Elia,6thS,Oct.3,10

lia 6^th S,Oct.3,10

(Mt.18:1-9)

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about humility as the bedrock of our salvation. He demonstrated the nature and the depth of humility by bringing a child near him and telling his disciples to become like the child in its attitudes and behavior. The disciples were looking for positions of authority and dominance. Instead, Jesus offered them opportunities for service and assistance.

St. Augustine very beautifully summarized the teaching of Jesus in the following words: “If you ask me what is the essential thing in the religion and the discipline of Jesus Christ, I shall reply : first, humility; second, humility, and third, humility.”

Those words of Augustine show how fundamental is the virtue of humility for a disciple of Christ.

Without humbling ourselves like a child in our trust and dependence on God, we will never be able to experience God in our lives. If we are puffed up with our ego and are fully inebriated with the spirit of our talents and accomplishments, we will not be able to experience the joy and peace that come from our dependence on God.

The disciples were bothered with the question of the notion of greatness. They saw Jesus as a great and powerful liberator. They entertained in their hearts some vague notions of becoming prominent citizens in the new society that Jesus would bring into existence. In their fantasies, they thought that they would get the kind of prominence at present being enjoyed by the Pharisees and Scribes in their society. So they approached Jesus with the question to find out who would be the greatest in this new kingdom that Jesus would usher in.

The reply was staggering as well as beyond belief. Only those who are helpless, dependant, trusting and simple like children are the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven.

He reversed the whole order of values in the secular society. Those who exercised power over people would not be the greatest, instead, humble persons doing all kinds of menial work and service to people would be the greatest. The greatest would not be found in the majestic halls of palaces and cities but in humble cottages and villages.

Jesus also explained to them the right ideas of leadership. Leadership should be exercised for the betterment of people, to make them more attached to God and to deepen their love and trust in God. No one should lead others to sin.

Jesus reserves his harshest rebuke for those who create scandals and are responsible for leading others to sin. Sin is the greatest act of betrayal against God and would involve the forfeiture of heaven. It would be better for us go without worldly conveniences than to lose heaven.

Jesus points out very vehemently that it would be worth taking any amount of sacrifices to preserve our access to heavenly bliss. Even the sacrifice of our body is worth taking if it would secure our eternal salvation. Our earthly travails and agonies are nothing compared with the loss of eternal life. Hence Jesus reminds us not to be a cause for any one to betray his trust and faith in God. It would be better for us to be punished severely than to make a little one to lose his faith in God. Just like a shepherd who goes in search of the one single sheep that has wandered off from the group and then becomes overjoyed in finding it, so too God would come in search of his lost ones and would become overjoyed at their return.

“ We should never give up on anyone who is lost, nor despair of finding them; we should not abandon them to trials and tribulations, nor fail to help them. Rather, we should try to help them to return to the right path if they wander off, welcome them on their return, and rejoice when all those who live righteous and pious lives are gathered together.”(St .Asterius of Amasea)

Let us try hard to remain faithful to the Lord and avoid paths of sin and estrangement. Jesus is our hope and salvation.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart…See if my steps are going astray, and lead me in your eternal way.”(Ps.139)

The Canaanite Woman,Elia,5th S,Sept.26,10

The Canaanite Woman,Elia,5^th S,Sept.26,10

(Mt.15:21-228)

Today’s Gospel presents before us a woman of extraordinary faith and commitment. The Canaanite woman is an authentic exemplar of the faith that Jesus always speaks about. She is unwavering and persistent. She is committed and absolutely trusting. She entertains no doubts or vacillations in her mind about the divine power of Jesus. It is with this confidence that she approaches Jesus. She is the right model for us in our spiritual journey.

Tyre and Sidon are towns that bordered Galilee and are now in the modern state of Lebanon.

Jesus might have withdrawn into these non-Jewish territories to avoid temporarily the oppressive regime of Herod Antipas who was ruling Galilee at that time.

Sidon was one of the sons of Canaan and hence, it was natural that his descendants who lived in this region were called Canaanites..

It was while Jesus was in this region that he was approached by this Canaanite woman. She was sure that Jesus could do the miracle she was looking for .She was helpless and was inconsolably in anguish because of what was happening in her daughter’s life. Her daughter was tormented by the Satan. No cure existed for the torment. Only divine intervention could cure her daughter. When she heard that Jesus was passing by her town, she rushed towards Him and shouted at the top of her voice to attract His attention. The disciples did not have the sensitivity to feel her pain and wanted to drive her away. But she knew that this was the most opportune moment in her life for the cure .From her standing position on the way side, we see her falling on her knees before Jesus and pestering Him with her request. A mother’s anguish knows no bounds. She was not asking anything for herself but only for her daughter.

