3rd Sunday of Advent: Rejoice in the Lord

The third Sunday of Advent is called ‘Gaudate Sunday’ . The word ‘Gaudate’ in Latin means "Rejoice". Opening ante-phone says "Rejoice in the Lord always........" And in the first reading today prophet Isaiah says 61:10"I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall exult in my God." And in the second reading St. Paul again says "Rejoice always......." This suggest the whole mood our celebration today. “Rejoice.” In the first week, the call was "stay awake" or “wake up” and in the second week the call was "Prepare the way" And in the third week the call is "Rejoice". Wake up, prepare and now rejoice. They have a meaning.
Dear Friends, if you ask me to sum up the whole of Christian religion into one word apart from love, I'll say it is "Rejoice" or "Joy". For me religion is nothing but ‘the joy of relating to the father who created you, the joy of relating to the Son who redeemed you, the joy of relating to the Holy Spirit who leads you and the joy of relating to my fellow men and women as brothers and sisters because we are of the same family having god as our father, Jesus as our Saviour and Holy Spirit as our guide. This is what religion is all about. The main underlying thing is the joy of relating either to God or the fellow human beings.
But unfortunately somewhere down the line ‘the joy aspect of the religion’ was missed. Joy of relating to Yahweh was missed. Therefore people went away from God constantly. And God has to after them to redeem. How many of us who gathered here can say with our hand on our heart that religion for us is a joy. Practising Christian religion is a joy for us. How many of us can say that coming for mass is a joy not an obligation or duty. How many of us can say that ‘saying my morning and evening prayers or rosary’ if at all if we say them, is a joy not a burden or duty to be done. So I don’t hurry through them to finish them fast. I don’t find any excuses to skip them. How many of us can say coming regularly for confession is a joy. Its something which you and me have to ask.
Somehow for many of us including me, religion has become a set of 'dos and don'ts'; a set of obligations to be fulfilled, a set of prayers to be said. Honestly we cannot be blamed for that because that is what we learnt from our parents and that is what we try teach our children. It has been coming down the ages. We hurry through the prayers with our children and they sit with us till a certain age; and after that they say "its meaningless or boring, I can say it. I don't want to come for mass." You know why? Because somewhere down the line we missed to teach ‘the joy aspect of religion’. Somewhere down the line we forgot or failed to learn or teach that ‘religion is the joy of relating to God the father who loves you and the joy of relating the fellow men and women as brothers and sisters of the same father.’
So unfortunately our prayer or worship become meaningless and boring. It is not the joy of relating to God the father who loves you and whom you love. When I was in Hyderabad I use to go to public-parks to relax and I used to see young boys and girls sitting in pairs and talking for hours and hours. I often wondered what they were talking all the time. They may be meeting everyday at that park or ringing up to each other everyday. But still when they meet again they have so many things to share and they sit for hours and talk. They may be sharing the same things they spoke the other day but still they enjoy the conversation. (Some of you may be going back to your own old memories. Good.) I just want to ask "why they are not bored of talking about or repeating the same things again and again?" I had a friend in the Seminary who will listen to all what I say and at the end will say "Tenth time". But these young lovers are not like that. Because they enjoy each others presence. Word doesn't matter much even though they are very important in a conversation or relationship, but their nearness to each other fills them with joy. They enjoy each others company or presence. I used to talk to my mother for hours everyday but it was not boring. Because you love the person with whom you are talking and therefore you enjoy their presence. That is what for me should be the essence of religion or prayer or worship. Where you enjoy the presence of God or a life of loving relationship with the Lord.
This is what prophet Isaiah and St. Paul meant when they said "Rejoice in the Lord and again I say rejoice ". What it meant was to “Rejoice in the presence of the Lord or find joy in relating to the Lord. Find joy in a life of relationship with the Lord.” Most importantly when prophet Isaiah said these words "he was may be with the people of Israel in Babylonian exile or Diaspora. And St. Paul was in prison when he wrote these words to Philippians. It means that “It is not where you are but with whom you are that gives you joy.” It also means
Joy is more than pleasant circumstances – Paul was in prison.
Joy is more than rosy future – Paul had no idea what lay ahead.
Joy is more than possessions – Paul was there with nothing.
This is what religion can do or must be for you. This is the call of the Church for this Advent. Wake up if you are asleep in your life, prepare yourself to enjoy the life of relationship with the Lord this Christmas and forever. He comes down to be one with you in relationship of love. Amen

Apologies.

Sorry that I have not posted anything for past month or so. I see only few are reding this blog. So I was concentrating more on my another blog. frbosco.spaces.live.com. You can access this blog to see my latest post or my Sunday homilies every week. May I will concentrate to write some other things on this blog.
Fr.Bosco

10th Sunday - Year A: God's folly is better than human wisdom

Suppose immediately after the mass if you go out and see me or one of the priests every day in the pub next door enjoying with a group of men and women; what will be your immediate reaction? I am sure you will not be pleased with it. You will say to one another “What happened to this man? Why is he behaving like this?” Doesn't he know how to behave properly as a priest?

Now, Why you do think you react like this? It is because you as the members of the church expect a certain type of an acceptable behaviour from your priest and if that expectations are not met you are upset with it. Often these expectations are born out of conventional wisdom. There is an age old saying “Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are.” This means if you are seen always with the bad companions you are considered to be bad and if your seen in the good company you are considered as good person. And as a priest you expect me or some one to be in good company. If we are not, you will grumble, complain and stop associating with us. Is it not?
This is exactly what is happening in today’s gospel. By the time Jesus came to call Mathew he was already a well known Rabbi (teacher). He was being called into the Synagogues and was being asked to read and explain the scriptures and when he explained they were struck with wonder because he spoke with authority. Now like you and me they were also expecting a certain type of acceptable behaviour from their Rabbi, especially in public life. He was expected to be seen always in good company and denounce the company of sinners. After all he is teaching religion. But that is not what is happening here. Jesus is making friendship with a sinner and enjoying a party with a group of sinners. Conventional wisdom does not accept this. Hence this reaction from the Pharisees and elders. They mumble and grumble.
I read a few pages from a book written by Elizabeth-Anne Stewart. The title of the book is “Jesus, the Holy Fool”. She writes “Jesus, as the powerful messiah is expected to possess common sense, an intuitive grasp of another’s worth; I. e: what their life is and what will happen if he associates with them. He must know the age old wisdom-saying “one bad apple spoils the whole bunch”. But he rather than surrounding himself with people of good repute who would enhance his own social standing, is doing the opposite; it was as though he is going out of his way to look ridiculous.
And she writes, “Jesus invited into companionship: Peter the coward, Thomas the doubter, James and John the social-climbers, and Judas the betrayer- these very ordinary, flawed human beings, these parasites and simpletons, were the friends to whom he entrusted himself and his message. Adding to these he is inviting and dining with sinners.
By the world’s standards Jesus was setting himself up for failure and disgrace. Jesus the Holy fool surrounded himself with lesser fools- with sinners and prostitutes, as his enemies, the Pharisees would observe and comment. Their worldly wisdom does not accept this. Hence this reaction from them.
Perhaps, what they fail to understand here is that “God’s foolishness is better than the best of man’s wisdom.” That is what the author goes on to say. She says “Perhaps when all is said and done, only the Holiest of Fools can look beyond the imperfections and see what is in another’s heart. Perhaps when all is said and done, only one who is complete in himself can generously reach out to raise the weak and infirm beyond their own pathetic limits.”
Yes! dear friends, Jesus’ acts and words may sometimes look foolish to conventional wisdom. But Jesus’ wisdom is not the wisdom of the world. He is the wisdom of God. God's ways are not our ways. And God’s folly is better than man’s wisdom. By associating with sinners first of all he showed ‘how far human heart must stretch in acceptance and forgiveness.’ You can win a person by love not by hatred. And by his table fellowship with sinners he showed that they too have a place in God’s coming reign.
Secondly, by associating with those with disabilities and diseases and sins he showed how infinitely ‘touchable’ each person is regardless of social taboos. Each and every person is touchable, loveable. Let us not tag or reject any one person or section of the society as outcastes. All are God’s children and therefore all are loveable. This is what Jesus did. And this is what we are asked to do. Amen.

