PEACE IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF QUARREL BUT OF EGO

 *Forfeit Your Right To Win Your Peace!* 

There were two houses standing next to each other. In one of them resided a very unhappy family. The spouses yelled at each other, they fought and quarreled all the time and the other was a place of happiness and calm. 

During one of the fights, wife asked her husband: “Did you ever hear them quarrel or yell over at that house? No! He said. So, go there and see what they do to avoid it!”

The husband stood at the window of his neighbour and watched. There they were busy doing their own thing. The wife was in the kitchen cooking, and the man sat at the table writing. The phone rang, and the man jumped up and headed to the hallway to get it.

On his way, he bumped into a vase, it fell and broke. He got down to his knees and started picking up the pieces. The wife ran into the room from the kitchen. She also knelt down and started helping her husband to pick them up.

The man said to his wife: “I am so sorry. I rushed to get the phone and bumped into the vase. It fell and got broken.”

The wife replied: “No, honey, it is my fault. I put it there on the way. That is why you bumped into it.”

They kissed, and that was over. Both got back to what they were doing.

The man who watched them returned to his wife. She wanted to know what the secret of their happiness was. 

What he said was fantastic: “I know it now. In their family they both are guilty and in our family both of us are always right!”

That is the secret of family happiness!

Food for thought:

The "trick" isn't in not wanting to take responsibility, but rather in not claiming right.

There are times you need to forfeit your right to win your peace: depends on which you cherish most.

This recipe is applicable, not only in the home, but also at work and in all relationships.

DO IT WITH LOVE

 *Do things with great Love!* 

I am not sure exactly what heaven will be like, but I know that when we die and it comes time for God to judge us, he will not ask, 'How many good things have you done in your life?' Rather he will ask, 'How much love did you put into what you did?

At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. How many masses we have attended or rosaries we have recited. We will be judged by "I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was naked and you clothed me. I was homeless, and you took me in. Love cannot remain by itself- it has no meaning. Love has to be put into action, and that action is service. 

Remember, Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do but how much love we put in that action. Intense love does not measure, it just gives.

Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier. I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love. If you judge people, you have no time to love them.

Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.

Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do.

What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family. If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.

Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love. We do not need guns and bombs to bring peace, we need love and compassion. Stay Blessed. Be loving, humble and kind.

Sunday Reflection 22

 22^nd Sunday: Matthew 16.21-27 [2020/08/30] Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, In the Gospel there is a tension between the understanding of Jesus and Peter on who the Son of God is. Many Jews of Jesus’ time opined that Christ would lead them to victory against the Romans, make them all independent once again, and become a great king again like David when the Kingdom of Israel was mighty and great. Influenced by satanic distortion of Messiah, Peter reproaches Jesus (Matthew 16.22) when He speaks of suffering. Peter the Rock becomes a stumbling block and voice of the tempter. When he stands in front of Jesus to block the way to the cross (Matthew16.23), Jesus recognizes the same spirit that tempted him in the desert (Matthew 4.10). He promptly responds and calls Peter ‘tempter’ (Matthew 16.23). He demands that Peter get behind Him and follow him as is proper for a disciple.

