“Reviving and reinvigorating our prayer lives!”

(Based on Eccles 3:1-11 and Lk 9:18-22 – Friday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time, Year 2)

There is an interesting incident that is reported from the land of Africa.

When the early Africans converted to Christianity, they were extremely earnest and regular, especially in their personal devotions.

Each one of them, would choose a separate spot in the midst of a thicket.

In that personal spot, the person would pour out one’s heart to God.

It was a moment of deepening one’s relationship with the Lord
It was a place of personally strengthening one’s bond with the Saviour

As time passed by, these spots would become well-worn out.

The paths had been smoothed

As a result, if any of the converts failed to be regular in personal prayer, it was easily noticeable and clearly evident to the others!

Therefore, they would gently remind the one who was negligent, “Brother/Sister, the grass is growing on your path!!”

“The grass is growing on your path” – became a reminder for the one who was slipping down the path of devotion and prayer, to revive one’s spiritual fervour and zeal.

“Is there grass growing on our paths?”
… is a question that we need to constantly ask ourselves and execute the necessary steps in order to reinforce or to strengthen our personal prayer lives!

The Gospel of the Day present a wonderful depiction of our Blessed Lord – Jesus praying in solitude.

St Luke paints an inspiring image of our Lord when he says, “And it came to pass, as Jesus was praying alone…” (Lk 9: 18)

During His earthly ministry, Jesus had a very strong priority and choice: Finding time to be alone with His Beloved Father, in prayer.

This was especially pointed out by St Luke whose Gospel is called as the “Gospel of Prayer”

At the Baptism: “After all people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized, and was praying…” (Lk 3: 21)
After many healings: ” … He would withdraw to deserted places to pray” (Lk 5:16)
Before choosing the Twelve: “In those days, He departed to the mountains to pray…” (Lk 6: 12)
At Transfiguration: “… Jesus took Peter, John and James and went up the mountain to pray…” (Lk 9: 28)

Many are such occasions that St Luke points to drive home the message that Jesus cherished, loved and made time for Personal Prayer.

Is my life rooted in Prayer?

This is a fundamental question that we need to constantly pose to ourselves and be moved by the answers that we get to it.

We complain very often that we don’t find time for prayer..
… being busy with a number of assignments, duty demands, work schedules!

We tend to say that prayer doesn’t interest us…
… unable to enjoy sometime alone and to be quiet and recollected in the Awesome and Still Presence of the Lord!

We find ample number of excuses to cancel out “prayer” from our timetable of life…
… giving a reason that “God will anyway wait for us” whereas our moments of enjoyment and fun may not come too often!

But our Blessed Lord today invites to seek and cherish “prayer” in our lives.

We are called to have a “taste for prayer!”

Spending time with a person whom one loves is certainly not a painful task or an unnecessary task or deed required an extra effort.

One loves to be with the person who is loved…
… to spend quiet moments
… to speak out one’s heart
… to expose one’s inner emotions

And this “being with” our Blessed Lord is “Prayer!”

Let us make efforts to reserve and preserve, at least a few minutes, in personal prayer, to grow in our union with the Lord.

It is only these precious moments of prayer…
… that will help us to deepen our conviction to say that Jesus is the “Messiah of God” (Lk 9: 20)
… that will take us through, with our Crucified Lord (Lk 9:22), in our moments of struggles and hardships.

“Is there grass growing on our paths…?”
… the grass of laziness and lethargy
… the grass of disinterest and indifference
… the grass of meaninglessness and hopelessness

Then we need to make smooth these paths by reviving and reinvigorating our prayer lives!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

“Radiating the Mighty Presence of Jesus in our lives!”

(Based on Eccles 1:2-11 and Lk 9:7-9 – Thursday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time, Year 2)

On October 3, 1979, Pope Saint John Paul II was making his first papal visit to the United States.

He came to New York City and was met by Cardinal Cooke, the Archbishop of New York, who escorted the Pope into St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

When the Holy Father reached the sanctuary, he paused and looked around.

Then he turned to Cardinal Cooke and asked, “Where is Archbishop Sheen?”

[Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen was one of the most influential Catholic evangelists of the 20th century – a powerful preacher, writer and a man of strong prayer and deep devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and our Blessed Mother – renowned for bringing the Gospel to millions through his preaching, writing and pioneering use of television.]

