22 – 27 MARCH 2021, HOLY MASS REFLECTIONS
22 MARCH 2021, DANIEL 13. 41-62; JOHN 8. 1-11
Focus: The innocent may go through testing and troubled times for a while, but God never forsakes them. Those who trust in God will not fail
Today’s Word of God invites our attention on God’s merciful intervention in human life. Especially in situations of accusation, judgement and condemnation, in situations of ‘no other way’, in situations when we feel that we are lost and no one can save me, in such situations, God enters and reverses the whole course of things.
This is what happens in both the readings. In the first reading from the Book of Daniel, an innocent Susanna is accused, judged and condemned, and in the gospel, an adulterous woman too is accused, judged and condemned. The case of both is adultery, and both are condemned to death. But, the difference is: Susanna was innocent and the adulterous woman was culpable.
However, the main issue is not so much innocence or wrong. The whole focus is on God intervening in our difficult and desperate times. He never allows an innocent to perish in disgrace. That is why, through Daniel, God rescues Susanna from the false accusation and condemnation. And he is always merciful and never condemns anyone however sinful one is. That is why, in the gospel Jesus rescues the adulterous woman from stoning by the crowd. He forgives her and changes her life.
The question is not the sin of the woman to be punished, but each one's sin to be realised and judged. The end is not condemnation but transformation. The purpose is not termination of the sinner, but the elimination of sin.
Jesus says, "Let one without sin, cast the first stone on the woman". This is a clear call for this self-focus and self-discovery. This will lead to a genuine repentance and conversion, and this leads also to an empathetic forgiveness and charity. It is not a leniency or compromise concerning sin and wrong, it is not minimising it or justifying or defending it. He does not tell them, not to stone her; and this implies that sin is certainly culpable and punishable. He sends her away, commanding her not to sin anymore. This indicates clearly that sin is certainly grave and detestable, and therefore must be avoided and overcome.
Direction: Let us keep aside our hypocrisy to project ourselves as just and to blame others as sinful. We must remember that righteousness is different from self-righteousness. Ultimately it is God who judges us
23 MARCH 2021, NUM 21. 4-9; JN 8. 21-30
Focus: To sin may be part of human frailty. But repentance and focus on God will certainly win God's forgiveness and healing
Jesus is United with the Father. He is sent from the Father, he listens to Him and does what pleases Him. But the people do not believe in him and they reject him. The reason is a total contrast between him and the people: he is from above but they are from below; he belongs to God but they belong to the world.
This is the same case with regard to the Israelites. They are so earth-bound. Their main botheration in the desert was food and drink, and that too rich and variety. They forget all their misery of slavery in Egypt. They forget the mighty works of God. They even lose sight of the greatest act of liberation, the Exodus. They don’t realize how benevolently God provides them food from heaven even in the desert. They don’t value and appreciate God’s manifold blessings. They turn ungrateful, grumbling and blaming. They blame Moses and God as if they liberated the people from Egypt for dying in the wilderness. They call manna as a loathsome worthless food.
This is all because their perspective, their concerns were in contrast to God’s. Thus, those who are caught up with the world and remain immersed into it, will fail in their faith and goodness. They become blind to God and to others. Further, they will die in their own sin. However, if they repent and seek God’s mercy, they would be forgiven and saved, like the Israelites. Yes, those who raise themselves out of the grip of the world, and remain focused on the Lord, will gain eternal life.
Direction: As long as one does not realize one's sinfulness and refuses to accept it and repent for it, will not receive God's forgiveness and will not change their lives
24 MARCH 2021: DANIEL 3. 14-20,24-25, 28; JOHN 8. 31-42
Focus: Good will always be assaulted by evil and will be forced to default and defect. But faith, perseverance and fidelity will sustain the good.
In the first reading from Daniel, the three youngsters Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego defy the order of the king to worship the false god. They remain faithful to the true God. They know the truth and they continue free to serve the true God. They prefer to obey God rather than to please the king. They prefer temporary persecution to eternal damnation. They remain as obedient but free children of God rather than as the enslaved children of sin. They prefer to die so that they can gain eternal life. No threat, no fear, no force, no pressure can shake their faith.
