Holy Week 2019: The Palm Sunday

The Task: ENTER

April 14: Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Luke 22:14 - 23:56

Today we begin the Holy Week and as Jesus makes a solemn entry into Jerusalem, the task given to us by the Lord is to ENTER... just as he enters the city of Jerusalem! 

Jesus entered the city knowing well that it is going to lead him to trouble. When we decide to take it upon ourselves to be like the Lord, there will be problems from all sides. There will be those who wait to kill us; there will be those who long to see our downfall; there will be those who criticise us; there will be those who stand by and watch us suffer; there will be those who take pleasure in remaining unconcerned about the cause we stand for! But I am called to enter into that life that the Lord calls me to live, for God and for God's mission.

Jesus entered the city, with joy and enthusiasm of the people. A sad Christian is a sorry Christian. The task that we take upon ourselves to build the Reign of God may be demanding but that cannot take away the joy and enthusiasm from within us. I have to be the cause of joy and enthusiasm for the people, I cannot be an hindrance to their joy and happiness; much more, I cannot be the cause of the grief of the people! I am called to take up the tough task of standing up for the Lord, but with a joyful heart and a glad spirit. 

Jesus entered the city, to complete that task that was entrusted to him. He had his task clear cut, and he was aware of it. He had shared that with his disciples time and again: that he would go to Jerusalem and suffer and be handed over to those who will kill him. Though he prayed that the bitter chalice should pass away, finally he submits himself to God and that is how he becomes our way to the Father. In his obedience Jesus paves a way to our salvation. How far am I prepared to go all the way in obedience to the One who has called me!

The challenge is to enter the life that the Lord wants us to. It may cost our comfort zone, our close acquaintances and even our life. But that is not going to be for too long. I have to go a long way...but the Lord God is with me, and his Word shall protect me. Neither the glories of the present nor the sorrows of the times can in anyway be compared to the glory we have, prepared for us from eternity! The mentality we need to have today is to dare to enter the life with all its demands from the Lord - Hosanna in the Highest!

Be Gathered

Journey to Holiness: Let go of your pride and your selfishness

April 13, 2019: Saturday, Fifth week in Lent

Ezekiel 37: 21-28; John 11: 45-56

'It is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to be destroyed': this is a classical self centered mode of thought that we see in the world, whether of today or of any day! 'It is better for that person to suffer', 'it is alright for that group of people to be exploited', 'it is normal for a category of people to be denied their rights', 'it is no big issue to consume nature beyond a limit'... and how many other versions of this inhuman selfishness expressed in words, works, policies and practices in our society today. 

Added to the fact that this is inhuman, this is totally and drastically unacceptable in the eyes of the Divine. The Lord had created everything and everyone with a purpose and when that purpose is not sufficiently understood or upheld, there arises a crisis that is unsolvable! Almost all of the crises that the whole universe is faced with these days are due to exactly this callous attitude of the humankind - exclusively, humankind! It is they to whom the Lord entrusted everything in this world and precisely they went berserk in their values and priorities.

The only solution to the issues that are ravaging the universe is to realise that we are God's people, God's flock and be gathered into that flock once again, rediscovering the purpose of our creation and going by what the Lord wants us to. Instead of looking for scapegoats to blame it on or shirk our suffering on to, we have to own up our responsibilities and look for means to be gathered. The Lord invites us to gather under the Lord's wings: what better place than our very origins! I shall be your God and you shall be my people!

Holiness tip for Today: Let go of your pride and selfishness; recognise God as one Lord; submit in all your deeds!

Be Dependent

Journey to Holiness: Remember, it's no loss of your self image!

April 12, 2019: Friday,  Fifth week in Lent

Jeremiah 20: 10-13; John 6: 63-68

The days are such that people clamour for recognition and go a long way to hold on to their self image and their "due" credits. It is not anymore rare to hear of conflicts for credits - that someone usurped it from someone else and so on. It goes even to an extent where one even claims credit for what has been gifted so gratuitously by God!

The good that we accomplish is not totally our own for us to claim absolute credit for it. First of all it is the Lord who gives us the opportunity to do that good. Secondly it is the Lord who empowers us to do that good. Thirdly it is the Lord who clears the hoards of hurdles that could possibly arise in accomplishing the said good.

That is why Jesus gives the people the work that he accomplishes as testifying to his origin from the Father. And Jeremiah is not stifled by the enormous attack on him... because he is totally convinced that what he does is God's work and not his own.

The key is to acknowledge dependence on God and to be convinced that it is no loss of one's self image or autonomy or self esteem. As St. Paul would challenge,  'what do we have that we have not received? ' (1 Cor 4:7)

Holiness tip for today: Let us express our dependence on God repeatedly and with real conviction.

Be Eternal

Journey to Holiness: belong to the covenant.

April 11, 2019: Thursday, Fifth week in Lent

Genesis 17: 3-9; John 8: 51-59

Today we have the account of the Abrahamic Covenant - I will be your God and you shall be my people. And Jesus completes that account in the Gospel saying, 'whoever keeps my word will never see death'. The one who believes in the Son and does the will of the One who sent the Son, will have eternal life - this is what Jesus meant and said in various terms at various instances. 

