Preoccupation for the Flock

WORD 2day: Wednesday after Ascension 

June 1, 2022: Acts 20: 28-38; John 17: 11b-19

The readings today present to us the preoccupation that Jesus and St.Paul have for the flock that they leave behind, as St. Paul sets off to Jerusalem and Jesus contemplates returning to his Father! The total dedication that both of them had towards those entrusted to them is known to us and it is best expressed in the phrase that St. Paul uses quoting his Master: it is more blessed to give than to receive! Here it is not only about giving or getting, it is about being preoccupied with the good of each other, in the flock. Who cares about whom!

Keeping the faith, being true to the message of the Lord, persevering in the tradition in which one is brought up, not letting oneself be swayed by newer teachings and fancier presentations...these are the preoccupations that are expressed here and proposed to us. These concerns prompt to us two important qualities that are necessary: Spiritual Sincerity and Constant Discernment.

Spiritual Sincerity refers to the openness we have towards the constant messages and challenges from the Lord, which might sometimes and in fact, many times call for a change, a renewal a critical upgrade. Constant Discernment refers to the diligence with which one holds on to the traditional faith and way of life, handed down in time, in the face of so-called modernisation and advancements.    

The times today are marked by a certain fickle minded hopping from tradition to tradition in the name of "search" for the truth and reckless trial-and-error attempts of innumerable sects and factions. If they are spiritually sincere and discerned with rigour, well and good. But if they come from an unfounded mind and a lack of persevering dedication, they are the dangers that Paul and Jesus warn us against.  Each of us is called to exercise care, over ourselves to begins with and over the community, the flock to which we belong!

Redefining Chosenness!

THE WORD AND THE FEAST

May 31, 2022: The Feast of Visitation 
Zephaniah 3: 14-18 (or) Romans 12: 9-16; Luke 1: 39-56

Mary visits Elizabeth... a Biblical event that may apparently look simple, but remains a redefining moment in the history of Christian faith. We say history of Christian faith, because it redefines it from the roots - that is from the hebrew faith conviction of being the chosen people of God. The fact that they were the 'chosen people' was very dear to the Jews, and it continues to be, they will never give up on that identity of theirs! 

The Old Testament bears examples to this, as could be cited in one of today's alternative first readings, the one from Zepahniah. They were filled with a blessed joy, a holy pride and a splendid self-image, because of their chosen-ness. But their idea of chosenness was constantly challenge from the time, the Christ-event began within that faith tradition, for the sake of the whole humanity. 

In the feast that we celebrate today, we see that Mary, the chosen Mother of God, topples this order and redefines 'chosen-ness'; she rushes to be of service to Elizabeth and sings of the Glory of God, underlining her unworthiness, inspite of which God had chosen her! To be chosen is to be of service; to be of service to others is a sign of being chosen! 

Truly blessed joy is necessarily complemented with a compassionate sensitivity to the other; the holy pride is replaced with a humble gratitude to God; and the resplendent self-image is challenged by a realisation of the great things that the Lord has done, making oneself a sign, a bearer, an instrument of God's glory! 

We can foresee, in the act of Mary going out to serve Elizabeth, the mind of Christ - a mind of servant leadership, sensitive companionship and selfless stewardship.The attitude of Mary manifested here and other places such as the Cana where she reached out, and after resurrection when she stayed with the apostles to strengthen them... was reflected in her son's life - he too reached out to the sick, to the so-called sinners, to the suffering, to the berieved, to the downtrodden, to the marginalised... probably, or may be even certainly, he was schooled at the hands of his mother. And that is how he learnt to redefine, his own chosenness! 

Our blessed mother challenges us today, to redefine our chosenness: first of all, we should feel convinced of our chosenness; secondly, we need to learn that our chosenness is not for ourselves but for others; and thirdly, to be chosen is to be of service and to be of service is the sign of being chosen! 

Disciples of the Lord who has conquered the world

WORD 2day: Monday after Ascension 

May 30, 2022: Acts 19:1-8; John 16: 29-33

Take courage, I have conquered  the world, declares Jesus! With Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father (cf Eph 1:20), the apostles and the early Church, found a great power in their witness and in their proclamation. The gift of the Holy Spirit was an absolute boost to the faith community, and their faith and its expressions reach a totally different level with the coming of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of the Lord is the Spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline (cf. 2 Tim 1:7) and that is what the Lord fills us with. We are the temple of this Spirit and the Spirit dwells in us. At times we live like sleeping giants, with the Spirit stifled to be dormant within us. The days that follow are days in preparation towards the feast of Pentecost: a reminder of the Spirit that we are all gifted with; a challenge to surrender to the Spirit and become active agents of the Spirit.

Let us thank God that we are not in a position to say, "we have never even heard that there is a holy spirit" ( Acts 19:2). However, let us become aware of the power that the Spirit brings to our life and our faith. With the Spirit, and only with the Spirit, can we be true disciples of the Lord who has conquered the world!

Jesus the Christ - the name above all names

WORD 2day: Saturday before the Ascension Sunday

May 28, 2022: Acts 18: 23-28; John 16:23-28

Jesus was the name and Christ was a faith experience! Jesus, the Christ is no syntax error! Today we encounter Apollos, another contemporary preacher with Paul. It looks like there were some little misgivings in the Acts of the Apostles between the followers of Paul and followers of Apollos. But Paul makes no notice of such bickerings. Another great lesson we have is Priscilla and Aquilla instructing Apollos in the right doctrines! The role of the laity in the formation of the apostolic ministers comes out strongly...all of this to make people understand, Jesus was the Christ!

Jesus in the Gospel seems to harp on the same point too: anything you ask the Father in my NAME, my Father shall give you. He seems to say, you have a direct hotline with the Father through me, because I am the Christ. As Acts so clearly says in another place (4:12) that there is no other name given in all the earth by which one could be saved! It is Jesus, because Jesus is the Christ, Jesus is the one anointed and set apart for our salvation! 

