THE REIGN FRUITS

Speak right; See bright; and Settle for the Light

February 27, 2022: 8th Sunday in Ordinary time

Ecclesiasticus 27: 5-8; 1 Corinthians 15: 54-58; Luke 6: 39-45 

Every tree can be told by its own fruit: people do not pick figs from thorns, nor grapes from brambles, says Jesus today in his parable. A strong imagery to say, we are known by our fruits - by our words, by our actions and by the choices we make. If we are to be recognised as people of God, it cannot be done by our self-proclamation, nor our shouting out loud to all who are around. It has to be done, by manifesting it in our lives, in our practical lives. Without our clamouring establishment of the fact, we could go about quietly living our daily lives, and the people will automatically know the truth. Their might be opposition from some sides, not all admiration; worse still there may be some who would vow to destroy you - for stones are strewn at a tree with fruits! The Word today lists a few fruits that we need to grow, to manifest that we belong to the Reign - these we can call the Reign Fruits in a person. 

The first fruit is to Speak Right: right words at the right time, is a splendid gift from the Spirit. To speak right is, to speak at the right moment, to speak the right words and to speak the right volume. Many of our troubles arise from words spoken at the wrong time... either in fury or in confusion or in excitement. Once spoken, there is no use regretting them. It is a virtue at times to choose not to speak and it could be sin at times not to speak! However, not all of us have the gift of choosing the right word to speak, when we decide to. It comes from a discerned mind and a serene spirit, which are faculties to be trained in prayer and meditaton. Apart from the choice to speak, and the choice of the words, the decision as to how much to speak is crucial too! We need to speak the right volume, nothing more and nothing less. We can learn from our Blessed Mother and St. Joseph who give us a great example in their lives. 

The second fruit is to See bright: to see is not an ordinary gift! It is truly a skill to be developed with the grace of the Spirit to see oneself, to see the other and to see the road to salvation. Seeing oneself and observing the things within me that could be blocking my vision of life, is a gift that we need to pray for. We could so filled with ourselves that we may fail to notice something so obviously wrong with us. As they say, with the right diagnosis three fourth of the treatment is well done. So is it, even in our Spiritual lives. If it is so about ourselves, how true it could be about seeing the other. The danger is, seeing the other is so easy that most of the time we make mistakes. We do not really see what is there, but we end up seeing what we want to see. We have prejudices, biases and prior experiences which hinder us from seeing the facts. When we are able to see ourselves clearly and with the same objectivity, see the other, together we can see the way to salvation, the way to maturity, the way to fullness of life. 

The third fruit considered here, is spirit to settle for nothing less than the Light that comes from the Lord, from the Risen Lord. The call for attention here is to evaluate what we are ready to settle for - merely fulfilment of the basic needs, possession of material good, popularity among those around, power of dominating the other...are these enough to settle for? The Word says, we cannot settle for anything less than the Light itself, the eternal light that is ready to shine upon us...because we are the Reign people, who constantly seek that eternity, in every bit of our experience. Our experiences, small or big, good or bad, pleasant or unpleasant, always have an indication towards something we need to learn and grasp in our lives. Above all, they indicate the presence of the Divine and the need for us to constantly strive towards that Divine. When we do that, we are discouraged by nothing, threatened by nothing or lured by nothing. We keep working towards that Light that the Lord has prepared for us and in Lordàs own time the light will shine on us, confirming that we are indeed Reign people. 

These Reign fruits are fruits that will set us aside, as witnesses to the people of these times and of this world - so that, in seeing us, they can give praise to the Lord! 

Christian Responsibility - a sign of the Reign

WORD 2day: Saturday, 7th week in Ordinary time

February 26, 2022: James 5: 13-20; Mark 10: 13-16

Praying for each other, confessing to each other, bringing back your brother or sister to God's ways, caring for the children... these are some Christian responsibilities that are pointed out in the Word today. In fact, Christian faith cannot be practised in isolation! Christian faith has to be lived in a community. 

