, 33rd week in Ordinary time 

November 22, 2018: Revelations 5:1-10; Luke 19:41-44

Weeping is Christ-ian too when it is done for the right reasons and in the right mode.  Jesus himself wept, it is said, once for his friend and the other time for Jerusalem... both that they may be saved in the Lord.

John weeps in the first reading today that there is no one to open the scroll.  Such was his eagerness to hear the Word and understand the will  of God.  Crying,  weeping, complaining for the right reasons is commendable. 

But the unfortunate fact is that we cry and weep for all wrong reasons!  We cry because we did not get what we wanted or we weep because we miss what we would have loved to have... In all such, what stands out is, me, my desires and my prospects.

Our minds have to transcend a self-centred understanding of reality, petty  materialistic outlook on life and childish worldly worries.  We need to fix our gaze on the things above... and rise above our basic living.  

How many of us truly understand or atleast strive to explore the real and deep purpose of our lives? Didn't the Lord instruct us: seek first the Reign of God, the rest shall be given unto you!

True Praises to the Lord is Total Offering

Presentation of Mary, our Blessed Mother

November 21, 2018: Revelations 4: 1-11; Luke 19: 11-28

In the first reading today, John impresses upon us how important and essential it is for us, as creatures of the Creator Almighty, to give praise to our Lord and King. Praising God - can never be done enough and it is always in want, in contrast to the boundless glory that the Lord possesses! The Word today distinguishes among three types of people who give praises to the Lord:

The first are the Psuedo Praisers: who praise the Lord with their tongues but are far away in spirit from the Lord. They are those who deceive themselves putting up a mere show of their allegiance to God, while in fact are all the while doing their own will. Wantonly, they make of themselves people unfit for the Reign.

The second are the Pointless Praisers: who think praising the Lord alone is enough to inherit the Reign. Their praising is pointless, in fact the Lord himself had declared: 'not all those who call me Lord Lord, will enter the Reign of God' (cf. Mt 7:21). Ultimately, they fall short of entering the Reign. 

The third are the Profound Praisers: who do not consider praising the Lord as a duty in itself. Their very words, actions and life gives praise to the Lord. Their witness leads, not only themselves, but even those around them to praise the Lord to the heights. They live their life to the full, and seeing their lives, people are inspired to give praises to their King and Lord. They do not praise the Lord with just words or gestures, but with their daily life! These are the People of the Reign, true and profound in their praise.

Mary, our Blessed Mother is of this third category - a person who praised the Lord in and through her life, a person who  learnt very early in life what truly godly life meant. Today, as we celebrate the memory of her presentation in the Temple, let us honour her for the total self giving into the hands of the Lord. She teaches us by example, that true praises to the Lord is total offering of oneself unto the Lord!

Cold or hot, closed or open?

Tuesday, 33rd week in Ordinary Time

November, 20, 2018: Revelation 3: 1-6,14-20; Luke 19:1-10

Choices and compromises make a great difference in Christian living;  what matters is not so much what we do as what we intend to. Our heart and our intentions matter much more than acts and results.  This is both an advantage and a disadvantage for the human heart.  

Advantage for those who are sincere with their efforts to remain true and dedicated to the Lord,  inspite of their shortfalls.  Disadvantage for those who create an aura around themselves as if  they are spiritual giants while there rest skeletons inside the cupboard conveniently covered off, but the Lord knows all and sees all.

Our innermost disposition is what truly decides who we really are! It is from these innermost dispositions that we make our choices. You cannot remain both dead and alive at the same time; hot and cold at the same time; or belonging and not belonging to the Lord at the same time! You have to make a choice and choices are all! 

Like Zacchaeus who not only changed from his old ways but made up even for the mistakes, for his wrong doings and every thing that made others' lives less happy, we are called everyday to make some drastic choices. The choice is ours - to keep to our hidden ways or to open up and let Jesus in! And once he comes, things cannot remain the same!

Let your choices be translated into acts of commitment. Acts of grandeur lacking true internal choices cannot bear the true lasting fruits that we long for. Choices matter: are you cold or hot,  your hearts closed or open?

Good but not good enough- See that?

