XXIII-Sunday: WIS. 9:13-18;: PHILE 9-10, 12-17;Gosple: LK 14: 25 – 33
We know the old commandment, “Honor your father and your mother” (Exodus 20:12). We know the new commandment of Jesus, “Love one another; even as I have loved you” (John 13:34); also Love your enemies. And we come hear today these words of Jesus: “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). How can we reconcile these seemingly contradictory demands? How can we “hate” those we are supposed to love? And, more importantly, why?
Jesus’ words of “hating” one’s family is a Semitic hyperbole or exaggeration, spoken for effect. Matthew’s gospel makes it clear. “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” (Mt 10:37-38). When Jesus said "hate your family,” he was talking about spiritual detachment, the ability to put God first, before other relationships and before self-interest. Without such detachment, one does not have the ability to truly follow Jesus.
The paradox of hating those we love was dramatized in a most fascinating way on Saturday, September 8, 2001 in the women’s finals of the US Open tennis tournament in Flushing, New York. For the first time in the history of the tournament, the world watched a sportive and emotional roller-coaster as two sisters who love each other so much that they live in the same house and share the same hotel room fought each other. Could you imagine what was going on in the minds of Venus and Serena Williams as they battled and slugged it out against each other, suspending their love for each other and at least temporarily “hating” each other? They had to “hate” each other because the one was standing in the way of the other becoming the world champion. The one was an obstacle to the realization of the other’s dream to wear the world crown. And so they had to hate and fight each other.
Venus won. But she did not do her usual victory leap and celebratory display. Instead she ran to the net, put an arm around her defeated junior sister’s shoulder and said, “I love you.” Why did she say that? Because the game is over now and her sister is no longer an obstacle in the way of her victory. She said, in other words, “I am sorry, but I had to do it: I had to fight you so hard, I had to “hate” you because you were standing in my way. But I still love you.” That was a rare example of hating those we love, and from it we can learn much about Jesus’ injunction to “hate” our loved ones.
we are to love our parents and siblings and spouses, and indeed everyone else, except when they become obstacles in our bid to win the crown of eternal life. We should be prepared to wage an uncompromising war to see that no person or thing stands in our way to make us lose the crown. Possessions constitute a formidable obstacle in many people’s bid for the crown of salvation. That is why Jesus concludes today’s gospel with these words: “So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions” (v. 33).
Discipleship implies a lie deeper than family ties. Jesus is not just saying, “Love me more.” He is saying that it is not just a matter of degree; it is sometimes either/or. To translate every choice into a matter of degree is to avoid choice.
Today’s gospel, therefore, shows us how absolute and how radical are the demands of discipleship. Jesus' call to complete renunciation of everything that gets in the way of discipleship seems too extreme. He isn't looking for us to limit our commitment to celebrating Mass on Sunday and avoiding evil. He expects us to live the Gospel and to announce the Good News to others, and to do this, knowing there will be a great cost. Being Jesus' disciple has never been convenient. It is costly -- costly in terms of money, time, relationships, and priorities.
The radical demands of Jesus call us to center our lives on the suffering and risen Christ.
We must bear our crosses: For the early Christians, however, cross-bearing had a far more literal meaning. Just as Jesus went to the cross, some of his followers would also taste death for their devotion to the Master. Only if the disciple is firmly committed to Christ will he be able to spend his life in sacrificial service for others. Jesus only calls people to follow him along the way of the cross because he knows that our deepest yearnings can only be satisfied by friendship with him.
Andrew died on a cross
Simon was crucified
Bartholomew was flayed alive
James (son of Zebedee) was beheaded
The other James (son of Alphaeus) was beaten to death
Thomas was run through with a lance
Matthias was stoned and then beheaded
Matthew was slain by the sword
Peter was crucified upside down
Thaddeus was shot to death with arrows
Philip was hanged. And John died a living martyrs death in exile.
No human life is without suffering. No human life is without a cross.
But for those of us who know Christ, our friendship with him enables us to suffer with meaning, and even with joy.
The demands that Jesus makes upon those who would follow him are extreme. Christianity is not a Sunday morning religion. It is a hungering after God to the point of death if need be. It shakes our foundations, topples our priorities, pits us against friend and family, and makes us strangers in this world.
Soren Kierkegaard said that there are a lot of parade-ground Christians who wear the uniforms of Christianity, but few who are willing to do battle for Christ and his kingdom.
As Christians, we must walk in Christ's steps unconditionally, not just for a day or two or a couple of months, but for a whole lifetime. Now, if we are afraid of the high demands of Christ, remember that we are not left to fulfill them all alone. Jesus who called us to the steep road will walk with us every step of the way. And he promises a fruitful journey to whoever keeps going with him and giving up everything to stay with him.
Today Christ will come in Holy Communion to strengthen us once again, so that we can continue bearing our crosses with faith and hope. This week, let's share that strength with someone who needs it. Let's take a share of a neighbor's cross, just as Christ has taken a share of ours.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
XXIth Sunday in Ordinary time.
XXI Ordinary Sunday. Hb.12:5-7,11-13,Luke 13:22-30
The credit card is a great invention. With just a plastic card one can go into a shop and buy whatever one wants - a dress, a pair of shoes, grocery, a television set, and even a car - take it home and begin to enjoy it, all with just a promise to pay later, as money becomes available. It is a wonderful system that could be a lifesaver to someone in temporary financial crisis. But the credit card system can create in people the mentality of “have it now and pay later,” which does not work in life generally. In the real life, most of the goods that come to us are prepaid. To pass our exams, we have to study beforehand. We cannot pass our exams now with a promise to complete the required courses later. To win a football match, the team must practice hard before the match, not after. Most goods and blessings that come to us in life are prepaid.
Discipline is the name we give to the necessary hard work and self-denial that people endure in order to prepay for a future reward. Discipline, as everyone knows, can be a very painful experience, but those who succeed after going through the rigor of discipline usually look back and agree that it was worth it. As today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews says, “discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11).
Wise parents raise their children with discipline. With discipline children are helped to cultivate good habits, such as, early to bed and early to rise, brushing their teeth and taking a shower, cleaning their rooms and helping out in the kitchen. With discipline children learn how to join in the family meal rather than watch television all the time, how to make time to do their homework rather than browsing the internet all night long. At the time, they may object and think that their parents are harsh, but later in life, when they begin to reap the rewards of a disciplined life, they will thank their parents for inculcating some discipline into them.
Our second reading today compares God to good parents who discipline their children out of the love they have for them. God punishes us because he loves us, he wants us to be good children. Paul asks: What child is there whom a parent does not discipline? Punishment becomes part of disciple some times. Parents are to punish their children only if they love them to death; just as God loved us in Jesus. If parents don’t love the children their punishment will bring reverse effects. Punishment becomes a duty for the parents who love their children deeply. If you think you don’t love your children enough, you lose your right to punish them. So if we want our children to be good and if we really love them, remember the dictum in the proverb: Spare the rode and spoil the child. It means that if we refrain from punishments where required, we are bound to spoil our children. Of course we may say, law of the land prohibits it, we are not supposed to punish our children or else we end up in jail. When punished in love we won’t cross over to the limit of what law prohibits. Our society will certainly punish if a man or even a teenager does something criminal. Our society will not spare them. We don’t hear any judge ever saying “I forgive you”. The violator will be put behind bars and their freedom which they regard most in life is choked. But how come the parents are not allowed to punish their our own kids whom they really love, that is absurd. Of course the promulgation of this law was caused because some where some people over did things, were cruel to their own children. To curb one extreme we went to the other extreme. But we know the virtue always lies in the middle. All through the bible we find God submitting his people to punishment for their waywardness.