We shall now reflect on the temptation narrative that explains what it means to be the ‘Son of God.’ I am sure that this interpretation of the narrative would throw light on the conversation between Jesus and Peter. The devil proposes an understanding of the Son of God in terms of power, pomp, and prestige (“If you are the Son of God…Matthew 4.3 and 4.6). The proposal is firmly rejected by Jesus. He characterizes his SONSHIP as one that implies complete trust in and total obedience to the Father. The temptation narrative represents the satanic distortion of the messianic mission of Jesus. It shows how Jesus rejected false conceptions of his mission and how he correctly understood his role as SON OF GOD. He consistently affirms his trust in God alone, and his readiness to follow the way of suffering and service. “The three temptations of Jesus reflect the inner struggle over His own particular mission” (Benedict XVI. 2007, p.28). These three temptations remind us of the temptations which Israel experienced in the wilderness. The biblical texts quoted by Jesus refer to the three temptations to which Israel succumbed. Israel doubted God’s providence (Deuteronomy 8.3; Exodus 16.2), put God to the test (Deuteronomy 6.16; Exodus 17.1), and abandoned God for the worship of idols (Deuteronomy 6.13; Exodus 32). Where Israel failed, Jesus the true SON OF GOD triumphed. He represents the triumph of God’s will over the satanic distortion of Messiah. The Israelites and Peter represent human capacity for failure even though they were chosen by God for a divine mission. The Church too faces these temptations and failures. It is tempted to use its spiritual resources for its own temporal advantage and to enthrall people by its display of wealth and power. It is tempted to rely on money, status and power, rather than on obedience and service. The example of Jesus inspires us to reject such temptations and place our trust in God alone (Luke 4.1-13). During the pandemic, Pope Francis, God’s prophet for our times and ‘shepherd living with the smell of the sheep,’ wisely leads the Church by reading the signs of the times in the light of the Gospel and listening to the Holy Spirit. Prompted by the Spirit of Vatican II, he leaves no stone unturned for the realization of a listening, serving, loving and charitable Church. His encyclicals namely Evangelii Gaudium (On the Joy of the Gospel), Amoris Laetitia (On the Call to Holiness in Today’s World) and Laudato Si (Care for Our Common Home) were prophetic in nature. His Curia Reform, Collegiality in action, participatory Federation of Bishops’ Conferences and increasing visibility of lay persons especially women in administrative structures, speak of a serving and listening Church that is inclusive and collaborative. The sainthood of Martyr Archbishop Oscar Romero by Pope Francis is a clarion call to follow Christ the Crucified who experienced the people who live in the periphery. Option for the poor and the people of periphery is a Gospel-obligation and Gospel-demand.

Dear sisters and brothers, Jesus perfects Christian discipleship signaling total trust in and obedience to the Father that embodies the Son of God. This is the path Jesus must go and the path that all who would seek association with him must also be prepared to embrace. Do not let yourself be shaped by the world around you, but be transformed by the renewal of your spirit.

Dear sisters and brothers in Jesus Christ our Lord, here are some points for your reflection.

1.      Do you cling to God (Psalm 63) amidst anguish, grief, suffering, pain, challenges and difficulties?

2.      Does your life imply trust in and obedience to God?

3.      Are you aware of the satanic distortion that influences your daily struggles?

4.      Do you believe that God speaks of change of heart and renewal, and His message does not necessarily always mean ‘prosperity’? Is this relevant to the times of the pandemic?

22nd Sunday Reflection

 

22nd SUNDAY, 30 August 2020, JER 20. 7-9; ROM 12. 1-2; MATTHEW 16. 21-27

Focus: Divine wisdom is better and more preferable than the mere human intelligence; Discernment is more important than mere knowledge

1. The whole life is a constant process of choices, discerning among many choices and opting for the right choice. The quality of this discernment for the right choice determines the quality of life and action. Why today, in spite of all the intelligence and competence and all the affluence and abundance, people continue to make wrong choices in life?

2. The reason for this is the lack of wisdom. Many lack this wisdom to distinguish between the right and the wrong, the good and evil, the true and false, the praiseworthy and the blameworthy, the shallow pleasures and profound joys, the passing gratifications and the lasting contentment.

3. In the light of today's readings, this wisdom is to discern between the worldly gain and the loss of one's own soul, to choose to be conformed to God and not to the world. That is why we are faced with the straight question from Jesus: "What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but forfeit his soul?" Or, the urge from Paul to conform oneself to God and to His holy will and pleasure.

4.  But, how to have such wisdom? How to obtain it? It comes only from loving God passionately and clinging to him intensely and following him assiduously, come what may. For many, Wisdom is an intellectual capacity or a mental calibre. But it is not. It is a renewed mode of being, it is a transformed way of living, it is putting on God's own perspective and walking judiciously God's way.