9th Sunday A:House built on the rock

What we read today as our gospel is a conclusion to Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. He concludes it saying: “Anyone who listens to these words of mine and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Let us analyse these words. Who is the wise man here? Wise man is the one who builds his house on a solid rock. In this context, wise man is the one who listens to 'these words of mine' (Jesus' words) and obeys them. So, listening to the words of Jesus and living them, is like building your house on solid foundation. Obeying or living Jesus’ sermon on the mount or his manifesto is like building your house on a solid rock.
Tell a modern young man that following Jesus' sermon on the mount is like building your house on the rock? He will stare at you and will say:
Are we building our houses on rock if we are poor in spirit or rejoice in our poverty, if we are meek and humble rather than asserting ourselves in this world of competition, and allow ourselves to be persecuted for righteousness' sake and rejoice in it? Are they strong foundations?
Are we building our houses on rock in this modern world by turning the other cheek, walking the extra mile, and forgiving as our heavenly father forgives?
Or are we building our houses on solid rock when we stop worrying about what we will eat or wear tomorrow, avoid judging other people, and ask God for those things that we need?
Enough, he will say. It is a strange rock to build your house upon. Indeed, following words such as these in our modern times is more like building a house on quicksand. How will we ever get on in life if we build on this foundation? Friends, this is the genuine concern of the modern man? Sometimes even we wonder and say “Is it really possible to obey the Sermon on the mount today?”
I'll say “yes”. How? If we understand them properly. Often the problem is not with the principles that Jesus taught us, but it is with the way we understand them. Let me give you an example to illustrate my point. It is a Sardarji joke. Sardarji is a character used to make fun of stupid or less intelligent people. The story goes like this:
One day when Sardarji visited his GP for his obesity problem the doctor told him “if you run eight miles a day for 300 days you will lose 10 stones of weight.” Wonderful. He went away. And at the end of 300 days, Sardarji rang up to the doctor to report that he lost the weight but he has a problem. Doctor asked him “what is the problem?” He said “I’m 2400 miles away from home.”
In this story when doctor told him to walk 8 miles a day he did not ask him to walk 2400 miles away from home. He could have easily walk up and down 8 miles from his house. But our Sardarji understood it as walking away from home. That was his problem. So also for example, when Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount asks you to turn you left cheek when some one strikes you on the right you can understand it as a call to be submissive or a call be master of your emotions. (i.e)Don’t be a slave to other’s emotions. Let me explain. Suppose someone is angry and strikes you on your cheek, you get angry and you strike him back. What is happening here is you are reacting to the action of the other. You are being influenced by his emotion and you react. You are not the master of your self. Where as when you turn the other cheek when some one strikes you, you are not reacting to his action but you are acting and saying “I will not be controlled by your emotion of anger but I will be a master of my self. You cannot influence me. I am what I am and not what you want me to be.”
Now, this principle that Jesus taught 'that you be the master of yourself'; is it not a strong rock on which you can build your house or life upon? Yes it is. It’s a wonderful and fantastic principle of life on which you can build your whole character. We can analyse every other principle contained in the Sermon on the Mount; it ultimately comes up to character-building based on strong principle of Jesus. It is this building of character that is referred to in the gospel today. Build your character based on the principles laid down by Jesus in his Sermon on the mount. It is this building that cannot be shaken by storms of doubt, gales of scientific onslaught on religion, winds competition from other religious traditions. It will not fall because the principles laid down by Jesus are far above all religions and sciences. Knowing this is the beginning our salvation. Amen.

Corpus Christi 2008

Today we celebrate the solemnity of the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This feast began in the 1200s as a result of two miracles, two interventions of the Lord. The first occurred in the early part of the century, when the Lord Jesus began to appear to a contemplative nun in Belgium, Blessed Juliana of Mont Cornillon (1193-1258). Beginning from the time she was 16, a moon would appear to her throughout the day with a black band in it. She wondered what it meant and the Lord Jesus appeared to her in a dream and mentioned that the moon referred to the liturgical year and the black band to the fact that the liturgical year lacked one thing, a day in honour of His Body and Blood in the Eucharist.
Up until that point, the Church had marked the institution of the Eucharist each year on Holy Thursday, when the Lord gave the apostles his body and blood for the first time and instituted the priesthood. But on Holy Thursday, the focus of most Christians is on the imminent betrayal that will occur after the Last Supper. Even the Gospel of the Mass of the Last Supper does not focus on the Eucharist, but rather on the Lord’s washing his apostles’ feet and commissioning them to do the same in loving, humble service of others. Missing from the liturgical calendar was a feast specifically dedicated to rejoicing in the incredible gift of the Eucharist and thanking God for it. Blessed Juliana went to the local bishop, Bishop Robert of Liège, and asked him to institute a feast in their diocese in Belgium, which he did beginning in 1246. The second intervention happened in the life of a Czech priest, Father Peter of Prague, who had lost his faith in the reality of Christ’s body and blood in the Eucharist. He used to ask how can this mere bread and wine in my hands can change, after a few sacred words, into the body and blood of the God-man, Jesus, even though all the appearances of the bread and wine remain. Father Peter felt like a hypocrite celebrating the Eucharist while having some doubts about whether the Lord Jesus were truly there. In 1263, he decided to make a pilgrimage to Rome, to pray at the tomb of his patron, St. Peter, for the gift of a renewed faith in the Eucharist. To make a pilgrimage from Prague to Rome in 1263, however, would have meant WALKING 851 miles. Walking twenty miles a day, it would have taken a month-and-a-half, one way. Despite the hardship and sacrifice, however, Peter went out of desperation to save his priesthood and save his faith.
He finally arrived after a long and lengthy journey. He prayed for a few of weeks in front of the tomb of his patron, St. Peter but after all of that, it seemed as if nothing had happened. So, crestfallen, he began on his journey up north, now with very little faith at all. He was travelling in a group of returning pilgrims, because there was safety in numbers in warding off bandits who would wait in hiding to ambush individual travellers. When it came to be Sunday, members of the group asked Fr. Peter if he might celebrate Mass for them. More out of courtesy than faith, he said “yes!”. They stopped at a small Church dedicated to St. Christina in Bolsena, Italy, and celebrated Mass on a side altar. Right before the “Lamb of God,” when Father Peter broke the host, as a priest always does to put a particle into the chalice, the host in his hands began to bleed profusely. It bled over his hands. It bled on the corporal and on the altar cloths. It started to pour down the altar onto the steps. The people, beholding the miracle in front of their eyes, started to shriek. The priest of St. Christina’s came to see what all the commotion was about and beheld the miracle with his own eyes. They had to decide what to do with the miracle. The local priest knew that Pope Urban IV was at that time in Orvieto, a papal city only about 10 miles up hill from where they were, and they decided to take the miracle to Orvieto to see what the Pope would instruct them to do. When they arrived, Father Peter told his story, about how he had lost his faith in the Eucharist, made a pilgrimage to Rome, thought that the Lord hadn’t heard his prayer, but then made his real presence incontrovertibly present during the celebration of the Mass in Bolsena. Father Peter punctuated the truth of the Lord’s presence in the Eucharist by saying, “Holy Father, bread can’t bleed.” That particular Holy Father, Urban IV, was the former archdeacon of bishop of Liège, Robert, and he took that miracle as a sign that Christ wanted a feast to His Body and Blood celebrated not just in his home diocese in Belgium, but throughout the whole Church. The first one was celebrated in 1264 and it has been celebrated ever since. The Lord worked both of those miracles so that we might fittingly celebrate his body and blood today, right here, in this Church!
What should our reaction be to so great a feast, to so mind-blowing a reality? Every time we celebrate Mass, what occurred in Bolsena — and in so many other Eucharistic miracles across the centuries — can occur here. Regardless of whether he chooses to do so or not, the reality is the same: we receive the same Christ who bled on the Cross, who bled in Father Peter’s hands 744 years ago. And our reaction to the Eucharist should be the same, whether a dramatic manifestation occurs or not, because it is Christ, God, whom we receive. Knowledge of that reality should influence our actions with respect to the God-man in the Eucharist.
((Excerpts from Fr. Roger J. Landry’s brilliantly written Homily on the Feast of Corpus Christi. ) )

Trinity Sunday: Celebration of God who is love.