Having that singular name of salvation, should not make us haughty as if we have the monopoly over that name, but it should make us humble in questioning our daily lives and priorities. Are we living worthy of that name? It is certainly not an opportunity to judge the "other" but a reminder of the gratitude that should fill our hearts for the privilege given us.

Let us ask a question to ourselves, Is Jesus my Christ?

If you instantly and very easily said 'yes', repeat that question to yourself looking closely at your values and attitudes, priorities and choices of daily life: Is Jesus really my Christ?

The Assurances of the Lord

WORD 2day: Friday, 6th week in Easter time

May 27, 2022: Acts 18: 9-18; John 16: 20-23

Today's readings have two of the most repeated and most affirmed promises of the Lord: Do not be afraid, for I am with you (Acts 18:9,10) and Your sorrow will turn into joy (Jn 16:20). For both these, the provision given is: go on speaking and endure the griefs. Though what is expected of us: that is to go on speaking and to endure suffering, might seem a bit too demanding, the consequence of it justifies everything! The promised presence of the Lord and the promised joy in the Lord are incomparably filled with assurances that can brighten up our todays and our tomorrows.

We are called to claim these promises in our daily life and more importantly, we are called to be the fulfilment of these promises for those around us who are needy, those who are suffering, those who are broken hearted, those who are troubled in spirit. The assurances of the Lord, are certainly for us, but for the sake of taking it forward to the others. That is how we become people of God, apostles of Christ, people sent by the Lord.

The ascension of the Lord which we intend to celebrate this weekend carries precisely this message for us: the continued and unceasing presence of the Risen Lord, more often than not, in the form of our presence with the others.

Let the Spirit help us today to feel the presence of the Lord with each of us and lead us to be the presence of the Lord for everyone we encounter today.

To leave - a missionary challenge!

WORD 2day: Thursday, 6th week in Easter time

May 26, 2022: Acts 18: 1-8; John 16: 16-20

Paul leaves; he leaves Athens for Corinth, he leaves the Jews for the Gentiles. 

Jesus leaves; he leaves his earthly life and his friends (disciples) and prepares to go to his Father and our Father! 

They were able to leave because their eyes were fixed on the mission that was entrusted to them: there was nothing that came in between, neither success nor failure, neither helps nor hindrances, neither pains nor pleasures - nothing could keep them back from where they were bound to.

There is yet another point that the readings speak of, in continuation: whenever they left something, something greater awaited. Christ left his worldly stint, to remain with the Father and thus with us for ever, to the end of ages. And Paul leaves place after place, and everywhere there are more and more people being touched by the Lord and won over for the Lord.

Leaving behind is not an easy task. The most challenging of all 'leaving behind' is to leave behind one's own desires and dreams, personal plans and projects, one's loves and longings! At times, if we have to witness to the Lord and the Gospel that the Lord wants us to announce, there is no other choice but to leave. To leave, it is indeed a missionary challenge!

In him!

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 6th week in Easter time

May 25, 2022 - Acts 17: 15, 22 - 18:1; John 16: 12-15

In Him we live, move and have our being (Acts 17:28), is one of the most expressive faith statements of St. Paul. Paul had the grace of a very special insight into understanding Jesus' mind. Jesus in the Gospel today says, the Counselor, the Holy Spirit will get everything from him and make it known to the believer! "Get from him" would mean 'get from the Father', since Father and the Son are one (cf. Jn 10:30). Jesus invites us to a state where we realise this fact that he said: "On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you" (Jn 14:20). And the way to that awareness, is simple: keeping His commandments.

Commandments are not merely some do's and don't's; they are actually the basic elements of a way of  life that Jesus wishes to create within us. It is not so much about doing something as about understanding the purpose and the importance of doing it, that matters. It is not so much what we avoid doing or refrain from, as why we choose not to do something, that matters. In simple terms, Jesus is asking us to understand his mind, think as he does, reason out as he does, look at life as he does... as that is what God our Father and Mother would want of us. This is the simple explication of the profound experience of Union with God. 

When we live in union with the Lord, a union in heart and soul, keeping the Lord's commandments will not be a demanding task but a natural way of life. It is the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of truth who will inspire us to such way of life. Let us prepare ourselves these days to receive the Spirit, the Spirit of the Risen Lord, the Spirit of Truth and Wisdom. 

The crux of Christian perfection is not in anything that we do, it is in living, moving and having our being, IN HIM.

MARY HELP OF CHRISTIANS

From the heart of a Salesian of Don Bosco
May 24, 2022

The Original Painting of Don Bosco's
Mary Help of Christians from
the Basilica at Turin

Mary Help of Christians... such sweet words to the ears of any Salesian! Our Lady of Don Bosco, Mary Help of Christians, is celebrated today with such joy and gratitude for the guidance and providence the Church feels through her.

Sometimes I have thought (as I still do now), coming from a country like India, where we live our daily lives with a majority who are not Christians, that the title Mary Help of Christians, is a bit too sectarian or even fanatical. But we know that the term has a historical significance that cannot be denied or forgotten. It is not just a title, but the expression of faith of a people from a particular period of time, who experienced God's closeness through the special interventions of the Mother of God.

Mary Help of Christians as a title has been attributed to our Mother since the 2nd century, but it came to prominence in the 16th century and became popular in the 19th century! Considering the historical significance of the title, directly linked to the battle of Lepanto in the 16th century and the Pope's exile in the 19th century, we tend to think today that this title is revived as the fight against the Catholic Church deepens in the world.

Don Bosco's experience of an ever-present mother in Our Lady, especially when the anti-Catholic Waldensians were against him, led him to argue about the Mother Help of Christians. For a Salesian today, this experience is not simply handed down by Don Bosco as tradition, but lived and shared daily with the presence of this Mother, so close and caring. The invocation Mary Help of Christians, Pray for us... could go as far back as John Chrysostom in the 4th century, historically seen from the 16th century onwards; but in today's experience, it is identified with a spirituality lived and transmitted by Don Bosco to his sons and daughters.