On the contrary, in the gospel, the Jews fail to know the Truth, Jesus himself. They become blind to recognize his identity, by their shallow following of the laws and traditions. They become slaves of sin They reject Jesus, the supreme giver and perfecter of all law. They lose the precious gift of freedom, offered by him.
This is what happens in the case of anyone who is blind to truth and led by false ways of the world and shallow practices. Any rejection of truth is falsity. Any falsity is sin and every sin is an enslavement. And every enslavement takes away the real freedom. But we know freedom is the deepest craving and priced treasure of every human, and every one seeks it. Nothing of the world can substitute true freedom. When there is no true freedom, there will be no meaning, no value, no dignity and no deep joy of life.
Faith alone gives that inner sight to see and follow truth. What the three young men had was this faith, and what the Jews lacked was this same faith. Consequently, the three young men were rescued and freed. They become worthy of eternal life. But the unbelieving Jews continue enslaved. They stand condemned and lose eternal life.
Direction: Many are externally free, in the sense that they are free to do anything of their choice and preference. But little they realize that any slavery to sin is only false freedom
25 MARCH 2021: ISAIAH 7. 10-14; HEB 10. 04-10; LUKE 1. 26-38 SOLEMNITY OF ANNUNCIATION
Focus: Miracles happen when there is a combination of God’s action and human reception and cooperation
1. God sends His angel to Mary with His plan of incarnation for salvation. He seeks and awaits her approval. This is precisely the nobility and magnanimity of God: Even though He can do very well without us, yet He wants to involve us, wants us to be His collaborators and sharers. It is only because He loves us. True love values others, respects each person’s dignity and honour.
2. How much noble and magnanimous we are, being His children? How much do we see all others as persons of dignity and respectability? How much do we treat others with respect? How often and how easily we despise others, showing a false greatness and sticking to our own ideas, opinions and prejudices?
3. Then from the part of Mary, what a humility, docility and surrender to God’s grace and plan! What humility! She does not get puffed up that God Himself is standing at His door for her approval. She does not forget her finitude as a creature before God’s infinity. In all humility, she is aware that the offer of her divine maternity is not her merit or greatness but God’s love and care.
4. What a docility! She does not contest or argue or reject or doubt God’s plan. Even her question, “how it is possible to bear a son without rapport with her spouse” is a quite normal and legitimate question expected from a simple teenage girl, brought up in faith and morals. Perhaps bearing children outside the marital bond may not be a big issue for many in our modern society. But for her society and tradition, certainly it was a matter of immorality and infidelity. But in her docility, she risked being labelled immoral and unfaithful. For her, what mattered the most was God’s plan and salvation of all, and not her human thinking and reputation.
5. Then what a surrender: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Be it done unto me according to your word!” Often we are so accustomed to these words of Mary that we take for granted and take light the immensity of Mary’s act of acceptance. It needed the guts of the spirit to utter such words of total surrender. What a surrender! She has no discussion, no conditions, no suggestions. She does not clarify how God would safeguard her reputation, or how God would let others know about her virginity and innocence in spite of conception, or how God would her family and Joseph take it. She does not request God at least to convince her spouse. She is not much worried about the myriads of uncertainties and risks that await her. Her only concern was to do God’s will and an unconditional ‘Yes’ to God’s will.
6. Now it is not enough to admire Mary for her humility, docility and surrender. What about our humility, docility and surrender? A little talent, a little capacity, a little money, a little position, how much we become arrogant? Even with regard to spiritual gifts, how easily we succumb to feeling that I am better than others, I am greater than others?
7. How docile we are? Even though many times God proposes, inspires, advises, admonishes many things, how much we can be obstinate and fixated, clinging to our own ideas and calculations? We give more importance to our human intelligence, reasoning and decisions, rather than God’s wisdom and promptings? Do we know better than God? Can we do better than God?