Several years ago, one young man was condemned to death for robbery and murder. He was in the jail waiting his execution . When he was asked about his last wish he said he wanted to see his mom. His mom was brought to the jail and he asked his mom to come closer because he wanted to share something secret in her ear. When she got near him, he bit her ear off. She was bleeding profusely and when asked why he did that to his mom he said- When I was a kid and stole a pencil from the school, my mother did not punish me, she did not even scold me, on the contrary she encouraged me. And later on I stole several things from the school, but my mother did not punish me even for once. If she had punished me then and made me realize what I did was wrong, I would never have ended up here.
Prov.1:8 says: Hear my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching; for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.
Prov.13:1 says: A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
So always remember to correct our children when they do wrong. Overlooking their mistakes when they are young would encourage them to develop bad habits. They should not be prompted to think that we are approving of their faults. A bent plant can be straightened when it is young, not when it has become a grown tree. It is wise not to punish children for any kind of mistakes at the first or second instance. Correcting a few times would probably bring good result. Being lenient too many times will inspire them to commit the same mistakes often. Remember, never to punish them before others, especially before their friends or peers. It will hurt them severely and cut down their self image. Also never speak of the negatives of your child before him/her to others. That will not produce the intended results. In spite of repeated punishments if the child does not improve, then you need to find out the reason behind it. This may be a trick to getting your attention, because he or she needs your attention more than what he gets now.
After the vacation a school teacher asked her class how they enjoyed the vacation and told them to write down what they wanted to become in life. After the class the teacher took the papers home and was reading them at night and as she read one paper she started crying. Her husband asked what happened and she gave him the paper to read. A boy wrote he wanted to become a TV. The reason he wrote were,.. TV is placed in a respectable position and everyone pays attention to the TV and listens carefully to the TV. At home no one listens to me. My parents have no time to talk to me or spend their time with me. My brother is busy with his cell phone and computer, and there is no one to talk to me. If I become a TV and if I get the attention the TV gets in my home I will be very happy. When he read through the paper and came to read the name of the boy he found out that it was written by none other than their own son.
Once the children reach teenage, corporal punishment is not advisable. Prov.19:18 says: Discipline your children while there is hope; do not set your heart on their destruction. A violent tempered person will pay the penalty”. So when you are angry don’t think of punishing your children, you can go to extremes. When one of the parents punish, let the other parent console them and fondle them in love, so that they would know that the parents do not hate them, but punished out of love and concern. The children who had been punished and had opportunities to take “no”s in their childhood are less likely to have mental breakdown when they grow older.
The intensity of punishment should always be in proportion to the mistake done. Never punish twice for the same mistake. The way a child is reared affects how genetic predispositions are expressed. Being a parent is an awesome vocation. The relationship parents have with their children leaves its influence on them for many years afterwards.
Discipline entails tr
ials and hardships. It takes going through the “narrow gate”. But only those who go through the narrow gate will make it to heaven. Wide and smooth are the road that leads to destruction.
Many years ago, an editorial in the magazine, War Cry put it like this: “A loose wire gives out no musical note; but fasten the ends, and the piano, the harp or the violin is born. Free steam drives no machine. But hamper and confine it with piston and turbine and you have the great world of machinery made possible. The unhampered river drives no dynamos, but dam it up and we get power sufficient to light a great city. So our lives must be disciplined if we are to be of any real service in this world.”
Let me conclude by reading to you a famous quote: Watch your words, they become your actions, watch your actions they become your habit, watch your habit they become your character, and your character will determine your destiny.
The credit card is a great invention. With just a plastic card one can go into a shop and buy whatever one wants - a dress, a pair of shoes, grocery, a television set, and even a car - take it home and begin to enjoy it, all with just a promise to pay later, as money becomes available. It is a wonderful system that could be a lifesaver to someone in temporary financial crisis. But the credit card system can create in people the mentality of “have it now and pay later,” which does not work in life generally. In the real life, most of the goods that come to us are prepaid. To pass our exams, we have to study beforehand. We cannot pass our exams now with a promise to complete the required courses later. To win a football match, the team must practice hard before the match, not after. Most goods and blessings that come to us in life are prepaid.
Discipline is the name we give to the necessary hard work and self-denial that people endure in order to prepay for a future reward. Discipline, as everyone knows, can be a very painful experience, but those who succeed after going through the rigor of discipline usually look back and agree that it was worth it. As today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews says, “discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11).
Wise parents raise their children with discipline. With discipline children are helped to cultivate good habits, such as, early to bed and early to rise, brushing their teeth and taking a shower, cleaning their rooms and helping out in the kitchen. With discipline children learn how to join in the family meal rather than watch television all the time, how to make time to do their homework rather than browsing the internet all night long. At the time, they may object and think that their parents are harsh, but later in life, when they begin to reap the rewards of a disciplined life, they will thank their parents for inculcating some discipline into them.
Our second reading today compares God to good parents who discipline their children out of the love they have for them. God punishes us because he loves us, he wants us to be good children. Paul asks: What child is there whom a parent does not discipline? Punishment becomes part of disciple some times. Parents are to punish their children only if they love them to death; just as God loved us in Jesus. If parents don’t love the children their punishment will bring reverse effects. Punishment becomes a duty for the parents who love their children deeply. If you think you don’t love your children enough, you lose your right to punish them. So if we want our children to be good and if we really love them, remember the dictum in the proverb: Spare the rode and spoil the child. It means that if we refrain from punishments where required, we are bound to spoil our children. Of course we may say, law of the land prohibits it, we are not supposed to punish our children or else we end up in jail. When punished in love we won’t cross over to the limit of what law prohibits. Our society will certainly punish if a man or even a teenager does something criminal. Our society will not spare them. We don’t hear any judge ever saying “I forgive you”. The violator will be put behind bars and their freedom which they regard most in life is choked. But how come the parents are not allowed to punish their our own kids whom they really love, that is absurd. Of course the promulgation of this law was caused because some where some people over did things, were cruel to their own children. To curb one extreme we went to the other extreme. But we know the virtue always lies in the middle. All through the bible we find God submitting his people to punishment for their waywardness.
Several years ago, one young man was condemned to death for robbery and murder. He was in the jail waiting his execution . When he was asked about his last wish he said he wanted to see his mom. His mom was brought to the jail and he asked his mom to come closer because he wanted to share something secret in her ear. When she got near him, he bit her ear off. She was bleeding profusely and when asked why he did that to his mom he said- When I was a kid and stole a pencil from the school, my mother did not punish me, she did not even scold me, on the contrary she encouraged me. And later on I stole several things from the school, but my mother did not punish me even for once. If she had punished me then and made me realize what I did was wrong, I would never have ended up here.
Prov.1:8 says: Hear my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching; for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.
Prov.13:1 says: A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
So always remember to correct our children when they do wrong. Overlooking their mistakes when they are young would encourage them to develop bad habits. They should not be prompted to think that we are approving of their faults. A bent plant can be straightened when it is young, not when it has become a grown tree. It is wise not to punish children for any kind of mistakes at the first or second instance. Correcting a few times would probably bring good result. Being lenient too many times will inspire them to commit the same mistakes often. Remember, never to punish them before others, especially before their friends or peers. It will hurt them severely and cut down their self image. Also never speak of the negatives of your child before him/her to others. That will not produce the intended results. In spite of repeated punishments if the child does not improve, then you need to find out the reason behind it. This may be a trick to getting your attention, because he or she needs your attention more than what he gets now.