The Cardinal had to send his secretary to find the Archbishop, who was toward the back of the cathedral in the Mary Chapel
[Archbishop Fulton Sheen was making his daily Holy Hour before the Blessed Sacrament in the Chapel]

The Holy Father waited motionlessly!

The people were wondering what was happening to cause this apparent delay.

Finally, Archbishop Sheen (now 84 years old) emerged from the chapel.

When the people realized that the Pope had been waiting for the Archbishop…
… they stood up and gave Archbishop Sheen a seven-minute standing ovation.
[After all, he had been the voice of the Catholic Church in America for nearly thirty years]

Then Pope Saint John Paul II went over and embraced the Archbishop, now quite frail with age and sickness.

The Holy Father said to him: “You have written and spoken well of the Lord Jesus! You have been a loyal son of the Church.”

Here was Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.

A man who had spent his life speaking about Jesus Christ.

And here is what is striking: The crowd had gathered to see the Pope…
… but the Pope himself was looking for a man whose entire life had been spent making Jesus known.

Perhaps that is the real measure of a Christian life.

Not how many people know our name…
… but whether we know Him well and whether our life has made His Name known well – JESUS OF NAZARETH!

Do we know Him?
Do we REALLY know Him?
… or do we, like King Herod, in the Gospel of the Day, end up asking, “Who then is this about Whom I hear such things?” (Lk 9:9)

When we scan through the pages of the Gospel of St Luke from Chapters 4-9, we find that Jesus was acquiring new heights of fame, popularity and public acclaim.

His words and teachings were…
… ringing in the bells of transformation
… challenging the integrity of the religious leaders and civil authorities
… providing a cushion of hope and encouragement to the lost and the marginalised

His acts of wonders and powers were…
… instilling excitement in the lives of people
… causing the people to have reminiscences of the great prophets of old

As a result the people began to discuss and to say, “John has been raised from the dead; Elijah has appeared; one of the ancient prophets has arisen” (Lk 9:8)

Such rumours, reports and recounts caused a lot of worry for King Herod.
The flames of anxiety were scorching his mind…
The waves of guilt were drowning his heart…

And therefore, with a highly guilty conscience, in fear and trembling, King Herod puts forward his theory on the Dilemma of this Mysterious Divine Person, “John I beheaded. Who then is this about Whom I hear such things?” (Lk 9:9)

The enigmatic personality of Jesus was casting clouds of fear and guilt over King Herod!

The charismatic work of our Blessed Lord was plunging King Herod into the ocean of haunting and forgettable memories!

Yet, King Herod failed to establish a relationship with our Blessed Lord.

His mind failed to move beyond the realms of wonder and amazement, to wanting a bonding with the Messiah!

Is our life also sadly moving along the same lines, as that of King Herod…?

Is our life of sin and our life of not wanting to take the risk of trusting Him, just like King Herod, causing us to miss out on cherishing a relationship with our Blessed Lord?

To King Herod….
… Jesus only remained a mysterious and stupefying character

King Herod was unable to accept Jesus as His Saviour

We also have surely heard a lot about this wonderful Divine Person named Jesus.
… but has He been able to capture our minds and hearts and do we co-operate with Him to be possessed by His love?

We also have had ample opportunities to grow in our spiritual life and to be receiving a number of teachings on His Divine Word
… but has the Word of God truly become the rule and the guiding principle of our life?

It’s nice to be attracted to the power of God…
… to praise His wonders
… to be amazed at His awesome deeds.

But it’s just not enough to remain at this peripheral level.

Our Blessed Lord came…
… not to simply amaze, but to attend to our sins and failures

He wishes that we truly embrace Him…
… as the Lord of our lives and as our Personal Saviour and Master

Jesus, Who lived a “Solitary Life” has made a great impact on the world
May our personal life also give testimony to this fact…
… and let us truly radiate the Mighty Presence of Jesus in our lives!

On the eve of the Beatification of Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen, let us thank the Lord for this faithful servant of the Church, who has infuenced so many, and brought millions to Catholic Faith by his preaching, his writings and his life!

