REFRESH YOUR HEART IN CHRIST

THE FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT
NOVEMBER 28

We grow in spiritual life by celebrating and participating in the paschal mystery of Jesus। The paschal mystery includes the incarnation, passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. Every time we come together to celebrate the Eucharist, we celebrate these events. We also celebrate the mystery of our salvation throughout the year by assigning each event a season. Thus, we have the season of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Passion, Resurrection and Ordinary time. We call this the liturgical year.

Today we begin Advent, the first season of the liturgical year। The word Advent means coming, coming of Jesus as a saving event। In fact, the Gospel reading for the first Sunday of Advent begins with a warning। Jesus says, “For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you must be prepared for at an hour you do not expect the Son of Man will come” (Mt 24: 37-44).

Evidently, this is in reference to the Second Coming of Jesus. One may wonder why we talk about the Final Day on the very first day of the year. It is not by accident. It is important that we must be aware of our destination before we begin our journey। Jesus came into history not to keep us here on earth but to prepare us to stand before the Lord holy and undefiled and lead us to eternal life. Thus, incarnation is complete with the Second Coming of Jesus where He presents us to the Father.

Whether Advent is all about Jesus’ first coming in the history or His second coming at the end of time what is important for us is his coming in our life। During this Advent, therefore, our challenge is how we make the coming of Jesus a reality in our life. Definitely, there are numerous ways. I would like to mention three of them.

KEEP THE FOCUS ON THE REASON FOR CELEBRATION

There is this story. One day a few women came to a restaurant. They were in a very happy- go- lucky mood. Out of curiosity, the manager asked them. “Why are you here, today? What is special?” “Oh. Today is the birthday of my only child. We are here to celebrate it,” one of the women said. “Where is the child? I would like to greet him,” he said. “We did not bring him. He is at home.” she said. “Do you think he would have allowed us to enjoy this food if we brought him with us? He would be a real disturbance,” she added. A birthday celebration without the birthday baby being present? The focus of the celebration was shifted from the center to the periphery. Advent is a holiday season for many. Naturally, people are busy with buying and sending gifts, organizing parties and so forth. All these are important. They are part of the celebration and life is meant to be a celebration. However, the Gospel reading on this very first day of Advent begins with a warning; Jesus says, “Be vigilant and Stay awake.” If we are not vigilant, there is a danger of missing the REASON for our celebration. The reason for this season is Jesus: the Birth of Jesus and the second coming of Jesus. If we are not attentive to the coming of Jesus, his coming becomes a non -starter in our lives. Therefore, as Paul says, “Stay awake! Put on Christ and make no provision for the desire of the flesh” (Romans 13:11-14).

OPEN TO CHANGE

The good news of Jesus’ First Coming was that He chose a human body as his dwelling place. By assuming a human form, He restored human dignity. The human body became the temple of God. The incarnation of Jesus must take place in every human person. The Divine must penetrate into every cell of our lives. Therefore, it is not enough to focus on his coming alone, but we need to prepare our lives to welcome him. We need to allow him to enter into our lives and transform us. “This coming of Jesus is not merely an interior, spiritual affair; it happens rather in palpable, concrete forms. Each individual Christian personally and the Church of Christ as a community, is a sign of the fact that God has come and is with us forever.” Our challenge during Advent is like clay in the hands of a potter। We need to place ourselves in the hands of God and allow him to shape and reshape our image until he forms a pot of his liking. St. Erenaus said this: As long as the clay is wet, moist and supple, the shaping is painless; but on the other hand, if the clay is hardened and reactive, it can break under the influence of the Potter. In Adam, the clay became brittle and hardened, so the shaping became painful and even impossible. What kind of clay are you? We can make the clay of our life moist and supple by doing a number of things: By reading, the bible every day during these 25 days; attending Mass on weekdays; preparing for a good confession; attending the bible studies and so forth. Therefore, one needs to ask: What is it that I need to stop doing and what is that I need to start doing during this Advent?