5. As seen in Jeremiah in the first reading, this is that fire of the heart which sets the whole person on fire to work for God and his holy ways in spite of all the adversities and afflictions. In the words of Jesus, this wise mode of living implies to discard all the false self, to renounce all self-interests, to shoulder the cross of virtue and suffering patiently, and to walk in his footsteps courageously and joyfully.

6. Life changes when choices change. Choices change to be qualitative when the criteria for choices change from the earth-bound to heaven-bound, from the material to the spiritual and integral. In other words, our perspectives, our horizons, our realms of thinking, judging, deciding and doing must change. This will be a shift from mere human capacity to the sagacity from God, from intelligence to transparency to God' Spirit, from competence to obedience to God's will.

7. It is a contrast living: to detach from the self in contrast to a world which is inseparably clung to it; to carry the cross, to bear pain and suffering for God and good, in contrast to a world that tries to run away and shuns any discomfort and inconvenience; further, it is to follow the Lord in his footsteps steadily and loyally in contrast to a world that stumbles and wavers in walking the Lord's way.

8. When will God's light dawn on the human spirit that is so much darkened by the shades of self? When will wisdom and discernment become the guiding criteria in the place of intelligence and knowledge? When will people realise that it is foolishness to gain the whole world but forfeit one's soul? When will people understand that the more they are conformed to the world, they are only deformed, but they will be transformed when they are conformed to the Lord?

Direction: Man claims to be so bright and brilliant making right judgment and choice. But is it not a folly to settle for a lesser gain at the cost of higher losses?

BEAUTY OF HUMAN RELATIONSHIP....

 *The Beauty of Human Relations!* 

A bus full of passengers was travelling along a stretch of road, when suddenly the weather changed and there was a huge downpour and lightening all around.  They could see that the lightening would appear to come towards the bus and then go elsewhere.  

After 2 or 3 horrible instances of being saved from lightening, the driver stopped the bus about fifty feet away from a tree and said to all the passengers, “We have somebody in the bus whose death is a certainty today. Because of that person everybody else will also get killed today.  Now listen carefully what I am saying” and he further said, “I want each person to come out of the bus one by one and touch the tree trunk and come back.  Whomsoever death is certain will get caught up by the lightening and will die and everybody else will be saved.”

Nobody was willing to go and risk their lives so they had to force the first person to go and touch the tree and come back. He reluctantly got down from the bus and went and touched the tree. But he came back safe. This continued for rest of the passengers who were all relieved when they touched the tree and nothing happened. When the last passenger’s turn came, everybody looked at him with accusing eyes. That passenger was very afraid and reluctant since he was the only one left.  Everybody forced him to get down and go and touch the tree.  With a 100% fear of death in mind, the last passenger walked to the tree and touched it.

There was suddenly a huge sound of thunder and the lightening came down and hit the bus, yes the lightening hit the bus, and killed each and every passenger inside the bus.  It was because of the presence of this last passenger that, earlier, the entire bus was safe and the lightening could not strike the bus.

 *Life’s Learning from this is* : At times, we try to take credit for our present achievements, but this could also be because of a person right next to us.  Look around you, probably someone is there around you, in the form of your parents, your spouse, your children, your siblings, your friends etc., who are saving you from harm. Think about it. You will surely find that Person. Take their help whenever you require. They are always there for you. The best gifts will never be found under a Christmas Tree, those gifts are your friends, family, children and the one you Love.

Beautiful lines written on Relationships: 

“Alone I can ‘Say’ 

but together we can ‘talk’. 

Alone I can ‘Enjoy’ 

but together we can ‘Celebrate’. A

I can ‘Smile’ 

but together we can ‘Laugh’.

That’s the Beauty of Human Relations. We are nothing without each other. Stay connected at all times.

DEATH - BEAUTIFUL EXPLANATION

 *What A Wonderful Way To Explain Death!* 

A sick man one day visited his doctor and as he was preparing to leave the examination room said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side. I have this fear of dying and for that am not being able to sleep normally too.”  Very quietly and in a gentle voice, the doctor said, “I don’t know”. The sick man was very sad that he could not get an assuring reply from the doctor and got up to go.