In spite of the first apparent refusal of Jesus to come to her aid, she persisted in her request: “Lord , help me.” Jesus again tested the fiber of her faith by telling her that it was not proper on his part to give the benefits of salvation to the non-Jews before offering them to the Jews. Using the same metaphors that Jesus used, she responded that He would not be denying anything that was due to the Jews by saying that the puppies below the table were fed by the crumbs that fell from the table. She asserted that she was not asking for the bread at all. She would be satisfied with the crumbs that would fall from the table.

Jesus was using the occasion to test the power of her faith. This was a lesson to the disciples. The disciples, in spite of their closeness to Jesus, never felt deep in their hearts the divine power and strength of Jesus. She not only got what she wanted but she received some of the choicest words of praise that Jesus ever lavished upon any one. Who would not get thrilled at hearing those words from the Son of God: “O woman, great is your faith. Be it done for you as you desire.”?

What we see here is a great faith- filled request and the response it gets from Jesus. This is the type of faith that should be reflected in our lives. We should never desist from our prayer life nor withdraw from our attachment to the Lord just because we don’t see the results immediately. We have to go one asking Jesus to come to our assistance when we face hardships and challenges in life. We should never be afraid. Like her, confronting all obstacles, and hardships, we should remain closer to Jesus.

The disciples could not drive her away. Nor should the obstacles and hurdles dive us away from Jesus.

The following words of St. John Vianney are very appropriate on this occasion: “We often find that our Lord does not grant us what we ask for immediately; he delays meeting our request so that our desire might increase in ardor, so that we might better appreciate the values of what we ask for .It is not a refusal but a test that prepares us to receive more abundantly what we desire.”

Another important lesson is that no body is outside the mercy and compassion of Jesus. The Canaanite woman is every one of us who is a sinner. Jesus will never abandon us because we are unworthy and sinful. Our persistent cry towards him will definitely bring about forgiveness and mercy and we would be forgiven and liberated from the oppression of sins in our life.

The life and faith of the Canaanite woman reveal to each one of us that the great door of mercy is open for all of us, struggling in this world with the baggage of sins.

Elia 4th S,Sept.19,10

Elia 4^th S,Sept.19,10

(Mt.17:14-27)

In today’s Gospel, we find Jesus curing a boy of epilepsy and using the occasion to teach about the power and nature of faith.

A man approached Jesus and begged him to cure his son of the terrible disease of falling into fire and water. He added further that he would not have troubled Jesus had it been possible for the disciples to cure the boy of his sickness. Jesus knew that his disciples lacked the faith to do the miracle as they had doubts in their minds whether they could do this cure in spite of their closeness to Jesus.

They did not grasp the implications of being the disciples of Jesus. They should have believed that they could bring about this cure because of their closeness to Jesus. As they failed to cure the boy of the disease, Jesus himself cured the boy and then used the occasion to make the disciples aware of the power of their faith. If the tiny mustard seed could sprout into a large bush, so too their faith in Jesus could be mightier and they would be able to do miracles in their lives, however weak and fragile they were. It is not their social place in the human society that is important but their closeness to Jesus is what matters.

Faith involves absolute trust in the providence of God. It involves total commitment to the person of Jesus Christ. As the late Holy Father John Paul has said often, faith is not just a summary of doctrines but the acceptance of person of Jesus Christ in our lives. We find such solid examples of faith in the lives of ancient Patriarchs and prophets like Abraham and Moses. They believed in the power of God and they knew they could do miracles through their attachment to God.

It is Jesus who does miracles through our lives. We know that He will never forsake us and that He will do what we ask of Him. The child has no doubts about his father’s power. The child thinks that his father can do everything for him. The trust is absolute. There is no wavering or doubt in the child’s mind about his father’s power and strength. It is that type of total trust that Jesus wants from his disciples. Often, caught in the daily struggles of life, we lose sight of the presence of the providence of God in our lives. We doubt and vacillate and thus we miss the joy and peace that come from the presence of God in our lives.

What is important is not to lose sight of this faith in Jesus. Whatever may be the challenges, hardships or disasters we face in life, we should know deep down in our hearts that our Lord will never abandon us and He will always walk with us in our pilgrimage on earth.

It is this adamant and constantly persevering trust in the power and providence of God that Jesus demands from us in our lives. However hard and harsh the realities of life we face in our life, we know that Jesus will be waiting with His outstretched arms to receive us in His loving arms at the end of the road.

Thomas Merton has expressed this idea very beautifully in his book “Thoughts in Solitude.”: “If I trust You, everything else will become, for me strength, health and support. Everything will bring me to heaven. If I do not trust You, everything will be my destruction.”

May the words of Jesus that we heard today on the power of faith increase our trust and confidence in the power of His presence in our lives and give us the confidence to face the challenges and difficulties of life with peace and joy in our hearts.

