WORD 2day: 8th April, 2014

Turn to look to what is above

Num 21:4-9; Jn 8:21-30

To look to what is lifted up or the one who is lifted up, or in short, to be people 'from above', is the crux of the Word today. 

The first reading speaks of the bronze serpent that was made and lifted up and that anyone bitten by the serpent who looked to it, lived. In the Gospel Jesus speaks of himself, that when he is lifted up, the world will really know him. 

Jesus invites us too to be lifted up, in our thinking, in our attitudes, in our priorities and in our perspectives. He challenges us to be 'people from above'...that is, to have the mind of Christ, as St.Paul puts it in his letters (Phil 2:5). To look at God and the relationship I have with God, in the same way as Christ looked at; to look at my brothers and sisters, with compassion, empathy and commitment, as Jesus did; to look at everything that happens to us and around us, from the perspective of the Reign of God as Jesus did: this is what Jesus means when he says, "I belong to what is above" (Jn 8:23). 

Let us turn to look to what is above, thus enabling ourselves to be people from above. Thus we will be worthy to repeat Jesus' words: 'I always do what is pleasing to Him."

WORD 2day: 7th April, 2014

Relearn Christian Empathy

Dan 13; Jn 8: 1-11

"Slow to anger and abounding in love", those are the attributes oft repeated about God. If we have to speak of our tendencies today, we should put it this way: 'Quick to judge and totally merciless!' Regardless of who the person involved is, it has become a culture to pass unjust judgments, circulate untrue gossips and entertain unwanted evaluations... Is it a 'Christ'ian attitude? 

The first reading tells us - even if the whole world around you joins together to tear a person into pieces, you stand aloof and act by the Spirit. The Gospel reminds us - even if it were true that a person has made a mistake, give the person another chance, for God has been endlessly patient with you! Aren't these truly 'Christ'ian attitudes? 

And these are possible only when we empathise with the affected person. Christ empathised with the woman brought to be stoned, he empathised with Zachaeus, with Matthew the tax collector, with the Samaritan woman at the well, with Peter who denied his master... Christian Empathy, does not approve of the wrong doing or the limitation, but loves and respects the person who is involved. That love and respect, inspires the person to 'Go and sin no more.' 

வாழ்வின் மக்களாய்

CALLED TO BE PEOPLE OF LIFE

LENTEN PROJECT 2014 - SUNDAY #5 - 6th APRIL

Ezek 37:12-14; Rom 8:8-11; Jn 11:1-45

The signs of life are newness, change, growth, freshness and development. We are called to be People of Life. Being people of life is not that easy today, because we live in a Culture of Death. Death is signified by a state of stand still, a state of no change, a state of decay, a state of giving up, a state of discouragement. The world today is filled with these signs - everyone seems to be giving up very easily. People see corruption and mismanagement, but give up that nothing can be done. People see sinfulness and decadence, but give up saying that is the order of the day... Are these really people of life? Can a Christian take this stand towards life?

The Readings today invite us to be PEOPLE OF LIFE... because we are children of the God of Life. God gives us life and constantly renews us. In the first reading, we are invited to reflect through Prophet Ezekiel, the gift of Life that is given to us by the very author of life, that is God. In faith we have a relationship built between God and us: You shall be my people and I shall be your God...that is the alliance that God has made with us, and is faithful to. You shall be my children and I shall be your father and mother; You shall be my flock and I shall be your shepherd; You shall be my beloved and I shall fill you with my love..says the Lord. Today the Lord promises us amidst all the darkness of the world and the shadow of death, to fill us with God's Spirit and make us live. As those dry bones, gathered together and stood up to life, so can we rise up in this world as people of life, IN FAITH.

We are constantly challenged and threatened by the darkness that surrounds us, as the darkness that surrounded Lazarus in the tomb. Lord it's been four days since he has been laid there, they said. Four days...the Jews believed that from the fourth day after death, the process of decay began. The decayed body comes to life, the situation of total hopelessness is brought to life by the Hope of Resurrection...Jesus declares, I am the Life and Resurrection. In Baptism we are all united to the death of Christ on the Cross, and that gives us the hope of sharing the Resurrection of the Lord. We are called to live as People of life, people who look to the light, people who look up to resurrection, people who are filled with joy and optimism, people who live IN HOPE.

If we are people of life, it has to be seen in our daily life... we cannot live a life that is like anyone else and call ourselves people of life. We cannot grumble and mourn like everyone and call ourselves people of life. We cannot give up and groan like the rest of the world and call ourselves people of life. We cannot just succumb to sinfulness and evil and still call ourselves people of life. St. Paul in the second letter makes it clear to us...we are to live our life in the Spirit, not the life of flesh. Life in the Spirit is filled with light, radiance, joy and above all, Love. The Spirit of the Risen Lord has to fill our life and thus we will be light to the nations, witness of God's love to the people around, testimonies of the Resurrection that is promised to us and signs of the eternal life that we are called to. The foundation is love...to live a life that is filled with love, love for God who loves us abundantly and love for our brothers and sisters, with respect and dignity to each and every child of God. We will stand for, radiate and uphold life as people of life, IN LOVE.

Let us heed the call that the readings give us today: to be people of life, in faith, in hope and in love. Turning to the God of life in Faith, Returning to the Life and Resurrection that is Jesus Christ, in Hope and Relearning to live the life in the Spirit in true Love.