Even if today many, like me, replace this invocation with a neutral invocation such as 'Mary Help of Christians', the original title evokes a specific experience of faith that implies an affectionate relationship that a Christian should have with this heavenly mother so graciously given to us by the Saviour.

The episode of Cana is an event par excellence that speaks to us of a mother so sensitive and concerned for us. She intercedes with her Son and instructs the people on how to relate to Him - do whatever the Lord says. This is exactly the role she plays today as well. Let us thank this mother of ours, and learn from her the art of living close to her Son!

May Mary Help of Christians help us Christians of today to live our faith to the full! Amen.

The Advocate Aflame

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 6th week in Easter time

May 24, 2022: Acts 16:22-34; John 16: 5-11

Beaten, bruised and bound, they sang the praises of the Lord! Will not the glory of the Lord be revealed there? The act of Paul and Silas in the prison was such a powerful witness that the prison guards expected anything anytime. They were capable of it, because of the Spirit that filled them, fueled them and fired them. They were ordinary men, but rendered extraordinary by the Spirit of the Lord, the advocate from their Master.

Yes, the Spirit was the Advocate that Jesus promised to his disciples, who made the entire difference and the difference was enormous, it still remains unbelievable! We see this in the very first moment when the apostles come out to speak in public. The frightened band of messengers had been turned into fiercely blazing firebrands. How does the Spirit render someone powerful? It is through an internal dynamism that is marked by integrity and total availability. The apostles had become persons of integrity - that is, there was nothing but truth, honesty and purity with regard to their lives and their perspectives. Secondly, they had totally surrendered themselves into the hands of the Lord, that the Spirit of the Lord, used them powerfully. 

Because of these traits, Jesus says, when the Spirit comes, the Spirit shall convict the world. Every heart is given the possibility to know what is true, good and just; every human heart has a longing for someone beyond oneself; every person called by the waters of baptism realises at the core of one's being, the need to be a righteous witness. Sin, righteousness and judgement - they decide the quality of one's witnessing life. Our integrity and availability to the Lord will prove what quality we possess as people of God. It is in these qualities that the Spirit is manifested and these qualities come from the very Spirit!

The Spirit of Truth

WORD 2day: Monday, 6th week in Easter time

May 23, 2022: Acts 16: 11-15; John 15:26 - 16:4

"The Spirit of truth" that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel is witnessed to be at work in the event from the Acts of the Apostles that we see in the first reading - that event of the lady and her household, who accept the Lord and get baptised! While on the one hand there are people who are waiting to take the apostles to task and persecute them in all known ways, there are at the same time a multitude who are ready to protect, help and fend for them.

The tension between these two sections, is experienced in our personal lives too, and that is when we need the Spirit to work within us. We would feel an urge to remain worthy of the Word and spread spirit of obedience to the Word... and we may find situations that may encourage such a disposition, a community that supports such a style of life, and a group of persons that may wish to stand with us and follow us. 

But there could also be another situation - that the world around may ridicule the stand we take, people might make us a laughing stock, the culture might brand us as unfit for the times, and some may be even against us and plot our downfall or threaten us! What would our response be? Can we still hold on to the Truth - only the Spirit of truth can help us do that. 

Let our hearts, homes and our households be filled with the Spirit of truth, that we may set in motion real journey towards the Reign of God, with determination and courage.

GOD WITH AND WITHIN US

Community Called, United and Led

May 22, 2022: 6th Sunday in Easter time
Acts 15: 1-2, 22-29; Revelations 21:10-14,22-23; John 14: 23-29

The Word today sums up the readings we have been listening to in the past week. There is a kind of a premonition, a kind of nostalgia, a sense of something already there and still yet to come. Its a kind of feeling that students of the final year of School would have before they close for their study leave... a feeling of 'a-lot-to-do' and a feeling of 'are-we-missing-each-other'... Jesus keeps telling his disciples that they need to learn to live on their own, not that he is about to abandon them, but that they have to graduate to the next level. Jesus prepares them for the same.

Look at the community in the readings these days - the first communities of Christians getting together, who felt something uniting them, but still were conscious of all the differences among them. That is the crux of the Word today... we are called to live as a community... a community of persons who feel so united because of something that unites us, something that is with us and within us...in spite of all the differences that is among us.

The fundamentalist group that creates a commotion, the reaction of the rest, the emergency council convened and the heated discussion therein, the misunderstanding between two top leaders, the break-up: no, we are not talking of something that happened in a neighbouring parish these days, but what happened in the Early Church, right in times of the Acts of the Apostles. We are a community of human persons each with our own ego, our own interests and personality traits. There are differences of opinions and perspectives, without that there is no richness and variety.

We can here think of an analogy given by Paulo Freire, highlighting the difference between a pavement and a mosaic - both made of smaller units which make up the whole; the former made of units that are of same size and shape to create the uniform pavement that we see on the sidewalks of a road, the latter a grand art formed by tiny parts each in different shape and size and shade adding its uniqueness to bring out ONE GRAND MASTERPIECE.

To be God's people we are not called to sacrifice our uniqueness, rather we are called to live it to the full - 'I have come that you may have life, and have it in abundance!'(Jn 10:10) We are not called to sweep under the carpet the differences and the disagreements we might have - Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.(2 Cor 3:17) To be God's people all that we need to do is be mindful that we are God's people - that is, to be conscious that inspite of our differences we have something that unites us, someOne that unites us!

That which unites us is the fact that we are called by One God, our Father and Mother, to be sons and daughters, to be beloved children in spite of our idiosyncrasies.  We are commissioned to form one community by the Risen Lord, the head of that mystical body! The Risen Lord lives with us and within us, through the Spirit who keeps us together and leads us on. 