The doctor very kindly got up and held the handle of the door for the patient to leave; on the other side of the alleyway came a sound of scratching and whining and as he opened the door fully, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness and joy and started licking the doctor all over.

Turning to the patient, the doctor said, ‘Did you notice my dog? He has never been in this consulting room before.  He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear but with joy and happiness at seeing me. I know little of what is on the other side of death, but I do know one thing and that is: ‘I KNOW MY MASTER IS THERE AND THAT IS ENOUGH’.

From this simple yet profound words of the Doctor, the sick man understood what death meant. He thanked the Doctor profusely for opening his eyes and he was overjoyed.  He went home a happy man and he was not scared of embracing death when it would come with open arms. Death was a Celebration. Face challenges with a Joyful Heart.

Live Simply, Love Unconditionally and Enjoy Life.

THIS IS HOW I ADMIRE GOD'S NATURE

 

BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS FOR ADMIRATIOM

 

RELATIONSHIPS......

 RELATIONSHIPS...... 

There are people that cross our paths who are meant to impact us in small or profound ways. People that provide opportunities (positive or struggle) that show us who we are, where our boundaries lie and what we're made of. It could be a brief encounter or a connection that lasts a lifetime. We may have modeled them in ways consciously or unconsciously and borrowed references that gave us a valuable perspective. Perhaps it was a teacher or coach who saw something in you that you didn't see in yourself. Perhaps it was a friend who made you feel accepted and loved when you didn't fit in. Maybe it was someone who victimized you, and you overcame them. Maybe it was a relationship that helped you heal and showed you what you're worthy of.

Identify someone who impacted your life for the better and show your appreciation.

Everyone we connect within our life has some purpose, just as we have purpose in their lives. We may never know the impact we make on other people, and it isn't necessary. You've probably impacted people way more than you'll ever know. Every now and then you get the opportunity to know just how much you impacted someone's life for the better. And what an honor it is to learn about. Take this moment and gift someone with the knowledge or reminder that they impacted your life in a significant way.

Divine connection is that special avenue God uses to bring your total transformation.

--Bamigboye Olurotimi 

24-29th August 2020, mass reflection

 

24 – 29 AUGUST 2020, HOLY MASS REFLECTIONS

 

24 AUGUST 2020: REV 21. 9B-14; JOHN 1. 45-51: SAINT BARTHOLOMEW

Focus: Every holy and pure soul is like a bride; beauty and glow are her raiment. One has to constantly guard against all that stains this purity

 

We celebrate today the feast of St Bartholomew, one of the Twelve apostles. Traditionally he is identified with Nathanael in the gospel. Jesus confers on him perhaps the greatest compliment, “behold a man with no guile”, no falsity, no malice, no hypocrisy, no duplicity. This is exactly the splendour with which the heavenly Jerusalem, the bride of the Lamb gleams, as we see in the first reading. This is the inner beauty of the soul, which lightens and brightens the whole life and person. It is the purity of heart and authenticity of character that has no dark areas, no hiding shades. These words are a great inspiration and also a challenge for modern society, which is steeped in so much guile and falsity. Life is often like a stage where different actors play different roles and characters. What appears to be, is not what really is, and what is to be. Masks, pretensions, deceit reign high. The world of today desperately needs more honesty and purity of heart. It is high time that people remove their masks and reveal more and more their original identity of the shining image and likeness of God. It is the right time that our disfigured hearts are purified and beautified with more purity and guilelessness. Remember that guile makes all life vile and bound.

