Exodus 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20 / Matthew 13:10-17
Much has been said about the attitude of some Catholics who come for Mass on Sundays.
Besides being late, some come in all sorts of dressing that would make others blush and some would busy themselves with other activities other than pray.
With such attitudes, we wonder what is the understanding of the Eucharist and what is the House of God being turned into.
In the 1st reading, God told Moses - I am coming to you in a dense cloud so that the people may hear when I speak to you and may trust you always.
God also told Moses - Go to the people and tell them to prepare themselves today and tomorrow. Let them wash their clothing and hold themselves in readiness for the third day, because on the third day the Lord will descend on the mountain of Sinai in the sight of all the people.
When the day came, there were peals of thunder on the mountain and lightning flashes, a dense cloud, and a loud trumpet blast, and inside the camp all the peoples trembled.
The people had to be prepared to meet the Lord as He comes to them. And the Lord made His presence felt with enough of signs to make the people tremble.
How we wish that such signs would be present at every Eucharist. Then all those inappropriate attitudes would certainly disappear.
But if we prepare ourselves well enough, we will see the signs of God's presence. We wash not just our clothes but we cleanse our hearts so that God will come and dwell in our hearts and make His dwelling in our hearts.
As Jesus said - Happy are your eyes because they see, your ears because they hear. I tell you solemnly, many prophets and holy men longed to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it.
Yes, we will see, and we will hear, as long as our hearts are prepared.
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
16th Week, Ordinary Time, Wednesday, 26-07-17
Exodus 16:1-5, 9-15 / Matthew 13:1-9
Now and then, we hear of this phrase "the good old days". This brings about a nostalgia for the past, and memories of the not-the-distant past are revived, romanticized and even glorified.
No doubt, there were some good in those old days, but it was not always the "good old days". And to keep saying that would mean that we keep living in the past and the present is not good enough.
Exodus 12:40 declared that the Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years. That was a very long time, and to think that at least for the latter half of that time, they were slaves in Egypt.
But after they were freed from slavery in Egypt and were wandering in the desert, and faced with hunger and thirst, their common complaint was "back in Egypt". Somehow the days of slavery and suffering and oppression seemed like the "good old days" compared with freedom, although it was in the harsh environment of the desert.
As we heard in the 1st reading, the Israelites complained - Why did we not die at the Lord's hand in the land of Egypt, when we were able to sit down to pans of meat and could eat bread to our heart's content!
Somehow the trials of the present make the past seems rosy and cosy. And because of that we miss counting the blessings of the present.
So as much as God is blessing us here and now, if our hearts are like that of various types of ground that are described in the gospel, then we need to re-look at our hearts.
Let us present our hearts to the Lord and ask Him to make our hearts like rich fertile soil so that His blessings will bring about a harvest of thanksgiving and so we can say "The Lord is good to us"
Now and then, we hear of this phrase "the good old days". This brings about a nostalgia for the past, and memories of the not-the-distant past are revived, romanticized and even glorified.
No doubt, there were some good in those old days, but it was not always the "good old days". And to keep saying that would mean that we keep living in the past and the present is not good enough.
Exodus 12:40 declared that the Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years. That was a very long time, and to think that at least for the latter half of that time, they were slaves in Egypt.
But after they were freed from slavery in Egypt and were wandering in the desert, and faced with hunger and thirst, their common complaint was "back in Egypt". Somehow the days of slavery and suffering and oppression seemed like the "good old days" compared with freedom, although it was in the harsh environment of the desert.
As we heard in the 1st reading, the Israelites complained - Why did we not die at the Lord's hand in the land of Egypt, when we were able to sit down to pans of meat and could eat bread to our heart's content!
Somehow the trials of the present make the past seems rosy and cosy. And because of that we miss counting the blessings of the present.
So as much as God is blessing us here and now, if our hearts are like that of various types of ground that are described in the gospel, then we need to re-look at our hearts.
Let us present our hearts to the Lord and ask Him to make our hearts like rich fertile soil so that His blessings will bring about a harvest of thanksgiving and so we can say "The Lord is good to us"
Monday, July 24, 2017
St. James, Apostle, Tuesday, 25-07-17
2 Cor 4:7-15 / Matthew 20:20-28
During His life on earth, Jesus singled out three apostles out of the twelve apostles to be with Him in the special and unique moments of His ministry.
They were Peter, John and James, whose feast day we celebrate today.
