ஏப்ரல் 10: மேலிருந்து...

நம் வாழ்வை புரிந்துகொள்ள ஒரு கண்ணோட்டம்!

நம் வாழ்வு, அதன் பொருள், நமது தேர்வுகள், நமது தெளிவுகள், நமது அழைப்பு, உண்மையான நமது கடமை... இப்படிஎல்லாம் சிந்தித்ததுண்டா? சிந்தித்து பாருங்கள். நானும் வாழ்ந்தேன் இருந்தேன் என்று இருப்பதற்காகவா இறைவன் நம் ஒவ்வொருவரையும் தனித்தன்மையோடு தனித்திறன்களோடு, இத்தனை பொருளோடு படைத்துள்ளார்? சரி தனித்தன்மைகள் திறமைகள் என நான் எனக்காக மட்டுமே வாழ்ந்து மரிக்கவா இத்தனை அழகான அர்த்தமுள்ள உறவுகளை கொடுத்துள்ளார்? துன்பங்கள் தொல்லைகள் என்று இருந்தாலும் வாழ்வில் ஒரு பொருளும், ஆழமும் இருக்கத்தானே செய்கிறது! அப்படியானால் இதை எப்படி புரிந்துக்கொள்வது...

அதற்க்கு தான் இன்றைய வார்த்தை மிக அழகானதொரு பதில் தருகின்றது. அந்த முதற்கிறிஸ்தவர்களை பாருங்கள்... ஒரே மனமும் ஒரே உள்ளமும் கொண்டவர்களாய் வாழ்ந்தார்கள் என்கிறது இறைவார்த்தை... உறவே நம் வாழ்வுக்கு உண்மை பொருளை தரக்கூடியது! உறவுகளே நம் வாழ்வை கிறிஸ்தவ வாழ்வாய் மாற்றக்கூடியது...

இதை நான் குறும்போதே... இந்த உறவுகளில் உள்ள சிக்கல்கள், பிரச்சனைகள், உரசல்கள் இவை யாவும் நமது மனக்கண்முன் வர நேரிடும்... இந்த உறவுகள் அல்லவா வாழ்க்கையை கடினமாக்கிவிடுகின்றன என்று நம்மக்கு தோன்றும். ஆனால்...இதை தான் கிறிஸ்து நமக்கு விளக்குகிறார்...இந்த உறவுகள், நம் வாழ்வு, நம் எண்ணங்கள், நமது கனவுகள்... இவை எல்லாமே எப்போது பொருள் பெரும் எனின், அவற்றை நாம் மேலிருந்து கண்டு பொருள் கொள்ளும்போது மட்டுமே!

மேலிருந்து கண்டு பொருள்கொள்ளுதல் என்பதே கிறிஸ்துவின் கண்ணோட்டம்... அதாவது இறைவன் நம்மிடம் என்ன எதிர்பார்க்கிறார் என்று உணர்ந்து வாழ்வது. நம் வாழ்வை மேலிருந்து புரிந்துகொண்டோமென்றால், நம் உறவுகளை மேலிருந்து புரிந்து கொண்டோமென்றால், சுயநலம், தற்பெருமை, ஒடுக்குமுறை, சுரண்டல்கள், ஏய்ப்புக்கள், ஏமாற்றுக்கள், அநீதிகள், இவை எதுவும் இருக்காது. அன்பு, பொறுமை, விட்டுக்கொடுத்தல், தியாகம், ஒற்றுமை, இனிமை, மகிழ்ச்சி, பூரிப்பு... இவற்றை கேட்கும் போதே எவ்வளவு அழகாயுள்ளது... இதுவே மேலிருந்து கண்டு பொருள் கொண்டு வாழும் முறை...  முயற்சிப்போமா? இதுவே இறையரசின் தொடக்கமும் கூட... சிந்தியுங்கள்...

FROM ABOVE - A Perspective for Life

Tuesday, 2nd week of Eastertide

April 10, 2018: Acts 4: 32-37; Jn 3: 7B-15

The first Chrsitian Community gives us a challenging example today, a prophetic witness! Just imagine that to be the state of our parish communities, or our basic christian communities...or even the Religious Communities of Consecrated life... can this model be emulated today? It is easy to brush it aside, calling it an outdated model, or an impractical ideal, or a time proven failure! But the challenge remains.