My friend sent me a joke. “One fine evening Jesus was walking down the streets of heaven and he met St. Peter and a theologian at a café having a cup of tea. He joined them at their request. As a part of the conversation Jesus asked them the same question which he asked Peter when he was on this earth. ‘Peter! Now that you are with me so many years: Who do you say that I am?’ Peter gave the same old answer ‘You are Christ, son of the living God.’ But the theologian interrupted and said “Wait! that is not complete answer” and he continued "Thou art the Logos, existing in the Father as His rationality and then, by an act of His will, being generated, in consideration of the various functions by which God is related to his creation, but only on the fact that Scripture speaks of a Father, and a Son, and a Holy Spirit, each member of the Trinity being coequal with every other member, and each acting inseparably with and interpenetrating every other member, with only an economic subordination within God, but causing no division which would make the substance no longer simple."
And Jesus seems to have said “What?”….. (The joke is over, laugh if you can)
Friends, today we are celebrating the feast of the holy Trinity.
I tell you this story only to let you know that the doctrine of the Trinity cannot be fully understood in all its fullness. That does not mean that the doctrine is wrong but our human minds cannot comprehend divine realities fully. Human words fall short of concepts to describe divine realities.
Somebody asked me last year “do you find the doctrine of the trinity in the Bible?” The doctrine of three persons in one God and in fact the very word “Trinity” is not found in the Bible. But that does not mean that it is not in the Bible. Father, son and the Holy Spirit are very much part of the Bible. Unity of their purpose and existence is very well described in St. John’s gospel Chapters 14 to 16. And the church is commanded in all the gospels ‘to go and baptise in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit.’ Not just of any one person. So trinity is not and invention but revelation.
The importance of this doctrine for me lies in this: we are made in the image of God, therefore, the more we understand God the more we understand ourselves. Therefore, the more important question for us to ask today is: What does the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity tell us about the kind of God we worship and what does this say about the kind of people we should be? On this, we have two points to reflect upon.
(1) God does not exist in solitary individualism but in a community of love and sharing. God is not a loner. Our God is not an hermit who loves being lonely but he lives in community. What does it mean for us? This means that a Christian in search of Godliness (Matthew 5:48) or holiness must not run away from the world. The ideal Christian spirituality is not that of flight from the world like that of certain Buddhist or even old Christian monastic traditions where the quest for holiness means permanent withdrawal to the Himalayas or deserts away from contact and involvement with people and society. One thing that strikes me in the life of Jesus is that he was not living in the desert asking people to come there but he went to them because he found the kingdom of God in them.
(2) True love requires three partners. God is love. Love always involves others. Taking an example from the human condition we see that when a man A is in love with a woman B they seal their love by producing a baby C. Father, mother and child -- love when it perfected becomes a trinity. Here again I am using inadequate terms to define divine reality.
We are all made in God’s image and likeness. Just as God is God of ‘Trinitarian relationship’, so also we can be fully human only in a relationship of three partners. The self needs to be in a horizontal relationship with others and a vertical relationship with God. In that way our life becomes Trinitarian like that of God. Then we will be able to come our of our shell of individualism. I and I , nothing else. No. The doctrine of the Blessed Trinity challenges us to adopt rather an “I-and-God-and-neighbour principle.” I am a Christian insofar as I live in a relationship of love with God and other people. May the grace of the Holy Trinity whom we honour today, help us to banish all traces of self-centeredness in our lives and make us live in love of God and of neighbour.
Amen

Pentecost: Birthday of the Church

Friends, first of all let me wish you a “Happy Birthday”. Today is the birthday of the church . It is today, the day of the Pentecost when the disciples after receiving the Holy Spirit went and preached the word of God, 3000 men were converted and received baptism and the church was born.
All those who are baptised: that is all of us are members of the church. And we are the church and it is our birthday today. On this auspicious day I want to talk to you about our mother church. What it is? What is its dignity? Whenever we recite the Nicean creed, we say “We believe in One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.” That is the dignity or these are the characteristic features of the church of which we are all members.
Today I want to talk to you about these four characteristic features of the church. The events that happened on the Pentecost day reveal this.
First, Church is ONE. Don’t laugh at me when I say church is one. Because obviously you come across so many different churches in Lewisham itself: Roman catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Baptist etc to name a few. None of them are connected to each other. I know that. But still what do I mean when I say the church is one. It means that Christ is the head and all of us (including the different churches) are the different parts of the body, each different from the other but all connected to the head. ( Refer CCC 790& 791)Unfortunately each part thinks that it is superior to the other. Not realizing that they only do what the head commands. (You can think of the famous story of body parts fighting with each other and refusing to work.) So church is one professing one Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord.
Secondly, Church is Holy. Is it holy? Do we have only saints in the church? If only saints are allowed to be in the church, I thinks not many of us including me will be worthy to be here. Then what does it mean when we say the church is holy? It does not mean it is full of saints although it is they who shine like bright stars, but it means that church is the agent or means of holiness and sainthood. Look at the all the sacraments which is part of the church. What do they do? What are they for? Baptism welcomes a man /woman washing him clean and filling him with grace. Confirmation strengthens him/her, communion nourishes him, confession cleanses him periodically matrimony or holy orders gives him a path of achieving this holiness and anointing comes to him at the last moment to prepare him for heaven.. So church is full of opportunities or graces for those who want to become and be holy. Church is holy.
Third, Church is Catholic. The word catholic means “universal”. It is that ‘mustard seed which is smallest as the seed but when it grows up many birds can come and build their nest.(Matt. 13:31-32)
"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches"
It is that net which caught 153 fish. John 21:11 “Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153 [of them]…” Remember the famous homily of Deacon James here last year. How he said that 153 fish stood for 153 varieties of fish believed to be existing that time. And how he explained that church includes members of all nations, languages and cultures. Church is universal. He even took time to explain how our Lewisham church itself is universal. There is a person from the country of every alphabet of English in our parish. A to Z. That is what it means when we say church is catholic. It is universal. Jesus said “Go to the whole world and make disciples of all the nations. Make it universal. Make it catholic.
Fourth and final, church is Apostolic. It means two things for us. It means that it is founded on the rock of the apostles and its successors. We believe that Apostles and their successors are the foundations of this church. Because often we read in Apocalypse that the new city had twelve gates, or twelve or twenty four thrones or elders referring to patriarchs and apostles. So apostolic succession is an important feature of the church. We all trace back the origin of our church to apostles and Jesus Christ. Secondly it also means that the ‘apostle’ is one who is sent to proclaim. That is the root meaning. So church by nature is ‘apostolic’ which means ‘proclaiming’ or ‘witnessing.’ It is an important feature of the church. You are called to proclaim.
This is the nature of the church. One, holy, catholic and apostolic church. And we are all members of this church. And we are proud to profess it in Christ Jesus the Lord. Amen

Somebody asked me “why did Jesus take forty days to ascent to heaven? Any technical problem to his rocket-launcher?” Funny but good question to begin with. Why forty days? Let us read a quotation from Venerable John Henry Newman. He said “"Moses brought out of Egypt a timid nation, and in the space of forty years trained it to be full of valour for the task of conquering the promised land; Christ in forty days trains his apostles to be bold and patient instead of cowards. They mourned and wept at the beginning of the season, but at the end they are full of courage for the good fight;”
Yes, after his resurrection this is what he did for forty days appearing to them and strengthening them in their faith. All his three years of hard work in choosing them and training them to continue his work would have been a waste if he had not spent these forty days with them. It filled them with courage, purpose and conviction. And then after forty days he ascended to his Father. And this is what we celebrate today. The feast of ascension. In the Apostles creed we say “He ascended into heaven and seated at the right hand of the Father.”
Now let me ask you, why did he ascend into heaven? Why did he go to the place where he went? Funny or ridiculous question, is it not? But it has got some important answers for our faith. What ascension means? What it is all about?
First, it means that Jesus going back to the place where he came from. That is our initial thought. He came from the father on a mission. And after accomplishing his mission he is going back to his place. That is it. Is it all? No there is something more to it. That is our second point.
Secondly, ascension is the reward he got for his humility. In St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians he writes 2/6ff “Though he was in the form of God he did not count equality with God, a thing to be grasped but he humbled himself taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of man. He humbled himself to death, even death on the cross, therefore God has highly exalted him. And given him a name which is above every name that at the name of Jesus Every knee should bow in heaven, on earth and under the earth and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” So what is ascension here. It is a reward for his humbling himself. It is a sharp contrast to Adam and Eve. Humans working out to become like God, here god becoming man. So is this reward.
Thirdly, Jesus’ ascension has a purpose. He himself says it. We read it as our gospel last Sunday. In John 14/2ff he says “ In my Father’s house there are many rooms……… I am going to prepare a place for you.” The gates of heaven that were closed because of the sin of Adam have to be opened by some one and Jesus Christ the first-born from the dead should be the first one to go and open the gates to invite everyone in. So he says “I have to go and open the gates to invite you all in.”
Finally, in John 16/7 Jesus says “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” Friends, this has got lot of meaning. It is not that Counsellor who obviously is the Holy Spirit and he cannot work together but it means that it is the mission of the Holy Spirit to lead the Church. So he says I need to go and send the Holy spirit to lead you. If we look at the whole of the Bible we can see God the Father playing the dominant role in the Old testament and Jesus Christ playing the dominant role in the gospels and the Holy Spirit taking over the church from Acts to the end of New Testament.
It is not that the other persons of the trinity are absent during those time, but the particular person of the trinity plays predominant role according to the plan of God. So Jesus says I will go and Send you the Holy Spirit who will take control of the Church.
So this is what ascension means for us too. Heaven is our home and the Spirit leads us to this home and makes us long for this home. And our hearts are restless un till they rest in him.

