The complex task of being Christian!

WORD 2day: Thursday, 30th week in Ordinary time

October 31, 2024: Ephesians 6:10-20; Luke 13: 31-35

Our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens (Eph 6:12). Yes, our life is a struggle! That is why we are the Militant Church... the church that is fighting its way through, towards the eternal life, with eyes fixed on that sure crown that is promised to each of us. 

The Triumphant Church, referring to the saints who have gone before us, is our shining model and an inspiring example.The message that they give us, and the clear tone of the Word today, is that of Lk 12:4 - do not fear those who can kill your body, but can do nothing to your soul! And Jesus lives that teaching in the Gospel today, when he says: 'Go tell that fox'...meaning Herod...'that I will be here today, tomorrow and the third day!'

Jesus feared no one, because he was certain that God was with him. Being a Christian means exactly that - to live our life fear-free, not because we are all powerful, but because we have with us someone who is all powerful; to live our life with conviction and determination, not because we are always right, but we are guided by that Spirit who will instruct us and convict us as soon as we go wrong, if we are attentive; to live our life to the full, not because this is the only life we have (as some justify sometimes), but because we have the certainty of the eternal life given to us by our Lord on the Cross, that eternal life which has to be begun already here in our values and priorities. 

How can we live fear-free, convinced and to the full? In other words, how can we be truly Christians in our daily life: St. Paul today gives us a whole armour to put on, every kind of protection against every kind of danger. The Lord is our stronghold, the Lord is our refuge; whom should we fear? All that we need to do is stand firm in faith. Let us not deceive ourselves saying, being a Christian today is simple or natural; it is not! Neither shall we lose hope saying, we cannot!

Jesus teaches us by his example today the technique of a Christian fight: Keep alert, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong (1 Cor 16:13), because it is a complex task to a true Christ-ian.

No shortcuts to be saved!

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 30th week in Ordinary time

October 30, 2024 - Ephesians 6: 1-9; Luke 13: 22-30

Will only few be saved? Who will be saved and who will not be? These questions, it looks like, have been around from ages immemorial! Today in the Gospel, the disciples raise these questions in various modalities. Jesus not even once when he was asked, answered these questions in direct. He always gave an explanation that made them think more and think of something else!

Once Jesus narrated the parable of the camel and the eye of the needle and another time he explained to them that it is possible with God, and impossible with merely human effort. However today, he says there are no categories of people who would enter by default, neither are there selected races who would enter! Anyone can enter and everyone is invited to enter the Reign of God, provided they had the right disposition and the right life style!

St. Paul in the first reading explains what this disposition or life style has to be. It is simply, living our life wherever we are and whoever we are, in a manner that is pleasing to God. It is easy to blame the others or the situation for a life lived below the standard that is expected of us and the Lord today challenges us to 'strive to go through the narrow door'... that is the door that leads to the Reign!

In Paul's words, we are called to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12); it is not about fretting and fidgeting but about being diligent and dedicated in whatever we are called to be, wherever we are! There are no shortcuts to salvation... there is only one way, living mindful of The Way!

Being in Christ is all that matters

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 30th week in Ordinary time

October 29, 2024: Ephesians 5:21-33; Luke 13: 18-21

Given the times that we live in, every time we read this passage from Paul, there can be heated debates on issues that are spoken of therein - who has to be subordinate to whom! But that need not be our focus, in reflecting on the Word today.

Whether I am subordinate or head, I am called to be IN Christ - that's the focus.

Whether I am a subordinate or a head, or an apostle or a servant, a renowned person or a so-called nobody, parent or child, spouses or singles... whoever I am, I am called to be in Christ. Being in Christ means, being rooted in Christ, being nourished by Christ's words, being guided by Christ's lifestyle. being influenced by Christ's way of thinking, being shaped after Christ's mind, being modelled after the example of Christ - being called Christ's own people.