 

Direction: Beauty! A catchword that captures everyone. But the real beauty of a person comes from the beauty of heart and that comes from the purity of heart. That comes only from intimacy with the Lord

 

25 AUGUST 2020: 2 THESSALONIANS 2. 1-3A, 14-17; MATTHEW 23. 23-26

Focus: Externals are certainly important to the extent they express and testify what is the interior, but they should never become mere cover-ups that hide the ugly interior or substitute the good interior

We have a series of reproaches of Jesus, directed against Pharisees and Scribes. The sole reason is their hypocrisy. In the light of today’s gospel, some main components of this hypocrisy are: distortion of the priorities: they insist on the secondary rules like tithe, the tenth of everything, but neglect the essentials like justice, mercy, and faith. They donate a little but devour hugely. They disguise their misdeeds under the cover of blessing. They mask their interior impurity by their exterior ablutions. It is like amassing lakhs and crores through cheating and manipulating, but making a little charity and donation. It is like busying oneself in bundles of activities but totally neglecting the interior and prayer life, pure and honest life. It is like being over-conscious and worried about the external beauty and impressions but not bothering at all about the qualities and values of life. Many of the present followers of Christ are not exempt from these ugly offshoots and the strong influences, as the first reading warns us, not to be deceived by what is false. Unfortunately, those who are infected by this deformity of hypocrisy justify and even glorify it as a capacity. This is wrong. Hypocrisy is not a capacity but a weakness; not a virtue but a disease.

 

Direction: Hypocrisy is the greatest block for any worthwhile change or relationship or growth. It shows a total lack of sincerity and humility to admit one’s state of imperfection and lack of the will and efforts to overcome them

 

26 AUGUST 2020: 2 THESSALONIANS 3.6-10, 16-18; MATTHEW 23. 27-32

Focus: Authenticity and witness of life are the hallmarks of a good disciple of Christ; Any trace of hypocrisy is a clear counter-witness and counter-productive

 

A clear contrast is presented between the true disciples of Christ in the first reading, in the person of Paul and others; and the false guides in the gospel, in the persons of Pharisees and Scribes. The true disciples are assiduous and self-supportive and never burden others. They are holy, just and blameless. They lead the people by example. They do not place demands on the people, those which they do not follow. They present themselves as models to follow, and this can come only from a deep sincerity and integrity of life.  In contrast, we have Pharisees and Scribes who are hypocrites. They are like whitewashed tombs, with a clean exterior but a corrupt interior. They venerate the prophets and the righteous whom their ancestors killed in the past; they attest presumptuously that they would have never acted thus wrongly; but at the same time, they persecute and terminate the prophets and the righteous in their own time, like John the Baptist and his own self.

 

Direction: One may wear a good look in dishonesty and deceit, but God lays bare everything. One may create best impressions by his worldly cleverness and tact, but God reads and knows the heart

 

27 AUGUST 2020: 1 CORINTHIANS 1. 1-9; MATTHEW 24. 42-51, Memory of St Monica

Focus: The constant awareness of what we are by our call, that is, a people of dignity and spiritual richness, should also make us more responsible so as to be irreprehensible in God’s sight

Elevating as well as motivating, encouraging as well as exhorting! These are the words of St Paul in his letter to the Corinthians. We are sanctified, we are enriched, we do not lack any spiritual gift. Therefore, what is needed is to remain firm to the end, to keep ourselves holy and irreproachable before the Lord at the judgment. Concretely, what does this imply? Or how to present oneself worthy before God? Jesus gives us some guidelines: first of all, put on the attitude of a servant, who is ever at the service of the master. Remain awake, alert, prompt and prepared for the call and coming of the master at any moment. Continue to live life in faithfulness, dutifulness and kindness toward others. Stay awake in a spirit of vigilance and prayer, do not slip into an easy-going attitude, guard against every tendency to procrastinate and to delay, an inclination to be careless and takes things for granted, do not be plagued by indifference and a slumberous and tepid faith and charity, do not fall a prey to the snares of the evil, but be cautious, judicious and assiduous. Live a life of accountability, in a spirit of duty and fraternity. St Monica whom we commemorate today is one such true follower, for she lived a life of prayer, perseverance, and witness, in tearful affliction for her son’s conversion.