After the vacation a school teacher asked her class how they enjoyed the vacation and told them to write down what they wanted to become in life. After the class the teacher took the papers home and was reading them at night and as she read one paper she started crying. Her husband asked what happened and she gave him the paper to read. A boy wrote he wanted to become a TV. The reason he wrote were,.. TV is placed in a respectable position and everyone pays attention to the TV and listens carefully to the TV. At home no one listens to me. My parents have no time to talk to me or spend their time with me. My brother is busy with his cell phone and computer, and there is no one to talk to me. If I become a TV and if I get the attention the TV gets in my home I will be very happy. When he read through the paper and came to read the name of the boy he found out that it was written by none other than their own son.
Once the children reach teenage, corporal punishment is not advisable. Prov.19:18 says: Discipline your children while there is hope; do not set your heart on their destruction. A violent tempered person will pay the penalty”. So when you are angry don’t think of punishing your children, you can go to extremes. When one of the parents punish, let the other parent console them and fondle them in love, so that they would know that the parents do not hate them, but punished out of love and concern. The children who had been punished and had opportunities to take “no”s in their childhood are less likely to have mental breakdown when they grow older.
The intensity of punishment should always be in proportion to the mistake done. Never punish twice for the same mistake. The way a child is reared affects how genetic predispositions are expressed. Being a parent is an awesome vocation. The relationship parents have with their children leaves its influence on them for many years afterwards.
Discipline entails tr
ials and hardships. It takes going through the “narrow gate”. But only those who go through the narrow gate will make it to heaven. Wide and smooth are the road that leads to destruction.
Many years ago, an editorial in the magazine, War Cry put it like this: “A loose wire gives out no musical note; but fasten the ends, and the piano, the harp or the violin is born. Free steam drives no machine. But hamper and confine it with piston and turbine and you have the great world of machinery made possible. The unhampered river drives no dynamos, but dam it up and we get power sufficient to light a great city. So our lives must be disciplined if we are to be of any real service in this world.”
Let me conclude by reading to you a famous quote: Watch your words, they become your actions, watch your actions they become your habit, watch your habit they become your character, and your character will determine your destiny.
XXI Ordinary Sunday, Discipline your children
XXI Ordinary Sunday. Hb.12:5-7,11-13,Luke 13:22-30
The credit card is a great invention. With just a plastic card one can go into a shop and buy whatever one wants - a dress, a pair of shoes, grocery, a television set, and even a car - take it home and begin to enjoy it, all with just a promise to pay later, as money becomes available. It is a wonderful system that could be a lifesaver to someone in temporary financial crisis. But the credit card system can create in people the mentality of “have it now and pay later,” which does not work in life generally. In the real life, most of the goods that come to us are prepaid. To pass our exams, we have to study beforehand. We cannot pass our exams now with a promise to complete the required courses later. To win a football match, the team must practice hard before the match, not after. Most goods and blessings that come to us in life are prepaid.
Discipline is the name we give to the necessary hard work and self-denial that people endure in order to prepay for a future reward. Discipline, as everyone knows, can be a very painful experience, but those who succeed after going through the rigor of discipline usually look back and agree that it was worth it. As today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews says, “discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11).
Wise parents raise their children with discipline. With discipline children are helped to cultivate good habits, such as, early to bed and early to rise, brushing their teeth and taking a shower, cleaning their rooms and helping out in the kitchen. With discipline children learn how to join in the family meal rather than watch television all the time, how to make time to do their homework rather than browsing the internet all night long. At the time, they may object and think that their parents are harsh, but later in life, when they begin to reap the rewards of a disciplined life, they will thank their parents for inculcating some discipline into them.
Our second reading today compares God to good parents who discipline their children out of the love they have for them. God punishes us because he loves us, he wants us to be good children. Paul asks: What child is there whom a parent does not discipline? Punishment becomes part of disciple some times. Parents are to punish their children only if they love them to death; just as God loved in Jesus. If parents don’t love the children their punishment will bring reverse effects. Punishment becomes a duty for the parents who love their children. If you think you don’t love your children enough, you lose your right to punish them. So if we want our children to be good and if we really love them, remember the dictum in the proverb: Spare the rode and spoil the child. It means that if we refrain from punishments where required, we are bound to spoil our children. Of course we may say, law of the land prohibits it, we are not supposed to punish our children or else we end up in jail. When punished in love we won’t cross over to the limit of what law prohibits. Our society will certainly punish if a man or even a teenager does something criminal. Our society will not spare them. The violator will be put behind bars and their freedom which they regard most in life is choked. But the parents are not allowed to punish their our own kids whom they really love, that is absurd. Of course the promulgation of this law was caused because some where some people over did things, were cruel to their own children. To curb one excess we went to the other excess. But we know the virtue always lies in the middle. All through the bible we find God submitting his people to punishment for their waywardness.
Several years ago, one young man was condemned to death for robbery and murder. He was in the jail waiting his execution . When he was asked about his last wish he said he wanted to see his mom. His mom was brought to the jail and he asked his mom to come closer because he wanted to share something secret in her ear. When she got near him bit her ear off. She was bleeding profusely and when asked why he did that to his mom he said- When I was a kid and stole a pencil from the school, my mother did not punish me, she did not even scold me, on the contrary she encouraged me. And later on I stole many things from the school, but my mother did not punish me for once. If she had punished me then and made me realize what I did was wrong, I would never have ended up here.
Prov.1:8 says: Hear my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching; for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.
Prov.13:1 says: A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
So always remember to correct our children when they do wrong. Overlooking their mistakes when they are young would encourage them to develop bad habits. They should not be helped to think that we are approving of their faults. A bent plant can be straightened when it is young, not when it has become a grown tree. It is wise not to punish children for any kind of mistakes at the first or second instance. Correcting a few times would probably bring the result. Being lenient too many times will inspire them to commit the same mistakes often. Remember, never to punish them before others, especially before their friends. It will hurt them severely and cut down their self image. Also never speak the negatives of your child before him/her to others. That will not produce the intended results. In spite of repeated punishments the child does not improve, then you need to find out the reason behind it. This may be a way of getting your attention, because he or she loves your attention more than what he gets now. After the vacation a school teacher asked her class how they enjoyed the vacation and told them to write down what they want to become in life. After the class the teacher took the papers home and was reading them at night and as she read she started crying. Her husband asked what happened and she gave the paper to him. A boy wrote he wanted to become a TV. The reason he wrote were,.. TV is placed in a respectable position and everyone pays attention to the TV and listens carefully to the TV. At home no one listens to me. My parents have no time. My brother is busy with his work, and there is no one to talk to me. If I become a TV and if I get the attention the TV gets in my home I will be very happy. When he read through the paper he found out that it was written by his own son.
Once the children reach teenage, corporal punishment won’t help much. Prov.19:18 says: Discipline your children while there is hope; do not set your heart on their destruction. A violent tempered person will pay the penalty; So when you are angry don’t think of punishing your children, you can go to extremes. When one of the parents punish, let the other parent console them and fondle them in love, so that they would know that the parents do not want their destruction, but they punish out of love. The children who had been punished and had opportunities to take “no”s in their childhood are less likely to have mental breakdown when they grow older.