Eternal can have three meanings: 

     Endless (anantha), that is what we are called to: though we have a beginning we are destined to an existence that is endless as we will become one with the Lord, and not just perish. 

     Beginningless (anaadhi) that is what God is: One who is without a beginning or an end.

   Beyond these two meanings there is a third meaning which is very difficult for the human mind to understand. That is, Timelessness. Eternal means timelessness, beyond time, beyond all categories of before and after, earlier and later, and all other chronological considerations. This is what confuses the Jews. How can Jesus speak of Abraham as if he were someone who still lived? 

We can become eternal when we become one with God. We become timeless. We have nothing much to do but just obey, just carry out orders, just live on in the way that the Lord says, make choices for the Lord and the Lord's will, reject anything that detracts our life's paths. Our eternal life can begin right here, when we belong to the covenant.

Holiness tip for today: What does God want of me at this moment? - let that be a constant question on your mind.

Be Free

Journey to Holiness: Hold on to One, True God

April 10, 2019: Wednesday, Fifth week in Lent

Daniel 3: 52-56; John 8: 31-42

Freedom of the Children of God - is a phrase that we are used to hearing. What a tremendous sense it makes when we seriously think about that fact, that we are children of God. It makes us free, secure and sincere!

'Free', because we need not think of pleasing anybody else, we need not compromise to favour someone else other than my God who is beyond anybody or anything. All the furnace around me cannot consume me. All the predators around me cannot prey on me. Because I am a child of God and even amidst the fire, the Lord walks beside me!

Secure because the one who is with me is the most trustworthy one you can ever think of - One who keeps promises, One who keeps back nothing from me for the sake of my happiness, One who treasures me having written my name on His palm.

Sincere because I have no necessity to hold on to anything that is not true. I need not put up an appearance, I need not prove myself beyond what  I really am, I need not be anxious about whether I will be rejected or sidelined, I need not bother how dire the consequences will be. I have come to bear witness to the Truth, said my Master. That is the same vocation I share.

My Lord is my Master and I am liberated, I am free and I don't have to fear anything!

Holiness tip for today: Do not fear; Just feel Free and act Sincere!

Be Drawn

Journey to Holiness: Lift up, look up and live on!

April 9, 2019: Tuesday, Fifth week in Lent

Numbers 21: 4-9; John 8: 21-30

Falling is a daily experience in our life and that is why we need to constantly rise up and move on! It is not falling but remaining fallen, out of laziness or stubbornness, that renders a person 'lost'. However the same experience of a fall, when approached with true humility and a broken heart, can become uplifting and enthuse one to live on. The difference is, we need to be drawn by the Lord, towards the Lord! No one can come to the Father, unless the Father draws them!

How can we be drawn to our God? The Word today gives us the formula: 
lift up, look up and live on. 

Lift up Jesus, as your Lord and Saviour, as the one who alone can rescue you, as the one who has the ownership over you. Declare it from your heart and surrender.

Look up and gaze at that power drawing you to himself, realise you need the Lord and confess your dependence on the Lord. Allow yourself to be drawn into his eternal love and merciful forgiveness! 

Live on; when you lift up the Lord and look up to the Lord, you will live on; you will find meaning in life beyond all the pressures around you; you will find an inner peace inspite of the turbulence that surrounds you; you will have that joy that the Lord alone can give!

Holiness tip for today: Turn to the magnificence of the Lord every now and then and surrender yourself completely.

Be Illumined

Journey to Holiness: Remember, the Light is with you!

April 8, 2019: Monday, Fifth week in Lent

Daniel 13:41-62; John 8: 12-20

We have a dramatic episode in the first reading today. Though the innocent Susanna being blamed is a lent-worthy theme, the point of reference today is Daniel. Daniel, who was illumined by the light of the Lord and filled with the Spirit, delivers Susanna from the treacherous plotters and the mindless mob. 'To instruct the ignorant' and 'to illumine the confused' are spiritual acts of mercy and that is the call that Daniel's episode offers us today.

We are called to fight against the treacherous plotters, deceivers who lead people astray, people with hidden agenda who manipulate the weak and the vulnerable. We fight them by throwing light on the truth and standing by it amidst threats and treason. How relevant a call this is, as we near the all important elections nationwide in India. 

Tougher still is the other task: that of illumining the ignorant and the mindless, who do not have clear thinking of their own, who swallow all that they are told, who follow the mob so blind that they do not even know what they live for. At times our faith choices too become such a following of the mob and that is a crucial element we have to be careful against. 

Jesus is the Light that illumines our minds, reveals the falsehoods and bears testimony to truth. Jesus sheds light on what we need to do, where we need to journey towards, and where we are at this moment!

Holiness tip for today: Surrender to the Lord and pray for his illumination, that you can understand God's ways and share it with others.