Monday, 33rd week in Ordinary Time

November 19, 2018: Revelations 1:1-4, 2:1-5; Luke 18: 35-43

The Lord loves us whether or not we deserve it.  But the Lord is not merely mercy but justice too!  Beginning today we listen to the Lord of justice as we begin the week running up to the feast of Christ the King.

Today the Word presents to us a Lord who is demanding and perfect... who feels all God's children are good but some are not good enough! The question to me is, to which category I belong? I should be able to see and to understand if I am good enough or not!  

When we begin something new, we always do it with so much of good will and an abundance of spirit ... just imagine the day of your first communion, for some confirmation, for some others the day of their religious consecration or for others the day of their wedding! But in a short while the energy drains, the spirit goes faint and a mere good will becomes drastically insufficient. The reason: we are not attentive enough to note the initial changes that happen. We remain so insensitive to what is happening within us that we are caught unawares at a much crucial time. That is why the prayer today: "Lord grant that we may see again!" (Cf. Lk 18:41).

Staying in touch with the Lord keeps us in touch with ourselves, to constantly check our pride, insensitivities, arrogance, unforgiving attitude, judgmental tendencies, loose talks and compromises against true love: these are the blindnesses that set in gradually but drastically! We become so blind that we do not even realise what sad levels we reach. And it is the Lord, who alone can restore the original spirit within us by enabling us to see... empowering us to realise and restart... making us "see again!" 

We are reaching the end of this liturgical year... and it is time now that each of us make it our prayer: Lord, that I may see again... that is a special seeing, a seeing from God's point of view, a seeing with the scale of the just God, seeing with all my brothers and sisters in perspective,  seeing from the perspective of God, the fullness of all goodness! 

BLESSED

The Cry, the Answer and to Free!

2nd World day of the Poor: November 18, 2018
33rd Sunday in Ordinary time - Daniel 12: 1-3; Hebrew 10: 11-14,18; Mark 13: 24-32

The poor one cried and the Lord answered (Ps 34:6) - this is the verse the Holy Father gives us to reflect on, this 2nd World day of the Poor. We know the history of this day - how two years ago concluding the year of Mercy in 2016 Pope Francis instituted the 33rd Sunday, that is the Sunday prior to the Christ the King Sunday, as dedicated to the poor, as a compassionate solidarity and a prophetic challenge on the part of the universal people of God. Writing to orient us on this day, this year, the holy father has chosen the words of the Psalmist from Psalm 34 and gives us these three terms to fix our attention on: the cry, the answer and to free!

The Poor - is a dense term to understand. They are called the 'anawim' of Yahweh... the helpless who cry out to God. The hungry, the starving, the oppressed, the downtrodden, the voiceless, the deprived, the exploited, the unemployed, the despised, the suffering, the lonely, the homeless, the hopeless, the marginalised, the excluded, the detested... the list goes on. The poor are the apple of the eye of the Lord!

The Cry of the poor: 
Blessed are the poor, the Gospels proclaim. The reason is, because their cry finds the shortest route to the Lord's ears, for God is there right amidst them! The cry of the afflicted is a judgement pronounced on the world and the world today is so oblivious of it. When the blood of Abel cried out to the Lord, when the cry of the oppressed people in Egypt reached the ears of the Lord, the Lord came down with force on those who were the oppressors! Today the cry of the poor is rising everywhere and the world is incurring a judgement upon itself! Woe to us, if we do not hear that cry. Hearing that cry means, seeing their plight, feeling their pain and suffering their lot. It is in silence that we can listen...they are crying but the world is justifying itself in such loud noise that it refuses to hear the cry. Do not judge! Do not criticise! Do not moralise! Just remain silent, then you shall hear the cry... the groan, the mourn, the sound of the dry tears! Like the Eternal high priest who identifies with us, we are called to identify with everyone who is in pain or suffering today.