6th Sunday of Easter: love lives always

“There's an old Jewish parable about a soap-maker and a Rabbi. They're out on a walk. The soap-maker says to the Rabbi, `Rabbi, what good is religion? What good is God? Look at all the misery in the world, what good does God do?` The Rabbi said, `That is a great question.` But then he didn't answer it. They just kept walking along. They came across some kids who were playing in the dirt. The Rabbi said, `Look at those kids. You're a soap-maker and you say that soap makes people clean, but look how dirty those kids are. What good does soap do?` The soap-maker said, `Well, Rabbi, soap doesn't do any good unless you use it.`”
Well dear friends, Religion does not do any good unless you live it. "God does not do any good unless you obey him." There is an old saying you can take the horse to the water, it is up to the horse to drink or not. So also God shows you the way how to live and it up to you to obey him or not. I already told you sometime back that Religion is a way of life. Jesus came to teach us the way. And in today's gospel he says “He who loves me will keep my commandments” which means 'he will follow the way or guidelines I taught them. He will obey me.'
Unfortunately we live in an age where law and commandments and control are rejected. Individual freedom and independence are stressed to the extent that Crime and violence are increasing at a fearful rate. Among millions of people there is practically no respect for law or constituted authority, either of God, or of man! On the international scene, nations live in fear because they very well know that the so-called "guarantees" and treaties of peace are not worth the paper on which they are written. There is no law—no respect for authority—among the nations of the world.
But still I always wonder 'Can you imagine a world without law and order.' No we cannot. World without order is like body without bones.Law and order is part and parcel of the universe. Look at universe there is a hidden law and order in the universe. Newton’s law of motion or Einstein’s theory of relativity. These are all nothing but discovery of the laws of the universe. Universe follows some laws or rules. Earth takes 365 days to move one round around the Sun. Nothing less or nothing more. Moon take 28 days to go around the earth. There is order. Because of this there is night and day, summer and winter etc.
Where the law is obeyed there is order. Where there is order there you find life smooth. Take for example the traffic rules. Drive on your left. Speed limit and level crossings. They restrict your freedom. But they are for your safety. So also the commandments.
The first thing we must understand is the ten commandments were never intended to be an end in themselves. The primary purpose of the law is to restore RELATIONSHIP between God and man and establish the foundation for RELATIONSHIP with one another. The commandments are like signposts guiding us on the road to this end. Without such understanding, the Ten Commandments are merely a set of rules that lead to death, discouragement, and pride.
What make you to obey they laws? Is it fear of punishment or the love for the law giver. Jesus is proposing 'a love for him' that should instigate them to obey his commands. Because fear remains as long as the person remains but love remains for ever. He is going to go away and what is going to remain with them are the principles he taught them. It is these principles and commandments that are going to keep him alive in in their midst and in the midst community of believers. So he asks them to obey his commandments and principles so that he may be alive through them in the community.
Even today it is 'our living the gospel' that keeps him alive in the world. “Word-proclaimed” is like building the house on the sand but “word-lived” is like a house built on a rock that cannot be shaken. “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the gales blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” 2000 years the church still survives in spite of many storms and gales within and without, because it was founded of the rock of those who did not only heard or proclaimed the word but lived it or witnessed to it. People who loved him to the point of death.“Blood of the martyrs was the seed of Christianity.” There is no greater love than to die for his friend. You are my friends if you obey what I command you. It is the love that gives life and obedience that shows love. Amen.

Thank God for his great gift

Ten years back on this day I was ordained as a priest. Wonderful gift of priesthood was bestowed on me. What a joy and privilege. Today I thank the Lord for the gift of priesthood. Ten long years went like two years. I still feel I am newly ordained. Still discovering what it means to be a priest. I am humbled by the words of appreciation the Parish Priest wrote about me in this week's News-letter. "Congrats to Fr.Bosco............hard-working and holy".
I pray that the Lord may make me like that. Holiness is a life long journey. Holiness is not just closing the eyes when I say prayers and mass. It is much more than that. It is closing my eyes and ears to the attractions of this world. Control of mind and heart over the senses. Undivided attention and devotion to the work I do. Finding joy in the work I do. Keeping away from pride, prejudice and selfishness. Being magnanimous even when you are used, abused, laughed at and threatened. A life long journey.
The Lord sustained me all these ten years. I can feel his presence in my life. Specially when I have to walk through the dark days of my life, he was there. When I was discouraged he was my comfort, when overjoyed he was my companion.
I only pray that I may know him more clearly,
Love him more dearly,
Follow him more nearly.
Ten years are not enough. Give me more.
Thanks for all your prayers.

5th Sunday of Easter:“Heaven: where is it? How to get there?”

On December 20th 2005 there was a special programme on American News channel called ABC News. In that programme, Journalist Barbara Walters travels to India, Israel and throughout the United States, interviewing religious leaders, scientists, believers and non-believers alike to get a range of perspectives on heaven and the afterlife. The title of the programme and the question she went around asking was “Heaven: where is it? How to get there?” Heaven is an interesting topic to talk about even today. So today I want to discuss with you the same topic “Heaven: where is it and how to get there?” Before that let me ask you what is heaven? In fact our gospel today has an answer for this. (Jn. 14/1-14)

When we read it we often get a pictorial description of what heaven is. We imagine it to be a big city with huge mansion and many rooms. Rooms to accommodate as many as possible. Jesus says “he will go and prepare those rooms for them in his father’s house.” Is it this what he meant when he said “there are many rooms in my Father’s house.” If we accept this pictorial description then we have the difficulty of answering the question “where is it?” Scientists and astronauts will say we have not seen the seventh heaven. No glimpses of it yet.

What then Jesus meant when he said “there are many rooms in my Father’s house”. The word ‘many rooms or dwelling places’ (mone/menein) is “not many mansions in the sky, but spiritual positions in Christ.”(commentary by Raymond E.Brown.p.627). Jesus is on his way to be reunited with the Father in glory and to make it possible for others to be united to the Father-this is how he prepares the places.

This raises the question “what then is the father’s house? Those who know St. John’s gospel will immediate remember the first use of the term “my Father’s house” in the gospel, (which is also its first use in the Bible). At the cleansing of the temple Jesus spoke of the temple as the “Father’s house” and later in the confrontation with the Jews he said “destroy this temple and I will raise it up in three days”. Here he shifts the centre of Divine dwelling to himself, in his risen glorified state, according to the interpretation supplied by the narrator. As we read the second part of today’s gospel, Jesus speaks of this union between him and the father. So what is heaven?

Look at what Catechism of the catholic church says about heaven :
“This perfect life with the Most Holy trinity- the communion of life and love with the Trinity, with the virgin Mary, the angels and all the blessed- is called heaven. (Article 1024)
To live in heaven is to live with Christ. 1025

So Heaven is a life of communion and love. It is wonderfully portrayed in a story I heard a long back:

A devout man was talking with an Angel about Heaven and Hell."Come," said the Angel. "Walk with me, and I will show you Hell."And together they walked into a room of cold, rough stone. In the centre of the room, atop a low fire, sat a huge pot of quietly simmering stew. The stew smelled delicious, and made the devout man's mouth water. A group of people sat in a circle around the pot, and each of them had a long-handled spoon tied to their hands. The spoons were long enough to reach the pot; but the handles were so ungainly that every time someone dipped the bowl of their spoon into the pot and tried to manoeuvre the bowl to their mouth, the stew would spill. The rabbi could hear the grumblings of their bellies. They were cold, hungry, and miserable. "And now," the Angel said, "I will show you Heaven."Together they walked into another room, almost identical to the first. A second pot of stew simmered in the centre; another ring of people sat around it; each person was outfitted with one of the frustratingly long spoons. But this time, the people sat with the spoons across their laps or laid on the stone beside them. They talked, quietly and cheerfully with one another. They were warm, well-fed, and happy. "Lord, I don't understand," said the rabbi. "How was the first room Hell; and this, Heaven?"God smiled. "It's simple," he said. "You see, they have learned to feed each other."(Temple Sinai Congregation of Toronto) Charles K. 8/21/06And where is heaven it can be any where. It can be in the sky, it can be here right now. When can we attain it? It can be now today or after-life.

