WORD 2day

16th May, 2013

"That they may all be one, as you and I are one," prays Jesus... Being of one heart and one mind is a sign of being God's people. Looking for the ideal persons to live in peace and friendship is not the concept of the people of God. The Community is built up in constant forgiveness and unconditional acceptance. Dialogue and discernment are a daily need, not just in the society at large but even in the closest circle of family and friends. This is possible only if there exists among us the love with which God has loved us! That is why Jesus prays that we have amidst us the love which exists between God and the Son of God (Jn 17:26), the same love with which God sent God's son for our salvation and renewed the everlasting covenant with humanity! "For God so loved the world..."(Jn 3:16). Loving Communion among us, is a solid sign of the presence of God's love in and through us. May we all be signs and bearers of God's love to the world!

WORD 2day

15th May, 2013

Praying as a community! Paul knelt and prayed with them (acts 20:36), Jesus lifted his eyes to heaven and prayed (Jn 17:1)... leading us by example. Once when I was a deacon, I was invited to talk to a group of teachers and the theme was "Prayer". I spoke for almost an hour and had the participants listening with an enviable attention! When I finished it and was about to leave the classroom, quite happy because everyone liked the talk, there was one of the teachers who came up to me and thanked me for the talk and said, "it would have been more meaningful, if you had really prayed with us!" I have never forgotten those words, even after 8 years. Prayer is not something we speak about, plan and execute; it is something that we are called to become... to become a 'Pray-er'. It is basically to remain in God, to remain consecrated in Truth, inspite of all the tribulations and trials against faith and truth. Both Paul and Jesus, pray for the same today! Let's pray for the same too...that at the coming of the Spirit, we as a community of brothers and sisters, be strengthened in faith, to remain in God, to bear fruit and live 'consecrated in Truth'!

WORD 2day

14^th May, 2013

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 apply 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! 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.

Feast of Mary Mazzarello

Go to Video: Maria Domenica Mazzarello

May 13, 2013...

Feast of St. Mary Mazzarello, a girl who grew into a woman of faith, a saint who noticed the saint in the priest John Bosco and wanted keenly to follow that saintliness, a person who was totally open to the Spirit and believed that the Spirit guided her through this person called John Bosco... St. John Bosco and St. Mary Mazzarello - an evidence of a relationship and a shared vision that has given rise to a great enterprise, as Dominic Savio termed it, 'a business of salvation of souls'... a beautiful mission of accompanying the young to their destiny, that is Sanctity.

WORD 2day

13th May 2013

We are invited to a new phase this week... to prepare ourselves for the great feast of the Pentecost, the birthday of the Church! Yes, the Church was born with the recognition of the presence of the Spirit. They had seen the marvels of the hand of God...and then they witnessed with their eyes the wonders that Jesus performed and the signs that he gave. But they had no idea, who this Spirit was! They knew God had a Spirit and God was Spirit! But Jesus and the encounter with Christ, introduces them to the person of the Holy Spirit, and there the Church was born. The apostles spoke of the Reign of the God, and there were two important features of the Reign: First, the Trinitarian Communion, the new perspective of the One God we believe in; Secondly, the fact that the Reign of God as the reign of peace, a peace that 'has overcome the world'.

The 7Up from the Lord...

12^th May 2013: Ascension of the Lord

As the Lord goes up, let us reflect on the 7-UP

1^st Reading: THE EVENT: Christ ascends to the right hand of the Father!

                Christ, GAVE UP the divinity and became like one of us (Phil 2)

                He GOES UP today, by his obedience and fulfillment of the Divine Will (Heb 10:7) 

                He will SHOW UP leading everything to its fulfillment (Heb 10:36)

2^nd Reading: THE EFFECT: You and I are made worthy to accede to the presence of God!

                We are RAISED UP by the fact Christ became like us…

                We are DRESSED UP by the virtue of our baptism, and

                We are BUILT UP into the family of God.

Gospel: THE EDICT: You shall be my Witnesses to the ends of the Earth!

                We are challenged to STAND UP for the Lord in the World today!!!

WORD 2day

11th May 2013

"I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the Father." Jesus was clear right from the beginning about where he belonged and where he was bound to! Much of our problems arise from our lack of self understanding. When I forget where I come from - not merely the geographical data, but my ontological origins (the origin of my very being...In Him we live, move and have our being-Acts 17:28) I get lost in the immediate things of life, the trivial concerns, the momentary joys, the misleading priorities and so on. How many of us feel so torn by these disturbing tendencies, that we lose the very meaning of our life! Today, its opportune to pray to the Lord, saying, "God my Father and Mother, may I never forget that I come from you and to you have I to return; and in the mean while never should I forget, I belong to You and You alone!"

WORD 2day

10th May 2013

I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you! The joy that the Risen Lord gives, is primarily the Lord's presence with us! That is what he promises St.Paul (I Reading), "Do not be afraid...for I am with you!" In the presence of the Lord is the fullness of joy, says Psalm 16. And this joy, nothing or no one can take it away from us, for the Lord shall never leave our side. Should I face a mighty mountain, or a valley dark and deep..the Shepherd of my soul will be my guide. All that I need to do is remind myself, in all that I find myself through, that the Lord who loves me is by my side, and all I need to do, is trust, believe and live, live to the full, with the joy that the Lord alone fills me with!

WORD 2day

9th May 2013

Your sorrow will turn into joy. My heart today turns to so many known to me, who are experiencing this inevitable reality - SORROW. Economic concerns and debts, elderly or sickly parents, unprecedented sickness of a loved one,helpless situations of terminal illnesses, the struggle of a non acceptance and rejection, a lack of meaning  inspite of things done with much effort, continuous challenge to personal worth and failures that persistently pull down the self esteem, the list is on… ‘Sorrow’ turning to joy – that Jesus promises today can mean so many concrete experiences to persons such as these whom we have reminded ourselves of. Primarily from the point of view of faith, after the example of St. Paul (I Reading) and Christ himself, this 'turning to joy' is a process from within. An internal process of maturation - a joy from within - an experience of the faith, an assurance of an intimate presence of the Lord in the midst of this 'sorrow' - an experience of growth, a Maturity in Faith.

WORD 2day

8th May 2013

"When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked..." Some experiences are beyond our grasp at an initial instant, some experiences may be totally confusing while others may leave us with nothing to say. It is easier to dismiss them or find someone to blame them on, than to remain with those experiences in patience and faith, to come to grips with what they really mean and what they have to offer us. The beautiful expression of Anselm, 'faith seeking understanding', is a grace! "When the Spirit of truth comes, the Spirit will guide you into all the truth"... the truth of what i am upto, the truth of who i really am and what i am called towards. Once again today, as always, Lord my prayer is, "Let your Spirit guide me O Lord"!