The Answer of the Lord:
The Lord answers the cry of the poor, as the Psalmist affirms because, the Lord suffers with the poor and knows their pain. We cannot be like those who stood beneath the cross when Jesus cried out to his Father and said, 'wait lets see if someone will come to help him'! We are called to be the Answer of the Lord - the Lord intends to answer through anyone around the one who cries out! Very listening is an answer, telling the person you are not alone. Understanding is an answer, making the person feel accepted. Solidarity is an answer, strengthening the hope of the person that things are bound to change for the better. Our loving attentiveness to the cries of the poor, is the primary answer from where a new world begins, where humanity is restored, where the Reign of God blossoms. Can we be so insensitive as to throw millions of millions procuring arms and ammunition while millions die of starvation, dump thousands of crores on lifeless statues while thousands die of malnutrition... even spending disproportionate billions building a Church,  lakhs on a flag mast or a grotto today, would come under the same insanity! Is this the answer that the Lord intends today? The hour is near, dear friends. Let us not be asleep; let us awaken and act in the name of the Lord.

To Free the Poor:
The psalmist continues to say that the Lord heard the poor and 'freed' them! Yes, poverty is not just a case; poverty is caused! It is caused by selfishness, pride, greed, injustice, insensitivity, indifference and heartlessness. The poor continuously cry out and we are called to free them from the oppression - if we do not feel that call, we are part of the oppressors! Much before we think of freeing the oppressed, the poor and the suffering from their troubles and struggles, we need to first decide to free them from the judgments we pass on them in our hearts, the insensitive branding that the world imposes on them, the inhuman stance that today's development takes against them. The helpless are powerful, because they have the Lord on their side. Those who are against them have the Lord against them and let us beware! The war is already waging, the first reading tells us today, it is high time we choose, on whose side we are! 

The Poor... Blessed are we if we are poor... Woe to me, if there are poor because of me! I am close to the Lord if I hear the cry of the poor; I belong to the Lord if I answer those cries; and I belong to the Reign when I resolve to set them free! 

For the poor one cried and the Lord heard and set the person free!

Goodness to strangers - How Strange!

Saturday, 32nd week in Ordinary Time

November 17, 2018: 3 John 5-8; Luke 18: 1-8

The first reading today speaks of Godliness, as being good to strangers. Doesn't that sound strange in today's context. People find being good to the known, already a little too tedious. But among the people of God in the Old Testament, taking care of strangers, widows and the orphans was a special commission given to them by God. And that was an experiential learning on the part of the people who were themselves strangers, orphans and sojourners.

Unfortunately the population of the kind that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel - those who do neither fear God nor respect people - is on the rise and with no qualms of conscience. Religious or Irreligious, educated or uneducated, male or female ...nothing serves an exception to this condition. The generation is becoming more and more insensitive. 

Killing for a pittance, killing for honour, killing for payment, killing for religion, killing for profits, killing for property, killing for convenience, killing even in the name of God... what is humanity going towards? With all these, speaking of being good to strangers - how strange! 

The term stranger or foreigner was indicative of every one in need, people in insecure circumstances. Today we have every category you can ever think of within this definition of the people in need. The exploited, the immigrants, the refugees, the unemployed and the homeless: today we have a responsibility towards this part of humanity. Pope Francis leads us by example in this expression of true Christian love! But including him, all those who think in this manner are considered abnormal, unacceptable and strange... better be ready to be considered strange - that's being truly Christian!

Love, and do what you wish!

Friday, 32nd week in Ordinary Time

November 16, 2018: 2 John 4-9; Luke 17: 26-37

Looking at the bizarre developments in the world, the political situations across the globe, the turmoils that are created and sustained, the controversies that are cooked up and blown out of proportions, enmity that is cultivated and hatred that is stabilised, one cannot but think of the proximity of the end of times! It is natural that these days, people are constantly looking out for such things - the armageddon, the end of the world, the third world war, the second coming etc. At times they query as to what would be the best way to prepare themselves towards these phenomena. The answer is so simple... go on living your Christian life to the full. And how do you live the Christian life to the full: Love!

Love! That is no new teaching. It is the summary of all teachings of Christ. There is almost nothing you can do when the end comes, whenever it comes! There is nothing special that you are expected to do too, that is why the time is not announced earlier. 

Live your daily life in love and peace, encounter people, share your joys, reduce misunderstandings, increase genuine relationships, laugh with those who laugh and weep with those who weep, forgive and accept, in short, just LOVE! 

Take time to simplify things  and do not insist on complicating them in the name of anything like traditions, protocol and customs. Be transparent in your dealings and do not unduly try to please someone for its own sake! Be good, be loving and be truthful; be caring, be selfless and be childlike, in short, just LOVE!