The responsibility of the faith community towards every faithful  member is to create in them a sense of belonging and a sense of shared living. That is why a Christian community that is divided in itself is a contradiction at its core. No wonder, the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, would repeat... the division in the Church is the greatest scandal to the world. Taking resposibility as a community of faith, for others, specially those who are in need and in in toruble,

The individual faithful has a responsibility towards the community, which is crucial too! He or she, in and through his own life and prayers, has to build the community, has to safeguard the good of the community and realise the motives and objectives of the community, as one people of God. It is the every individual who makes the Christian community possible. Apart from safeguarding the community and its purposes, the Christian has the duty of nurturing the future of the Community. 

How pleasant it is when brothers and sisters live together... this is the foundation of the Reign of God, that should be found in a Christian community. Promoting the Reign of God is to promote the togetherness of the community, towards a true spirit of communion and mutual responsibility. It is this task that indentifies a son or a daughter of the Reign, making us in our very nature, children of God.

The Yes-No Conflict

WORD 2day: Friday, 7th week in Ordinary time

February 25, 2022: James 5: 9-12; Mark 10:1-12

We have today a challenging call from James, almost echoing the words of his Master, Jesus Christ - let your yes be yes and your no, no. The yes-no conflict is a day to day experience that we have to grow conscious about. Three situations that can arise from this conflict:

First, we say a yes, where we should have said a No! That is the moment of our failure. Take experiences of habitual sins and spontaneous reactions. If we become conscious of it and accept our weakness, we can certainly grow out of it, with the grace of the Lord. But if we try to justify it, blame it on someone else or on a situation, we run the danger of ruining ourselves and our lives.

Second, the situation where we say a no, while we should have said a Yes! This is a moment of negligence. We could consider the missed opportunities to do good, to stand for truth or uphold justice. If we repent of it, we sould immediate take a stand and declare it clearly to ourselves and to others, thus making the experience of the Reign of God present around us. But if we do not realise it, or if we seek to by pass any critical evaluation of it, we allow sin to prevail, injustice to rule and that is contrary to the Reign.

The worst of our stands is when it is not clear, if we really say yes or no to it. Look at the Ukraine conflict going on - how certain are we about who is right - the Russian Sovereignty or the US and the NATO or the other Powers which are silent? Who is saying what - whose is yes and whose is no, here? If only we say a unanimous YES to love and humanity, what is happening would not happen! Is our Yes always a yes? It is a very crucial question to ponder - to whom and to what is my Yes and how determined is it?

Cut off whatever leads you off...

WORD 2day: Thursday, 7th week in Ordinary time

February 24, 2022: James 5: 1-6; Mark 9: 41-50

James today gives a strong warning against riches! This could be warning agains the rich, but can they be our wish for the rich... that they should go to ruins and to the burning fire? That would in no way be Chrsitian. We can wish no one's ruin, not even of those who do harm to us! If so, what is the message that James is trying to communicate? Simply that riches are no good, if they lead you away from what God has planned for you!

That is exactly what Jesus says too, but a little more radical. Not just your riches and your possessions, even your very own hand or leg, if they lead you away from what God has ordained for you, better cut them off, throw them away, instead of you going to the burning fire and eternal ruin. The point is all about being focussed on what God has willed for us. 

This requires that first, we know what God has ordained for us; secondly, we know what militates against that design of God; and thirdly, we have the courage to cut off all that leads us off from our way towards God. Knowing what God has ordained for me, is the gift of Knowledge and Wisdom from the Spirit. Understanding what takes us off from God's presence, is possible only through the Understanding and Counsel that come from the Spirit. 

Finally, having the courage to cut off whatever leads us astray from God, is impossible without the gifts of Fortitude, Piety and Reverence of the Lord. Totally, it is a constant and repeated spiritual itinerary proposed to us, that we may grow incessantly into what we are created and called to be - children of God, in the very image and likeness of God. 