'Let your hearts not be troubled!' says the Lord. When I see in my community human elements of ego and pride, misunderstandings and slandering, discouragements and dirty politics... the Lord says, let your hearts not be troubled... face it with courage, wisdom and grace that the counselor brings you!

The secret is this:

1. That we feel God living with us and within us: we note this in the way the disciples handled the discussion...'for it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us,' they said - the expression is fantastic to hear... speaking of the Holy Spirit as someone who lived with them and decided along with them... that is the faith that sustained that early faith community! That is what we call, feeling God with you and within you!

2. That we fall back on the Community for discernment: whether you are the leader of the community or one of the members of the community, fall back on the community for a process of discernment. Deciding on one's own whims and fancies is not going to help in any way. You have a community; you are a community, convened by God! Hence what is normal is that we find God's will as a community, for the good of the community.

3. That we find the Light of God illumining our life: the light of the Lord shines on you and you walk in the light! There is no need to confound yourself for in the light there is nothing that is hidden. What is needed is the eyes of faith and a patient heart. The Spirit of the Lord teaches you all that you need to know, provided you feel the Spirit's presence and yearn for the Spirit's direction!

What a People we are - God the Father and Mother, has called us; the Risen Son of God unites us and the Spirit of the Living God enlightens and leads us! What thanks can we give the Lord almighty! 

Let all the Peoples praise you O Lord! Let all the Peoples praise you!

Don't Worry; Be Happy!

WORD 2day : Saturday, 5th week in Easter time

May 21, 2022: Acts 16: 1-10; John 15: 18-21

People around you find you a pain in the neck, for the right reasons... be happy! People call you outdated and impractical and living in a world that does not exist because you stand by values... don't worry!  People dump you and wish to see you destroyed because you disturb their "peace"... don't worry! you are in fact, blessed!

On the contrary, everyone, even the worst among the lot, seems to be comfortable with you... be careful! No one has any problem with your ideas and absolutely every one seems fine with your values... look into yourself! There is no opposition at all to what you do and not even those who discourage you... beware! There is something that is not really alright, in terms of Christ!

Yes! That is what the Lord says today. If you stand by truth and live by values, you are sure to be branded 'utopian' and kept aside from the so called 'steps forward'. If you are really what you call yourself - Christian, that is a follower of Christ - then you are bound to be opposed, derided, persecuted, and even crucified! If nothing of this sort happens, even to the minimal level, may be you are not sufficiently what you claim to be! 

In fact, when everything was going very smooth and the Church was growing there, Paul found he was not anymore needed there - he felt called to move to another place and help out there! That is what a Christian call is all about. It is not seeking our comfort zones, but seeking problem areas and making them more and more God-filled. 

In our day to day life, it is wonderful to be acceptable to all, but at what cost? As long as you are committed to the values of Christ, whatver happens - don't worry; be happy!

Friends of Christ

WORD 2day: Friday, 5th week in Easter time

May 20, 2022: Acts 15: 22-31; John 15: 12-17

While the readings on the one hand insist on making the burden easy for the new converts to faith, on the other hand we find lofty demands such as even giving one's life for one's neighbours! The point is clear... Our faith is not a matter of do's and don'ts; it is a matter of relationship and commitment.

Our faith defines our relationship with God, it infact redimensions our very identity - from mere creatures we are given the identity of God's beloved children, and moreover, friends of Christ! Our identity is defined in terms of relationships... not position, prestige or status, but our relationship with God, which affects all other relationships in our daily life.

Being called friends of Christ, it is natural that the demands are high. After all, did not Jesus insist that, "from the one to whom much is given, much will be demanded" (Lk 12:48)? But the demands are not merely to do something and to avoid something else, but the demand is about an entire lifestyle. It is to model our life after that of Christ.

The relationship with Christ, or the friendship with Jesus affects all other relationships of ours. The friends of our friend, should be our friends too! The love we have for the Lord compels us to be loving persons with every person around us: not just our "friends", but even with so-called strangers, people whom we just casually bump into, or specially with those who might have offended us. Even if we do not lay down our lives, are we not expected to lay down at least our ego, when it comes to our relationships?

Let's get our basics right!

WORD 2day: Thursday, 5th week in Easter time

May 19, 2022: Acts 15: 7-21; John 15: 9-11

The apostles, in the first reading, so clearly mirror the mind of Jesus who said, "my yoke is easy, my burden is light" (Mt 11:30). They decide that anything more than what is really necessary is an unwanted burden. Jesus dared to summarise the whole of the law into just one dense, profound and challenging word: LOVE.

The commandments served but one purpose: Remaining in the love of the Lord. That was the only concern that Jesus had. Jews or Gentiles, circumscised or uncircumsised, it did not matter to Jesus and the apostles learnt it well from their Master. St. Paul would say categorically in 1 Cor 7:19 - "circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing; Keeping God's command is what counts."

And Jesus had already clarified what that commandment was - the new commandment that I give you, love one another as I have loved you - in terms of serving each other, in terms of washing the feet of the other, in terms of doing unto the other what one wishes to be done to him or her. 

This is the mindset with which Jesus says: "the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments" (Mat 22:40) - the Love of God and the love of the neighbour. What other summary can we give for a Christian life, other than this? 

Let us beware of complicating issues: our faith is simple, easy and light, if only we get our basics right: L O V E.

The Model of the Synodal Church

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 5th week in Easter time

May 18, 2022: Acts 15: 1-6; John 15: 1-8

We are speaking so much these days about "synodality"... with the ongoing preparations towards the Synod on synodality! With Vatican Council II, the ecumenical council that has revolutionised the Church, this theme has gradually taken the forefront of the discussions within the Church! Today we have the account of the first ever ecumenical council held: the Council of Jerusalem! It stands as a wonderful Christian model of handling crisis and confusion. Getting together in brotherly dialogue and faithful communion - that is the model of the synodal Church for us.