The intensity of punishment should always be in proportion to the mistake done. Never punish twice for the same mistake. The way a child is reared affects how genetic predispositions are expressed. Being a parent is an awesome vocation. The relationship parents have with their children leaves its influence on them for many years afterwards.
Discipline entails trials and hardships. It takes going through the “narrow gate”. But only those who go through the narrow gate will make it to heaven. Wide and smooth are the road that leads to destruction.
Many years ago, an editorial in the magazine, War Cry put it like this: “A loose wire gives out no musical note; but fasten the ends, and the piano, the harp or the violin is born. Free steam drives no machine. But hamper and confine it with piston and turbine and you have the great world of machinery made possible. The unhampered river drives no dynamos, but dam it up and we get power sufficient to light a great city. So our lives must be disciplined if we are to be of any real service in this world.” Watch your words, they become your actions, watch your actions they become your habit, watch your habit they become your character, and your character will determine your destiny.
The credit card is a great invention. With just a plastic card one can go into a shop and buy whatever one wants - a dress, a pair of shoes, grocery, a television set, and even a car - take it home and begin to enjoy it, all with just a promise to pay later, as money becomes available. It is a wonderful system that could be a lifesaver to someone in temporary financial crisis. But the credit card system can create in people the mentality of “have it now and pay later,” which does not work in life generally. In the real life, most of the goods that come to us are prepaid. To pass our exams, we have to study beforehand. We cannot pass our exams now with a promise to complete the required courses later. To win a football match, the team must practice hard before the match, not after. Most goods and blessings that come to us in life are prepaid.
Discipline is the name we give to the necessary hard work and self-denial that people endure in order to prepay for a future reward. Discipline, as everyone knows, can be a very painful experience, but those who succeed after going through the rigor of discipline usually look back and agree that it was worth it. As today’s second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews says, “discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Hebrews 12:11).
Wise parents raise their children with discipline. With discipline children are helped to cultivate good habits, such as, early to bed and early to rise, brushing their teeth and taking a shower, cleaning their rooms and helping out in the kitchen. With discipline children learn how to join in the family meal rather than watch television all the time, how to make time to do their homework rather than browsing the internet all night long. At the time, they may object and think that their parents are harsh, but later in life, when they begin to reap the rewards of a disciplined life, they will thank their parents for inculcating some discipline into them.
Our second reading today compares God to good parents who discipline their children out of the love they have for them. God punishes us because he loves us, he wants us to be good children. Paul asks: What child is there whom a parent does not discipline? Punishment becomes part of disciple some times. Parents are to punish their children only if they love them to death; just as God loved in Jesus. If parents don’t love the children their punishment will bring reverse effects. Punishment becomes a duty for the parents who love their children. If you think you don’t love your children enough, you lose your right to punish them. So if we want our children to be good and if we really love them, remember the dictum in the proverb: Spare the rode and spoil the child. It means that if we refrain from punishments where required, we are bound to spoil our children. Of course we may say, law of the land prohibits it, we are not supposed to punish our children or else we end up in jail. When punished in love we won’t cross over to the limit of what law prohibits. Our society will certainly punish if a man or even a teenager does something criminal. Our society will not spare them. The violator will be put behind bars and their freedom which they regard most in life is choked. But the parents are not allowed to punish their our own kids whom they really love, that is absurd. Of course the promulgation of this law was caused because some where some people over did things, were cruel to their own children. To curb one excess we went to the other excess. But we know the virtue always lies in the middle. All through the bible we find God submitting his people to punishment for their waywardness.
Several years ago, one young man was condemned to death for robbery and murder. He was in the jail waiting his execution . When he was asked about his last wish he said he wanted to see his mom. His mom was brought to the jail and he asked his mom to come closer because he wanted to share something secret in her ear. When she got near him bit her ear off. She was bleeding profusely and when asked why he did that to his mom he said- When I was a kid and stole a pencil from the school, my mother did not punish me, she did not even scold me, on the contrary she encouraged me. And later on I stole many things from the school, but my mother did not punish me for once. If she had punished me then and made me realize what I did was wrong, I would never have ended up here.
Prov.1:8 says: Hear my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching; for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.
Prov.13:1 says: A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
So always remember to correct our children when they do wrong. Overlooking their mistakes when they are young would encourage them to develop bad habits. They should not be helped to think that we are approving of their faults. A bent plant can be straightened when it is young, not when it has become a grown tree. It is wise not to punish children for any kind of mistakes at the first or second instance. Correcting a few times would probably bring the result. Being lenient too many times will inspire them to commit the same mistakes often. Remember, never to punish them before others, especially before their friends. It will hurt them severely and cut down their self image. Also never speak the negatives of your child before him/her to others. That will not produce the intended results. In spite of repeated punishments the child does not improve, then you need to find out the reason behind it. This may be a way of getting your attention, because he or she loves your attention more than what he gets now. After the vacation a school teacher asked her class how they enjoyed the vacation and told them to write down what they want to become in life. After the class the teacher took the papers home and was reading them at night and as she read she started crying. Her husband asked what happened and she gave the paper to him. A boy wrote he wanted to become a TV. The reason he wrote were,.. TV is placed in a respectable position and everyone pays attention to the TV and listens carefully to the TV. At home no one listens to me. My parents have no time. My brother is busy with his work, and there is no one to talk to me. If I become a TV and if I get the attention the TV gets in my home I will be very happy. When he read through the paper he found out that it was written by his own son.
Once the children reach teenage, corporal punishment won’t help much. Prov.19:18 says: Discipline your children while there is hope; do not set your heart on their destruction. A violent tempered person will pay the penalty; So when you are angry don’t think of punishing your children, you can go to extremes. When one of the parents punish, let the other parent console them and fondle them in love, so that they would know that the parents do not want their destruction, but they punish out of love. The children who had been punished and had opportunities to take “no”s in their childhood are less likely to have mental breakdown when they grow older.
The intensity of punishment should always be in proportion to the mistake done. Never punish twice for the same mistake. The way a child is reared affects how genetic predispositions are expressed. Being a parent is an awesome vocation. The relationship parents have with their children leaves its influence on them for many years afterwards.
Discipline entails trials and hardships. It takes going through the “narrow gate”. But only those who go through the narrow gate will make it to heaven. Wide and smooth are the road that leads to destruction.
Many years ago, an editorial in the magazine, War Cry put it like this: “A loose wire gives out no musical note; but fasten the ends, and the piano, the harp or the violin is born. Free steam drives no machine. But hamper and confine it with piston and turbine and you have the great world of machinery made possible. The unhampered river drives no dynamos, but dam it up and we get power sufficient to light a great city. So our lives must be disciplined if we are to be of any real service in this world.” Watch your words, they become your actions, watch your actions they become your habit, watch your habit they become your character, and your character will determine your destiny.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
ASSUMPTION OF BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION
Rev. 11: 19, 12: 1-6, 10,: I Cor. 15: 20-27,Gosple: Luke 1: 39-56
There is an old story about a workman on a scaffolding high above the nave of a cathedral who looked down and saw a woman praying before a statue of Mary. As a joke, the workman whispered, "Woman, this is Jesus." The woman ignored him. The workman whispered again, more loudly: "Woman, this is Jesus." Again, the woman ignored him. Finally, he said aloud, "Woman, don't you hear me? This is Jesus." At this point the woman looked up at the crucifix and said, "Be still now, Jesus, I'm talking to your mother."