They were with Jesus in His healing ministry as well as at the Transfiguration.
Although James had the privilege of being in the inner circle of the apostles, he did not quite understand the mission and purpose of Jesus.
As we heard in the gospel, he and his brother John had ideas about getting special positions in the earthly kingdom that they thought Jesus was going to establish.
But for all his misconceptions, James wanted to be with Jesus.
He had found the one whom he wanted to follow, even though he had yet to understand fully that his Master came to serve and to eventually give His life as a ransom for many.
Nonetheless, in the end, St. James would be the first among the apostles to give up his life in witness to his Master.
So even though St. James was in the inner circle of the apostles, he was an earthenware jar that holds the privilege of being chosen by Jesus.
The 1st reading reminds us that like St. James, we are also earthenware jars holding the treasures of God.
Like St. James, let us pour out these treasures in love and service to God and neighbour.
We can only inherit the kingdom of God when we give up our lives for others.
During His life on earth, Jesus singled out three apostles out of the twelve apostles to be with Him in the special and unique moments of His ministry.
They were Peter, John and James, whose feast day we celebrate today.
They were with Jesus in His healing ministry as well as at the Transfiguration.
Although James had the privilege of being in the inner circle of the apostles, he did not quite understand the mission and purpose of Jesus.
As we heard in the gospel, he and his brother John had ideas about getting special positions in the earthly kingdom that they thought Jesus was going to establish.
But for all his misconceptions, James wanted to be with Jesus.
He had found the one whom he wanted to follow, even though he had yet to understand fully that his Master came to serve and to eventually give His life as a ransom for many.
Nonetheless, in the end, St. James would be the first among the apostles to give up his life in witness to his Master.
So even though St. James was in the inner circle of the apostles, he was an earthenware jar that holds the privilege of being chosen by Jesus.
The 1st reading reminds us that like St. James, we are also earthenware jars holding the treasures of God.
Like St. James, let us pour out these treasures in love and service to God and neighbour.
We can only inherit the kingdom of God when we give up our lives for others.
Sunday, July 23, 2017
16th Week, Ordinary Time, Monday, 24-07-17
Exodus 14:5-18 / Matthew 12:36-42
There is a story of a man who fell off a cliff in the dark but he managed to catch on to a branch and was left dangling there.
So he cried out "O God, help me! Help me!". And then a voice came from heaven "Do you really want me to help you?"
And the man said, "Yes, Lord, yes!" And the voice from heaven said, "Then you must do what I tell you. Now let go off the branch!"
And the man thought for a while and then he said in a softer voice, "Is there anybody else up there?"
Whenever we are faced with desperate situations and God is giving us difficult solutions, we tend to look for other options. In those kind of situations, we don't trust God enough to believe that the difficult solution is the solution.
Such was the situation of the Israelites in the 1st reading. Faced with the sea before them and the Egyptians coming up behind them, they were terrified and they cried out to the Lord.
They were so desperate that they spoke against Moses and they even said this "Better to work for the Egyptians than die in the wilderness!" For them the only other option was to go back to slavery.
Because they were told to march on into the sea, which was as good as death by drowning.
The parting of the sea and the Israelites crossing dry-footed and the subsequent drowning of the Egyptian army was the greatest act of salvation that God worked for the Israelites. But we have to admit that it was difficult to trust in the Lord God especially when the situation is desperate and our minds do not accept the Lord's ways.
Anyway the earlier story did not end there. The next morning the rescuers came across a strange sight. The man was frozen to death with his arms still hanging on the branch and his feet was only six inches from the ground!
In desperate situations we need to let go of ourselves because we will fall none other than into the arms of God our Saviour.
There is a story of a man who fell off a cliff in the dark but he managed to catch on to a branch and was left dangling there.
So he cried out "O God, help me! Help me!". And then a voice came from heaven "Do you really want me to help you?"
And the man said, "Yes, Lord, yes!" And the voice from heaven said, "Then you must do what I tell you. Now let go off the branch!"
And the man thought for a while and then he said in a softer voice, "Is there anybody else up there?"
Whenever we are faced with desperate situations and God is giving us difficult solutions, we tend to look for other options. In those kind of situations, we don't trust God enough to believe that the difficult solution is the solution.
Such was the situation of the Israelites in the 1st reading. Faced with the sea before them and the Egyptians coming up behind them, they were terrified and they cried out to the Lord.