Let me conclude with a short rhyme which we use to sing in our Junior Seminary for our get-togethers.
“Time to be happy is now,
Place to be happy is here,
The way to be happy is to make some one happy
And we’ll have a little heaven right here.”
Amen

Story of “Emmaus Journey” is one of the wonderful post-resurrection stories. There are volumes written about it. There are so many retreat centres and journals and magazines named after it. But today I want to see it as a story of two depressed men helped to come out of their despair and hopeless situation. First, I want to see how they ended up in that situation and secondly, how they came out of it.
Cleopas and the other disciple like any other Jewish men and women of their time hoped for the “Messiah” who will deliver them. When the arrival of Messiah was announced, they like the other disciples left everything; their homes, families, jobs and followed him. From that day onwards he was their hope. He was their joy. He was their everything. They were so overwhelmed with the reception he got when he entered into Jerusalem. All the “Hosannas” he got and all the attention they themselves got by leading the procession, controlling the crowds, forming a human chain round Jesus. Oh! Wonderful. This is what they dreamed of in their life.
But within a week, everything changed. Their hero, their only hope was betrayed, captured, persecuted, crucified and buried. All happened within a day. The man who had a lovely meal with them on Thursday was condemned , judged, killed and buried by the next day same time. His tomb was sealed, with it all their hopes and aspiration. A sense hopelessness set in. They were filled with disappointment, doubt, disillusionment, defeat, discouragement, despair. They didn’t know what to do.
Is it not true to human experience even today. We all have our dreams and aspirations in life. We want to achieve something in life. That give purpose and meaning to our life. That gives us satisfaction. For this we take up jobs, we select partners and enter into lasting relationship with them through marriage and we have few friends to party. Our life will be going like a dream. Smooth and pleasant. But suddenly our dreams are shattered. You loose your job which you loved and cherished through no fault of your own. Your partner whom you loved proposes a break up or you teenage daughter or Son whom you love most and spent your life for wants to get away from you because you are an hindrance. Or your intimate friend betrays you. It is then you feel what the disciples felt. It is then the sad Ds - disappointment, doubt, disillusionment, defeat, discouragement, despondency, depression, and despair creep in.
Most of us who are sitting here may be going through one of this right now or may have to face it some time. I don’t wish any of this to any one of you. But suppose if you are faced with this how to get out this situation. It is during this time Jesus is willing to walk with you. May be through your friend or a family member. Allow that stranger to enter into your situation as the disciples in the gospel did. Share with him/her your disappointments. Allow your friends to shed a new light on the problem. Listen to what he says about the situation or problem. He may have a different way of looking at it. For the two disciples what has happened in Jerusalem to their hero was a tragedy. But for the stranger it was fulfilment of a plan. So listen to what he/she has to say. Often we don’t listen. That is the struggle.
‘I remember the story of a woman who went to complain to her Parish priest that there is no peace in the family. Specially between her and her husband. She said “Father, from the moment he comes back from the office the quarrel starts. Argument goes on for hours and hours and ends up in breaking plates and glasses. Thank God we don’t break each other’s neck.” “Father please do something to solve this problem. It has become a everyday affair these days.” Parish priest thought about it for a moment. He took some water, blessed it, gave it to her and said: “Take this water. It is blessed. The moment your husband enters into the house, have this blessed water with you at least for one hour. But your husband should not see the water, then it looses its power. So have it in your mouth. Try this ‘water-mantra’ and come back after a week.” She went away with the water and came back after a week. She said “Father, I cannot hold it in mouth for so long. Its painful. So it is not really working." Next time the priest said a long prayer and gave the water asking her to try hard this time. After a week she came back happy and joyful. She said "what a miracle the water changed my husband". Priest replied and said “it is not the water it your mouth that brought the change. All these days when he started the argument you well equally arguing with him. Both of you were talking, none of you were listening. Now that you have water in your mouth, you were not talking, just listening; so the problem is solved.’

Divine Mercy Sunday: All of us have a place in his heart.

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday. We celebrate God's Mercy and love.When you go through the Bible or the history of Israel what is clear is that God is a God of Mercy. There is no doubt about it. From Genesis to Revelation His mercy is proclaimed.
When Adam sinned and went away from God it is his mercy that promised him Salvation. When Cain killed his brother and was dreading the creation, it is his mercy that promised him protection. (Cf.Gen.4/15-16). It was his mercy that listened to the wonderful prayer of Abraham for Sodom and Gomorrah and was ready to spare the whole city of sinners just for the sake of at least ten good people. It is his mercy that saved the people of Israel from bondage in Egypt with all those miracles or plagues. It is his mercy that divided the Red sea, fed them with Manna and gave water from the Rock. In spite of their grumbling and rebellion. It was his mercy that forgave them when they worshiped the golden calf, crediting all what he has done for them to the calf that eats grass. Tremendous to know his love and mercy for them. All the prophets who followed later, spoke of his love and mercy for them in Babylonian exile. Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea,….. Every one spoke about his mercy.
And When Jesus came, He spoke of a God who is a Father-figure. A Father who is ready to forgive the Son who swindled his money and wasted it in a life of debauchery. Embracing him and celebrating his return; What can we say of such mercy. A shepherd who is ready to leave the ninety nine for the sake of one lost sheep and celebrating its return. So Jesus showed us a God who is merciful. He not only preached God of mercy, but he himself was a 'mercy-incarnate'. Dining with sinners, befriending them, forgiving them, saying that he came for them. And above all he preached mercy. Look at the sermon on the mount. Full of compassion, love and mercy. Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy. And the only time when he speaks about the last Judgement ( Mt.25/33 ff) he confirmed that our judgement depends on our corporal acts of Mercy. That is the only “credit-card” or “debit-card” you can take with you when you die.
What else can I say. Bible is full of Mercy and it is a book of mercy. And our God is a God of mercy. And I believe, if God were to punish every one then and there for our sins. What will be situation in the world. Imagine if god were to wither the hands of one who sins with hand and blind the eyes those who sin with their eyes and so on. It may sound funny. But imagine and see how many of us will be walking around with all our parts intact. I don’t know. But He is a God of Mercy. He is so merciful that he makes the Sun to shine both on the good and the bad as well and he makes the rain to fall on both the good and the bad.
Yes, God has a place for every one in his heart. Look at the picture of Divine Mercy.(You can also see it on my photo-space) There two types of rays that come out from his pierced heart. One is red and the other is white. They both usually signify the blood and water that flowed from his heart when it was pierced. But there is another significance to it. The red rays represent sinners and the white rays represent saints. In Isaiah we read “even if your sins are as red as crimson I will wash them and make them as white as snow or wool. White symbolising purity. So there is a place for every one in Jesus’ heart. Saints and sinners all have a place in his heart.
So celebrate his love today and approach this font of mercy. Do not delay. Amen