Being in Christ, even if I am just a tiny mustard seed, I can grow into a mighty tree. Being in Christ, even if I am just pinch of yeast I can make a difference for entire dough. Being in Christ, even if I am a nobody wherever I am, I will make a huge difference and the world will turn and take note of me. Being in Christ, even if I am doing just the same things as everyone else does, the way I do it and the heart with which I do it, makes what I do, stand out amidst everything else.

In short, what matters is not whether I am a man or a woman, whether I am in authority or subordinate, whether I am part of the majority or the minority, whether I am in the frontline of events or behind the scenes... 'Being in Christ' is all that matters.

The Name Game...

THE WORD AND THE SAINT

October 28, 2024 - Remembering Apostles Simon and Jude
Ephesians 2: 19-22; Luke 6: 12 -16

We remember the apostles Simon the zealot and Jude son of James, also called Jude Thadeus. These apostles have become relatively less known, they say, because of the confusion with their names. Simon was confused with Simon Peter and so lost his prominence. Judas confused with Judas Iscariot and so became infamous. Reflecting on this fact in tradition, one could be struck by the opening prayer prescribed for the Eucharist today, which goes thus:

O God, who by the blessed Apostles

have brought us to acknowledge your name...

The apostles were all about acknowledging God's name, not their own! Whether Simon or Jude, or any other apostle, they were all out to spread the Good News and give glory to God, building up the Body of Christ on earth: the People of God. 

Building up is our work, yes, but we are very much part of the building itself. We are the building, and we are building ourselves up together to give glory to the name of the Lord. And in this process, we are called to beware of the name game that is going rampant these days: that is, being divided among ourselves under so many names and calling names at each other, maligning each others' names and playing the dirty worldly name game! That is not very becoming of that One Name we have on earth by which we could al be saved, the most sweet and glorious name of Jesus. The division in the Church is the greatest of all scandals against the Gospel. 

With that one Cornerstone, let us unite with the apostles Simon and Jude, and with each other, giving glory to God's mighty name!

TO SEE THE EMPATHISING LORD

The Lord... who is like us, who likes us and who likens us to himself!

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time - October 27, 2024
Jeremiah 31: 7-9; Hebrew 5: 1-6; Mark 10: 46-52

"God"... How do we understand that term: the Almighty, the Omnipotent, the Mighty One? With those conceptions, we are still short of looking at that God whom Jesus introduced to us! In and through Jesus we have been introduced to a God who is all these but more than all these; a God who is close to us, a Father who loves us, a mother who cares for us, a beloved who longs for us, a friend who stays close to us and a Saviour who came down to save us... in short, an Empathising God -  it is that grace we need to seek today: to see the Empathising Lord! 

How do we understand the Empathising Lord?

The Lord is like us: 

We have a Lord who is like us... like us in every way except our sins. A Lord who came among us, ate, drank, laughed, cried, enjoyed, celebrated, loved, worked, faced hardships and temptations... He was like any of us, just like us and therefore, when we suffer, when we are troubled, when we have problems and temptations, the Lord perfectly knows what we are through. As an empathising Lord, he is not out there to judge us from afar or look down on our weaknesses, but someone who would put His hands around our shoulders and comfort us, someone who would sit by our side and whisper into our ears: 'it's okay! I have been there too'! The second reading presents this Lord to us.

The Lord likes us: 

We have a Lord who likes us... who loves us, who feels for us, who wishes that we were happy, who wants to heal us, who wants to give us all that we need, who wants to walk us to prosperity and fullness, who wants to give sight to us, who wants to listen to us, who wants to reach out to us! God our Father and Mother who spared no effort, giving up even the only Son; the Son who keeps back nothing, not even his own life by way of his body and his blood; the Spirit who comes down to dwell within us, within our poor bodies, in our lowly conditions, in our daily toils. This is the Lord who loves us, likes us so much that he is ready to do any thing for our sakes. As the first reading and the Gospel present to us, we are invited to see this Lord who is merciful and kind, who is in love with us. The Gospel in a special way speaks of a Lord who listens to a lone cry amidst the large crowd, and has mercy on that person and heals the person in love!