MEET JESUS IN THE ‘NEIGHBOR’

The incarnation of Jesus made every human person another meeting place of God. The uniqueness of Christianity is that we can relate to God only through our neighbors. In the story of the Good Samaritan, the priest and the Levite tried to reach the temple by avoiding the victim on the road. Not they, but the Samaritan who stopped on the way to meet the victim caught the attention of God. Where do I find Jesus? Remember, Jesus was born in a manger, not in a palace or any other place of luxury. Jesus is there where people are struggling to celebrate their life with human dignity…Jesus is there where there is a person in need. During this season, let us try to be generous to people who are in need. Thus, let us make this Holiday season a Holy season.

THY KINGDOM COME!

There is one prayer that every Christian knows by heart and that is the Lord’s Prayer. The center of this prayer is the concept of the Kingdom. For example, when we pray the Lord’s prayer, we say, “Thy Kingdom come and thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. Today as we celebrate the solemnity of Christ the King, it is quite fitting to reflect on the meaning and implication of Jesus’ Kingdom and His Kingship. (Evidently, king and kingship is not an attractive terms in this age of democracy. As people become more and more focused on individual independence, the term kingship does not have any fascination at all. For many people the word King is a synonym for tyranny and subjugation.)

WHAT IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD? It is very different from our popular understanding. The petition “Thy will be done on earth as it is heaven” gives sufficient insights to this question. Kingdom of God is equivalent to heavenly life. Heavenly life is life in the presence of the Lord. This was the life style of the paradise which we lost by human defiance. Therefore, Jesus said to the penitent thief, “You will be with me in Paradise.”

When we are in the Kingdom, we are in the presence of God. This does not mean the disappearance of pain and struggle. The presence of God in our life, however, gives us a new way of seeing things. We are able to see things from the perspective of God. This makes a difference in life. For instance, forgiveness, sacrifice, love and sharing find new values. This is exactly what happened to the ‘good thief’. In the presence of Jesus, he discovered himself in a new way. He brought heaven to the Earth. Therefore, Kingdom of God is not a place or an institution, it is a situation where I allow God to take over my life and replace my plan with God’s plan. It is living as Jesus lived.

WHY IS JESUS THE KING? The Kingdom of God became a complete reality in the person of Jesus. Jesus submitted His life to His Father and consequently He mirrored God in His life. The result was that Jesus and God, the Father became one. Jesus became the way to God, the Father. As far as Jesus is the Way, He is our King.

Jesus was not an oppressive king. His was shepherding. In Jesus’ presence, everyone experienced freedom, life and joy. For Jesus the king the lost sheep never lost His attention. For Jesus neither the prodigal son nor the women caught in adultery was a hopeless case.

PARAMETERS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD

REGENERATION: According to Jesus, what we need is not merely a good example or new teaching but regeneration (conversion). He said to Nicodemus, “Except one is born anew, he cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3-7). Continuous openness to growth, profound desire to confirm after the image of Jesus and courageous acts to accomplish it, is the principal mark of a person in the Kingdom of God.

EXTRA MILE MORALITY: Jesus said : Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and Scribes, you will not enter the Kingdom of God. Sermon on the Mount explains this new code of conduct. This is a total reversal of secular values. According to this new approach, greatness comes through service and love, not by power and might. “Great people show their strength through forgiveness where as the weak prove their strength through fight under the façade of ‘justice.’

CENTRALITY OF HUMAN PERSON: In the Kingdom of God, we grow from rituals to relationship. Jesus said, “Sabbath is for man and man is not for Sabbath”. Man/woman and his/her needs determine the course of action. Remember how Jesus appreciated the act of the Good Samaritan. (The priest and the Levite ignore the wounded man in view of offering sacrifice with cleanliness.) It is sad to see how these days cats and dogs take the place of human beings!

SHARING AND CARING: “If you want to follow me, sell your possessions, distribute it with the poor and then follow me”, Jesus said to the young man. He returned home sad since he had a lot of wealth. God punished the Rich Man not because he was wealthy but because of his reluctance to share his blessing with Lazarus, the hungry. Zacchaeus found salvation when he decided to share his wealth with others. The criterion for the last judgment is ‘nothing but our willingness to reach out to each other with a sharing and caring hand.” The road to the Kingdom passes through the neighbors’ house.

