WORD 2day : 8th February, 2016

To Rest or to Reach out

Fifth Monday in Ordinary Time
1 Kgs 8:1-7,9-13; Mk 6 : 53 -56

The first reading speaks of the first temple built for the Lord... ever since, it had been a point of contention. However, how do we understand the temple for the Lord: a place of rest for God? Would that be a good way to understand?

In contrast to the established temple in the first reading,  we have a wandering Lord in the Gospel. Could anyone stop Jesus from his work... no one could -they only thought he was going out of his mind.

Jesus considers reaching out to people compelling and urgent. There was a constant urge in his heart to move on. He wished to build his resting place amidst the cries and woes of people, sickness and sadness of the afflicted, trials and troubles of their daily lives. Let us learn to see the Lord dwelling in true and sincere encounters.

CALLED

An identity, a mission and a promise...

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 7th February, 2016
Is 6: 1-8; 1 Cor 15: 1-11; Lk 5: 1-11

We are called...by our very existence, our choices, our upbringing, our traditions, our context, our experiences, our adventures, our explorations, our convictions and our challenges... we are called! On a daily basis, we need to become aware of this call and respond to it whole heartedly!

Our calling is our identity...not merely a tag! A tag is not our identity, it changes as often as we decide or others decide to! Our call determines our identity, our deep seated understanding of ourselves

Our calling is our mission...not merely a job! Mission is life long, it is a process and not merely a performance. It is our life, its journey, its twists and its turns, its ups and its downs, its ebb and its flow: it is the way we live our life!

Our calling is a promise...not merely the present! There is much to look forward to, there are things that are unexpected, there is a need to put out into the deep and just wait for a surprise! 

The Lord who has called is there all the time, let us adventure in the Spirit!

WORD 2day : 6th February, 2016

The Strange Choices

Remembering St. Gonsalo Garcia
1 Kgs 3: 4-13; Mk 6: 30-34

The choices we make are based on the priorities we hold. We are aware of so many psychological testing based on the types of choices a person makes, leading to the reasons and applications of the same into an analysis.

Today in the Word,  we have some strange choices: Solomon who chooses a less attractive but more divine choice; Jesus who makes a tiring tough choice of being with people; the apostles who have just returned from hectic outing but glad to be with Jesus once again... and another group whom we celebrate today, Paul Miki and companions who chose to die for the sake of the Gospel. Incidentally among this group we have the first proclaimed Indian saint : St. Gonsalo Garcia.

When we are united with the Lord, in heart and mind, our choices will be strange and people will notice it. Don't be alarmed, we do have company!

WORD 2day : 4th February, 2016

The Handing over

Remembering John de Britto
1 Kgs 2:1-4,10-12; Mk 6:7-13

David hands it over to Solomon;  Jesus hands it over to his apostles;  the Apostles have handed it over to us! We have to take it forward! While Jesus gives a long prescription of how to take it forward,  David sums it all up or the Lord sums it all up to David in a phrase: “If your sons are careful how they behave, and walk loyally before me with all their heart and soul"... that's the key!

Persons like John de Britto,  St Thomas and others who had come to India and given up their lives are examples for us to live what is handed over to us. The key that the first reading gives us is absolute. It binds me in my conscience not merely in my external behaviour. Living for God is proclaiming God;  living for God's Reign is establishing God's Reign here and now!

WORD 2day : 3rd February, 2016

Misleading Mentalities

4th Tuesday in Ordinary Time
2 Sam 24:2,8-17; Mk 6: 1-6

I come in the name of the Lord -that was David when he began his adventure with the Lord. Today we see him counting his strength. He seems to be taking stock of what and how much he could achieve, as if all that he had achieved till then were purely because of his own capabilities!

The people who encountered Jesus could not but be amazed...but those who have always seen Jesus growing amidst them refused to be amazed inspite of the great things that happened. They did not believe in their own people being so blessed. Truth had to be told by someone who came from elsewhere! They suspected their own capabilities.

Both these are misleading mentalities: the Lord has blessed us with qualities and capabilities that is for the good of all and we need to put them to use... mindful always of the fact that these came from the Lord and it is for the Lord's purposes they have to be used.

THE WORD AND THE FEAST

2nd February, 2016

Mal 3: 1-4; Heb 2: 14-18; Lk 2: 22-40

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
The Closure of the Year of Consecrated Life

The readings of today were offered for our reflection only recently, on the 8th day after Christmas. They are given once more today, but they open a whole new perspective today with all that surrounds it liturgically today!