The Lord likens us: 

The Lord who came down to be like us, the Lord who dies to show how much he likes us, does not stop with that... God wants to liken us to Godself. The first and the second readings present to us a God who wants to make us God's sons and daughters, God's children, God's beloved ones, God's favourites. God invites us constantly towards this fullness of becoming God's own. We become God's own by opening or eyes of faith. We become God's own by crying out with faith. We become God's own by trusting in faith that God can do and will do everything for us! Thus becoming God's children we will be with God, close to God and like God, for we will see God face to face, as says St. Paul.

Yes, we have an Empathising Lord who was like us, who likes us and who longs to liken us to Himself. How prepared are we to see this Lord present by our side everyday of our life? How ready are we to hold on to the hands of this empathising Lord and look ahead in life with hope? If we find ourselves wanting in this respect, all that we need to do is cry out to the Lord: "Lord, that I may see!"

The challenge to Grow Up!

WORD 2day: Saturday, 29th week in Ordinary time

October 26, 2024 - Ephesians 4: 7-16; Luke 13: 1-9

The first reading today would lend itself so well for an interdenominational war, a typical catholics-protestants feud - calling each other a human trickery and deceptive scheming. However, the challenge is that we grow up, from all these childisn bickerings! St. Paul throws that challenge at us, to grow into the full stature of Christ, which is nothing but, love! 

Let us grow in love, love for God, love for each other, a patient acceptance of each other and loving fellowship of brothers and sisters. In the encylical released on the 24th October (Dilexit nos), Pope Francis calls this "the threefold love": one, the love that God has for us revealed by the heart of Jesus, and then the two fold love - that we need to nurture towards God and towards our neighbours! (Cf. Dilexit nos, nn. 65,66)

Now as sects of Christians, how long could we go on calling each other names and breaking the Body of Christ into non negotiable bits and pieces? If we do go on this way, Jesus says that twice in the Gospel today: 'you will all perish!' It's high time we realise our call to grow up and bear fruit. God has given us enough and more chances. Let us equip ourselves, not with offences and defences, but with arms of love and feet of generosity. 

The invitation is to prune our ego and till our arid hearts, sowing seeds of love and reaping fruits of brotherhood and sisterhood. Love is our identity and nothing else can be: by this they will know that you are my disciples, by the love that you have for one another (Jn 13:35). There can be no worse scandal than a divided Church and of course, there can be no better proclamation of the Gospel than a loving and united community of faithful, who live together as brothers and sisters, one in the Lord and in the Spirit!

Integrity - oneness of vision!

WORD 2day: Friday, 29th week in Ordinary time 

October 25, 2024 - Ephesians 4: 1-6; Luke 12: 54-59

When dealing with problems between persons, ordinarily we find it difficult to trace a way out of it, not because there is no way, but because both the parties do not want to see the way! That is why they say,  'we can arouse the person who sleeps, but not the ones who pretend to sleep!' It is true: for most of the problems today, it is not that we do not have a solution, but we do not want to arrive at it.

Jesus gives a piece of his mind to the pharisees and scribes today in the Gospel, because he finds in them the hypocrisy of not choosing things that were so obviously towards the right. How many times, we know very well that we are at fault, but just to save our face we try so many ways of justifying ourselves. Or when we find someone known or close to us at fault, we close an eye and criticise the others! 

The problems in the world are due to the lack of oneness of vision that afflicts us... each of us with a selfish agenda, individual groups with unfounded prejudices, particular classes with insensitive urge for advancement, certain persons with inhuman tendencies of manipulation and exploitation... these are those who could not care less about the golden rule. 

At times we have a set of rules for ourselves and a completely different one for others. In those cases, we become people filled with discrepancies and disparities, and we render ourselves least likely to enter the Reign of God - says Jesus today. What we are called to is, a oneness of vision within us, and among us!