COSMETIC LIVING TO COSMIC EXISTENCE

33rd SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

“When you have my funeral procession, keep both my hands opened in the open casket। Let the people know that their king is not carrying anything with him when finally he leaves this world” ,Alexander the Great told his friends. Alexander conquered more than two third of the world. Towards the end of his life, he realized the truth. Nothing in the world has real worth in the final analyses. They are just fleeting bubbles. Jesus tried to communicate the same message when He made this comment about the temple. “All that you see here- the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down” (Lk 21 :5-19). Three things are important.

WORK FOR WHAT REALLY MATTERS!

People live in one of the following three levels:- Appearance level, Having level and being level.
The first group’s main concern is accidentals. They are shallow minded people. They are living in the cosmetic world. The second category is crazy after possessions. Like Alexander the Great, they believe that piling up worldly things create heaven for them. Unfortunately, appearance will disappear and possessions will perish. People living at the being level are the real people. Their focus is substance rather than accidentals। All the saints belong to this rank.

CHALLENGES OF LIVING THE TRUTH!

Many people these days live in denial। They pretend things are great and try to create this impression. The fear of losing security is behind this deceptive mode of living. To live an authentic life in this social milieu is tough. The challenges are colossal. Jesus himself warned against these challenges. There will be false prophets. These ‘prophets’ can be people from our own faith community who spread false teaching which has an easy appeal. There will be war and insurrection. This can be our own personal conflicts between ‘narrow gates and wider gates’. One may experience earthquake and famine. In other words, in the midst of confusion and chaos, one may be scared of losing one’s ground of faith. The holy people faced similar experiences. They, however, faithfully stood with truth and thus their life became a living testimony of what really matters. They became a model for us in faith.

PROMISE OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE!

Remember the comforting and encouraging words of our Lord: “I myself will give you the wisdom to make your adversaries powerless…You will be hated by all because of my name but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.” We hear the same message from Malachi: “For you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays” (Malachi 3:20). Therefore let us ‘stand erect and raise our heads’ and by our perseverance we will secure our lives.

Work for things that you can carry with you when you leave this world। What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?

ANGELIC EXISTENCE
32ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

We know the story of St. Maximillian Kolbe. He willingly took the place of a stranger who was unjustly condemned to death. Kolbe was a man of consideration and boundless love. Clearly, there was greater reason than this behind this ultimate sacrifice. Evidently, this was his faith in the continuity of life after death.

There is no doubt about the doctrine of life after death. Every religion, barring one or two shares the same view. This belief encouraged the seven brothers to prefer death to pagan religious practices. We have this story in the first reading, this Sunday (2 Maccabees 7:1-14).

The question is not whether there is a resurrection but what is going to be the mode this new life. According to our faith, after death a person continues to live with a transfigured, elevated and spiritualized body through the love of God. The resurrected life is not like life in the world. It is not returning to the ordinary life. While responding to the question of (Lk 20:27-38) Sadducees, Jesus said ‘they will be like angels.’ This statement gives a valuable insight. Angels are spiritual being. They have no bodies. In other words, they are independent of physical / worldly needs as needs emerge from material existence. Death is the cessation of bodily existence. The end of bodily existence ceases the bodily needs. The spiritualization of the body freed the person from needs. Jesus explains this truth using the example of marriage. Marriage has two-fold purposes: perpetuation of life through procreation, and completion of love through mutual giving. Our human existence is saddled with mortality. We carry on life through children. Heavenly life is not saddled with mortality. It is clothed with immortality. Therefore, we do not need to carry on life through children. Secondly, God is the fullness of love. In his presence, we have the fullness of love. We do not need to take any effort from our parts to complete the love. In death, we are losing our last name. We will become children of God in the truest sense.

The lesson for us is this: Live and shape our life in view of our eternal life. Detach from worldly needs and greed. We have started this process at baptism by our partaking in the Pascal event; the dying and rising process of Jesus.

THE POWER OF INVITATION
31 SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

One day, after the Morning Prayer I approached a Lady and said, “Would you like to be a Lector.” I thought she had a beautiful voice, clear and distinct. She reluctantly agreed. She is an excellent lector today. Recently she told me, “Father, thank you for inviting me to be a lector. I really wanted to do some ministry but I was not sure about my ability. Your invitation was timely and that gave me a lot of self-confidence and affirmation.”