The Community of faith gives us a splendid possibility of remaining united as branches to the one Vine, Jesus. Today, when crisis and confusion arise, how many human methodologies we follow to handle them: writing anonymous letters, spreading calumny about others, raising unchristian slogans and following uncharitable actions. Is it truly a 'Christ'ian way of approaching a problem? What are we aiming at? Establishing our ego? Gaining our political mileage? 

Division within the Church is the worst scandal we can give to the world. It is a definitive lack of the synodal spirit of getting together, listening to each other and deciding for the good of every faithful and for the entire faith community. It is not about who is right or who is wrong, it is not about who is more important and who less... it is about what is God's will and what will unite us as One Community of the people of God.

Let us be united with the one Vine, nourish ourselves from that vine, be filled with the sap from that vine and give fruits worthy of that vine. Or else, we will have to be pruned and charred!

Revealing the Risen Lord in the Spirit

WORD 2day: Monday, 5th week in Easter time

May 16, 2022: Acts 14: 5-18; John 14: 21-26

Jesus seems to be winding up his earthly phase with his disciples and he bids them farewell as if to say they have to take his place thereafter. And orientatively, this whole week we will listen to this series of sayings from Jesus. He had assured them, that their faith in God and their faith in him, will stand them in good stead...they will do all that he did and even more! (cf. Jn 14:12) Today he promises an added facilitator: the Holy Spirit. All these promises were not mere words... they worked.

The People saw in the apostles great prowess... they healed the paralytics and gave life to the dead. The people found it so overwhelming that they thought that the gods had descended on them. If we really believed in the Lord and beheld his risen presence with us truly, people would see great things in and through us. 

The world needs people of God today; the world longs to see the real majesty of God revealed in ordinary things and we ought to be the instruments in the hands of God. This is not to be interpreted in an immature sense of creating sensational happenings or feigning miraculous events or fictitiously concocting revelationary phenomena...that is not what is expected of us. 

All that we need to do is, dispose ourselves into the hands of God, allow the Spirit of the Lord to take hold of us and reveal through us,  the merciful, loving and powerful presence of the Lord today. That is what we are called to do: to be in the hands of God, in the service of the Spirit, that the Risen Lord may be seen, witnessed and believed by all who encounter us.

The Peace that comes from the Lord

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 5th week in Easter time 

May 17, 2022: Acts 14: 19-28; John 14: 27-31a

"It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God," say Sts. Paul and Barnaba (Acts 14:22). Elsewhere in the Acts (see 5:41) we read, "they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer dishonour for the sake of the name" of Jesus, after having received severe flogging. As soon as they were released from prison or from investigation, they were found back again preaching with a greater zeal.

In the Gospel today, after giving his peace, the Lord instructs: 'do not let your hearts be troubled!', for the peace that he gives us is not the peace that the world gives: a peace of compromises and conveniences, a peace of inaction and suspicious silence! But the Peace that Christ gives us is the peace of the Reign, the peace that comes from justice and equality, peace that comes from true love and compassion. It is not contract of just war or war against terrorism; but a total cessation of war or corruption or injustice or any inhumanity! Jesus has given it to us as he promised! It is enshrined in the Word. True love for entire humanity and holy compassion for the least and the last.

Our call is to spread it, take it to every heart that longs, to every corner of the earth, specially those communities of persons where there is war and intolerance. In doing it, we will face troubles, floggings and stonings in words and ways, criticisms, threats and presecutions. The times are making that possible more and more... but let none of our hearts be troubled!

New faith, new community, new world!

FIFTH SUNDAY IN EASTER TIME

May 15, 2022

The Lord promises us new earth and new heaven... these are no empty words. And we know the Lord who created these originally is certainly capable of creating it anew, that is, rejuvenating it, revitalising it and reinvigorating it. The Word does not stop with  reporting the promise that the Lord makes, but lays out how this promise can be logically claimed! Yes, the new heaven and New earth will be experienced, when we renew ourselves in our faith individually and transform ourselves into a new community of the people of God.

New faith, new community, new world... And today a new Saint... 

Today is the canonisation of St. Devasahayam... Thanks to the grace of God for the opportunity to participate in the ceremony at St Peter's

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E9L97OblIc&ab_channel=VaticanNews

To be loved; and to love

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

May 14, 2022: Feast of St. Mathias, apostle. 
Acts 1:15-17, 20-26; John 15: 9-17

Feast of any apostle is a reminder to each of us that we are called to be an apostle, sent in the name of the Lord. As my Father sent me, so I send you...said the Lord after his resurrection. Though the event of the election of Mathias is overshadowed by the sorrowful and unfortunate end of Judas, the feast has its usual charm of inviting us to an absolute commitment to the Lord.

Mathias is added to the list of the 12… the account presents us with three criteria to be worthily part of the band of ‘Apostles’. It will do us good to look at these three criteria, and correlate it to ourselves, whether we can be counted as being part of the group of apostles. 

The first of the criteria is, a personal, first-hand experience of Christ – not just what we read from authors or heard from preachers, not merely what someone shared or what someone else felt, but the impact of what I have experienced of Jesus, the personal encounter that I have had with Christ. 

The second criterion is being a witness to Christ before the world, specially in a world that runs madly after wealth, ease, power, social acceptance and public image! Doing that, would we be judged irrelevant and meaningless? Certainly, yes! 

The third is the Choice of the Spirit – you did not choose me, no I chose you declared Jesus. It is the Spirit who chooses, empowers and uses one as an instrument! Our responsibility is to REMAIN, to remain in the Spirit and bear abundant fruit!

The Word today adds a wonderful note to the reflection, as they seem to suggest the primary objective in being an apostle, or for that matter a disciple.iIn Jesus' own words...As my Father loves me, so I love you! The primary aim is to receive in all its fullness the abundant love of the Father, through Jesus our friend! And it is in receiving that love, our joy is made complete! 

