THE WORD IN ADVENT - 4th SUNDAY

THE WAY TO PEACE

20th December, 2015

Mic 5: 1-4; Heb 10:5-10;Lk 1:39-44

The past three weeks have inspired us to reflect on Hope, Love and Joy. This week we have Peace as the point of focus. The world stands in need of peace and many offer this peace at the cost of various things. No matter what cost we pay, the peace seems to exhaust in a while. Where do go in search of a lasting peace. We need not go anywhere because the Peace has come to us. He himself will be peace, promises prophet Micah in the first reading today. 

The readings today trace the way to peace, a true lasting peace: Stop thinking about yourself, start thinking of the other, peace will automatically happen.

The model of Incarnation: God began to think of us, God began to think of us so much to the extent of giving up the divine form and become a human person... the Prince of Peace was born.

The model of Jesus: Here I come to do your will - that was the disposition with which Jesus lived his life here on earth as the letter to the Hebrews bring out so clearly. Jesus, did not only speak of doing the will of his Father, but lived it right upto the death on the cross.

The model of Mary: We have yet another closer model, a model that showed how this whole process can work - forgetting oneself, making a journey all that distance and being of service to Elizabeth.

The more I think of myself, there is a tendency that rises to prove myself, compete with the others, look at others as a threat and thus a lack of peace and serenity. The less I think of myself, there is a possibility that my life will be lived in communion with the One who sustains my life and with those who are around me, sharing the same experience of humanity. 

Let us begin to lessen thinking of ourselves, increase the thinking about others...then peace will have its chance.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd SATURDAY

The Advent Task: Be Fruitful

19th December, 2015

Judg 13:2-7,24-25; Lk 1: 5-25

We have two episodes of miraculous fruitfulness narrated today... both bring out an advent task, a Reign trait expected of us: to be fruitful. 

When the Lord is with us, and we acknowledge and appreciate that presence and found our lives on that presence, we become fruitful in a miraculous way. From where we do not expect and from circumstances that are most unlikely we will  see shoots of new life - that is Lord's doing. There are two verses that have struck this note very strongly in my mind: First from John: Apart from me you can do nothing (Jn 15:5). And the second, a corollary from Paul: I can do everything through him who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). How true! With my Lord around, it is not difficult at all, to be fruitful.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd FRIDAY

The Advent Task: Grow in Integrity

18th December, 2015

Jer 23: 5-8; Mt 1: 18-24

There is one name that is common in both the first reading and the Gospel...David! David was such a loved person to the Lord, even after the blunders that he made and received the deserved punishment! What was so special about David? Obviously, he was not the perfect of the people available. But he was the most integral of all, because when he made and mistake and that mistake was pointed out, he accepted it and repented. When we talk of integrity, we are not speaking of a spotless perfection in a person, but of the capacity to look at reality and accept it for what it is. Even Joseph had his own plans of keeping Mary away, but when Lord God revealed his plan, he was able to look at the divine plan and accept it, and carry out the task entrusted to him.

Not just the Messiah, but the Lord wishes that each of us come in the line of David, in his humility, in his docility, in his availability, in short, in his integrity.When we begin to grow in our integrity, we would be earning more and more critiques or even hate mongers. What is going to be our response - merely find fault with these critiques or grow more and more in our personal and collective integrity! 

Happy Birthday Pope Francis

On the birthday of Pope Francis...
let us make a simple prayer for him...
every one of us..before we go to bed today...

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd THURSDAY

The Advent Task: Realise your lineage

17th December, 2015
Gen 49:2, 8-10; Mt 1: 1-17

The readings today remind us of how important it was for the Jews to know their lineage and how it played a crucial role in their understanding of the coming of the Messiah. In a traditional society too, people place a great importance on the lineage of a person and the historical background that a person hails from. Issues like clan and caste...how dear and important they seem for so many!

The Word today insists on the one lineage that alone matters: that we come from God! It is God who formed us and created us;  it is God who willed us into existence;  it is God who has a plan for us; it is God who waits to make sense for us and through us to many others. If only we realise this lineage and that this lineage alone matters, we would find God very close to us, and find ourselves genuinely close to each other.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd WEDNESDAY

The Advent Task: Believe, the Lord is around!

16th December, 2015

Is 45: 6-8, 18, 21-25; Lk 7: 18-23

The most unchristian thought at a time of trouble is that I am all alone! It may be difficult to see, it may be hard to perceive but I have to believe that the Lord is with me, simply because the Lord has promised me that! At times when I wait in the railway station or in the bus stops and it looks like the required bus or train is never coming, I am used to telling myself, even the minute before the train appears or the minute before the bus comes around looks like that - as if it is never coming! 