St. Augustine's words are a very pertinent lesson: love, and do what you wish! Because true love is to wish the good of the other! Once you wish the good of the other, all that you need to do is go on and live... Love and keep living!

The Reign of Brothers and Sisters

Thursday, 32nd week in Ordinary Time

November 15, 2018: Philemon 7-20; Luke 17: 20-25

The Reign of God is among you, reminds Jesus. This has been a revolutionary teaching of the Lord for ages; it has incited liberation movements and over thrown some inhuman systems. Today the reminder returns - to make present, to feel the presence and to accept the obligation presented to us by the Reign of God in our day to day life. 

It is true. The Reign of God is not merely some sort of a regime to be imported into an already existing system, it is a mentality, a way of life, a culture to be nurtured and nourished into full growth from amidst us. Our daily life, our normal relationships, our outlook on others, our convictions towards true humanity - that is truly the Reign of God. More than an expectation, Reign of God is a responsibility. 

One of the responsibilities of the Reign is to look at everyone as brothers and sisters and not in terms of subject or as objects. Even if it is a servant or a so-called slave, look at the person, accept the inherent dignity of the person and give them their due without grudging. Let go of divisive mentalities and competitive spirits, look at everyone as a co-pilgrim on this journey called life.

There are moments when one gives and others, when one receives. One is not better than the other; both are part of the same process. No giver is always a giver; one shall find oneself at the receiving end at some point of time, provided he or she is ready to see!

The Reign of God is here, begin to feel it, work to make it present and spread it in spirit through everything you are involved in.

Taking God for granted!?!

Wednesday, 32nd week in Ordinary time

November 14, 2018: Titus 3:1-7; Luke 17:11-19

I remember once listening to one of our beloved elderly Salesians, a Centenarian (incidentally he turned 101 three days ago). Speaking on the eve of his 97th  birthday, he told us, "you will not understand the difficulty of living this old... everything, every little thing is difficult. Even putting on a shirt or a pant is such an herculean task. With the missing balance, even using a toilet or washing the face is such a problematic affair!" As he went on, I felt so guilty for the number of things I have been taking for granted on a daily basis! 

We have today a typical event in the Gospel where there are the majority who take things for granted, but that one spiritually sensitive person who returns to the Lord to tell him, that it really made a difference what the Lord had done to him. 

This quality of not taking God for granted has to come from, not taking people around me for granted. That is what the first reading tells us. If the latter does not happen, the former will only be an external show, an hypocrisy. Let us recognise persons, accept persons, appreciate them and affirm their presence, thank God for them, and take care of them. 

We need to be not only sheep of the Divine Shepherd, but also His hands and legs in reaching out to the needy. However, it is easy and pleasant to proclaim that the Lord is my shepherd (as we do in the responsorial today), but to recognise it truly in concrete terms and submit to the shepherding of the Lord, it is not an easy task. Let us resolve never to take God for granted, or each other for granted!

My real worth: where do I get it from?

Tuesday, 32nd week in Ordinary time

November 13, 2018: Titus 2:1-8, 11-14; Luke 17: 7-10

Today there is so much spoken of self mastery, self actualisation and self worth! Where does one's real worth come from? From merely your age or the social status that is offered to you or from the great successes that you parade to the world? From what you possess as wealth and pass on as inheritance? From what others speak of you and what you project to others about yourself? As a person, your true worth comes from within you, instructs the Word today. 

Self worth comes from within, meaning, each of us understands what one is called to, what one's commission is and lives it in his or her daily life, without making a mess out of it. One thing is, not to understand what we are called to, which is already bad enough. But it is altogether another thing that we do not want to know or understand it, just to have our own way. That is a dangerous proposition, very harmful for oneself and for others!

At times we do a little that we do, and go about trumpeting it all around. Worse still some times we do not do anything much but go around building it up as if we have moved mountains. And the worst of all is doing everything that we do, merely to be noticed and praised and given the social recognition that I am an important person in the vicinity. 

Christian life is all about living the essential goodness that we have within us, thanks to the very fact that we are children of God and never expecting to be lauded for what we do, because what we do is what we have to do! Jesus puts it so plainly in today's Gospel: we are merely humble servants; we do just what we ought to (cf. Lk 17:10). 