A simple invitation and a loving word of affirmation can do wonders in the life of people. The best example is the story of Zacchaeus (LK18:9-14). Zacchaeus was not a bad person. (Our general impression about Zacchaeus is that he was a sinner) The gospel does not label him as a sinner. Zacchaeus did not confess any sin. Instead what he said was: “If I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.”

Zacchaeus’ problem was social stigma. People labeled Tax Collectors as sinners. The society could not see him differently because of his profession. Actually, Zacchaeus wanted to follow Jesus. He wanted to share his blessings for the good of others. His dilemma was twofold. On the one hand, there was social prejudice against his profession and on the other hand, his fear of societal rejection. As a result he did not make his desire public. Jesus, however, saw his heart. Jesus could see him independent of his profession. Jesus saw his desire. Jesus found in him a suitable companion. Jesus found his home a suitable resting place for him. Jesus made his opinion public. This acknowledgment and public recognition made a big difference in his life. He was even willing to share his own property with others.

There are high spots in all of our lives, and most of them have come about through encouragement from someone else. Some are victims of prejudices. Some are victims of fear. They have a lot to offer. They want to be part of the main stream. Can I help them to come out of their shackles of bondage? Do I have the courage to act like Jesus? People criticized Jesus. They may not spare you either. Do not crowd let dictate our behavior!

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Sandhill cranes are large birds who fly great distance across continents. They have three remarkable qualities. First, they rotate leadership. No one bird stay in front all the time. Second, they choose leaders they can handle turbulence. Thirdly, all during the time one bird is leading, the rest are honking their affirmation. (Bruce Larson)

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TRUSTING PRAYER, NOT TESTING PRAYER
29TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

A clergyman observed a poor man breaking stones, and kneeling so that he could do it more effectively। The clergy man remarked,” I wish I could break the stony hearts of my parishioners as easily as you are breaking these stones।” “Yes you can,, if you work on your knees” ,he replied.

EFFECTIVENESS OF PRAYER

Prayer is effective if it is said with proper disposition and passion. The readings for the twenty-ninth Sunday in ordinary time (Exodus 17:8-13, Lk 18:1-8) explain this fact. After explaining the story of the dishonest judge and the poor widow Jesus said, “Will not God then secure the right of his chosen ones who call out to Him day and night?” As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel was winning. God answers our prayers.

Very often, our prayer seems to be ineffective. This may be due to the following reasons. We are not persistent in our approach. Our prayers are not trusting prayer but testing prayer. Our prayer seldom accompanies sacrifice. Our prayers lack the element of commitment. Finally, we wrongly identify prayer with prayer programs. There is only one way to grow in prayer that is by praying. Reading hundred of volumes on prayer and attending a million seminars on prayer will not make anyone a disciple of Jesus. A minister was talking to a woman on an airplane flight. The flight got very bumpy. The woman said: You are a minister! Can’t you do something about this storm?” Oh…! I am in sales not in management.” He replied.

DISTRACTIONS IN PRAYER

As in other areas of life, in prayer life also at times we experience weariness and lack of interest. Human tendency is that we easily give up our efforts. Moses let his hands rest when he experienced weariness. The result was immediate. His enemy started winning the war. Distraction in prayer is not anything new. “We cannot stop birds from flying over our heads. We can prevent them from making nests on our head.” Apart from maintaining a spirit of prayer "always" and "without ceasing," we need to resort a number of precautions to re-energize our lost spirit in prayer.
1. Preparation for prayer. As someone said, “To pray for five minutes effectively one needs ten minutes of preparation.”
2. Choose the time for prayer when you are fresh. Prayer involves mind, spirit, soul and all. Jesus often chose the early hours of the day for His secret communion with the Father.
3. Focus in prayer. When there is no focus in prayer, your mind will begin to wander. Be definite and specific about your requests. Keeping a prayer list and praying over the items one by one is helpful.
THE ROLE OF COMMUNITY IN PRAYER EFFECTIVENESS


When Moses was tired, Aaron and Hur helped him to remain in prayer until sunset. We are not lone travelers but pilgrims. We journey together. We are here for each other. This is especially true with regard to our spiritual journey. There are number of incidents in the Bible that substantiate this truth. For instance, remember the scene where four men brought a paralyzed man to Jesus (Lk5:17-21). Seeing their faith Jesus healed the paralytic. Our faith can do miracle for others. Many people have spiritual paralysis. How do we lift them up as Aaron and Hur supported Moses? On another vocation disciples came to Jesus and said: Lord, teach us pray just as john taught his disciples (Lk 11:1).. The prayer of John’s disciples inspired them to know more about prayer. Be part of a worshiping community. We will remain faithful in our faith until sunset.