May we have the knowledge, the wisdom and the courage to make every day, choices proper to the Reign of God. 

Just like a mist!

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 7th week in Ordinary time

February 23, 2022: James 4: 13-17;  Mark 9: 38-40

We are just like the mist; here we are now, and then we are gone! It would  be interesting to turn to the episode of the tower of babel in the book of Genesis... these human beings, if only they were eternal and had endless powers, the world would have been a much dangerous and treacherous place! In spite of being limited and conditioned, how much pride and ego rules our day! Pride and Egoism, are two enemies of simplicity of spirit. 

Pride, is considering oneself greater than the rest, with despise and sometimes even a sense of malice. It can lead to an harmful mentality that can range from looking down on the other, to killing the other! Pride is one of the deadliest of the feelings that can deprive humanity of its serenity and joy.

Egoism, is the tendency to look at everything from the point of view of one's own advantage. For those who are filled with it, no one exists who is more important than themselves. Me, mine and my own, these are the only categories that would make any sense to them. With this one makes himself or herself the world, and closes oneself from the other or the others!

Explained in such hard terms, these may seem some grave psychological problems, but the danger is that, they can be found in each and everyone of us - what differs is the levels of it and the way we are aware and responsible about it. The Word invites us today to make a serious examination of consicience in the presence of the Lord, and see how much of pride and egoism, we have permitted within our hearts. 

May the Spirit of the Lord help us to understand the futility of these tendencies, because we are just like a mist, here today and gone tomorrow. 

Shepherd, Example and Rock

THE WORD AND THE FEAST

February 22, 2022: Celebrating the Chair of St. Peter

1 Peter 5:1-4; Matthew 16: 13-19

This is the Chair of St. Peter, above
one of the principle altars
in the Basilica of St. Peter, Vatican.
It is a symbolic reminder
of the Petrine Authority
that has been handed down from age to age,
despite all forces and events
that have vowed to impede it.

Celebrating the Chair of St. Peter is not celebrating the person of Peter, but the authourity given to Peter. This is a fundamental truth of the Catholic Faith, that we are all given with a Shepherd, an example and a Rock on which we are built together as one body of Christ. 

The imageries that are presented today for the authority of St. Peter are very significant, for us today as Catholics. 

First as Shepherd, Peter was called to gather the flock, strengthen their faith and keep them together as one people. Every time there is a rebellion againt the Petrine chair, or the Holy Father, there is a threat to the unity of the Church. Those who cause this division in anyway are responsible and answerable in their conscience to the Head of this one Mystical body. 

Secondly, as an example, as the witness of Christ's suffering and as an elder among elders, Peter's presence was a mediating presence - between the Son of God and the sons and daughters of God. We are all co-heirs in him, but in becoming that we are combining within us, just as Christ did, our human nature and our divine calling. And the Holy Father is given as a sign of that example...a constant reminder for us to keep striving towards our eternal homeland. 

Thirdly, as a Rock, Peter was deliberately asked by Jesus: 'I have prayed that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren' (Lk 22:32). As the Holy Father repeats it often... it is not that he or anyone in that office is a saint already, far from it. And that is exactly what the Church is - a community of weak and sinful persons - but we are all called to be people of a counter culture. The Holy Father becomes the rock, the foundation which enables us to stand firm and strive always to be true witnesses, inspite of all our faults and negligences. 

Today we have a duty to pray for the present Holy Father, as the days go by the forces against this rock, are increasing and growing more vehement. It is certainly not a call to be afraid or frightened, nor is it to spread some curious and dramatic predictions. It is a reminder to unite as a community of people of God, not a simple civil society. The difference lies in prayer! Prayer for our faith, prayers for each other, prayers for the Christian community as a whole and prayers in a special way for the Holy Father, Pope Francis. 