 

Direction: Callousness and carelessness are signs of unawareness of the dignity and value of our vocation as children of God and heirs of eternity. Let us put aside our indifference and infuse a little more attention and keenness into our life

 

A FOCUSED REFLECTION ON ST MONICA, Patron of all Mothers

Focus: There is an oftent tendency to measure the greatness of faith in terms of the quick and big results it brings forth. But the speed and size of favours are not guarantees of the quality of faith

 

Today we commemorate St Monica who is more popular as the mother of St Augustine. But to be fair to her, her sanctity is her own unique treasure. This means to say that it is not so much her son, Augustine who made her a saint but in a way, it is she who made her son a saint. She deserves a special mention as she is the patron saint of all mothers, married women, alcoholics and conversion. The circumstances of Saint Monica’s life could have made her a nagging wife, a bitter daughter-in-law, and a despairing parent, yet she did not give way to any of these temptations. Her ordeal was too long. Her long years of prayer, coupled with a strong, well-disciplined character, finally led to the conversion of her hot-tempered husband, her cantankerous mother-in-law and her brilliant but wayward son, Augustine.
Today, with Google searches, online shopping, text messages, tweets, and instant credit, we have little patience for things that take time. Likewise, we want instant answers to our prayers. Monica is a model of patience and perseverance. She is a great lesson against all our tendencies to make faith a “fast food” service or an “instant coffee”.

 

Direction: If only every parent and every mother feels a little more responsible to bring up their children not only in material well-being but much more in spiritual depth and sound values of life, how much better will our present society be!

 

28 AUGUST 2019: 1 CORINTHIANS 1. 17-25; MATTHEW 25. 1-13, ST AUGUSTINE

Focus: The wisdom of the world is foolishness in the sight of God, but the foolishness for the sake of God and in the sight of the world is the greatest wisdom in the sight of God

 

“God has made the wisdom of the world foolish. In the wisdom of God, the world did not come to know God through wisdom; it is the will of God to save the world through the foolishness of faith. I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the learning of the learned”. These words of the first reading are so valid in the case of St Augustine whom we commemorate today. No amount of intelligence or knowledge could give Augustine the real satisfaction and fulfilment. Ultimately, it is only faith in the Lord, which is a folly and failure in the sight of the world that could save him. His spirit of relentless search for truth meets the benevolent mercy of God and converts him to the real Truth, and that is Jesus.

The gospel too continues and confirms this same theme. The parable of the ten virgins, five wise and five others foolish, is not a matter of worldly intelligence. It is a matter of wisdom of God, to be prepared in full measures with not only the lamps but also oil; to wait on the Lord always and at every moment; to be alert to His voice and coming; to walk in his company, and to celebrate the feast of grace with him. The foolishness of the unwise virgins is: they were too sure of their timing of the Lord’s arrival; they could not see beyond their expectation, and failed to anticipate the possibility of a delay. Consequently, they fail to procure extra oil for the extended time of waiting.

We need to be wise to be ever prompt and ready to meet the Lord. What counts us most is not our expectations or calculations or likes, but what pleases God. Lamp of faith and a minimum oil of casual practice, will not suffice. We need extra oil of fervour, of holiness and purity. In our Christian living, there is no room for tepidity and impurity.

Direction: The experience of God is such an unfathomable treasure and when one discovers it, cannot but be passionate and restless for it and will be on fire to share the same to others 

29 AUGUST 2019: 1 CORINTHIANS 1. 26-31; MARK 6. 17-29: MARTYRDOM OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST

Focus: Vocation is entirely God’s precious gift. While no one can claim it by one’s own right or merit, still one must willingly respond to it and live loyal to the grace received. And the apex of one’s vocation is testimony by an entire life even to death

 

The first reading draws our attention on to vocation. It is a gratuitous and generous gift of God irrespective of personal merits and in spite of our unworthiness. And we see the apex and height of the living of vocation in the gospel in the person of John the Baptist. The apex of one’s vocation is testimony by an entire life even unto death. Today stands before us tall and loud John the Baptist with his martyrdom. Two expressions stand him out: just and holy. He is just because he does not compromise with and support evil; he is not afraid to speak the truth and denounce evil. He is holy because there is no other interest, except the holy will and good pleasure of God; he is totally focused and committed to the way of the Lord; he is fully filled and guided by the Spirit, and he puts God and His will in the first place, over and above all the human considerations and likes. Therefore, courageously and promptly he offers his own life in martyrdom as a testimony. Thus we see a recognition of his vocation, passion for the Lord, commitment to the mission, the holiness of life, justice and courage in action, and perseverance till the end.