Let us rejoice in being loved, and love each other in return!

To be God's begotten

WORD 2day: Friday, 4th week in Easter time

May 13, 2022: Acts 13: 26-33; John 14: 1-6

Let not your hearts be disturbed! That, according to Jesus, was the sign of Faith, faith in God and faith in God's only Son. Though we know that Jesus is the Incarnate Son of God, the real glory of his existence is seen in the fact of Jesus' obedience to the Father. 

As St. Paul would point out in his letter to the Philippians (chapter 2), it was because of his total obedience that Jesus was given the name above every name, that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess his Lordship. Even God almighty declares, "You are my beloved Son, today I have begotten you!" It refers to the eternal choice of the Lord to hold us close to God's heart and a response in correspondence to that choice. 

Faith, Obedience of Faith... these could be considered high sounding words, but for us on a daily basis, it is in simple words: doing the will of God. It may sound more simple said than lived! How do we do God's will? It is simple yet again.

Doing the will of God is taking our duties to heart despite the discouragements, putting our heart and soul in the well being of those around us in spite of the possible ingratitude, putting the Lord first and at the center of all that we are involved in ... these are some concrete ways of doing the will of the Father. 

When we begin to live on a daily basis, in these terms, certainly we shall hear it said of us - "You are my beloved child, today I have begotten you!"

The Message and the messengers

WORD 2day: Thursday, 4th week in Easter time

May 12, 2022: Acts 13:13-25; Jn 13:16-20

St. Paul makes a long list of messengers running right upto John the Baptist, and in the Gospel, Jesus speaks of sending his own apostles as messengers. Sending messengers was not merely a need to perpetrate one's own progeny or contribution; it is not the kind of branding that is so often spoken of in the corporate world today. It is not like opening branches everywhere to establish one's monopoly! That is not what evangelisation is all about - trying to play the number games and by some way of the other increasing our strength.

The core of our faith, is the Message. It has been so, it is so and it will always be so! The message was announced through ages through prophets and persons of God (cf. Heb 1:1). At a point in history, the Message became the Messenger... that was the crucial phase of history when the Message, the Sender, the Messenger (or the Medium) all came together in one sacred and mysterious union - in the person of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word.

What was till then being considered a task of a select few among the people, with the coming of Christ, was handed over to the entire people of God and every child of God. We are God's messengers and that calls us  primarily to live the message, and in and through that, to announce the Message to the World.

How conscious am I of the Message? Do I really connect myself to the Message? Do I love the Message as much as to live that message! In what stage am I, towards becoming that Message?

Carrying out orders

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 4th week in Easter time

May 11, 2022: Acts 12:24- 13:5a; John 12: 44-50

These days we are given with certain signs to identify the flock of the One, Divine Shepherd and today we have an instruction very clear:  to Receive and Carry out Orders. 

A life of faith is all about getting orders and carrying them out. We find in the first reading of the day that the Apostles got orders directly from the Holy Spirit, to set apart Barnabas and Paul for a particular task. Elsewhere too in the Acts we see similar accounts of getting orders for the regular running of the Church. In the Gospel, Jesus clarifies that he got his orders from his father and instructs us that we too need to follow suit. Receive orders and carry them out... that is the way you can belong to the fold of the One Pastor!

Two things can hinder us from Receiving Orders: One, not hearing: because we do not listen sufficiently. We are so busy with running our own show that we are thoughtless about the orders that direct us constantly! Even if they arrive, we are are so occupied with so many other things, that we are not in a position to pay attention.

The second reason is a more serious: pretending not to hear! This is a conscious despise of the orders  that are given us. The Lord, the Spirit of the Lord keeps inspiring within us or keeps supplying us with clear cut directions and orders to be on the right path. At times owing to the inconvenience it can cause, or the difficulty it will put us through, we pretend not to hear those orders and proceed with what we think best. And when things turn out for the worst, we begin to panic and blame everyone else, including God.

Can we train ourselves to receive orders and carry them out in our daily life?

To be called Christians...

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 4th week in Easter time

May 10, 2022: Acts 11:19-26; Jn 10:22-30

It was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians, evidences the first reading today. They needed a name, a different name to refer to the people of the new way of life! And looking for one, they narrowed down on something with a reference to the One who inspired this way of life: Christ himself.

It takes time to be called a Christian, to be identified with the name of the Nazarene who made a crucial difference in and through his life. Even today, it is the same. It takes time to be identified a Christian: our lifestyle, our attitudes, our priorities, our relationships and our loving ways should merit the name.

Just as Jesus says in the Gospel today, 'the Father and I are one', so should we be able to say: Christ and I are one. What a model we have in St.Paul who declared, "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me!" (Gal 2:20) And the other apostles, like Peter, John, James, Philip and all others who were doing marvellous deeds like Jesus and in the name of Jesus. 

We have a name; our life has a mission... the name is Christ, and our mission is love! When we love, we shall be with Christ; when we grow to be love, we shall be Christs, alter christus! We will be called Christians, when we grow to be so; when we grow to be love. Until then, our title 'Christians' will remain just a title and not our name!   

One Shepherd, one people!

WORD 2day: Monday, 4th week in Easter time

May 9, 2022: Acts 11: 1-18; John 10: 1-10

We have been reflecting throughout last week, that people listened to the Word, they were touched by it and they joined the disciples and they became a church. A very important point that we need to note in the history of the Church, the people of God is, that the real birth of the Church was only when the Gentiles listened and accepted the Word.

St. Paul declares in his letter to the Galatians, "there is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus" (Gal 3:28). It is when the whole people are made heirs to the promise made to Abraham, it is only when every one was made into one fold, under one Shepherd, Christ Jesus - the real Church was born.