8. How often we lack the spirit of surrender? We try to convince God that it is not right and possible to do His will. We have hundred and one reasons to explain and justify why we cannot surrender to God’s ways. We fail to surrender only because I and self-interests become the centre of my whole thinking and not God’s will and the good of others. We may allow ourselves to be carried away by what is false, what is ignominious, what is unjust, what is impure, what is ineffable, what is dishonourable, what is vice and harmful. Instead, as St Paul to Philippians (4.8) exhorts us, our focus and striving must be on what is true, noble, just, pure, affable, honourable, virtuous and beneficial. We must put into practice what we have learned, received, heard and seen.
Direction: We shall desire and pray that we may become more and more humble, docile and surrendered like Mary, because only thus, we can receive the Saviour and experience his saving touch.
26 MARCH 2021: JER 20. 10-13; JOHN 10. 31-42
Focus: Good and good people will always face adversities and will suffer a lot at the hands of evil. But those who confide in God and are convinced of good, will stand firm like rock
Today’s Word of God in both the readings lays accent on the rock-like conviction and courage of prophet Jeremiah and Jesus. Jeremiah is haunted and persecuted by his own people. But he does not give up. He does not lose heart or courage. He does not also give in to negative and angry feelings of revenge and retaliation. Whether it is reward for him for his perseverance or judgement on his enemies for their wickedness, everything he leaves into the hands of God. He surrenders everything into God’s mighty hands and just dealing, by professing “to you. O God, I have committed my cause”.
Jesus too suffers at the hands of his own people. Often they enter into argument and dispute with him. They contest and challenge him, they accuse and criticize him, they counter and defy him. They are totally closed and do not see his divine identity and do not accept him. They try to trap him and trouble him. They refuse to listen to him and reject him. In a spirit of an earnest search, they could analyse and discover the truth in Jesus’ claims about his oneness with the Father. But instead, they take offence at his words, labelling them as blasphemy.
Jesus challenges their lack of discernment and grounds for finding fault with him. On what grounds, they blame him? On what grounds they disbelieve Jesus’ intimacy and unique relationship with the Father? How can they close their eyes not to see the mighty works of God through Jesus? How can they refuse to accept the testimony of his own works, done under the purview of God’s light and power? His own works bear testimony to his communion with the Father, and to his mission of salvation. But nothing of these – opposition, falsification, persecution could deter his spirit. He continues his mission undaunted.
Direction: Jesus said, if you do not believe me, it is okay. But at least believe the works I do, because they themselves become the testimonies for Jesus’ unity with the Father, and his total loyalty to do what the Father tells him and to please him doing His will.
27 MARCH 2021, EZK 37. 21-28; JN 11. 45-57
Focus: Life becomes a blessing when there is a profound belonging to God, when God becomes our own God and we become God's own people
Holiness and mission are the hallmarks of a man of God, and all the more, of Jesus. Such a life is vividly described in the first reading from Ezekiel. It is a life totally related to God - rooted in God, flourishing on God and bearing fruits by God. It is a life that is cleansed from all defilement of false idols, a life that lives by a faithful observance of God's statutes, a life of abundance in the promised and blessed land of God.
Jesus lives such a life and offers such a godly and abundant life to those who turn to God. He donated such new life to Lazarus in the passage that precedes today's passage. In giving life to Lazarus, Jesus runs the risk of death. What a paradox of our faith: he gives life to Lazarus, but as a result he embraces death. But it is not a helpless twist of fate. It is a willing fulfilment of God's plan of salvation.
Trust deeply trust in God’s love, mercy and power. Purify ourselves and preserve ourselves pure. Understand and value God owning us up, who says, I am your God and you are my own people. Never forget our inseparable bonding, both spiritual and fraternal.
– life will not be the same. It will change. Let us also believe in the promises and assurances of God. God assures that he will make a covenant of peace and everlasting. He will bless and multiply them.
Direction: Those who are faithful to God, live a life in conformity with His holy will. They will persevere to the end and accomplish the mission, come what may
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