 

Direction: The crux of one’s vocation is witness: to live one’s call and accomplish his mission signifies to bear a daily witness. And the litmus test of such a consistent witness is martyrdom.

 

 

Sunday Reflection 21st Sunday

 

2020/08/23: Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, we reflect on the Responsorial Psalm of the day Psalm 138. We thank the Lord for His Steadfast love, His answer to our prayers, good health, the frontline workers, the grocery and retail people wearing nitrile gloves and surgical masks. Today we have all the time in the world to praise and thank the Lord for who He has been in our life.

Today we praise God for you, Santo Niño Missionaries, the devotees of the Infant Jesus! You come together week after week on Friday and Saturday in this upper room - in this tiny chapel in Montreal imitating the early Church community of the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline Communities found in the New Testament. You are a community of faith. You gather in Jesus’ name (Matthew 18.20). You share the Eucharistic and Fellowship meals together. You pray for your members, your family, others, and their needs. You strengthen each other in faith through your devotion to Mother Mary and the Infant Jesus. I witnessed so much joy, peace and strength in your participation. I am amazed at the sharing of your resources with the people in the Philippines.

Dear sisters and brothers, we are faced with a question of questions: Why did God allow the pandemic? As Santo Niño community, how do we respond to the pandemic in the light of the Gospel? What is the opportunity for love opened by this pandemic? Do we choose to continue in faith? Or do we place ourselves in darkness, sin and despair? How do I use this time to spread God’s message of hope? Here are some points for your meditation:

1.      Pray! Praying is to go with Jesus to the Father who will give us everything (Pope Francis, 2020). Pray for the many families who don’t have work, who have lost their lives and who have nothing to eat. Pray for the elderly and chronically-ill people. Pray for many situations in the world that cause great sufferings. Pray for people who died in Lebanon. Pray the I-Breviary that has all the Catholic prayers. Unite yourself with the prayers of the Church (Father Mike Schmitz, 2020).

2.      Hunger for God by reading the Gospels. Come to Jesus, the Light. Has the pandemic made you aware of your need for God? Experience the loss of God in your life amidst the plenty you have. It is not easy to be in the light. The light makes us see many ugly things within us: vice, pride, and the worldly spirit.

3.      Bring your personal stories to God. Most of the time, they aren’t very clean. Our stories might be in need of God’s tenderness and mercy. We bring them to be touched by God, His compassion and Mercy. Today we pray, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” (Matthew 8.2).

4.      Faith, when it is tested, becomes great, mature and full (Father Mike Schmitz, 2020). Keep your faith strong. Do not give into insecurity.

5.      Renew your life through prayer, silence, reading the spiritual classics and spending time with the beauty of nature, a precious gift from God (Pope Francis).

6.      Find non-sacramental prayers, Novenas, and devotions. Post-Vatican II we emphasized so much on the Eucharist. Maybe, it is now time to revive the non-sacramental practices. Find a patron saint whose devotion may help you to have spiritual recourse to God in prayer. (Bishop Robert Barron, 2020). Some examples include: The Saint Michael Chaplet, Chaplet of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the Chaplet of Holy Souls.

7.      The gulf between the haves and have-nots is on the increase during the pandemic which has created new poverty. We cannot forget the problems stemming from the new poverty. In India alone, 25 million migrant laborers from 64 districts have returned to villages. Look for ways to provide timely relief to the needy in whatever way you can.