Let us seek to follow his example of spending time with the Eucharistic Lord (especially, if possible, everyday [or as often as possible] ‘An Hour with the Blessed Sacrament’)

May the powerful words of Venerable Fulton Sheen, help us to take to heart the message of the Gospel today:
“The wicked fear the good, because the good are a constant reproach to their consciences.

The ungodly like religion in the same way that they like lions, either dead or behind bars…
… they fear religion when it breaks loose and begins to challenge their consciences!”

God Bless! Live Jesus!

“Seeking the intercession of St Padre Pio, to follow God’s Will closely in our lives, and finding meaning even in failures, to be able to cast off minor disappointments and setbacks!”

(Based on Prov 30:5-9 and Lk 9:1-6 – Wednesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time, Year 2)

Thomas Edison, the famous scientist, once worked for months to find a filament that would burn for more than a few seconds, for his incandescent light bulb.

He tried over 700 filaments and each one was a failure.

One reporter interviewed Edison and said, “It must be frustrating to work so hard and see no results.”

Edison replied, “Oh, I have lots of results. I now know 700 things that won’t work!”

The person of true research and genuine interest finds meaning even in failures and is able to cast away disappointments and setbacks.

The Gospel of the Day enshrines a similar message in its verses…
“And where ever they don’t welcome you, shake off the dust from your feet..” (Lk 9:5)

Dust was symbolic…

Dust was used to denote the grave (Job 7:21)
To sit in dust denoted extreme affliction (Isaiah 47:1).
To lick the dust was a sign of abject submission (Psalms 72:9)
To sprinkle dust on the head was a sign of mourning (Joshua 7:6)
To throw dust at someone was a sign of abhorrence (2 Samuel 16:13; Acts 22:23)

To shake off the dust indicated that those who had rejected the Gospel were making themselves closer to face the just judgment of God.

The context of this phrase is when Jesus summoned His twelve apostles and sent them on a mission, giving them various instructions,..

Jesus warned the twelve, that in their mission, they would encounter denial and not receive a proper welcome and reception in all the places.

This is a reality with the Kingdom of God and the Message of the Gospel…

Not all give a good response to the Kingdom and the Gospel…

The action of shaking off the dust also meant much for the messenger or the one who had preached the Gospel.

One of the greatest realities of our life is facing rejections, refusals and failures

This aspect creeps into our spiritual lives, our ministries and in our witnessing of Christ in the society…

We may face rejection when we try extend the peace of Christ to all those, with whom we are not in good terms.
We may face refusal when we take a bold decision to not partake in some unhealthy affairs of the world like sinful activities and evil practices and thoughts.

Jesus told the disciples that if they were not accepted, to “shake the dust off their feet…”

The “shaking off the dust” was a symbolic way of saying, “I don’t want anything of the city to remain on me.

“I don’t want their bitterness, their rejection, and their lack of faith to remain part of me.”

Jesus didn’t want their feeling of failure to bog his disciples down.

Instead, He told them to just shake it off and move on to the next village.

This was a mighty invitation by the Master to His disciples to “not get fixated to the fleeting pleasures and satisfactions that this world may offer…
… rather to have the Lord as the Greatest Consolation, Treasure and Joy of Life!”

The whole world may leave or reject you…
… but the Lord promises, “if you totally depend on Me, you have no need to fear or be anxious!”

Some of us, however, continue to carry the dust of our past failures and disappointments…

We fail to shake off the dust of our guilt and shame of the past sins we have committed…
We fail to shake off the dust of our hurts and pains in some of the broken and strained relationships…

Yes, we have been rejected. We have failed. We have been crushed. We have collapsed.

But the Lord, says, “Get up, shake off the dust, and go on.”

The Book of Proverbs reminds us: “Every word of God proves true;

He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him!” (Prov 30:5)

Every saint has faced a rejected and a failure. The Lord, Himself, on the way of the Cross, fell…

But They never gave up
They never called it quits!

St Paul beautifully says, “This one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal…” (Phil 3:13)

Let us not spend our life sitting in the dust of devastation, crying over what went wrong.

Rather, let us shake off the dust, and walk clean, with our Lord and Master!

We celebrate today the Feast of a modern saint…
… an exemplary and prayerful priest: St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina.