The challenge is alive until today, to remain one flock, one fold, one people. To stay clear of all discrimination within the Church, to choose not to conform to the standards of the world but to be renewed in the Spirit of the Lord and to put on the mind of Christ - constantly, on a daily basis we are invited to renew our faithfulness to the One shepherd and be transformed more and more into worthy members of His flock. 

This would mean that we grow up from our tendency to discriminate, from our prejudices, from our insensitivity to the other and from our mindset of looking at diversity as a difficulty. Positively, it would mean that we grow in love, not as an act or attitude of condescension, but as a genuine sense of solidarity and fraternity in the One Lord, One Shepherd, One Christ our Saviour. 

THE LORD'S FLOCK

Called, Challenged and Cherished

May 8, 2022: The Good Shepherd Sunday / IV Sunday of Easter
Acts 13: 14,43-52; Revelations 7: 9, 14-17; John 10: 27-30

The Good Shepherd Sunday, as this fourth Sunday of Easter is popularly called, presents to us our identity as the flock of God, and also the way the Lord wishes to relate to us: as the Good Shepherd who calls us, who challenges us and who cherishes us, every bit.

Speaking of the shepherd we are immediately inspired to think of our leaders and pastors - the ecclesiastical leaders and the responsible authorities in the civil society. Yes, they have an obligation on their part to be instruments in the hands of God, in taking care of the people, for God has willed into existence every human person on earth. Wherever a person or persons suffer due to injustice and iniquity of the other, the leaders and authorities are responsible for it and they owe an explanation to the Lord. Added to it, the people or the human persons, are called to understand their relatedness to each other, arising from the common origin that all have - the Divine. Anywhere a person or a section of humanity suffers, every human person in one way or the others, is answerable for it. This being the universal picture that is projected by the Shepherd Sunday, there is a particular message for the so-called people of God, those who have responded to that special call to belong to the community that is identified as the Lord's Flock.

Firstly, the flock is CALLED - called, picked, chosen, offered an opportunity, called by name, chosen from the rest, privileged with an invitation, given a vocation... that is what we are! This can be realised more and more today, with all the pluralism that exists, pluralism of all kinds in the very choice to believe in a God or now, the choice of the creed of experience, the choice to make it a life choice or not, the choice of expression in its degree, kind and level - in all these we need to realise that we are called. The first reading presents that reality in concrete - there were those who considered themselves traditionally 'chosen'...but there were others who were predilectively 'chosen'. It may be true that we have chosen or we have made the choice to believe or to respond to the call of faith, but going into the depth and analysing, we see we could not have done it if we were not chosen, in the first place. Is this not what the Lord says: "You did not choose me; I chose you!"

Exactly because of this, the flock is constantly CHALLENGED - you cannot take for granted that you belong to the flock once and for all, automatically once you have entered into it in a formal sense. No. One needs to keep confirming it consciously in three ways - listening, following and belonging. Listening to the voice of the Shepherd, the voice that is heard in a myriad of ways - through the Word daily, through the tradition and the authoritative teaching, through the word from the neighbour or brother or sister, through the events of the day, through the sufferings of people, through the cry of the poor, through the unrest of the soul, and so on. Listening to the voice is an essential need of a flock of God. While listening is the first step, following the Lord, or doing what the Lord would do in those circumstances is another duty. Hence, to stand of the truth, to voice the cries of the voiceless, to decry the unjust order in the world, to point out the road to perdition often chosen by the masses, to live and die for the Reign, are marks that can set us apart as Lord's flock. Belonging to the Lord, never to stray away from the Lord, never to let ourselves be stolen by the evil one or the enticing forces of the world, is another fundamental requirement to be the Lord's flock!

Thus attached and united to the Lord, the flock is CHERISHED by the Shepherd, and the Shepherd holds back nothing from this flock. The second reading reveals to us the heart of the Shepherd who wishes to make of the flock, a marvellous and splendid people, who have no hunger or thirst, who have no tears to shed, who are nourished by the springs of living water and who will never fear anything, not even persecution or death. That is the strength that the Lord wishes to give, if only we are ready to receive it, and live in the presence of the Lord, in th tents of the living God, day and night, for all eternity. We are loved, we are affirmed, we are strengthened, we are empowered, we are cherished by the Shepherd who dares to give everything for us and for our eternal happiness. 

We are the Lord's flock as long as we understand this call we have received to be the flock, to be the flock that listens, follows and belongs to the Lord. Once we make that choice, however weak and failing we could be, the Lord cherishes us and continually cleanses us and rejuvenates us in his blood and in his Spirit! May we grow in our commitment to the Lord in order that we may dare to say: we are God's people, the sheep of the Lord's flock!

To Remain in the Lord

WORD 2day: Saturday, 3rd week in Easter time

May 7, 2022: Acts 9: 31-42; John 6: 60-69

Two contrasting scenes are presented in the readings today - one, that of the numbers increasing; the other, that of followers leaving Jesus! To heed to pleasant teachings and detest challenging calls, is a normal human tendency. But Jesus does not compromise. It is a fact that we need to understand: that the Lord who loves us, is absolutely loving and at the very same time, absolutely demanding!

The people called it, 'intolerable language', when Jesus spoke the bare truth to them. Today, we see the same and hear the same, when somethings have to be pointed out and when persons do it, there is an attempt to silence the truth and move away from it. It is easy to be selective about judgements, fending for one's own comfort and convenience. Testifying to the truth would require, accepting hard changes and difficult challenges. 

It can be very exciting to run after miracles and live by wonders. Persons doing wonders, places with miraculous reports, and claims of strange signs and messages - these should not take us away from the real faith. The real challenge is to be touched internally by the Lord, be transformed, accepting the hard teachings from the Lord. To eat of Him, to become part of Him, as we reflected yesterday and to Remain in Him!