The Feast of the Assumption is one of the most important feasts of our Lady. Catholics believe that when her earthly life was finished, Mary was taken up, body and soul, into heavenly glory, where the Lord exalted her as Queen of Heaven. (ccc, # 966). The Assumption is the feast of Mary’s total liberation from death and decay, the consequences of original sin. It is also the remembrance of the day when the Church gave official recognition to the centuries-old belief of Christians about the Assumption of their heavenly mother.
Assumption- was a reward for Mary’s sacrificial cooperation in the divine plan of salvation. Her death was a transformation from this life to the next. She is the model Christian who heard the Word of God and lived it. She carried the life of God within her, celebrated the life of her Son on earth and is united to His life for all eternity.
The fact of Mary’s death is generally accepted by the Church Fathers and theologians and is expressly affirmed in the liturgy of the Church. Origen (died AD 253), St. Jerome (died AD 419) and St. Augustine (died AD 430), among others, argue that Mary’s death was not a punishment for sin, but only the result of her being a descendant of Adam and Eve. When Pope Pius XII made the proclamation of the assumption on November 1, 1950, he put into words a belief held by the faithful since the first century. Way back in AD 325 the Council of Nicea spoke of the Assumption of Mary. Writing in AD 457, the Bishop of Jerusalem said that when Mary’s tomb was opened, it was "found empty. The apostles judged her body had been taken into heaven.
According to one legend, Blessed Virgin Mary was living at Ephesus with the beloved disciple John and while there she died. St.Thomas was not there around at that time and when he was informed of Mary’s death on his arrival, he refused to believe it and demanded the grave to be opened and found it to be empty.
The second reading from the I Corinthians is Paul’s defense of the resurrection of the dead, is an apt selection on the feast of our heavenly Mother’s Assumption into heaven. In the Magnificat, or song of Mary, given in today’s gospel, Mary acknowledges that “the Almighty has done great things” for her. God, who has "lifted up" his "lowly servant" Mary, lifts up all the lowly, not only because they are faithful, but also because God is faithful to the promise of divine mercy. Thus the feast of the Assumption celebrates the mercy of God or the victory of God’s mercy as expressed in Mary’s Magnificat.
Marian doctrine and devotion, properly understood and practised, does not lead believers away from, but rather leads more deeply into the mystery of Christ. The woman in prayer who thinks that Jesus should keep still because she is talking with his mother has lost sight of the perfect harmony of wills and hearts between Mary and Jesus which we see most clearly in the Wedding Feast at Cana where Mary commands us: "Do whatever he (Jesus) tells you" (John 2:5).
Mary’s Assumption gives us the assurance and hope of our own resurrection and assumption into heaven on the day of our Last Judgment. It is a sign to us that someday, through God’s grace and our good life, we, too, will join the Blessed Mother in giving glory to God. It points the way for all followers of Christ who imitate Mary’s fidelity and obedience to God’s will.
One Sunday school teacher, had just finished explaining the feast of the Assumption to her class. "Now," she said, "let all those children who want to go to heaven to see their heavenly mother raise their hands." All the children raised their hands except little Marie in the front row. "Don't you want to go to heaven, Marie?" asked the teacher. "I can't," said Marie tearfully. "My mother told me to come straight home after Sunday school.
Since Mary’s Assumption was a reward for her saintly life, this feast reminds us that we, too, must be pure and holy in body and soul, since our bodies will be glorified on the day of our resurrection. St. Paul tells us that our bodies are the temples of God because the Holy Spirit dwells within us. He also reminds us that our bodies are also members of the Body of Christ.
This feast also gives us the message of total liberation. Jesus tells us in John 8: 34 that every one who sins is a slave of sin, and St. Paul reminds us (Gal. 5: 1) that, since Christ has set us free, we should be slaves of sin no more. Thus, the Assumption encourages us to work with God to be liberated from the bondage of evil: from impure, unjust and uncharitable thoughts and habits, and from the bonds of jealousy, envy and hatred.
It is always an inspiring thought in our moments of temptation and despair to remember that we have a powerful heavenly Mother, constantly interceding for us before her son, Jesus, in heaven. The feast of Mary’s assumption challenges us to imitate her self-sacrificing love, her indestructible faith and her perfect obedience.
Our prayers to Mary are the prayers of children asking their mother for help. We pray to Mary because she is our mother. When we were little and we fell down and scraped out knees, we called out to our mommies. When we got older we stopped calling out to our moms in time of minor difficulties, but when major traumas hit, when a girl loses a baby, when a young man learns that he has cancer, it is usually Mom who is still the first person called upon for help. Jesus gave Mary to us to be our Mother. He wants us to call upon our Mom in times of need. We recognize that it is Jesus’ life and power that saves us, but we also recognize that Mary was given to us at the foot of the cross as our mother.
One young boy was praying for months to get a particular kind of toy. He was desperate for not getting that toy. One day when he came to church he saw a small statue of Mother Mary. He slowly took the statue home and came back to church again to pray. He told Jesus, I have hijacked your mother. If you want her back give me the toy.
If we have Mary with us, our prayers have a better chance of being answered soon. Let’s approach Jesus through Mary, because she gave Jesus to the world. To Quote Pope Benedict XVI, “On this feast day, let us thank the Lord for the gift of the Mother, and let us pray to Mary to help us find the right path every day”.
On this feast day of our heavenly Mother, let us offer ourselves on the altar and pray for her special care and loving protection in helping us lead a purer and holier life.
O Mary, Assumed into heaven, pray for us, your children, who are fighting the attacks of sin. Amen.
Rev. 11: 19, 12: 1-6, 10,: I Cor. 15: 20-27,Gosple: Luke 1: 39-56
There is an old story about a workman on a scaffolding high above the nave of a cathedral who looked down and saw a woman praying before a statue of Mary. As a joke, the workman whispered, "Woman, this is Jesus." The woman ignored him. The workman whispered again, more loudly: "Woman, this is Jesus." Again, the woman ignored him. Finally, he said aloud, "Woman, don't you hear me? This is Jesus." At this point the woman looked up at the crucifix and said, "Be still now, Jesus, I'm talking to your mother."
The Feast of the Assumption is one of the most important feasts of our Lady. Catholics believe that when her earthly life was finished, Mary was taken up, body and soul, into heavenly glory, where the Lord exalted her as Queen of Heaven. (ccc, # 966). The Assumption is the feast of Mary’s total liberation from death and decay, the consequences of original sin. It is also the remembrance of the day when the Church gave official recognition to the centuries-old belief of Christians about the Assumption of their heavenly mother.
Assumption- was a reward for Mary’s sacrificial cooperation in the divine plan of salvation. Her death was a transformation from this life to the next. She is the model Christian who heard the Word of God and lived it. She carried the life of God within her, celebrated the life of her Son on earth and is united to His life for all eternity.
The fact of Mary’s death is generally accepted by the Church Fathers and theologians and is expressly affirmed in the liturgy of the Church. Origen (died AD 253), St. Jerome (died AD 419) and St. Augustine (died AD 430), among others, argue that Mary’s death was not a punishment for sin, but only the result of her being a descendant of Adam and Eve. When Pope Pius XII made the proclamation of the assumption on November 1, 1950, he put into words a belief held by the faithful since the first century. Way back in AD 325 the Council of Nicea spoke of the Assumption of Mary. Writing in AD 457, the Bishop of Jerusalem said that when Mary’s tomb was opened, it was "found empty. The apostles judged her body had been taken into heaven.