They were so desperate that they spoke against Moses and they even said this "Better to work for the Egyptians than die in the wilderness!" For them the only other option was to go back to slavery.
Because they were told to march on into the sea, which was as good as death by drowning.
The parting of the sea and the Israelites crossing dry-footed and the subsequent drowning of the Egyptian army was the greatest act of salvation that God worked for the Israelites. But we have to admit that it was difficult to trust in the Lord God especially when the situation is desperate and our minds do not accept the Lord's ways.
Anyway the earlier story did not end there. The next morning the rescuers came across a strange sight. The man was frozen to death with his arms still hanging on the branch and his feet was only six inches from the ground!
In desperate situations we need to let go of ourselves because we will fall none other than into the arms of God our Saviour.
Saturday, July 22, 2017
16th Ordinary Sunday, Year A, 23.07.2017
Wisdom 12:13, 16-19 / Romans 8:26-27 / Matthew 13:24-43
One of the rather tedious things to do is house-keeping, which is also known as spring-cleaning. But whether it is spring or summer or autumn or winter, cleaning the house is not something we look forward to, and it is not something we like to do often, much less every day.
We can actually tolerate quite a bit of dust and we will only realize that it is getting too much when we start writing notes and phone numbers in the dust on the table. Then maybe it’s getting too much.
And some people can give funny reasons for not doing housekeeping or spring-cleaning:
- My room is not dirty. I clean it every other day. Just that today is not every other day.
- My room is not untidy. I just have everything on display, just like a provision shop.
And when it comes to housekeeping, it is not only physically tiring, it can be mentally taxing. We have to think carefully about what we want to throw away as junk. Because junk is sometimes defined as something we throw away three weeks before we realise we need it. So to throw or not to throw, that’s the question.
The question in the gospel parable is kind of similar – to weed it out or not to weed it out. That was with reference to the darnel, a kind of weed that looks similar to wheat in the early growing stages, but can only be distinguished when it is matured.
Not only can darnel choke out the wheat, its seeds are also poisonous. So we can imagine how tedious it can be to harvest wheat that has got darnel with it. It is like trying to sort out between sugar and salt.
But to begin with, what was sown was wheat, and it was good wheat. And then when everybody was asleep, the enemy came and sowed darnel among the wheat and made off.
And it was only when the wheat sprouted and ripened that the darnel appeared as well. And weeding out the darnel was out of the question.
This parable can be used to explain the origins of sin and evil, and the conclusion can be this: The devil did it!
But that would only be highlighting an obvious problem. But what about the solution?
In the parable, the solution is given at the harvest time – the wheat and the darnel will be separated, the wheat going to the barn, the darnel going to be burnt.
That is the end-time solution to the problem of evil. In the end, evil will be held accountable, and evil will be punished. That is the end-time. But for us, what is it for the meantime?
To begin with, as much as the parable distinguishes between wheat and weeds, between good and evil, the reality of this world is not separated into two camps.
Because the fact is that no one is absolutely good and no one is absolutely evil. In each of us, there is a mixture of both, some more, some less.
But we must also realise that God has sown good seeds in us, so that we can bear a good harvest. And we also have to realise that there are some poisonous weeds crawling within us that would make us forget who we are and what we are called to be.
There is a reflection on our current lifestyle that somehow causes a distortion in our lives. The reflection is this:
One of the consequences of the weeds of our lives is that they make us forget who we are and what we are called to be.
The 1st reading reminds us that like the man who sowed good seeds, God has sown goodness in us and the reading says this: By acting thus, You have taught a lesson to your people, how the virtuous man must be kind to his fellowman, and You have given Your sons the good hope that after sin, You will grant repentance.
So even before asking why there are wicked people, why there is evil, let us do some spiritual housekeeping and spiritual heart-cleaning, and to admit that we have allowed the weeds of sin to enter into our hearts and choke out the wheat of goodness.
So repentance is about cleansing our hearts of the weeds of sin so that that when we are faced with the wickedness and evil of this world, we won’t resort to that kind of “eye for eye, and tooth for tooth” reaction. Anyway fighting fire with fire only creates a bigger fire.
Rather we fight evil with the goodness and kindness that are planted in our hearts by God, and Jesus reminds us of this in today’s gospel parable.
So let us remember who we are and what we are called to be. That is the meantime direction, and it is also the end-time solution.