Easter 2008: Christianity is not a vanity

Let me wish you a Happy Easter.
One of the most fascinating books in the Bible is Ecclesiastes. The book begins saying “The words of the preacher, the son of David, king of Jerusalem. Vanity of Vanities, says the preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” Then he goes on explaining why he is saying this. He says “Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labour which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.” (Ecc. 2:11)
Then I said to myself, " As is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me Why then have I been extremely wise?" So I said to myself, "This too is vanity."(Ecc. 2:15)
And again I work hard and save a lot of wealth. When I die I have to leave it for others to enjoy. And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labour for which I have laboured by acting wisely under the sun This too is vanity. (Ecc.2:18-19)
And finally “For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same. As one dies so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity.( Ecc. 3:19)
This makes us to ask the critical question. Is our human life a vanity? All what we do in life; do you think they are a vanity? A waste of time? One of my friends shocked me after my first mass when he said “ Don’t you think you are wasting your life by becoming a priest? Because there is so much to enjoy in life which you are going to miss out.” Jesus, this is not what I expected on the first day of my ordination. A life of sacrifice, a life of service and a life of holiness, sincerity, honesty and dedication: is it not a waste of time? Yes! I say ‘Yes.’ Our Christian life with all the above said things would have been a vanity; ‘a chasing after the wind’ if Christ is not risen from the dead. Yes, I would have been wasting my life and energy here if Christ is not risen from the dead. You would be wasting your precious time here in the church if Christ is not risen.
Personally for Jesus the man-incarnate: his life would have been a vanity and a chasing-after-the-wind if he had not risen from the dead. Let me put it this way. He was man (incarnate) who went around doing good. Look at the words of Peter to Cornelius. “He went around doing good and curing all who had fallen into the power of the devil because God was with him” (Acts 10/34 ff.) Yes he always believed that God was with him and he is doing his father’(God’s) will. That gave him the boost to carry on his work
Even when the opposition was developing and the enemies were planning his death; he always believed that his father will not abandon him. In the Garden of Gethsemane he prayed to his father about his anguish about the impending death asking him to take it away. But at the end abandoning his will to father’s will. And when he was abandoned to die alone on the cross he cried “My God my god why have you forsaken me” But at the end he said “Into your hands Father, I commend my Spirit.” Now such a life of total dedication to God and of full service to man “Can it be a vanity? A useless effort. A meaningless exercise? A chase-after-the-wind? No it cannot be. To vindicate this “God raised him from the dead” or “he rose from the dead.” Saying ‘life of total commitment to God and service to humanity cannot be a futile exercise; a Vanity.’ No it cannot be.
This is what we celebrate today. As we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, his victory over sin and death and all the other things we believe, what we celebrate is our own faith and its worth. This is St. Paul clearly states in his epistle to Corinthians (1 Cor. 15: 14) “If Christ has not been raised from the dead then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.” I wonder if vanity can survive so many centuries and can conquer so many hearts.”
So what we celebrate today is the truth that Christianity is not a Vanity but a reality. Are you a devout catholic and a believer of total dedication to God and service to humanity and people are looking at you as a mad man or woman, or laughing at your religiosity. Don’t worry. Its worth enduring. Your goodness is used and abused. You are not appreciated and accepted for your faith. Do not be discouraged. You will be the ultimate winner. Because the Lord is Risen. Halleluiah. Amen

Palm Sunday - A : Tongues special

Today is Palm Sunday. it’s a wonderful day to remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. This is one of the rare days we have two gospels read. And these two gospels are quite opposite to each other. In the sense, in the first Gospel its all about the people shouting "Hosanna", "glory" and so on. But when it comes to the second gospel which is quite a long one(Psassion narrative), its all about planning and executing an innocent man. We hear people shouting “crucify him… crucify him“. What happened to the "Hosanna" they sang just a couple of days ago. Now they say "crucify him". How typical of human nature it is. The same tongue that sang praises also hurls down curses. Tongue has no bones you see, it can bend as it likes. That is why Bible is so concerned about the control of Tongue. In fact no other part of the body is mentioned as much as a tongue with regard to its control.(Please refer to the end for statistics).
Today I just want to share some insights about what the Bible says about tongue. Specially about “sins on the tongue”. I know many may not be happy with what I say, but I cannot resist.
Bible obviously asks us to be careful about the following:
A. The Lying Tongue : The tongue that says lies. (Proverbs 25:18 John 8:44,Pro. 6:17).
B. The Flattering Tongue : The tongue that gives undue praise to gain favour. (Psalm 5:9)
C. The Proud Tongue : The boastful tongue. (Psalm 12:3-4)
D. The Overused Tongue: The tongue which is used unnecessarily. (Ecclesiastes 5:2, Ecclesiastes 5:3)
E. The Swift Tongue: Its an hasty tongue, tongue which speaks without control and thought. (Proverbs 18:13, James 1:19)
F. The Backbiting Tongue ; Tongue that speaks ill of others when they are not there. (Proverbs 25:23 and Romans 1:30)
G. The Tale-bearing Tongue : The tongue that loves to tell tales about others which are often not true. (Proverbs 18:8 ,Rom. 14:19; Philip. 2:3)
H. The Cursing Tongue: The tongue that calls down curses on others. (Romans 3:13-14 , Psalm 109:17-18)
I. The Piercing Tongue : The tongue that pierces and hurts others’ hearts.Proverbs 12:18 ,Col. 4:6, Titus 2:8
J. The Silent Tongue: The tongue that keeps silent when it has to speak, specially about its faith.Mark 8:38
So Every day examine and see
A. Are my words APPROPRIATE?
B. Are my words PLEASANT?
C. Are my words PURE?
D. Are my words LOVELY?
E. Are my word ENCOURAGING?
F. Are my words SOFT?
Let me end with Proverbs 18:21, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." God bless you. Have an enriching experience in Holy week.
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Do you know that:
The word “tongue" is referred to over 100 times in the Bible
The word “Words” is referred to over 500 times in the Bible
The word “Lips” is referred to over 100 times in the Bible
The word “Mouth” is referred to over 400 times in the Bible
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5th Sunday of Lent-A: Death is dead

In 1973 Philosopher and psychologist called Ernest Becker wrote a book called The Denial of Death for which he won Pulitzer Prize in 1974, just two month after his death. In that book he says that we human beings spend our lives terrified of death at an unconscious level. Let me quote “For behind the sense of insecurity in the face of danger, behind the sense of discouragement and depression, there always lurks the fear of death, a fear which undergoes many complex elaborations and manifests itself in many indirect ways……No one is free from fear of death…” (Page 16). Is it not in a way true? Nagging in the back of our minds is how fragile our lives are. All of us are afraid of death. Is it not?
In the good old days churches used to be the biggest buildings around. Today look at the hospitals. There are hospitals around here that are bigger than any of the churches– pushing back death. The percentage of our nation’s income going for health care is skyrocketing far beyond that of any other nation. Every news program and newspaper gives you your daily dose of health news. We don’t like death. Man has declared a war on death. Yes, two thousand years ago one man started this war and challenged death. He is none other than Jesus.
Over the past weeks the Gospel of John has been telling the story of Jesus’ battle against the power of death. A woman living in the death of being a hated outsider in her culture meets Jesus at a well and finds the acceptance she has long been searching for. And a blind man after a lifetime of social and religious ostracism reaches out to Jesus for healing. And then in today’s gospel Jesus faces death head-on when he learns Lazarus is dead. And so here, just before Jesus faces his own death, he stares the great enemy in the face. And what has been a series of skirmishes between life and death turns into a full-blown confrontation.
Scholars will argue that this isn’t a resurrection; it’s a resuscitation, because, after all, Lazarus will still face a final death. But it’s a story about God’s power to meet us in our tombs, when we feel there is no way out. New Testament scholar Raymond Brown calls these “sign” stories – signs of the ways Jesus is continually breaking open the tombs of our lives, until in this last story it’s death itself that he defeats.
Now I want to reflect with you what this event meant for each one involved in the story.
What it meant to Lazarus?
Eugene O'Neill once wrote a play called Lazarus Laughed about what happened when Jesus brought Lazarus back from the dead. From the first time Lazarus’ friends see him after he has been raised, he is full of joy and laughter. "What did you see on the other side of death?" they ask. And Lazarus answers, "There is no death! There is no death! There is only life!" And he bursts into a laugh that O'Neill describes as full of acceptance of life and a profound joy.
In the play, after Jesus' death, Lazarus preaches about the living Christ who could free people from the intimidation and enslavement which the fear death brings. His great confrontation comes when he faces the cruel Caligula, heir to the Roman throne. Caligula brings Lazarus before him and threatens him with torture and execution. But Lazarus looks into his face and laughs softly, and says to him, "Death is dead, Caligula, Death is dead!"
The biggest change in Lazarus, after experiencing Christ’s new life, was that he wasn't afraid any more. He could hope.
What it meant for Jesus?
It was almost like a down payment on the promise of His own resurrection to come just weeks later. Here is a man who is awaiting death. Awaiting his own personal encounter with the common enemy. It is a rehearsal of the battle and victory over the common enemy. It would have filled him with lot more courage and confidence. It would have given him an assurance to go ahead. The fear of death is removed.
What it meant for the Pharisees?
It filled them with fear. Fear of insecurity. So the life-giving incident turns out to be life threatening. They go out and plan immediately how to kill him.
What it means for us?
Think back to times when things seemed so dark you thought you’d never see light again. The relationship had dried up, the child was losing her way, the job was defeating you. But somehow, through nothing you could do on your own, you found yourself turning toward hope, and light began to enter. Someone reached out to you, you found a new strength, a new way to face things, and you began to feel your way forward. Experiences like this, the experience of Lazarus and Jesus’ own resurrection should fill us with that same assurance. “Death is dead. No more death. He conquered it.” Amen.