Reasons to be Good

WORD 2day: Thursday, 29th week in Ordinary time 

October 24, 2024 - Ephesians 3: 14-21; Luke 12: 49-53

It is a notable fact that people are afraid, or atleast suspicious, about being good these days! Fear of manipulation, exploitation and being taken for granted are so live and real that we hesitate to be good and hold on to what is good. The Word today gives us three reasons why we cannot afford to be afraid of being good:

1. Because we take on our heredity from none less than the Almighty Lord: The Lord is our banner; the Lord is our identity, it is from the Lord we take our name, as a family of God. How can we be other than good?

2. Because the Love of God is poured into our hearts: A love whose measure, we can never comprehend to the full - the length and breadth and depth and height of it so immense that we cannot but be concerned about being worthy of that love; which entails that we are good in our very being!

3. Because we have a Vocation to be a Community of Counter Culture: Jesus commissions us to be the People of the Reign, which is to be a people of counter culture, proposing a culture that is opposed to the culture of social sin, the culture of injustice and exploitation, the culture of imbalanced growth and inhuman development, a culture of total human insensitivity. When we intend to be such a community of counter culture, the rest of the world may turn against us. Jesus makes it clear today: if you choose me, choose be absolutely!

Recognising the wells of Salvation

WORD 2day: Wednesday, 29th Week in Ordinary time

October 23, 2024: Ephesians 3: 2-12; Luke 12: 39-48

Jesus continues his instruction as to how we need to be prepared for that hour of reckoning at any point of time in our life. In fact Jesus is ridiculing all the funny discussions and calculations about when that hour will come - some self proclaimed eschatological quacks make much ado of the end and its timings and miss the entire point that Jesus is driving home here. Picking the cue from them, there are those who speak as if they know everything under the sun, or even above it!

Let us not miss the central point, that Christ is here, right here amidst us and he does not need to come from elsewhere! Christ is a mystery and no one can understand it; one can only experience or live that mystery! So, let us not look at the Second Coming as a day or as a moment when everything will come to a stand still and there will be an UFO coming down from the sky... just give up on that crap! And all the exercise of calculating the time and the hour and predicting it with such precisions... let us grow up, please!

No matter when and where, we have been instructed what to do and why to do it. Let us take care how we do it - not seeking human attention but going by merely God's approval. The wells of Salvation are within each of us! The Lord has placed God's Word and God's law within each of us. We know it well, when something is right and we see it when it is wrong. There is no need for an external apparatus for this recognition. 

The internal system of convictions and criteria that makes me draw inspiration and direction from within me... doing nothing but good, speaking nothing but good, thinking nothing but good, no matter how unlikely the returns are, or what the consequences would be. These are the wells of salvation - we better begin to recognise them within us and live our life in grace!

The Exam Fear?!

WORD 2day: Tuesday, 29th week in Ordinary time 

October 22, 2024 - Ephesians 2:12-22; Luke 12: 35-38

Fear of examinations, is an inescapable human experience for most! Interestingly, the usual remedy proposed by teachers and other trainers is, learn your subjects on a daily basis, revise your classes everyday and when the exams come you will be better prepared. The point is, examinations are not something for which we need to prepare, they are just an end of a process of learning. At times when we do not have the right study attitudes, the examinations become an entity per se and worthy to be considered great hurdles to be crossed and not merely a formality to be undergone. Now, that was certainly not a session on study-skills... but therein we could find the crux of the Word today.

The Word reminds us how the Lord has chosen us and given us an identity that is entirely a grace: the identity of being the people of God, of being the offsprings of God, of being God's beloved children. When we are conscious of that identity, on a daily basis and conduct our affairs accordingly, we would not need to prepare, or be afraid of, or fret about what is called the moment of truth - the last judgment! Every choice that we make is a judgement we bring on ourselves... whether it is monitored or not; when I know that I am a child of God, that I am a son or a daughter of God and I live, believe and behave worthy of that identity, why should I fear? It is like the Master who was asked as he was having his cup of tea, 'what would you do, if the world ends this moment?' The Master said: "I would continue having my tea."