Jesus provides the key to the challenge: live your life as if from above. We have received our life and everything in life as a gift from above. And when it is time for us to report back from where we come, we will go without anything in our hands. When we see things from above then, we would laugh at our folly as does the Lord now from heaven (see Ps 2:4). Just look at your life, even as you live it today, a little from above! You will understand how foolish we can be... with our attachments and avarice, jealousy and treachery, and every other inhumanity for the sake of things that do not matter at all!

The Holy Father has presented us with an exhortation today - exactly in these lines... to look at our life from above, from the point of view of the one who has given us the gift of life. If only we have the capacity to remain close to God in every way, how beautiful our life would be - is that not really the Reign of God!

The key is: live life as from above. Learn to look at life from above!

Gaudete et Exsultate - Rejoice and be Glad!

9th April, 2018: Holy Father Pope Francis' Third Apostolic Exhortation

Gaudete et Exsultate... Rejoice and Be Glad in the call that you have received from the Lord and live that call to the full, the call to belong to God and to live that belongingness to the full - that we call holiness. This in short is the message of the Holy Father in the just released Apostolic Exhortation.

Rejoice! - this call from the Holy Father follows his two preceding Exhortations - the Joy of the Gospel and the Joy of Love. In fact, some expected that the Holy Father would clarify some of the controversies created by certain quarters after his previous Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia. But the Holy Father as a true pastor has stayed clear of all polemics and spoken his heart out to his children, calling their attention to the all important and the original call of human persons: to resemble our Creator, because we are made in God's image and likeness. The Holy Father reminds us that it is not merely a wish of the Lord, but an expressed invitation to holiness - the Lord had been calling humanity right from Abraham to 'walk with God and be blameless'!

The Exhortation reckons itself further attractive because it is not too long - just 177 paragraphs and all of them short and precise. The language is simple and straight forward, making the document clear and understandable to everyone who intends to read it. A detailed elaboration and discussion of the document will surely begin in no time, but here, I intend to share just a clue as to what to look out for, as one may begin to read this reflection from the Holy Father.

1. A Reminder to our Original Call

The Call to Holiness is as old as humanity, says the Word of God. Right in our creation we were created with the potential to be holy, to grow holy and remain holy. The Lord has reminded us time and again. This Exhortation is another reminder from the Chief Shepherd to keep to our original path!

2. Beware of the Distractions

As we pursue this call, we can easily be distracted, either getting fixed to one way of thinking or a certain way of doing things in life. The Exhortation invites us to avoid absolutising anything or relativising anything - the call is to stay attentive to the way you are called to live your holiness. Neither a frenetic activity devoid of God nor a psuedo piety devoid of 'the other', can take us all the way. I was tempted to read those lines in Indian terms - we would do good to resist the temptation to absolutise either gnana marg or karma marg in itself, it would not take us anywhere close to God.

3. Learn from the Master

Jesus' life and teaching while on earth, has been a great model set for us. He was someone who chose to be against the flow - when they thought in terms of law and duty, he spoke of love and its beauty; when they feared breaking commandments, he was giving them new ones! It is not in the amount of things you do or accomplish, not in the number of sacrifices you offer to the Lord that you are saved, but in the measure you are able to unite yourself in heart, mind and soul to the Creator and translate the Creator's Will into your daily life: that is holiness!

4. There are already Signs all over

Holiness, as we often think, is not a far cry! It is all around us. There have been people living before us and with us, who have beheld this spark of the divine within them and our call is to follow suit. As we read these lines we can almost hear the voice of Pope Francis yelling into our ears - come on Christian! Pull up! Stay firm! Get up! and Keep Walking towards that holiness you are called to. Perseverance, patience, meekness, joy, humour, courage, sense of belonging to each other and a personal relationship with the Lord - these are the perfect correctives that the Holy Father proposes to the times now.

5. Keep fighting with a Smile

The Holy Father also observes the need to be vigilant against the tendencies that can make us lose our vision...yes, our vision has to be strengthened by our recourse to discernment - knowing what is happening around, understanding all the implications and choosing with calmness and serenity, things that are difficult but meaningful, tough but just, demanding but life-giving. Let our choice be for God and God's will, we shall be well on our way towards holiness.

Holiness is not merely a crown to be expected at the end of our race, but it is the way we conduct ourselves at every step of it. God bless our Holy Father!