8.      Do not entertain the images of a punishing god and the thought that the pandemic is a divine judgment. God, revealed by Jesus in the Gospels, is not a punishing god, but God full of love, mercy, compassion and forgiveness.

9.      Be an evangelizer. Be part of a joint action to care for life and creation namely sober and austere lifestyle that respects nature and people. Just for your reflection! Willful and systematic destruction of the natural environment and of the culture of an ethnic group are worse than corona virus because they carry a colonial and capitalist system which does not understand life care. (Pan-American Social Forum and Pan-American Church Network, 2020)

10.  Remember! No Hitler, no Saint Maximilan Kolbe! No Hitler, no Saint Edith Stein (Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross)! Who knows that, among us, there may be 'saints of Corona time''?   Are you one of them?

11.  Do not test positive for Corona J Be positive and Remain positive! Stay safe!

Dear sisters and brothers, this pandemic is a reminder that everything in the world is contingent and transient (Bishop Robert Barron, 2020). We cannot hold on to them. Death leads to resurrection. We face this pandemic with the Spirit of the Resurrection and of Christ who “is now in our hearts by the power of His Spirit” (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, n.38). May Mary our queen in Heaven and Mother on earth unceasingly intercede for us! Amen!

21st Sunday Reflection...WHO DO YOU SAY I AM???

 

21^ST SUNDAY, 23 AUGUST 2020: ISAIAH 22. 19-23; ROMANS 11. 33-36;

MATTHEW 16. 13-20: “Who do you say I am?”

Focus: Faith is not a matter of mere knowledge or familiarity, but an experience, a relation and a commitment

1.     “Who do people say I am?”, “Who do you say I am?” A question posed by Jesus to his disciples. Is it a sign of identity crisis? Is it a sign of a psychological process of self-realisation and self-discovery? Is it a sign of a natural human curiosity or inquisitiveness to know what others say about oneself? Is it a sign of an ordinary human seeking for recognition and affirmation?

2.     Nothing of these. But it is rather a question that invites and challenges us for a sincere and authentic self-discovery and a profound and core identity. We can discover our true self, realise our core identity, only in relation to Jesus, only in bonding with him, in intimacy and communion with him.

What he is to us, makes us what we are.

3.     It is not a matter of mere saying who he is but living and experiencing who he is. It is not enough that words and expressions do abound, unless experience does abound. All our acclamations and assertions, all our professions and proclamations should not be mere collections of formulations. Rather they should be expressions, extensions and expansions of a deeper and consistent experience and love of the Lord.

4.     What others say, what we learn from others, what we receive from them, comes on only to a certain point of the journey. Ultimately, it is each one personally that has to make the journey with the Lord. It is this personal encounter, personal relationship that counts the most.

5.     Therefore, it is not enough to say ‘Lord, Lord’, but it is also needed to surrender to him. Not enough to call him ‘master’, but is needed to be loyal to him and to follow in his footsteps. Not enough to acclaim him as Saviour, but is needed to be saved and liberated. Not enough to praise him as ‘healer’, but is needed to show the effect and signs of healing, that we are healed. Not enough to proclaim him as ‘guide’, but is needed to be guided. Not enough to attest him as Light, but is needed to be illumined and enlightened. Not enough to sing him as Love, but is needed to love him totally and passionately. Not enough to claim him as our strength and power, but is needed to be strengthened and empowered by him. Not enough to believe him as our nourishment, but is needed to be nurtured by him.

6.     Yes, we must go beyond, we must rise above the minimum, the just ordinary, toward the maximum, toward a more harmonious living of grace. Our creed must go together with our deed, intention with action, feeling with healing, ability with humility, capacity with simplicity, competence with benevolence, intelligence with temperance, education with dedication, qualification with edification, specialisation with realisation, beauty with duty, convenient with commitment and modernity with modesty. This is the real experience and love with Jesus.

Direction: Expressions alone do not make one a person of great faith, however eloquent and powerful they may be. Every expression must be rooted in a profound experience of God, flow into a passionate bonding with God and concretise in an authentic life of devotion and dedication.