About prayer and wisdom

WORD 2day: Monday, 7th week in Ordinary time

February 21, 2022: James 3:13-18; Mark 9: 14-29

Jesus speaks today of those demons which can be sent out only through prayer and fasting! And it looks like James is naming some of those demons... jealousy and ambition. These are prsented by James as the opposites of wisdom. It is against wisdom that comes from the Spirit to have jealousy and ambition - how true!

Jealousy is a misunderstanding of oneself, in relation to others. It is a constant comparison with the other and a feeling of incompleteness which is imaginary and negative. What can one really do to fill in that incompleteness, which is actually not there! It is a very foolish question, isnt it? That is why it is against wisdom. 

Ambition is a misunderstanding of oneself, in relation to God. God has a plan for me and that which will give me serenity and meaning is a happy surrender to the will of God. When that does not happen and I am all the time worried about proving myself to those around, I kill my serenity and lose my mind. Certainly, that is against wisdom of the Spirit. 

And these evil tendencies from the evil one, miliates against the Spirit within us! That which can save us and lead us to serenity, meaning and inner joy is Prayer to the Spirit and the Wisdom from the Spirit.

LOVE AND BE LOVED!

My identity, my mission and a promise!

February 20, 2022: Seventh Sunday in Ordinary time

Samuel 26: 2, 7-9,11-13, 22-23;  1 Corinthians 15:45-49; Luke 6: 27-38

The more we love, the more shall we be loved... loved by the Lord, loved by our fellow beings, and loved by the entire universe around. It is not that the Lord God lays a condition to love us, but the fact is that, we shall be able to experience the unconditional love of God as much as we are ready to love one another. Today we have an interesting set of readings, that impress on us why David was loved by God and by his people,  how God's love promises us a dignity that is incredibly immense and how love alone can set us apart as the people of God. It is not merely a romantic reflection on the value of love, but a concrete explanation of what it entails to really love!

To love is to forgive; it hurts, but it is my identity. At times love is imagined to be some kind of a pleasant feeling and ecstatic experience. But it is not all. Love involves hurts, pains and heart aches. It consists of forgiveness... showing the other cheek, blessing those who curse, and respecting those who vow to destroy you. True love hurts... not the one who is loved, but the one who loves. The one who loves, empties oneself to truly love the other. The best of example is the mystery of Incarnation itself - for God so loved the world that God gave God's only son as a ransom! Can we ask a question, 'why'? Why should God do this? The question does not stand, because it is the very identity of God. God is love. 

We are called to the same mode of living, because that is our identity too! We are created in the image of God; God is love and therefore our image, our identity is love! Anything against it is a distortion of that image. Today when forces speak against and work against the Christian people and the Church, what do we do? We love. Our identity is love. In that love we forgive, we express compassion, we spread love! Be it in the family, or in the society, we need to keep this identity very clear. We are sons and daughters of Love, and therefore, love is our identity.

To love is to give; it drains me, but it is my mission. Love one another as I have loved you, said Jesus and one of the simplest proofs that he gave for one who loves is, Giving. One who loves gives. God loved, God gave - gave everything, absolutely everything. God loves, and God gives! If we love, we need to give, give from what we have and what we are, without measure, without expectation or without any self-benefitting agenda. If I am disciple of Christ, I cannot but give. Giving is a sign of love as a mission. I am sent to give, just as Christ came to give and was sent to give, give of himself, give everything, even his life! So am I, sent to give, because I am sent to love. 

The Martyrs whom we celebrate and venerate... why do we do? Because they died? Because they suffered? Not all who are killed or not all who suffered are proclaimed martyrs...the Church has a wisdom behind to see if they were killed for the faith, if they suffered for their faith. Being killed for faith or suffering for faith means, carrying out the mission of love to the end. I am not sent merely to go and brainwash people and bring them to be baptised! I am sent to love people, to give of myself  in love for the people, to give God's love to people! We can never lose sight of this, because to love is our mission.