WORD 2day: 5th April, 2014

RELEARN THE LOVE FOR TRUTH

Jer 11:18-20; Jn 7: 40-53

"Then each went to his own house" - that is how the Gospel reading ends today! In spite of the witnesses who saw that there was something extraordinary in Jesus, in spite of the good that Jesus accomplished, in spite of the wonderful things that they saw, the pharisees took pride that they did not give into believing Jesus. The meaning of pride is not merely lack of humility, but it is lack of openness to truth! When one is open to Truth, one is ready to face struggles, persecutions and threats to stand by that truth, as Jeremiah tells us in the first reading. When one is stubbornly closed up against anything other than what he or she knows, one is locked up in "one's own house"... the experience of Massah and Meribah where the people tested the Lord because of their stubbornness of heart, is what continued in Jesus' life as they refused to understand who Jesus was. In fact, it continues even today, when we are selective in our perceptions and choosy in our reflections. We take what is convenient for us and neglect what is not. Truth does not matter to us as much as living without trouble. Truth does not matter to us as much as having everyone nod to our thinking and choice. When they don't agree, we tend to neglect them, sideline them, persecute them, hate them, or atleast ignore them! Is this a Christian attitude?

WORD 2day: 4th April, 2014

RETURN TO THE RIGHT KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

Wis 2:1A,12-22; Jn 7: 1-2,10,25-30.

The prime question today in the liturgy is "knowing God"... what kind of knowing is truly knowing, when it comes to the knowledge of God? What  matters most is not knowing about God, but knowing God. What is the difference here: one is information and the other is transformation. Knowing philosophical concepts and theological finer points is merely information, but allowing those to affect our lives, forming our values based on those and living a life that is coherent to our beliefs is more than mere knowledge; it is more than knowing about God; it is knowing God! The people in the Gospel today, knew so much about God, but they did not know God when God really lived and moved amidst them. Knowing the biblical verses by heart and quoting them in season and out of season, reflecting on the depths of theological ruminations and reaching the heights of mystical formulations will not guarantee true knowledge of God. Jesus says of God: "I know him because I am from him" and that is the true knowledge of God. Knowing God is to belong to God, to be open to God's promptings, to listen to the Word and to see God's will in it, ever ready to accept, live and stand for God's plan, will and design. To carry out God's will is the direct route to true happiness; it arises from right rapport with God translated into right, respectful, just, genuine and loving relationships.

WORD 2day: 3rd April, 2014

RELEARN LIVING IN TRUTH

Exo 32:7-14; Jn 5:31-47

Testifying to oneself, others testifying, God testifying, the Word testifying... testifying to the Truth is an important element of one's Spirituality. Jesus speaks of all these today in the Gospel. The point he makes is: a hard hearted person will never see the truth, however clearly it might be presented. The people of Israel in the first reading are an ample illustration of this fact. In spite of the wonders that they witnessed in Egypt, at the red sea and in the desert, they had the hardness of heart to go in search of gods made of their own hands! Confusions of our daily life, little troubles of our regular days, temptations amidst our ordinary experiences, struggles to carry out one's duties - these can some times make us forget the Truth that we have always experienced. Deserting one's faith, abandoning one's traditions, going in search of substitutes for the cherished experiences of life and phenomena of these sorts are nothing strange to the world today. How well founded is our faith expreience? In whom have we placed our hope? Let us relearn to live our life, founded on Truth!

WORD 2day: 2nd April, 2014

Turn to God the Father and Mother

Is 49:8-15; Jn 5:17-30

The relationship God has with us and the identity we have of ourselves in relation to God are the two factors that matter the most in forming a holistic world view. That is what defined to Jesus, who and what he was. Jesus' self identity was so strongly formed that he did not mind facing any opposition in order to realise and live that identity to the full. Understanding God as a mother who does not forget the child in her bosom, or as some one who does not forget us even if a mother does, leads us to an attachment that Jesus exhibits in his life... for the Jews it was strange and unthinkable, it was a reason enough to kill Jesus. If we exhibit such an attachment to God and to doing God's will the world around will look at us strange too; they would want to do away with us too - may be by subtler ways, like calling us 'old fashioned' or 'goody goody' or 'impractical'. Will we be courageous enough to say what Jesus says:"I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me!"

WORD 2day: 1st of April

RETURN TO THE SPRINGS OF LIVING WATERS

The Springs of living waters, that fill us with life, health and joy are pictured today in the readings. The waters keep flowing on, it depends on us to approach it and drink from it. Jesus invites us, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me; and let the one who believes in me, drink!" (Jn 7:37-38). We are planted by the stream that flows, that is, we are enlivened by the presence of the Lord who surrounds us each and every moment. True spirituality has to arise from there - based on the personal presence of God with us. Special places like the Church or the Sanctuaries and special moments like those of community liturgy or personal prayer, should be the springs from where the waters flow on into daily life, affecting our daily life, our every day thoughts, words and deeds! If that connection is lost, then we become lifeless vegetation that remains fruitless. Let us return to the Springs of living waters and make our daily life flourish, for the greater glory of God!

WORD 2day: 31st March, 2014

RELEARN TO COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

Behold, I make all things new, declares the Lord. Every day, in spite of the trials and difficulties we are showered with innumerable blessings. If only we are attune to every thing that happens in our life, we will be able to count our blessings, the blessings that make our life every day new. If we start every day with the spirit of the Psalms that remind us: this is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it - we would profit by living that day with a grateful heart. A grateful heart is a humble heart; a humble heart is a grateful heart! The more grateful we grow, the more holy we become! The more holy we become, the more we will realise how true it is that the Lord changes our mourning into dance! Let us relearn to count our blessings, and we will live a life that will be a blessing to us, and a blessing to all who are around us!