Leading, Leading astray and Leading together

Monday,  32nd week in Ordinary Time

November 12, 2018: Titus 1:1-9; Luke 17:4-11

The Word speaks of three aspects of leadership in a community...

First is leading,  leading after the heart of God,  being inspired by the Holy Spirit and guided by teachings of the Lord. When a person involves in such a mission, leading one's brothers and sisters in the Spirit, there will be loads of opposition but the person will find oneself so fearless! That is the amazing sign... oppositions, plotting against, fault finding, false accusations - nothing will ever shake the person, because the person is in the hands of the Lord.

Second is leading astray,  where the evil one is active at play.  That has been the quality of the evil one,  right from the beginning of humanity. Temptor, as the evil one is identified, uses people under influence to draw others to evil and against good. But there will be no signs of evil around, everything will seem so practical, pragmatic and acceptable but the evil resides somewhere in the corner, leading us astray.

The third is leading the community together to unity,  harmony and loving understanding.  One of the most important tool in this regard would be forgiveness.  No community or family can be built without daily and unfailing forgiveness. At times we get so caught up with doing right and standing for the right that we forget that forgiving and marching ahead is much more important, without which we shall be sitting in judgement on each other already here!

Everything seems complicated and so difficult. But when there is faith, that is when there is the assurance that we are walking with the Lord, we shall sail through. All that we need to do is pray as the Gospel teaches us today: Lord, increase our faith!

WHAT TYPE IS YOUR GIVING?

To gain, to get or... ?

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time: 11th November, 2018

1 Kings 17: 10-16; Hebrews 9: 24-28; Mark 12: 38-44

The widow at the gates of Sidon, the widow in the Temple of Jerusalem and God who gave God's only son as a sacrifice are given to us as models of giving, in today's Word. Giving is one act that can be done out of many a kind of motivation. Not all giving are of the same kind or type or degree! Analysing the models presented to us, we are called to reflect on our type of giving... reflect along and find out at the depth of your heart, what type is your giving!

Giving to Gain: 
There is a lot of giving that is going on today. There are people or agencies or corporates who give even tons of money, but they are particular about what they stand to gain. They calculate the gain and then proceed to give: it could be a tax exemption, or a favour in return, or an end to achieve, or a popularity to earn! But apparently it is seen to be an act of generosity, an act of great magnanimity! But the hook is attached to the indirect returns - that's a gain.

However big and enormous this giving is, it would not be truly giving; it is in the final analysis, a getting, a begging, a receiving, a business, a gain! At times when we give, however small it is,  from our time or energy or effort, if we are particular about our calculations of gain, our plots of selfishness, then our giving has no value in itself, its value is merely what we have gained. 

Giving to Get: 
This is the safest form of giving, where one is sure what one gives is not merely thrown in the air but it will return. I do a favour to someone expecting a favour in return; I be nice to someone expecting the person to be nice to me in return; I claim to love someone with the expectation that i will be loved in return! This is so direct - giving, inorder to get! 

Though it is not about gain or profit or expecting a glorious image of oneself, this is a plain give and take, a barter mentality. There is no giving actually involved in here! It is an investment technique and when the plan fails people cry, shout, curse, claim, fight, sue, and make all noises possible! Forget giving, this is simply investing.

Giving to Give: 
This is truly divine, truly Christ-ian! I give, because I find fulfillment in giving. I don't stand any chance of getting it back or I don't think anyone else will ever know, but I give, I give whole heartedly, of my time, my effort, my energy, my concern, my resources, because it is in giving that I find the true meaning of my life. During the last week Jesus instructed us, when you invite people to feasts, invite the poor, the maimed, those on the streets...reason, simple: they cannot invite you in return!

God gave God's only Son because God loved the world to that extent; it was an expression of God's love, not an expectation of the same in return! Jesus gave his life, his body and his blood, and what did he expect in return? This is true GIVING... giving after God's heart, giving after Christ's mind.

Just become aware of some of the phrases we hear (or sometimes say):

     I am doing all this for him or for her or for them, what am I going to get in return? 

     Oh, I did all these to you, and is this how you respond?