4th Sunday of Lent: Who is blind?

The passage we read today for our gospel is widely recognized as one of the master pieces of Johannine story telling. This is the sixth of the seven "signs" in John's gospel. It is the primary biblical text on blindness. It is far longer than any other, and John uses the case to provide a message about our being spiritually born blind.
I would divide today’s gospel reading into two sections. First section is the actual miracle itself. Second part is the reaction of the people to that miracle. How each person was compelled to respond to the central challenge the miracle presented, and how well or badly they responded. There are friends and neighbours first, then the parents and the Pharisees and above all the blind man himself. I prefer to concentrate on only two people I. e. man born-blind and the Pharisees.
The miracle itself is used only as a launch-pad for a greater thing to come. Last week the thirst for water at Jacob’s well was used as a launch-pad for discussion or discovery of “the life-giving water“. In the same way the physical blindness and healing in today’s gospel is only a launch-pad for a discussion on spiritual blindness or healing of the spiritual blindness. This story contains the journey of two people in two opposite directions. The man born blind moves from blindness to the full sight but this journey is also marked in contrast with the growing blindness of the Pharisees. Both start from the same point but head towards opposite directions. The starting point is the healing of the physical blindness of the man born-blind.
Let us first of all look at journey of the blind man himself. Even after he was cured physically he was still spiritually blind. Because he could not recognise who Jesus actually is. But he journeys through and discovers who he is. Doubted by friends, abandoned by his parents, questioned, insulted, and caste out by the Pharisees, he has stumbled from belief in Jesus as “a man”(v.11), to “a prophet” (v.17), to a suggestion that he must be “from God”(v.33) And finally he ends up prostrating before him saying “Lord, I believe” (v.38). It is here that he is fully cured of not only his physical blindness but also spiritual blindness. He is clearly able to see who Jesus is.
Now let us move on to the Pharisees. They move from spiritual blindness to intellectual and physical blindness. It may sound strange but that’s what is happening.
Once they witness the miracle, the Pharisees become divided, and so cannot decide the case. The evidence that the blind man can now see is not important to them. They ignore the core evidential issue, that a man who heals a man blind from birth must be the messiah. These men are only interested in their regular habits of thinking, about the "legal principles" for deciding cases involving suspected heresy. But principles often conflict, with one person emphasising one principle, another one asserting another. For some, what matters is whether the Sabbath law, as they understood it, had been broken. Others however are bothered by another principle: how can a sinful man do such signs, because only God could be behind them, and God does not listen to sinners (Ps 34:15-16). Which principle is the more important becomes the crux of their argument. They all miss the important issue that this is a messianic sign, which demands a faith response. They close their eyes to the sign.
When the man healed of his blindness tries to teach them the true logic saying “Only a man of God can heal. He healed me. Therefore he must be a man of God.” They say, “Get lost, you man born in utter sin. You are trying to teach us.” They close their mind and intellect. Thus they become intellectually blind. And they refuse to acknowledge the miracle they have witnessed, thus they even go physically blind. What else we can call it.
If you ask me I say all of us have blind- spots in our lives. All of need healing. We all have blind spots -- in our marriages, our parenting, our work habits, and our personalities. We often wish to remain in the dark, preferring darkness to light. It is even possible for the religious people in our day to be like the Pharisees: religious in worship, in frequenting sacraments, in prayer life, in tithing, and in the knowledge of the Bible – but blind to the poverty, injustice and pain around them. Let us remember, however, that Jesus wants to heal our blind spots. We need to ask Him to remove from us the root causes which blind us: namely, self-centeredness, greed, anger, hatred, prejudice, jealousy, addiction to evil habits and a hardness of heart. Let us pray: “God our Father, help us see Christ more clearly, love him more dearly and follow him more nearly.” Amen.

3rd Sunday of lent: He stoops to conquer

All of us are born thirsty. The beauty of God’s creation is that 70 percent of the earth is covered with water. And you know 65 percent of human body is also made up of water. So any shift in this balance will make you thirsty. And also God has created within us a thirst for things physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental. For instance, God has created us with a built-in thirst for food, drink, clothing, and shelter. God has created us with a thirst for stability and security. God has created us with a thirst for love, acceptance, friendship, and marriage. God has created us with a thirst for knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and culture.
All of us are born thirsty. Why else does natural man have a consuming desire to acquire wealth? Why else does he crave for the honours and acclaim of the world? Why else does he rush madly after pleasure? Why else does he engage in an endless search for wisdom? Why else does he endlessly explore the earth and the heavens? Why? Because there is an aching void in his life. Why? Because there is something in every natural man that is unsatisfied. Why? Because he is thirsty!All of us are born thirsty. Who and what can quench our thirst? Our gospel today has an answer.
In our Gospel reading we meet a woman from Samaria. This woman is no stranger to thirst. She is thirsty that is why she is at the well to draw water. And a little look into her personal life: that she has been divorced five times and is living with a boyfriend when she meets Jesus, shows that her thirst is for something greater in her life. Here is a woman who is thirsty for a lasting, durable, stable relationship. Here is a woman thirsting for meaning and direction in her life. As St.Augustine says she is indirectly searching for God who alone can satisfy the thirst of our soul. To her good luck she come across a man (God incarnate) who can give her the water to quench her thirst.Jesus also knows something about thirst. He himself is thirsty. He asks the woman at the well for a drink of water. And his thirst also is something more than thirst for water. St.Augustine again sheds some light for our reflection. Here is a God who is thirsting for souls. “ I came to seek and save the lost” said Jesus. Here he is seeking the soul that was lost. So this is an encounter of two thirsty people meeting each other and discussing ways of quenching their thirsts.
Let us now go into the details of the dialogue that is taking place between these two thirsty souls. The common ground for them is the immediate thirst for water from the well that can quench their throats which are dried up. So Jesus comes down to her level and asks for ordinary water. When Fr.Sean asked me what is going to be your theme for next Sunday I told him “He stoops to conquer.” He comes down to her level to conquer her. He finds a common platform to enter into conversation with her. He asks for a drink, and he promises a drink. Starting with this look at the way he raises the level of their conversation. From the impossibility of drawing water from the well, it goes to disclosing of her personal life and the discussion about where to worship God; Where to seek God who can quench our thirst? Ending up in seeking God in “Spirit,” who is the font welling up from within and in “truth” who is Jesus himself.
Another interesting thing to notice is how the through her dialogue with him journeys in her discovery of who he is.
First she encounters him as a stranger, a Jew. An outsider who has nothing to do with her.
Then, she asks are you greater than Jacob? Recognizes that he is some one great.
When her personal life is revealed, she says “You are a prophet of God”
And finally she ends up saying “ Come and see,…… Can this be the Messiah?
That is her journey. A strangers becomes the messiah now.
Secondly ,look at the ending of the episode. A woman who came with a Jar for water leaves the Jar and the well and runs and proclaims that she had found the Messiah who can quench her real thirst. A soul thirsting for God has found the font which is the source of living water. And she is satisfied. And God who is thirsting for souls; who came to seek and save the lost is satisfied that he found the lost soul which is proclaiming him as the messiah now. He is satisfied. When the disciples ask him to eat he says “ He has already eaten. His hunger and thirst are satisfied now for the day”.
During this lent we need to allow Jesus free entry into our personal lives. Jesus wants to get personal with us, especially during this Lenten season. Jesus wants to get into our “private” lives. We have a “private” personal life which is contrary to the will of God. We don’t allow anyone to enter into it because we feel embarrassed about it. But Christ wishes to come into that “private” life, not to embarrass us, not to judge or condemn us, not to be unkind or malicious to us. Christ comes into our “private” personal life to free us, to change us and to offer us what we really need: living water. Will you allow him to come into your life and change it. Think about it and see. Amen.