According to one legend, Blessed Virgin Mary was living at Ephesus with the beloved disciple John and while there she died. St.Thomas was not there around at that time and when he was informed of Mary’s death on his arrival, he refused to believe it and demanded the grave to be opened and found it to be empty.
The second reading from the I Corinthians is Paul’s defense of the resurrection of the dead, is an apt selection on the feast of our heavenly Mother’s Assumption into heaven. In the Magnificat, or song of Mary, given in today’s gospel, Mary acknowledges that “the Almighty has done great things” for her. God, who has "lifted up" his "lowly servant" Mary, lifts up all the lowly, not only because they are faithful, but also because God is faithful to the promise of divine mercy. Thus the feast of the Assumption celebrates the mercy of God or the victory of God’s mercy as expressed in Mary’s Magnificat.
Marian doctrine and devotion, properly understood and practised, does not lead believers away from, but rather leads more deeply into the mystery of Christ. The woman in prayer who thinks that Jesus should keep still because she is talking with his mother has lost sight of the perfect harmony of wills and hearts between Mary and Jesus which we see most clearly in the Wedding Feast at Cana where Mary commands us: "Do whatever he (Jesus) tells you" (John 2:5).
Mary’s Assumption gives us the assurance and hope of our own resurrection and assumption into heaven on the day of our Last Judgment. It is a sign to us that someday, through God’s grace and our good life, we, too, will join the Blessed Mother in giving glory to God. It points the way for all followers of Christ who imitate Mary’s fidelity and obedience to God’s will.
One Sunday school teacher, had just finished explaining the feast of the Assumption to her class. "Now," she said, "let all those children who want to go to heaven to see their heavenly mother raise their hands." All the children raised their hands except little Marie in the front row. "Don't you want to go to heaven, Marie?" asked the teacher. "I can't," said Marie tearfully. "My mother told me to come straight home after Sunday school.
Since Mary’s Assumption was a reward for her saintly life, this feast reminds us that we, too, must be pure and holy in body and soul, since our bodies will be glorified on the day of our resurrection. St. Paul tells us that our bodies are the temples of God because the Holy Spirit dwells within us. He also reminds us that our bodies are also members of the Body of Christ.
This feast also gives us the message of total liberation. Jesus tells us in John 8: 34 that every one who sins is a slave of sin, and St. Paul reminds us (Gal. 5: 1) that, since Christ has set us free, we should be slaves of sin no more. Thus, the Assumption encourages us to work with God to be liberated from the bondage of evil: from impure, unjust and uncharitable thoughts and habits, and from the bonds of jealousy, envy and hatred.
It is always an inspiring thought in our moments of temptation and despair to remember that we have a powerful heavenly Mother, constantly interceding for us before her son, Jesus, in heaven. The feast of Mary’s assumption challenges us to imitate her self-sacrificing love, her indestructible faith and her perfect obedience.
Our prayers to Mary are the prayers of children asking their mother for help. We pray to Mary because she is our mother. When we were little and we fell down and scraped out knees, we called out to our mommies. When we got older we stopped calling out to our moms in time of minor difficulties, but when major traumas hit, when a girl loses a baby, when a young man learns that he has cancer, it is usually Mom who is still the first person called upon for help. Jesus gave Mary to us to be our Mother. He wants us to call upon our Mom in times of need. We recognize that it is Jesus’ life and power that saves us, but we also recognize that Mary was given to us at the foot of the cross as our mother.
One young boy was praying for months to get a particular kind of toy. He was desperate for not getting that toy. One day when he came to church he saw a small statue of Mother Mary. He slowly took the statue home and came back to church again to pray. He told Jesus, I have hijacked your mother. If you want her back give me the toy.
If we have Mary with us, our prayers have a better chance of being answered soon. Let’s approach Jesus through Mary, because she gave Jesus to the world. To Quote Pope Benedict XVI, “On this feast day, let us thank the Lord for the gift of the Mother, and let us pray to Mary to help us find the right path every day”.
On this feast day of our heavenly Mother, let us offer ourselves on the altar and pray for her special care and loving protection in helping us lead a purer and holier life.
O Mary, Assumed into heaven, pray for us, your children, who are fighting the attacks of sin. Amen.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
XIXth Sunday in ORdinary TIme
XIXth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Wisdom 18:6-9; Heb. 11: 1-2, 8-19 ;Gosple: Luke12: 32-48
According to an old fable, a man made an unusual agreement with Death. He told the Grim Reaper that he would willingly accompany him when the time came to die, but only on one condition – that Death would send a messenger well in advance to warn him. Weeks turned into months, and months into years. Then one bitter winter evening, as the man sat thinking about all his possessions, Death suddenly entered the room and tapped him on the shoulder. Startled, the man cried out, "You're here so soon and without warning! I thought we had an agreement." Death replied, "I've more than kept my part. I've sent you many messengers. Look in the mirror and you'll see some of them." As the man complied, Death whispered, "Notice your hair! Once it was full and golden, now it is thin and white. Look at the way you tilt your head to listen to me because you can't hear very well. Observe how close to the mirror you must stand to see yourself clearly. Yes, I've sent many messengers through the years. I'm sorry you're not ready, but the time has come for you to leave."
The central theme of today’s readings is the necessity of vigilant preparedness in the followers of Christ. Jesus uses two comparisons to explain the nature of the vigilance required of us. We must be ready for action like an oriental servant or like an oil lamp trimmed for service. The long flowing robes worn by people of the day were a hindrance to work. When a man prepared himself to work, he gathered up his robes under his girdle (belt) in order to leave himself free for activity. The reference to fastened belts and lamps burning ready also recalled the preparedness for action which was legislated for Israel in the Passover ritual (Exodus 12:1).
Since the time of our death is quite uncertain, we, too, must be ever ready to meet our Lord at any moment. He should find us carrying out our task of love, mercy and service, rather than leaving things undone or half-done. He should also find us at peace with God, ourselves and with our fellowmen (Eph.4:26)
The Lord comes unexpectedly into our lives everyday through events and people we meet. But the ultimate, unexpected coming of the Lord in our lives is the moment of death. We should be watchful to recognize the Lord and prepared to meet him in the little unexpected opportunities of everyday life. This is the best way to prepare for the ultimate encounter with the Lord at the hour of death.
During his sermon, an evangelist asked all who wanted to go to heaven to raise their hands. Everyone in the audience did so--except for one elderly man sitting near the front of the auditorium. The preacher pointed his finger at him and said, "Sir, do you mean to tell us that you don't want to go to heaven?" "Sure I do," the old man answered, "but the way you put the question, I figured you were getting up a busload for tonight!'
Linda Taylor was putting her three tiny tots to bed. Suddenly Peggy, who had just begun kindergarten, said thoughtfully, Mommy, if the world came to an end, right now Would I have to take my library book back, or would it be okay to leave it at home?"
Peggy's innocent question and Jesus' sobering words invite us to ask, "How ready am I to meet my Maker, at this very moment?"
Seneca says: That day which you fear as being the end of all things is the birthday of your eternity.
The first sentences of today’s gospel speaks about how to prepare ourselves to meet the Lord.
Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
This takes us to the last Sunday’s reading too. Money doesn’t bring happiness, everyone agrees. But then we go straight back to pursuing it as if it did. A full purse, like a full stomach, makes you want to go to sleep. We become oblivious of everything except the stock market or our business – and that is a kind of sleep. All great religious figures kept shouting, ‘Wake up!’ It is not that everyone was dozing in the sun; no they were not: they were making money.
Our preciousness in God’s eyes is contrasted with the preciousness of material treasures. We get our value from the Creator and not the accumulation of other creatures. Our heart’s desires will announce to which kingdom we belong.
Money is seductive because it appears to be the key to everything and everywhere. There was once a wealthy man who decided to donate a large amount of money to a monastery. To his great surprise, the abbot said, “No thanks, we have enough at present.” The rich man pressed him to take it anyway, but he refused politely. Suddenly the rich man began to weep. “You have made me realise how poor I am,” he said, “I have nothing to offer you except money.”
Jesus gave many warnings about the seductions of wealth. There is nothing wrong with the material things of the world in themselves. If my purse is always full, I will think only about getting a bigger purse. And it will fade gradually from my awareness that half the world is hungry. And I may also fail to notice that I am hungry myself, because my heart is empty. “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If money is my treasure, there will be nothing in my heart except money. Let’s take to heart seriously the warning of Jesus and be alert and watchful for we don’t know when the Lord comes.
Wisdom 18:6-9; Heb. 11: 1-2, 8-19 ;Gosple: Luke12: 32-48
According to an old fable, a man made an unusual agreement with Death. He told the Grim Reaper that he would willingly accompany him when the time came to die, but only on one condition – that Death would send a messenger well in advance to warn him. Weeks turned into months, and months into years. Then one bitter winter evening, as the man sat thinking about all his possessions, Death suddenly entered the room and tapped him on the shoulder. Startled, the man cried out, "You're here so soon and without warning! I thought we had an agreement." Death replied, "I've more than kept my part. I've sent you many messengers. Look in the mirror and you'll see some of them." As the man complied, Death whispered, "Notice your hair! Once it was full and golden, now it is thin and white. Look at the way you tilt your head to listen to me because you can't hear very well. Observe how close to the mirror you must stand to see yourself clearly. Yes, I've sent many messengers through the years. I'm sorry you're not ready, but the time has come for you to leave."
The central theme of today’s readings is the necessity of vigilant preparedness in the followers of Christ. Jesus uses two comparisons to explain the nature of the vigilance required of us. We must be ready for action like an oriental servant or like an oil lamp trimmed for service. The long flowing robes worn by people of the day were a hindrance to work. When a man prepared himself to work, he gathered up his robes under his girdle (belt) in order to leave himself free for activity. The reference to fastened belts and lamps burning ready also recalled the preparedness for action which was legislated for Israel in the Passover ritual (Exodus 12:1).
Since the time of our death is quite uncertain, we, too, must be ever ready to meet our Lord at any moment. He should find us carrying out our task of love, mercy and service, rather than leaving things undone or half-done. He should also find us at peace with God, ourselves and with our fellowmen (Eph.4:26)
The Lord comes unexpectedly into our lives everyday through events and people we meet. But the ultimate, unexpected coming of the Lord in our lives is the moment of death. We should be watchful to recognize the Lord and prepared to meet him in the little unexpected opportunities of everyday life. This is the best way to prepare for the ultimate encounter with the Lord at the hour of death.
During his sermon, an evangelist asked all who wanted to go to heaven to raise their hands. Everyone in the audience did so--except for one elderly man sitting near the front of the auditorium. The preacher pointed his finger at him and said, "Sir, do you mean to tell us that you don't want to go to heaven?" "Sure I do," the old man answered, "but the way you put the question, I figured you were getting up a busload for tonight!'
Linda Taylor was putting her three tiny tots to bed. Suddenly Peggy, who had just begun kindergarten, said thoughtfully, Mommy, if the world came to an end, right now Would I have to take my library book back, or would it be okay to leave it at home?"
Peggy's innocent question and Jesus' sobering words invite us to ask, "How ready am I to meet my Maker, at this very moment?"
Seneca says: That day which you fear as being the end of all things is the birthday of your eternity.
The first sentences of today’s gospel speaks about how to prepare ourselves to meet the Lord.
Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
This takes us to the last Sunday’s reading too. Money doesn’t bring happiness, everyone agrees. But then we go straight back to pursuing it as if it did. A full purse, like a full stomach, makes you want to go to sleep. We become oblivious of everything except the stock market or our business – and that is a kind of sleep. All great religious figures kept shouting, ‘Wake up!’ It is not that everyone was dozing in the sun; no they were not: they were making money.
Our preciousness in God’s eyes is contrasted with the preciousness of material treasures. We get our value from the Creator and not the accumulation of other creatures. Our heart’s desires will announce to which kingdom we belong.
Money is seductive because it appears to be the key to everything and everywhere. There was once a wealthy man who decided to donate a large amount of money to a monastery. To his great surprise, the abbot said, “No thanks, we have enough at present.” The rich man pressed him to take it anyway, but he refused politely. Suddenly the rich man began to weep. “You have made me realise how poor I am,” he said, “I have nothing to offer you except money.”
Jesus gave many warnings about the seductions of wealth. There is nothing wrong with the material things of the world in themselves. If my purse is always full, I will think only about getting a bigger purse. And it will fade gradually from my awareness that half the world is hungry. And I may also fail to notice that I am hungry myself, because my heart is empty. “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If money is my treasure, there will be nothing in my heart except money. Let’s take to heart seriously the warning of Jesus and be alert and watchful for we don’t know when the Lord comes.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
XVIIIth Sunday in Ordinary Time
XVIII Sunday. ECCL. 1:2; 2:21-23,: COL. 3:1-5, 9-11,: LUKE 12:13-21
One morning in 1888 Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, awoke to read his own obituary. The obituary was printed as a result of a simple journalistic error when Alfred's brother died. The words, “The Dynamite King, the great industrialist who had made an immense fortune from explosives passes away” gave Alfred an overwhelming shock because, for the first time in his life, he saw himself as the world saw him – a merchant of death and destruction. As he read the obituary with horror, he resolved both to make clear to the world the true meaning and purpose of his life and to get ready for his meeting with his God. He decided this could be done through the final disposition of his fortune. His last will and testament consisted of an endowment of five annual prizes for outstanding contributions in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. The fifth one is now called Nobel Peace Prize. A sixth category, economics, was added later. The Nobel Prize thus became the expression of Alfred Nobel’s life's ideals and ultimately it would be the reason we remember him as a rich scientist who had the good will to share his riches with others.
The noble examples of sharing given by Alfred Nobel and later by John D. Rockefeller have been followed by many millionaires in this century. There is no parallel in the sharing made in recent years by the world’s richest man, Bill Gates, drawing inspiration from Christ’s warning against hoarding and advice for sharing one’s riches. Each parish bears ample testimony to the sharing made by the parishioners in the form of tithes and donations. Our Parish set an example by pledging over thirty thousand in pledges over our parish goal in DPAA. Congratulations, even though it is only 503 families that donated.