     Is it safe to give this, or do this, for this particular person, will it come back?

     I did this, with so much of effort and money, and they don't even thank me in public!

These kinds of statements are candid indicatives of 'giving' that is not after the heart of our beloved Lord and Saviour. Because with the Lord we are called to give without measure. Freely freely you have received, freely freely give! Here the giving is not to gain, not to get it back; it is just to give, and nothing more!

Wealth - Handle it with care!

Saturday, 31st week in Ordinary time

November 10, 2018: Philippians 4: 10-19; Luke 16: 9-15

Wealth: is it good or bad? Money and God...won't they go together? Then how do we ask God for wealth and consider prosperity as a blessing from God? The readings today speak to us about the right attitude to take towards wealth.

1. Wealth is given.

It is a gift and should be treated as such. We are given and it should fill us with gratitude and not arrogance. If it is given it can leave us anytime, and therefore a bit of detachment from it is safe!

2. Wealth is given to be given.

It is never given for yourself...you are a custodian of what is with you. You possessing the wealth is a blessing; the wealth possessing you is a curse, beware! I have seen persons around who, as soon as something substantial arrives, start planning the various beneficiaries and due recipients! What a blessed attitude!

3. Wealth is given to be given to those who cannot give.

The only purpose  wealth is used today, apart from fulfilment of needs, is to make more wealth. It is a sickening tendency that is the cause of the growing selfishness, cruel exploitation and demeaning inhumanities. Wealth for its own sake is a sickness, a gruesome sickness! 

Wealth and power are good as long as they are used as instruments for good. When they begin to use the persons dehumanisation begins! God sees the heart, says the Gospel; and everyone will see a heart that is filled with God!

The Temple that we are!

The Solemnity of the Dedication of Lateran Basilica

November 9, 2018: Ezekiel 47: 1-2,8-9,12 (or) 1 Corinthians 3: 9c-11,16-17; John 2:13-22

The dedication of the Basilica of St John at the Lateran gives us a great opportunity to reflect on the decadence of the divinity that resides within humanity. But before go to discuss that, let us say a word on the Basilica itself.

The Basilica and the feast: 
The feast that we celebrate today is the remembrance of the dedication (on 9th, Nov, 324 AD) of the Basilica that stands on the property which was called 'Lateran' because it belonged to that family but acquired and given by Emperor Constantine to the Church earlier. The Church which was built was dedicated to the two great Johns of the Gospel: John the Baptist and John the Evangelist! This Basilica is one of the so-called Four Major Basilicas of Rome (the other three being those of St. Peter, Mary Major and St. Paul outside the walls). There is yet another importance attached to this Basilica because this is the Cathedral, that is the Official seat of the Bishop of Rome, that is none other than the Holy Father himself. Hence this is called the Papal Cathedral or the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, and not the all-famous Basilica of St. Peter at the Vatican! 

We are the Temple: 
The Word speaks to us of the Temple today. Temple of the Lord. Temple of the living God. Temple where lives God. That temple you are! And it is from here the Lord wants his glory to be spread far and wide, from the temple of our selves, from the altars of our daily struggles and sacrifices. The Lord's zeal for the temple flairs up today and that temple is not the structure that stands in places, but the persons that we are. 

Such a sanctuary, filled with such extraordinary truths is made into a robbers den: a place where all evil resides; and a market place: where everything goes on except what is sacred! Exploitation of persons, decadence of moral dignity, human trafficking, sexual aberrations, killing in the name of god, violating the rights of the other, scheming to wipe out the races of people, keeping quiet at the face of blatant inhumanity that is perpetrated at large, buying and selling human labour without an iota of human respect, the swelling of the moneyed and the suffering of the exploited, the arrogance of the affluent and the insensitivity towards the downtrodden, the thousands and thousands of lives of the poor over whose graves walks the so called development today... these are the crimes against which the Lord would make a whip!

Cleansing the temple, the invitation that Lord has is fundamentally to realise the divinity that resides within us and the dignity that arises from the fact and to understand that we are a blessing to many, as Ezekiel points out about the waters that flow from beneath the Temple which makes fertile every land that it flows into. In simple words, we are called to be persons worthy of the Lord, communities worthy of our faith and societies worthy of the sacredness of the humanity.