One of the rather tedious things to do is house-keeping, which is also known as spring-cleaning. But whether it is spring or summer or autumn or winter, cleaning the house is not something we look forward to, and it is not something we like to do often, much less every day.
We can actually tolerate quite a bit of dust and we will only realize that it is getting too much when we start writing notes and phone numbers in the dust on the table. Then maybe it’s getting too much.
And some people can give funny reasons for not doing housekeeping or spring-cleaning:
- My room is not dirty. I clean it every other day. Just that today is not every other day.
- My room is not untidy. I just have everything on display, just like a provision shop.
And when it comes to housekeeping, it is not only physically tiring, it can be mentally taxing. We have to think carefully about what we want to throw away as junk. Because junk is sometimes defined as something we throw away three weeks before we realise we need it. So to throw or not to throw, that’s the question.
The question in the gospel parable is kind of similar – to weed it out or not to weed it out. That was with reference to the darnel, a kind of weed that looks similar to wheat in the early growing stages, but can only be distinguished when it is matured.
Not only can darnel choke out the wheat, its seeds are also poisonous. So we can imagine how tedious it can be to harvest wheat that has got darnel with it. It is like trying to sort out between sugar and salt.
But to begin with, what was sown was wheat, and it was good wheat. And then when everybody was asleep, the enemy came and sowed darnel among the wheat and made off.
And it was only when the wheat sprouted and ripened that the darnel appeared as well. And weeding out the darnel was out of the question.
This parable can be used to explain the origins of sin and evil, and the conclusion can be this: The devil did it!
But that would only be highlighting an obvious problem. But what about the solution?
In the parable, the solution is given at the harvest time – the wheat and the darnel will be separated, the wheat going to the barn, the darnel going to be burnt.
That is the end-time solution to the problem of evil. In the end, evil will be held accountable, and evil will be punished. That is the end-time. But for us, what is it for the meantime?
To begin with, as much as the parable distinguishes between wheat and weeds, between good and evil, the reality of this world is not separated into two camps.
Because the fact is that no one is absolutely good and no one is absolutely evil. In each of us, there is a mixture of both, some more, some less.
But we must also realise that God has sown good seeds in us, so that we can bear a good harvest. And we also have to realise that there are some poisonous weeds crawling within us that would make us forget who we are and what we are called to be.
There is a reflection on our current lifestyle that somehow causes a distortion in our lives. The reflection is this:
- When TV came to my house, I forgot how to read books.
- When the car came to my doorstep, I forgot how to walk.
- When I got the mobile in my hand, I forgot how to write letters.
- When computer came to my house, I forgot spellings.
- When the air-con came to my house, I stopped going under the tree for cool breeze
- When I stayed in the city, I forgot the smell of the countryside.
- By dealing with banks and cards, I forgot the value of money.
- With the smell of perfume, I forgot the fragrance of fresh flowers.
- With the coming of fast food, I forgot to cook traditional cuisines.
- Always running around, I forgot how to stop.
- And lastly when I got WhatsApp, I forgot how to talk.
One of the consequences of the weeds of our lives is that they make us forget who we are and what we are called to be.
The 1st reading reminds us that like the man who sowed good seeds, God has sown goodness in us and the reading says this: By acting thus, You have taught a lesson to your people, how the virtuous man must be kind to his fellowman, and You have given Your sons the good hope that after sin, You will grant repentance.
So even before asking why there are wicked people, why there is evil, let us do some spiritual housekeeping and spiritual heart-cleaning, and to admit that we have allowed the weeds of sin to enter into our hearts and choke out the wheat of goodness.
So repentance is about cleansing our hearts of the weeds of sin so that that when we are faced with the wickedness and evil of this world, we won’t resort to that kind of “eye for eye, and tooth for tooth” reaction. Anyway fighting fire with fire only creates a bigger fire.
Rather we fight evil with the goodness and kindness that are planted in our hearts by God, and Jesus reminds us of this in today’s gospel parable.
So let us remember who we are and what we are called to be. That is the meantime direction, and it is also the end-time solution.
Friday, July 21, 2017
St. Mary Magdalene, Saturday, 22-07-17
Songs 3:1-4 or 2 Cor 5:14-17 / John 20:1-2, 11-18
Every now and then, we see in the newspapers a notice about a missing person, with the person's photograph and some details.
Whether the person was eventually found or not, we cannot be certain because very often there are no follow-up reports on the case in the newspapers.
What is certain is that when a loved one is missing, the anxiety is painful and the search is relentless.