The words of Jesus, "Truly I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these..." (Jn 14:12), comes alive as Peter and other disciples do wonders in the name of Jesus! We know how simple ordinary this apostles were in reality, but they turned so marvellous and powerful. What mattered was, that they remained in the Lord; and that continues to be the challenge for us too: to remain in the Lord!

To become part of Him...

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

May 6, 2022: Celebrating St. Dominic Savio

Acts 9: 1-20; John 6: 52-59

'The one who eats me will have life because of me', declares the Lord today. As I draw life from the Father, so shall that person who eats my body and drinks my blood, draw life from me, the Lord explains. It is simply, like a stem that draws life from the root and the branches and leaves which draw life from the stem in turn - a call to be connected, a call to be united, a call to feel one with! 

Saul turns Paul, the persecutor turns proclaimer... an absolute transformation that changed history for ever - simply because he experienced Christ personally! The experience gripped him, grafted him on to Christ and thus united him to a root that changed the entire sense of his life. There was a radical transformation, because Saul found his real root, from where his life came!

The Lord invites us to a personal experience of himself... eat my flesh, drink my blood, become part of me; remain in me and I shall remain in you - and we shall be one! As the Father and the Son are one, the Son invites us to be one with him; thus we can tell the world - I and the Lord are one. Paul dared say that: be imitators of me as I am of Christ (1 Cor 11:1). Can we? I can say that only if I really strive on a daily basis to unite myself with the Lord, to become one with the Lord, to become part of the Lord. 

Everyday is an opportunity to grow closer, and more and more connected personally with Christ! Every Eucharist we celebrate is a moment to become increasingly part of him, to remain rooted in him and to allow the Lord to remain in us. Being imitators of Christ is not merely a matter of doing things, rather an essential change, a radical transformation of our very selves - it is to become more and more, a part of Him!

Dominic Savio, the teenage saint whom we celebrate today, was intent on this - to become part of Him, to remain totally united in Him. There were instances when the little Dominic was lost in ecstasy with the Eucharistic Lord for a whole day! What a lovely reminder this little giant of sanctity is, to the call that all of us have: to grow to become part of Him!

Drawn by our Daddy!

WORD 2day: Thursday, 3rd week in Easter time

May 5, 2022: Acts 8: 26-40; John 6: 44-51

The readings taken together have a wonderful message for us: if we have the christian faith, it is not by chance; it is by choice... not ours, but the Lord's! You did not choose me, I chose you, declares the Lord. No one can come to me, unless drawn by the Father who sent me.

We have come to know the Lord, drawn by our Father and Mother in heaven! It is the Lord who has willed to draw us to Godself. Our 'yes' at Baptism and a reassertion of it at Confirmation has been our response to this initiative of God. The point of discussion is, whether we are faithful to this yes, all our life and at every moment of our daily life.

Let us look at the way Philip was transported from one place to the other, in order that he could bring people to know the Word, to know the Lord and to get into a relationship with the Lord for life! People were being drawn to the Lord and the apostles were instruments in the process! It is with the same love that God continues to draw us to our Lord and Saviour, so that we may experience what that love of God forever and in its fullness. 

The Bread of life and the Blood of the new and everlasting covenant, are the nourishment in this journey, towards the Lord and towards the experience of that inexhaustible love. All through the journey the Lord accompanies us and instructs us... if we really listen, we will soon realise how special we are; and how we are drawn by our Father, our loving Daddy!

Joy as Testimony!

WORD 2day: Wednesday. 3rd week in Easter time

May 4, 2022: Acts 8:1b-8; John 6: 35-40

There was great joy in the city. Inspite of having to desert their hometowns and go into diaspora, the community of believers bring joy wherever they go. It was because, they carried the Risen Lord in their hearts. No wonder, the evil spirits came out shrieking! 

The resurrection experience filled them with a joy that could not be replaced by anything else under the sun. The words "Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ" (Rom 8:35) was a concrete life experience of the early Christians. The source of this experience is the total and loving self giving of the Lord. 

Those who escaped persecution, went from place to place preaching the Good News, says the reading today - they escaped only to endanger themselves again with their resolve to preach the Good News. Apart from the resurrection experience that gripped them, the after effects were taking them to newer heights of commitment and dedication. Their joy was breaking bounds, as they discovered their new lives with their Lord.  

Imitating their Lord and Saviour, they were filled with hope and were emanating a divine joy. They were testifying because they had boundless joy and their joy was their greatest testimony! How joyful is our testimony as Christians?

In the footprints of the Master

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 3rd week in Easter time 

May 3, 2022: Acts 7:51-8:1a; John 6:30-35

We are given the picture of the martyrdom of Stephen... the height of discipleship, giving one's life up for the sake of truth. The real courage that is exhibited today by Stephen consists in daring to say what he saw and heard, or what he was given to see and hear. The Gospel presents the same courage that was manifested by Jesus, challenging the Scribes and the Pharisees and offering himself as the bread of life; infact, Stephen is presented to us as an ideal disciple who did what Jesus did, who lived the way Jesus lived and who died in the manner his master Jesus died.

The cue is the prayer: "Into your hands I commend my spirit". While Jesus makes that prayer to the Father, Stephen makes it to Jesus: "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit". This is the first prayer we see, that was addressed to Jesus. The height of discipleship consists in the courage to imitate the master in every little detail...in our life, our prayer, our convictions and our priorities. 

It was totally natural for the first community to imitate their master and saviour - they lived as a community, as he did with his disciples and friends; he owned nothing for himself and so did they decide to own nothing; he taught them to reach out to the hungry, to the naked, to the sick and to the captives, so did they live as people with one heart and mind, reaching out specially to those who were less fortunate and as a result, as the Acts of the Apostles tells us, there was no one in need among them; and the ultimate was they dared to give their life for the sake of their relationship with Christ, as Christ was ready to do for the sake of his relatioship with his father. 

Question that stands out: how close are we in our lifestyle to Jesus, our Lord and Master?