Lenten Talk given on 21st February2008

Lenten Penances: What are they for?
Let me read out to you a letter a woman wrote to her spiritual director at the beginning of the lent:
"A couple of years ago," she wrote, "I tried fasting but that just left a terrible taste in my mouth. On the two days a week that I would fast, I ended up thinking more about Kentucky Fried Chicken than anything spiritual. One year I tried going to evening Mass at the parish and even spending 20 minutes a day in silent prayer. But, truth be told, these activities didn't do much to change my life, except make me aware of just how holy I can act when push comes to shove. And once Easter came along, I stopped going to evening Mass.
"Then last year," she continued, "I decided to take a more positive approach after hearing parish priest’s homily on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. So I volunteered one night a week at the soup run that we have in our parish. But talking to street people isn't my 'thing,' and I couldn't find anything particularly edifying about washing dirty dishes. After all, I had more than my share waiting for me in the kitchen sink once I got home. So with Lent fast approaching, I find myself in my yearly quandary about adopting a Lenten penance. I just don't know what to do or what it's supposed to mean exactly. Got any ideas?"
Friends, once the lent starts our acts of penance automatically start. But we seldom think about the reason why we do those things and what they mean exactly. Did you ever give a thought to these things. All the penances you do; what are they for?
Often Our understanding of penance is based on our understanding of sin. Unfortunately, many of us tend to think of sin as only individual and specific acts which violate the spirit or actually break one of the Ten Commandments: "I missed Mass on Sunday." "I deliberately lied." "I gossiped and dishonoured the reputation of a co-worker."
When we have such a limited and narrow sense of sin, we are naturally going to have a limited and narrow sense of penance, of righting the individual wrongs we have committed. So we decide to attend a weekday Mass, to tell the truth the next time around, to praise the co-worker. But Does telling the truth the next time around actually fix yesterday's lie? Does tomorrow's praise of a maligned co-worker really heal the harm caused by our gossip?
We think of Lenten penance as simply vacuuming up the dirty spots on the carpet of the soul, and thus we bring a legalistic mentality to this 40-day period of grace. We simply reduce it to an extended calculation of credits and debits. So much I owe so much I give.
Lenten penance really has less to do about vacuum cleaners and the soul's dirty carpets, and more to do with bringing back the harmony that was lost. Sin is all about violating the natural harmony of the soul. It deliberately skews the God-given interrelationships between God, self and neighbour. It slams the door of my heart in God's face. It is losing touch with my middle, my centre, and spinning out of self-control. Sin builds walls to hide behind and constructs bridges that lead me away from my neighbour.
So penance is not simply fixing a broken commandment. It is re-establishing the interrelationships, bonds and connections that our pride, anger, gluttony, envy, greed, laziness, lust--our sin--throw into disarray. It is getting back on track where we belong. It is experiencing the energy--the grace--that comes with maintaining and developing healthy, balanced bonds with God, self and others. In short, the purpose of Lenten penance is to re-establish and preserve the harmonious interrelationships intended by God at the dawn of creation. It is getting in touch with reality. Lwt me read out another story I read yesterday.
“A man went out on a Monday. It was a cold winter’s day. At a street corner he came upon a ragged little girl begging. He was so shocked at her condition that her image haunted him for the rest of the day. That night he slept very little.
He went out on Tuesday. She was there again, in the same spot, with the same sad expression on her small, weather-beaten face. His heart bled with pity for her. He didn’t get much sleep that night either.
He went out on Wednesday. He approached the location with dread. Yes, she was there again. He felt shame and guilt for her condition, and said to himself, ‘I must do something for her.’ But he quickly added ‘not today, I am too busy today.’ That night again the little girl again robbed him of some sleep.
He went out on Thursday. On seeing the girl he got angry and exclaimed, ‘It’s a disgrace! Why doesn’t somebody help her? Where are her parents?’ He slept somewhat better that night.
He went out on Friday. Unable to bear the thought of seeing the little girl, he crossed to the other side of the street. However he saw her in his mind’s eye, and that was just as bad. That night he fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow. But the little girl visited him in his dreams.
He went out on Saturday. He was late and was rushing. Before he knew it, he had passed the street corner where the girl was. Suddenly he realised, that not only had he not looked at the child, but he hadn’t thought of her either. Nor did he think much about her for the rest of the day. That night he slept soundly.
On Sunday he didn’t go out at all, except to go to church.”
Look how gradually his heart of flesh turned into heart of stone. Lost its touch with reality around it. Now Lenten penance is meant to turn this heart of stone back again to be heart of flesh. A heart which can feel the pain Jesus endured for us. A heart that can feel the sufferings of our brothers and sisters around us.
So Penance is not some “extra” tacked on to a person’s life. It naturally proceeds from living out the deepest truth about one’s life. Conversion is simply the means by which we surrender partial truths for more complete truths. That is why church often calls for conversion: ‘Metanoia’. The word metanoia connotes a change of mind and heart, altering one's mind-set toward whole new ways of thinking and acting. This involves taking a look at where we are and trying to see where we ought to be. It involves testing our values and discerning how they stack up against the values that Jesus offers his followers.
So during this season of lent let all our efforts or acts of penance be for ‘metanoia.’ Change of heart or personal conversion. Otherwise all our efforts will be like empty vessel making much noise.
Let me conclude with what our Pope on Ash Wednesday about lent. He said “What does it mean to enter into Lent? It is the beginning of a particular time of penance to combat the evil present in the world, to look evil in the face and combat its effects.” Let this our goal this lent
Amen

(Thoughts are based on the talk given by Albert Haase, O.F.M.)

2nd Sunday of Lent

We live in an age where religion means nothing for many. Recently I met a family where a young man went away when he saw me. When he was asked to stay back he said “ I had enough of religion and priests”. Another young man said religion is not for us young people. And a mother complained “My daughter when she reached sixteen she said I don’t come to church. It’s boring.” My dear brothers and sisters the reason why I am sharing these is that this is a serious problem. We don’t see many young people in the churches. They don’t seem to enjoy the masses and prayers as much as they enjoy parties, beeches and holiday resorts. This is the problem the church is facing, the parents are facing today. The real challenge is to bring this young people to the church.
Often young people say religion is not for us. We don’t see any meaning in it and it is not real. When we hear this we usually condemn them saying that they are caught up in the world and they have no faith or fear of God. It is easy to blame them and leave them to go their own way. This is what most of the parents do. But for the young Religion looks irrelevant and away from reality. They say religion is an escape from reality. It is like Peter on the mountain where he was so excited. He liked it. Forgot about everything. And he said “Lord ! we will stay here. We pitch our tents and stay here.”
But the reality down the mountain is different. Jesus refers to it before he came up the mountain. There is a plot going on to capture the innocent, accuse him, judge him and finally kill him. Peter and others know about it. But Peter does not want to accept it. For him basking in the glory of the mountain is more comfortable than the reality of pain and suffering.
There is a vast difference between Jesus on the mountain and Jesus on the cross. The very purpose of Incarnation is to be Jesus on the cross not to be Jesus on the mountain. Jesus on the cross is more human and more real. His inability to say a word when falsely accused by a band of pre arranged false-witnesses. Innocently carrying a heavy burden as a youth where he was suppose to enjoy life. Pathetically abandoned by all whom he trusted and believed in as friends. Weak and desperate to accept the help and sympathy of Simon of Cyrene and Veronica. Feeling thirsty and hungry and crying out “I am thirsty” in pain. Or the other way Jesus who supplied wine to a wedding party to enjoy. Always had joy in socialising with the so called sinners. And even up to the point of being called as drunkard. Jesus who allowed women to accompany him and help him in ministry. Is he not the real Jesus our children can understand. Are these not the experiences our children have every day. Now, Is he the same Jesus we talk about with our Children everyday. Or is he different one.
The one who has to be kept on the high pedestal. Christ the king high on the pillar. Before whom you should genuflect, bow you head and should not giggle or laugh. Say long prayers everyday.
All is fine till the age of 14 or 15, because they have no clear perception of the world around them till that age. Once they reach that age they see vast difference between what we say and what they experience around them.
There is a dichotomy between the religion or Jesus presented and the reality around. For most of the young boys Jesus is too perfect to imitate or too difficult to make friendship with.
Jesus who walked on water, changed water into wine, multiplied loaves, touched and healed many with a word. A miraculous man.
Peter was fascinated with the Jesus of this type and always he wanted Jesus to be that. But Jesus said let us go down the mountain. It is there the real life is and the real mission is. Peter wants to escape from the reality but Jesus brings him down to reality.
This is challenge facing the church today.
You as a father or a mother how can you make Jesus real to your teenage son or daughter who is bullied and taunted like Jesus every day?
How can you make Jesus real to your daughter or son who cannot get a job even though they are well qualified because they do not have recommendations or support?
How can you make Jesus meaningful to a daughter who is divorced and forced to live alone with the child in this world of competition and exploitation?
How can you make Jesus real to your grandson who is abandoned by both the parents and kept in social care home?
The examples I have used or the words I used may be wrong. But the need is real. We need to bring Jesus down the mountain to make sense to these people. This is our task as priests and parents. If we don’t do this remember the future of the church is in danger.