Such was the depth of the emotion expressed in the 1st reading in the search for the one whom the heart loves deeply.
It may also express the pain and grief of Mary Magdalene as she looked for the One she loved in the tomb.
And not finding Jesus in tomb, Mary Magdalene searched relentlessly and persistently for Him.
Mary's deep love for Jesus was because it was He who loved her first and healed her of her sufferings and sins.
In life, Mary Magdalene loved Jesus. Even in death she searched for Him in order just to be with Him.
Mary Magdalene is remembered because of her deep love for Jesus and her relentless and persistent search for Jesus when others seemed to have given up.
From our priorities and what we are searching and longing for, we will know how deep our love is for Jesus.
There is this saying for St. Augustine in his book "Confessions" : You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there I searched for you.
God is within us. From within He calls out to us. If we are not listening to Him from within, then we might just be looking for the wrong things.
Every now and then, we see in the newspapers a notice about a missing person, with the person's photograph and some details.
Whether the person was eventually found or not, we cannot be certain because very often there are no follow-up reports on the case in the newspapers.
What is certain is that when a loved one is missing, the anxiety is painful and the search is relentless.
Such was the depth of the emotion expressed in the 1st reading in the search for the one whom the heart loves deeply.
It may also express the pain and grief of Mary Magdalene as she looked for the One she loved in the tomb.
And not finding Jesus in tomb, Mary Magdalene searched relentlessly and persistently for Him.
Mary's deep love for Jesus was because it was He who loved her first and healed her of her sufferings and sins.
In life, Mary Magdalene loved Jesus. Even in death she searched for Him in order just to be with Him.
Mary Magdalene is remembered because of her deep love for Jesus and her relentless and persistent search for Jesus when others seemed to have given up.
From our priorities and what we are searching and longing for, we will know how deep our love is for Jesus.
There is this saying for St. Augustine in his book "Confessions" : You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there I searched for you.
God is within us. From within He calls out to us. If we are not listening to Him from within, then we might just be looking for the wrong things.
Thursday, July 20, 2017
15th Week, Ordinary Time, Friday, 21-07-17
Exodus 11:10 -12:14 / Matthew 12:1-8
If there is a great offer or a not-to-be-missed kind of sale, we would certainly not want to miss it.
Especially if it is something that we really wanted, and so we would hurry and try to be among the first in line.
It won't be a time to ask the unnecessary questions like "How long must I wait?' or "Don't know if I can get it". We won't waste time. As it is said "The early bird catches the worm".
In the 1st reading, the people were given instructions on how to eat the first Passover meal. And they were told specifically "You shall eat it hastily: it is a passover in honour of the Lord".
So the moment to be freed from the bondage of slavery had come, and the passover meal is to commemorate it.
But it is not to be eaten leisurely, and the instruction is "You shall eat it like this: with a girdle round your waist, sandals on your feet, a staff in your hand".
It was not a time for small talk and unnecessary questions. And those who don't follow those instructions will probably never see freedom again.
Yes, it was God's mercy that freed the Israelites from the bondage of slavery. And it is God's mercy that continues to free us from our sins and save us from the grasp of evil.
So we need to understand the meaning of the words "What I want is mercy, not sacrifice". And let us not waste time in understanding those words. Because it is too great and too good to miss it.
If there is a great offer or a not-to-be-missed kind of sale, we would certainly not want to miss it.
Especially if it is something that we really wanted, and so we would hurry and try to be among the first in line.
It won't be a time to ask the unnecessary questions like "How long must I wait?' or "Don't know if I can get it". We won't waste time. As it is said "The early bird catches the worm".
In the 1st reading, the people were given instructions on how to eat the first Passover meal. And they were told specifically "You shall eat it hastily: it is a passover in honour of the Lord".
So the moment to be freed from the bondage of slavery had come, and the passover meal is to commemorate it.
But it is not to be eaten leisurely, and the instruction is "You shall eat it like this: with a girdle round your waist, sandals on your feet, a staff in your hand".
It was not a time for small talk and unnecessary questions. And those who don't follow those instructions will probably never see freedom again.
Yes, it was God's mercy that freed the Israelites from the bondage of slavery. And it is God's mercy that continues to free us from our sins and save us from the grasp of evil.
So we need to understand the meaning of the words "What I want is mercy, not sacrifice". And let us not waste time in understanding those words. Because it is too great and too good to miss it.
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