NOT SELF-TAK, BUT GOD TALK
30th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

A rich man came to the church to pray. He prayed, “Lord I have a business deal. I need two million dollars right now. Help me.” Then he saw another man praying standing next to him. He was a poor man. He prayed, “Lord, I have not eaten anything for two days. Please give me hundred dollars.” The rich man was distracted by his prayer. He pulled out a hundred dollar bill from his pocket and gave to the poor man. The poor man was very happy. He ran out of the church, thanking and praising God. Immediately the rich man looked at Jesus and said,” Lord the distraction is gone now. Now give me your full attention.”

The focus of this Sunday’s readings (Lk 18:9-14; Sirach 35:12-18; 2Timothy 4:6-18)) is prayer. It is about the right attitude/disposition in prayer. According to the parable, two men went to pray; a Pharisee and a tax collector. The Pharisee was a practicing Jew and the Tax Collector was a public sinner. However, the Pharisee returned home humiliated where as the tax collector went back home justified. What was gone wrong with the Pharisee? What did go right with the Tax Collector? Two things are important here!

1. While praying, the Pharisee stood before the tax collector. When he stood before the tax collector, the Pharisee looked better. Prayer is not comparing oneself with one another and making oneself look better before God. It is standing before the Lord with humility and honesty. It is seeing oneself as God sees. The Tax Collector precisely did that.
2. Prayer is not self-talk. It is God-talk. The Pharisee talked to himself. He made claims before God, explaining to Him all the marvelous things he did for God. Prayer is not talking about me rather it is recognizing and acknowledging the mercy of God. It is not about what I am doing for God but what God is doing for me.

Prayer is effective if it is offered in humility and honesty. As we read in the Book of Sirach, the prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds; it does not rest until it reaches its goal.

THINK AND THANK
28TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
OCTOBER 10,2010

“Thank you”, “Well done”, “Good job”. We often hear these words of appreciation. This is one of the greatness of American culture. This is biblical too. All our readings for the 28th Sunday express this view. Naman came back to Elisha to show his gratitude. Our responsorial Psalms says, “Praise the Lord for He has done wonderful things for us.” The Gospel reading tells us how Jesus appreciated the Samaritan leper for his gesture of gratefulness.

THANKSGIVING IS AN EXPRESSION OF FAITH

As St. Paul rightly put it, ‘We do not have anything that is not coming from God’. A sense of gratefulness naturally flows from the gifted nature of life. The only value of our life is that it is a gift of God (Thomas Merton). Thinking of one’s blessings should stir one to thankfulness. Hence, Mary said, “My soul glorifies the greatness of the Lord.”

GRATITUDE IS OUR EXPRESSION OF OTHER-CENTEREDNESS

An egocentric person cannot appreciate the goodness in others. They feel threatened by the good of others. People of gratitude reaffirm the fact that ‘I am not the center of the world.” When I acknowledge some one’s contribution, we profess the communal nature of our human existence. “God always uses the man closest to him.”

THANKSGIVING IN ACTION

A Gratitude that is not translated into action is fake, not real. The full expression of thankfulness is commitment. Naaman said to Elisha: “ I will no longer offer sacrifices to any other God except to the Lord.” The leaper not only returned to Jesus but also expressed his willingness to follow Jesus. How do we show our gratitude?

EUCHARIST IS THE CELEBERATION OF THANKSGIVING

The word Eucharist means thanksgiving. When we gather every Sunday to celebrate the Eucharist, we are giving thanks to God through Jesus for the gift of salvation. All the Eucharist prayers and prefaces begin with prayer of thanksgiving. For example, the second Eucharistic prayer begins “Father it is our duty and salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks through your beloved son Jesus Christ.”

Let us try to be people of gratitude. A four year-old boy said he was thankful for his glasses. “Why?” someone asked him. “Because it keeps the boys from hitting me- and the girls from kissing me.”