Sermon on the Mount,Elia 3rd S,Sept.12,10

Sermon on the Mount, Elia 3^rd S,Sept.12,10.

(Mt.5:1-11)

Archbishop Sheen in his book “ The Life of Christ” mentions that the moment Jesus gave the sermon on the mount, the shadow of the cross fell on him because the spirit of the Beatitudes was contrary to the spirit of the world. Jesus is giving, in today’s Gospel, a route map to the happiness of life that is contrary to what the world is offering.

The words from the Sermon on the Mount are words of great comfort and joy to all those who live according to the will of God.

The first eight deal with the attitudes the follower of Christ should have towards the world while the ninth deals with those who suffer for their faith in Christ.

When we are buffeted by the hardships of life, when we are afflicted with sickness or diseases, and when we are confronted with failures and disasters in life, we wonder whether we are condemned or punished. We often think in those instances that we are not the ones who are blessed by the grace of God. Poverty, humility, suffering, hungering for justice, establishing peace where there is discord, and being open to holiness are not considered very valuable in the eyes of the world that looks with admiration at those who have power and wealth.

But, Jesus preaches a different set of values for us to follow. It is in suffering, poverty, peace and in reconciliation that God comes to our life.

To all those who pursue a way of life that is in conformity to the spirit of the Gospel, Jesus announces that they are blessed and are favored in the eyes of God.

Today as we listen to the words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount, let us reorient our vision of life and follow a road map to happiness that consists in submission to the will of God.

What matters is not what we have but how much we are willing to give. When we are humble and poor, we become rich. When we help others and work for peace and justice, we become the children of God. When our hearts avoid the attractions and the lure of the world, our vision becomes God-oriented.

It is in the silence and anonymity of our lives that we reach the heights of happiness. We don’t have to be worried any more whether we are appreciated and admired by the world. We don’t have to pay any attention to the praise and applause from the crowd. The derision of the world does not matter. What is important is whether we are leading our lives in true attachment to our Lord.

The Sermon on the Mount, hence, is a source of great inspiration and power in our lives. It offers us confidence and strength to lead our lives in the right direction. What Jesus reminds us every day is not to pay attention to the glamor and glory that world offers but to pay close heed to His voice in our heart.

Parable of the Sower,Elia 2ndS,Sept.5,10

The Parable of the Sower, Elia 2^nd S,Sept.5,10

( Mt.13:1-9)

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about the disposition of the human heart and its response to the word of God through the parable of the sower. This parable is a magnificent explanation of the varied responses of the human heart to the message of God that has come through Jesus Christ.

The response to the message of God from people is similar to the response to the seeds by the earth. If the earth is fertile and receptive to the growth of the seeds, then the yield would be plenty. But if the earth is barren ,rocky or filled with brambles, then the yield would be scanty. Jesus reminds his listeners that their hearts should be receptive and unprejudiced in order that the word of God may do wonders in their hearts.

This is true in our lives too. If our hearts are clouded with anxieties and worries and not dependent on the providence of God, we will never be able to experience the peace and joy that Christ offers us through his words. When we open the Bible, we listen to so many sayings of Jesus offering us comfort and hope. He asks us not to be worried and to look at the birds of the air and lilies of the field in order to experience the power and strength of the providence of God. But we, often, do not listen to the inner meaning of those words. We don’t allow those words to touch the depths of our hearts.

This parable reminds us that not only we should make our hearts ready to receive the word of God, we should also be sowers of God’s word. Our kind words, our generous actions, our compassion and mercy will make people more ready to receive the word of God.

We should never despair of the lack of impact of the message of God. The word of God has its power to penetrate the obduracy of the human heart. It will make its effect in ways unknown to us. What we have to do is to sow them, make the message available to people and live by it.

Just as yesterday’s rain and sunshine have produced the greenery of the earth , so too our good actions and words would produce their effects in the hearts of people in ways unknown to us.

The parable is a challenge to each one of us to make ourselves more receptive to the word of God. We have to allow it to make changes in our lives. We have to listen to it, meditate on it and make ourselves submissive to it. Then the peace and joy Jesus offers us through his words will become ours.

We should never miss opportunities to become the sowers of the word of God. We have to spread the message of Jesus. The words of Jesus should be proclaimed through our words and actions. There will be hearts around us that will be receptive. The harvest would then be plenty. Peace and joy will flourish in the hearts of people.

St. Francis of Assissi speaks of the need of preaching though our very life: “It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.”

Mother Teresa to speaks in the same vein: “We shall never know all the good that a smile can do….We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.”

We shall remove from our hearts all those that impede the growth of the word of God like envy, arrogance and lack of forgiveness and create an attitude that is open to the will of God .