The Lord says, believe that the Lord is around and you have enough evidences for it. You only need to look around and observe the things that are happening. The goodness of people around, however limited it could be; a simple gesture of care from a stranger, however unplanned it could be; a smile or a single word of gentleness from a fellow passenger, however short it could be...a loving hug from a child at home, a caring look from a loved one in the family...these are enough signs to gather the presence of the Lord around. Let us capitalise on these, but for that we need to begin to believe that the Lord is around.

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd TUESDAY

The Advent Task : Humble yourself to holiness

15th December, 2015

Zep 3: 1-2, 9-13; Mt 21: 28-32

The easiest way to holiness is humility. The first reading underlines the fact of the Lord's choice: a humble and lowly people. Jesus reiterates that choice and warns the so called 'chosen' people that they have every likelihood of losing their prospects with God, due to their pride and obstinacy. Humility here is not a needless abasement of oneself but a truthful acceptance of how gratuitous it is to be considered people of God, and how incredible it is to be known as children of God. Once we realise and recognise that, we would start making conscious efforts towards making ourselves worthy of it, in our own tiny steps. Those tiny steps are our sure way to holiness. This Advent calls us to those tiny steps towards holiness...the time is very short, just 10 days to go for Christmas!

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd MONDAY

The Advent Task: To see what God makes you see

14th December, 2015

Num 24: 2-7,15-17; Mt 21: 23-37

A prophet is someone different from the rest of the crowd because he not only sees what everyone sees, but sees what God makes him see. That is the experience of Balaam that is referred to in the first reading today. And that is the call that we are given by the Word today: to see what God wants us to see. 

We fail to see it many a times because we are busy seeing only what we want to see. Worse still we refuse to see it at times, because it causes inconvenience to our regular way of life. In some other cases we deny that we have seen it because it demands a change on our part, a new way of thinking and a new way of acting. My mind is still in the experience of the floods in our city...we could observe all the above three categories of response from people...who failed to see the suffering, who refused to see beyond themselves, who denied to themselves even that they have seen so much of need and suffering around them!

Jesus is trying to educate such groups in the Gospel today, but finds himself at a loss! He will not give up so easily, He goes on. He extends that invitation even today - to us! To see what God makes you see. Are we willing?

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 3rd SUNDAY

THE CALL TO REJOICE IN THE LORD

13th December 2015: 3rd Sunday of Advent

Zep 3:14-18; Phil 4: 4-7; Lk 3: 10-18

Rejoice, again I say rejoice, rejoice in the Lord, rejoice without ceasing, rejoice with the joy of the Lord!

The three aspects of the joy given here are: 

1. It is a Joy in the Lord: It is not because of an affluent condition or a material addition, but because of the presence of the Lord that we are filled with joy. Like Mary, like Elizabeth, it is the presence of the Lord and awaiting the Lord's doing, that gives us true and unparalleled joy.

2. It is a universal call to rejoice: The call to rejoice is given to all... a Christian cannot be gloomy, says our Holy Father. That is why the reflection, Evangelii Gaudium, the joy of the Gospel. Joy is one essential sign of the Lord's presence with us. As the apostles who shared their lives with Jesus, as the first Christian community found their identity in the Lord, so are we called to find our living, our moving, our very being is in the Lord.

3. The call to rejoice is against all odds: We are called to rejoice but that does not in anyway guarantee a smooth life, a peaceful existence...definitely no! But the call is to rejoice against all odds. There may be problems and difficulties, encouragements and despise, criticism and challenges, but the call to rejoice remains. 

Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say Rejoice!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

THE WORD IN ADVENT - 2nd FRIDAY

The Advent Task: Live Upright

11th December, 2015

Is 48: 17-19; Mt 11: 16-19

Most of our happiness is short lived because much of it depends on whether or not others accept me, whether they affirm me or not, recognise me or not, appreciate me or not! Even if not dancing to the tunes of the others, we are most of the time conditioned by what the others say, what the others feel and how the others judge me. At times this goes to the extent that I forget to live my life, I live someone else's opinions and prejudices!

The Lord bares the foolishness of this way of life as he says in the first reading today - that the Lord himself has taught us how to live and how not to. If we follow the precepts of the Lord, we would live an upright life and we would not need to cringe at anyone's feet! This is one of the hardly found Reign value among the so called people of the Reign...whether Christians or not, we are unduly conditioned by the opinions and judgments of the others. Would we dare grow out of it and begin to think only of living upright?