To love is to trust; it may look delusive, but it is a promise! When I give and forgive, when I love and do everything for the other, I have a promise that can never fail. That the Lord my God will find me modelled after the image in which I have been created. That I shall attain the fulfilment of my life and life's purpose. David seemed a loser in the eyes of his companions who were with him, for he could have killed Saul and become the king right away! Jesus speaks of allowing ourselves to be robbed, cheated, taken for granted and being treated as the evil ones wish...I may look like a loser, but I am not! I have a promise and I rest on that promise.

When evil forces encamp against us and the wild beastly powers surround us in ambush, strangely we are called to love, to forgive, to give and to do good! It could be governments, or it could be hostile groups, or private individuals or brainwashed mobs... when someone is out there to hurt us and break us, what do we do? It is a pertinent question for a true Christian and a true Christian community any time - we remain firm and continue to love! We continue to serve, we continue to give, we continue to do all the good that we can. Because we are not doing it for the recompense, or for a recognition, or for teaching anyone a lesson. We do it, because we have a promise: that the God who looks on, has a plan for us! 

Nothing should discourage us from loving, because it is our identity to love. Nothing can stop us from loving because it is the very mission that we have been sent with. Nothing needs to motivate us to love, because we have a promise, that when we love, we make ourselves loved. The more we love, the more shall we be loved... loved by the Lord, loved by our fellow beings, and loved by the entire universe around. Let us love, and be loved!

Treating as you please!

WORD 2day: Saturday, 6th week in Ordinary time

February 19, 2022: James 3:1-10; Mark 9: 2-13

Being called 'children of God', is a great gift in itself; what can be greater than being called so by God! Just as we heard the voice of the Lord in the Gospel declaring Jesus as the Son of God, so are we children of God... but we need to be transfigured to be declared so my God. Transfigured in the sense that we become or grow to be more and more acceptable in the eyes of God, on a daily basis,

We need to therefore, constantly check our attitudes, actions, and priorities in life. The way we treat and deal with persons around us would be the primary criterion that would determine whether we are acceptable in the eyes of the Lord. The worst of the maltreatments that we mete out to people is by our words, with the weapon of the tongue!

At times we need to ask ourselves, who gave us the permission to "treat people as it pleases us", especially when it comes to the words we use against the others. First of its kind is abusing people with our words - a violence often times underestimated but can really create havoc. A second type is the cynical criticism, that intends no good for the person but only damaging the esteem of the person. The worst of its kind is, gossip and backbiting, an hypocrisy that characterises the evil that lies within us. Once we train our tongue to speak only what is good, truthful and necessary, we would well be on our way towards being acceptable in the eyes of the Lord.

If at all we wish to be called children of God, we need to resolve on one basic principle: that you will respect every person, without any conditions or discriminations; and never to treat the other as you please!

Let my life speak!

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

February 18, 2022: James 2:14-24,26; Mark 8:34-9:1

What would your answer be, if I were to ask you: what is faith according to you? Is it some kind of a belief in a concept? Is it some kind of a memorised truth and assent to it? 

Thoelogically, faith is a response! It is a response given by a person, from within, to a revelation that God gives to a person! The classical definition is that, faith is a personal response to a Self-revealing God. If it is a response, it has to be seen as a response, it has to be seen in action; it cannot remain in the level of a mental assent or a grasp of a concept. If it remains at that stage, it would be incomplete - this is what James says in very concrete terms - If you have faith, show it in action.

Jesus too reiterates the same fact: if you have faith in me, show the world that you have faith in me. How do I show? In my way of life, in my priorities, in the perspective of my decision making, in the way I look at reality, in the way I relate to persons, in the climate that I create around myself, in the kind of society that I promote, in the kind of humanity I uphold! 

What if I claim that I have faith and I am inactive in my Christian commitment? Worse still, what if I declare that I have faith and I do things that are contrary to truth, justice and love? What if I claim to be a disciple of Christ and I act selfish and unjust, discriminatory and insensitive?

It is better that I don't claim by words that I have faith in Christ; let my actions show, let my life speak!