Holiness: GROWING AFRESH IN THE LORD

The Crossroad: A FRESH ITINERARY

April 7, 2019: Fifth Sunday in Lent

Isaiah 43: 16-21; Philippians 3: 8-14; John 8: 1-11

We have arrived at the crossroad on our journey to holiness. After the four milestones, we have covered a good part of our journey and are reminded of the fact that every encounter with the Lord initiates a fresh itinerary. It is a fresh itinerary and not just a little change over. The message today is this: Lent is no time for regret or remorse. Nor is it a call to resume our life after a short break. It is a time to start afresh. Start afresh from the forgiveness of the Lord!

The experience of being forgiven is a refreshing moment, it is not a moment that reminds us of all the wrong that we have done. If it does so, then it ties us to our past. We will be filled with regrets and remorse, and guilt will reign supreme! That is what happened to Judas. He betrayed his friend and teacher - Jesus. Yes, it was wrong but it wasn't worse than Peter who denied even knowing the Master who loved him so much. But we see Peter come out of that treacherous situation unscathed, not Judas! The reason, with Judas there was regret, remorse and the resultant guilt. With Peter there was the will to restart! That is what the Lord challenges us today, as he tells us: Go sin no more! 

At times our lenten experience can become an interim experience, as it happens in an institution during the moments of 'inspection' or 'verification'. It is like my experience. I have the habit of filling my table with books and notes that I work with. It may look like a mess over my table, but I go on with my work. At a point of time I would just take it upon myself to start clearing the mess and start putting some order. When the table looks empty and orderly, one of my friends would remark with a smile: "let us see how long it lasts!" Rightly so, the books and notes would return in no time! Lent cannot be that short time of "putting order" and then to resume the 'ordinary life'. That would make it all an excessive effort for too little a cause.

Lent has to be a moment of Starting afresh! It should be a time when I have to decide on elements to be TRASHED in my life. St. Paul speaks of that categorical choice for Christ: when everything else becomes rubbish. It is a moment to ascertain the only thing to be TREASURED - the renewing mercy of God brought to us by the redeeming love of Christ. And it is a challenge to TONE UP our life, forgetting the failures  of the past and Restarting our journey with Christ. That is what Jesus tells the woman: behold I create something new for you, a new life, a new start. Come, start again and and be joyful. 

On our journey to holiness, we are invited to constantly restart our journey. This means knowing the unconditional love of God, trusting in its unending nature and striving without giving up to get closer and closer to holiness of life. In short, it is Growing afresh in the Lord.

Be Prepared

Journey to Holiness: they will hate you for no reason!

April 6, 2019: Saturday, Fourth week in Lent

Jeremiah 11: 18-20; John 7: 40-52

These days we are speaking of the attack by a mob on the School run by the Immaculate Sisters in Tamilnadu... this is just one of so many similar things that are happening every now and then in various parts of today's polarised India. Why should this happen on these institutions which are serving the needy? Because they are being good? Because they are living their life for others? Or merely because they were doing it all in the name of Jesus?

Jeremiah was hated for living a righteous life. Jesus was hated for the good he was doing and the joy he was bringing to the poor and the oppressed, and moreover because he was from Galilee! The world does not need a reason to hate you. It will find a reason by all means, unless you compromise with it. The moment you stand for what you believe and live in conformity to only what you stand for, you got to be prepared! 

Holiness, would have it that even in the face this hatred you continue loving, that you continue doing good, that you do not retaliate nor seek to avenge them some how! The best example is the Cross that shines before us specially during this season, the greatest sign of the power of love! Forbearance towards those who do wrong against you, is definitely a sign of holiness. 

Holiness tip for today: Be ready and prepared for opposition when you wish to be good; don't compromise!

Be Enduring

Journey to Holiness: let nothing disturb you!

April 5, 2019: Friday, Fourth week in Lent

Wisdom 2:1,12-22; John 7: 1-2,10,25-30

Enduring all odds is a necessary quality for a servant of God. If only a person wants to remain faithful to what the Lord has called him or her for, the person has to grow tough from within. One cannot allow something to affect him or her so easily, if the person wants to go all the way with one's vocation. 

Endurance means the capacity to dedicate oneself for a cause and to stand by that cause come what may. Here we are speaking of the Lord's chosen ones and their capacity for total dedication. There are two types of situations that can make one lose one's endurance: the opposition of the Godless and the indifference of the thoughtless.

The Godless interpret everything that you do in their own sense and malign your name and whatever you are upto. The first reading says, their malice makes them blind to anything that is godly. The thoughtless are the so called 'religiously diligent' people but who are lost in their own world, who wish that everyone fits into their framework of understanding. Jesus is struggling against these in the Gospel today. 

We may be faced with the Godless who oppose us, malign us, persecute us...are we going to give up being messengers of the Lord? We may be surrounded by the self righteous lot who find fault merely because we do not fit into their frameworks...are we going to lose heart? If we are broken because of these experiences, that is a fragrant offering we can give the Lord but we need to endure! The worst of everything is if we ourselves fall into one of the two categories - the godless or the thoughtless. Let us be careful.

Holiness tip for today: Let nothing disturb us and let us never be weary of doing good (2 Thes 3:13)