He inspires us today to closely follow to Lord…
through the paths of prayer, penitence and penance.
… even if it means suffering and undergoing pain for Jesus’ sake…
… even when we find ourselves rejected and misunderstood

He would say, “In all the events of life, you must recognize the Divine will.

Adore and bless it, especially in the things which are the hardest for you.
The more you are afflicted, the more you ought to rejoice…
… because in the fire of tribulation the soul will become pure gold, worthy to be placed and to shine in the heavenly palace.”

And also, “Even if the world were to capsize…
… if everything were to become dark, hazy, tumultuous…
… God would still be with us!

Prayer is the best weapon we possess. It is the key that opens the heart of God!”

Let us seek the intercession of St Padre Pio, to follow God’s Will deeply and closely in our lives…
… and thus finds meaning even in failures and be able to cast off minor disappointments and setbacks!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

“Being inspired by St Matthew – seeking his intercession and imitating his example – in surrendering ourselves totally to the Sovereignty of our Blessed Lord!”

(Based on the Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist)

“Great things happen when God mixes with us”….
… is a popular Christian Hymn.

The stanzas of this hymn goes this way….

Some find life, some find peace; some people even find joy.

Some see things as they never could before…
… and some people find that they can now begin to trust.

Some find health, some find hope; some people even find joy.

Some see themselves as they never could before…
… and some people find that they can now begin to live.

Some find peace, some are disturbed; some people even find joy.

Some see their lives as they never could before…
… and some people find that they must now begin to change.

One of the important and essential dimensions of an encounter with our Blessed Lord is the “transformation effect” on the person.

If one has had a genuine encounter with Him…
… one cannot be passive
… one cannot just remain the same

Either one shakes off the dust of sin and slackness and follows Him in sincerity
… or one tries to cast Him off from life and adamantly remains in one’s own desires!

Either one takes radical decisions in life and orients one’s conduct in accordance with His Will
… or one seeks to do away with all Divine inspirations and obstinately sticks firm to one’s personal interests!

In any case, an “encounter with the Lord” causes an effect in life – either for the good or towards rejecting the impulses of Divine Goodness.

Do I respond positively and emphatically to the call of the Lord…
… or do I sink into an attitude of grumbling, complaining and disinterestedness?

On this feast day of St Matthew, the Apostle, the Gospel of the day presents these two “contrasting reactions” in the encounter with Jesus…

Matthew…. who hears the call of the Lord – “Follow Me” (Mt 9: 9)
The Pharisees… who observe the lavishness of God’s mercy and react with grumbling and complaining (Mt 9: 11)

Jesus very emphatically declares, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Mt 9:12)

This verse is the key to understand and gauge the style of reaction, when we encounter the Lord…

The one who needs Him – will relish Him!

The one who feels no need of Him- will reject Him!

The one who acknowledges that one is sick, weak and in need of God’s grace and mercy – will find in Him a Saviour!

The one who vehemently says that one is all fine, self-motivated and strong willed – will fail to find any consolation in Him!

Here then is a wonderful check-meter to test my passion, my longing and my intensity of love for the Lord…

Have I discovered that by myself I cannot achieve everything that life demands of me….?
… and in the Lord alone, I have the answer to my problem and a solution to the puzzles of my life!

Do I realise that as a human person, I often fall into the snares of sin and can get easily caught up in evil traps… ?
… and in the Lord alone, I have the antidote to sin and a remedy to overcome the pitfalls of wickedness!

St Mathew presents a beautiful picture, of embracing the Lord fully into life…
… because He realised and discovered the intimate need of the Lord in his life.

Let us be inspired by him, seek his intercession and imitate his example in surrendering ourselves totally to the Sovereignty of our Blessed Lord.

It is only then that we would truly realise and experience the joy of the words, “Great things happen when God mixes with us”….

Happy Feast of St Matthew!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

“Avoiding ‘grumpy’ faces, ‘complaining’ tongues and ‘grumbling’ tones and recognising the immense wonders of God’s Grace at every step of our life, in order to have ‘joyful’ faces, ‘grateful’ tongues and ‘thankful’ tones!”

(Based on Is 55:6-9, Phil 1:20-24,27 and Mt 20:1-16 – 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A)

Grumbling and complaining had become a habit for old Mrs. Dolly.