We celebrate the feast of the presentation of the Lord and the close of the year of Consecrated Life that Holy Father Pope Francis announced from Dec, 2014.

Keeping all of them in perspective, we have one lovely challenge posed: the Challenge of Total Offering to the Lord. Not just persons in Consecrated Life, but every one of us is called to offer ourselves totally to God and that alone can give us true meaning and happiness in life.

From the readings of today, we can pick up three signs of our total offering to the  Lord:

Familiarity: As the Holy Family which enters the Temple with that ease and eagerness to perform their spiritual duty, so are we called to remain always familiar with the Lord.

Flexibility: Performing the duty was not merely a ritual, even for us it shouldn't be so! We are called to be pliable in the hands of God, as malleable as the silver and gold in the hands of the smith, so that we can become what the Lord wants us to.

Filiality: It is towards filiality, we are ultimately invited to, as the letter to the Hebrew reminds us. This filiality inspired and enthused Jesus to belong to God totally and we are called to imitate the same self-giving!

Let us grow more and more, familiar, flexible and filial. 

WORD 2day : 1st February, 2016

The Curse of Compromise

4th Monday in Ordinary Time
2 Samuel 15:13-14,30,16:5-13; Mk 5:1-20

The society today has many issues to sort but if there is something that seems to be having apparently no solution, it is the curse of compromises. It has no solution because one does not see it as a problem,  and  at times we find unlimited justification for such compromises.

Just because Saul was a Benjaminite,  today we see a man cursing David on Saul's account forgetting and justifying all that Saul did against David. How many compromises are made just because someone is on my side,  known to me or related to me!

The people in the Gospel were ready to live with the demoniacs and their troubles... they didn't want too much of disturbance in their cosy lives. They even ask Jesus to leave their neighbourhood because Jesus was making everything new. They were more for compromises.

The world has begun to put up with anything. They compromise on everything for certain gains and calculations. Would Jesus like that?  Or would we give up on Jesus due to this curse of compromise!

WORD 2day: 30th January, 2016

The Storm and the Calm

3rd Saturday in Ordinary Time
2 Sam 12: 1-7, 10-17; Mk 4: 35-41

"It is you!" - the famous finger of God against David, is the picture we are left with today by the Word. The Lord loved David, but David slipped into godlessness but when God pointed it out to him, like an inamorata clinging back to the beloved after a split, David comes back with remorse and love so tenderly balanced. Even when David realised he had sinned, he never panicked or never gave into guilt... he felt sorry and bounced back to the love of God, because he knew and he was convinced that the Lord was with him and the Lord loved him above anything else.

The storms may rage all around us, but we can still remain calm if only we realise the Lord is with us and the Lord loves us above all else. When the Lord is for us who can be against us? The Storm and the calm go side by side for an authentic Christian!

WORD 2day : 29th January, 2016

Beware of the slide more than the fall

3rd Friday in Ordinary Time
2 Samuel 11:1-4,5-10,13-17; Mk 4: 26-34

Jesus today gives us a parable to understand the subtle way in which the Reign of God grows in the earth - so gradual and slow but steady and strong!

It seems to be true even with regard to situations that take us away from God's ways. It is not so much a fall that is dangerous but the slide.

Some times we fall into sin but most of the time we slide into sin! David little by little slipped into sin but very soon he was in deep trouble. He lost all that he had built up by way of his faithfulness and dedication to the Lord.

The call is that we be warned of sliding into sin... to be careful of the subtle ways that lead us to deep troubles.

WORD 2day : 28th January, 2016

To be given more

3rd Thursday in Ordinary Time
2 Samuel 7:18-19,24-29; Mk 4: 21-25

David acknowledges the amount of good that the Lord has done on his behalf, the way the Lord raised him up from nowhere! He realises too that to be given so much means that much more is expected of him. Though he failed in some ways,  his love and dedication to the Lord never ceased.

The Lord chose David to raise him up and David proved worthy of that choice inspite of his weaknesses: doesn't it look like the story of anyone among us- the Lord has chosen us and we need to live worthy of that choice inspite of our weaknesses and limitations.

The more we live humble and aware of the fact that we are chosen the more we would be blessed. The more we would be blessed the more we have to grow worthy of it. What a lovely way to sanctity!