She would find a point to be critical for anything and everything.

Finally, it so happened one day, that the parish priest felt he had found something about which she could make no complaint: the old lady had a very excellent produce in her vegetable garden – of the finest potatoes in that area.

“Oh, finally, I hope you must be well pleased” said the parish priest, with a gleaning smile, to Old Mrs Dolly, “Every one’s excitedly talking about how wonderful are the potatoes in your garden this year!”

However, with a frown, the old lady rumbled back, “Well, they are not so bad.

But where are the bad ones for the pigs??”

Well, the one who puts on the tinted spectacles of grumbling, invariably finds a reason to complain about anything in life, isn’t it?

As it is said, “it is usually not so much the greatness of our troubles, as the littleness of our spirit that makes us complain.”

The Gospel of the Day presents a group of people who find their way into grumbling even about, perhaps the most undeserved subject of complaining: the Free Gift of the Grace of the Generous God!

Jesus presents the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard liking it to the Kingdom of Heaven. (Mt 20: 1)

“It’s not fair” is a common phrase that we raise in our day-to-day activities.

Children, while playing games with each other, invariably raise a “It’s not fair” slogan, especially when they feel some cheating is done by the umpires or the opposite team players

Students quote the “It’s not fair” phrase when sometimes they get lesser marks than expected, and blame the professor or the system
Employees in a company chant “It’s not fair” when they feel that somehow they have been given lesser pay or treated unfairly with respect to promotions etc.
Family members or friends shout “It’s not fair” when there are impartialities or favouritism or ignorance discovered in relationships

A sense of dissatisfaction reigns in many circumstances of our daily life.

Such was the displeasure expressed by those workers, who had toiled the whole day and received just one denarius, in the Parable of Jesus of the Workers in the Vineyard: “It’s not fair!”

These workers felt… “It was not fair”…
… that the landowner had equated the wages of those who came in last to them, who had toiled the whole day!
… that there had been no consideration to the immense toil in the blazing sun that they had put in!
… that the principle of justice and impartiality had been badly violated and trampled upon!

But the Master of the Vineyard was quick to point out to them their fallacy in such a thinking…

He reminded them first of all, that the wages that they received, was something that they had already agreed upon
He also brought to their notice that the wages given to the others were simply out of his generosity and good-will

How often do we also raise the cry of complains and ring in the growls of grumbling when we see others finding pleasure in greater favours and happiness of life…

“I toil so much in life, and I don’t seem to be really growing prosperous or at least being freed from the pangs of daily life struggles…
… But someone else, has a relaxed and cosy life and still find themselves enjoying with the comforts and luxuries of life”

“I try my level best, with much hard-work and labour in order to excel in my talents and I don’t seem to reap its fruits…
… But someone else, maybe blessed by natural talents or sheer out of luck, seems to be doing much better and enjoying greater harvests of success”

The workers who grumbled did not complain because they did not get the “just” wage…
… but their complaint was because “they were made equal to the others”

It was a complaint arising out of…
… “unfair comparison”
… “jealousy in seeing others being rewarded more”
… “we being made small before others”

Perhaps, this is where we need to make a radical shift in our perspectives.

God’s Grace comes to human persons in different levels and measures.

Grace is defined as “favour – the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to His call to become children of God…partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life”.

Therefore to make bargains on Grace… to make it a “countable” entity…
… would be a clear violation of its very essential nature of being a “free gift!”

Hence, what is required is to make a shift in perspectives…
… from “complaining” to being “thankful”
… from “grumbling” to being “grateful”
… from saying “It’s not fair!” to saying “It’s Your Grace”

The Lord reminds us through Prophet Isaiah, “For My Thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My Ways, says the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My Ways higher than your ways, and My Thoughts than your thoughts!” (Is 55:8-9)

St Paul invites as well as challenges us with his words: “… let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ…!” (Phil 1:27)

Life constantly pushes us into corners which make us to have “grumpy” faces, “complaining” tongues and “grumbling” tones.

But, can we recognise and realise the immense wonders of God’s Grace at every step of our life…
… and lead a life with “joyful” faces, “grateful” tongues and “thankful” tones?

Smile please?

God Bless! Live Jesus!