The common theme of today’s readings is the futility of greedily acquiring wealth and power because everything and everyone is “here today and gone tomorrow.” Therefore, the meaning of life cannot be found in possessions. The first reading from Ecclesiastes gives the great dictum of Biblical realism, "Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!". The author claims that he has “seen all things that are done under the sun” and found them to be “a chase after wind” (Ecc 1:14). He expresses a ruthlessly honest pessimism about the prospects for finding true happiness in the greedy acquisition of earthly goods, because the greedy hoarder leaves everything behind at his death and his heirs will receive and may squander his hard-earned wealth. According to an old legend, Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), commanded that when he died and was carried forth to his grave, his hands should not be wrapped in the burial clothes, as was the custom, but should be left outside so that all might see them, and might see also, that they were empty. In the brief span of his thirty-three years, Alexander had conquered and possessed the riches of an empire that extended from Greece to India. Yet, in death, his hands were empty; none of his wealth could survive the passage of death.
In today’s gospel, by relating the parable of the foolish rich man, Jesus warns us against all types of greed, because greed takes our life’s focus away from God and away from serving and loving Him in other people. Instead, greed directs all our energy and attention to fulfilling the self, making our wealth the basis of our security. Jesus issues a warning, a warning inspired by a squabble over inheritance, but one that all of us need to hear. He says: "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."
The richer the man grew, the greedier he became, as suggested by the Roman proverb: “Money is like sea water; the more a man drinks the thirstier he becomes.”
The key to poison ivy, once you have it, is not to scratch. Restraining yourself is hard, for your skin itches and you want relief. But scratching only makes poison ivy worse. Avarice works the same way. We get infected, and we want to scratch, although we know we shouldn't do so. Possessing more and more promises relief, but only makes the situation worse. We keep scratching, but it's no solution.
The foolish rich man “never saw beyond this world.” He was punished not for anything wrong he did, but for the good he failed to do. It was his acts of omission rather than of commission that prompted God to cut short his life.
He failed to become “rich in what matters to God.” He was not thankful to God for His blessings; instead, he considered them as solely the fruit of his own labor. He also failed in his stewardship duties – the returning to God of His portion in paying his tithe. Third, he did not recognize his possessions as a loan from God, given to him to share with others. Fourth, he was taken up with worries or anxieties about his wealth. He was starving to death spiritually in the midst of God’s abundance.
Let us control our greed. Our greed takes different shapes and forms. For some it may be the desire for the approval and praise of others. For others it is the uncontrolled desire for power, control or fame. For still others greed takes the form of excessive and sinful indulgence in eating, drinking, gambling, drugs or sexual activities. Greed also diverts our life away from God and away from serving and loving Him in other people. As greed directs all our energy and attention to fulfilling the self, its objects become our false gods, and they will consume us unless we become rich in the sight of God.
A man is walking down the beach and comes across an old bottle. He picks it up, pulls out the cork and out pops a genie!
The genie says, "Thank you for freeing me from the bottle. In return I will grant you three wishes."
The man says "Great! I always dreamed of this and I know exactly what I want. First, I want one billion dollars in a Swiss bank account."
Poof! There is a flash of light and a piece of paper with account numbers appears in his hand!
He continues, "Next, I want a brand new red Ferrari right here."
Poof! There is a flash of light and a bright red, brand-new Ferrari appears right next to him!
He continues, "Finally, I want to be irresistible to women."
Poof! There is a flash of light and he turns into a box of chocolates.
Greed will eat us up.
Henry Ford once asked an associate about his life goals. The man replied that his goal was to make a million dollars. A few days later Ford gave the man a pair of glasses made out of two silver dollars. He told the man to put them on and asked what he could see. "Nothing," the man said. "The dollars are in the way." Ford told him that he wanted to teach him a lesson: If his only goal was dollars, he would miss a host of greater opportunities. He should invest himself in serving others, not simply in making money. Money is important. No question about that. But money is only a means by which we reach higher goals. Service to others. Obedience to God.
By comparison how rich we are! And with our wealth comes responsibility. We should use it wisely, not be wasteful, and help others. We need to get back to the basics and re-establish our priorities. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Mt. 6:33).
Let me close with the beautiful prayer from the book of Proverbs: "Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God." (Proverbs 30: 8-9).
One morning in 1888 Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, awoke to read his own obituary. The obituary was printed as a result of a simple journalistic error when Alfred's brother died. The words, “The Dynamite King, the great industrialist who had made an immense fortune from explosives passes away” gave Alfred an overwhelming shock because, for the first time in his life, he saw himself as the world saw him – a merchant of death and destruction. As he read the obituary with horror, he resolved both to make clear to the world the true meaning and purpose of his life and to get ready for his meeting with his God. He decided this could be done through the final disposition of his fortune. His last will and testament consisted of an endowment of five annual prizes for outstanding contributions in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. The fifth one is now called Nobel Peace Prize. A sixth category, economics, was added later. The Nobel Prize thus became the expression of Alfred Nobel’s life's ideals and ultimately it would be the reason we remember him as a rich scientist who had the good will to share his riches with others.
The noble examples of sharing given by Alfred Nobel and later by John D. Rockefeller have been followed by many millionaires in this century. There is no parallel in the sharing made in recent years by the world’s richest man, Bill Gates, drawing inspiration from Christ’s warning against hoarding and advice for sharing one’s riches. Each parish bears ample testimony to the sharing made by the parishioners in the form of tithes and donations. Our Parish set an example by pledging over thirty thousand in pledges over our parish goal in DPAA. Congratulations, even though it is only 503 families that donated.
The common theme of today’s readings is the futility of greedily acquiring wealth and power because everything and everyone is “here today and gone tomorrow.” Therefore, the meaning of life cannot be found in possessions. The first reading from Ecclesiastes gives the great dictum of Biblical realism, "Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!". The author claims that he has “seen all things that are done under the sun” and found them to be “a chase after wind” (Ecc 1:14). He expresses a ruthlessly honest pessimism about the prospects for finding true happiness in the greedy acquisition of earthly goods, because the greedy hoarder leaves everything behind at his death and his heirs will receive and may squander his hard-earned wealth. According to an old legend, Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), commanded that when he died and was carried forth to his grave, his hands should not be wrapped in the burial clothes, as was the custom, but should be left outside so that all might see them, and might see also, that they were empty. In the brief span of his thirty-three years, Alexander had conquered and possessed the riches of an empire that extended from Greece to India. Yet, in death, his hands were empty; none of his wealth could survive the passage of death.
In today’s gospel, by relating the parable of the foolish rich man, Jesus warns us against all types of greed, because greed takes our life’s focus away from God and away from serving and loving Him in other people. Instead, greed directs all our energy and attention to fulfilling the self, making our wealth the basis of our security. Jesus issues a warning, a warning inspired by a squabble over inheritance, but one that all of us need to hear. He says: "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."
The richer the man grew, the greedier he became, as suggested by the Roman proverb: “Money is like sea water; the more a man drinks the thirstier he becomes.”
The key to poison ivy, once you have it, is not to scratch. Restraining yourself is hard, for your skin itches and you want relief. But scratching only makes poison ivy worse. Avarice works the same way. We get infected, and we want to scratch, although we know we shouldn't do so. Possessing more and more promises relief, but only makes the situation worse. We keep scratching, but it's no solution.
The foolish rich man “never saw beyond this world.” He was punished not for anything wrong he did, but for the good he failed to do. It was his acts of omission rather than of commission that prompted God to cut short his life.
He failed to become “rich in what matters to God.” He was not thankful to God for His blessings; instead, he considered them as solely the fruit of his own labor. He also failed in his stewardship duties – the returning to God of His portion in paying his tithe. Third, he did not recognize his possessions as a loan from God, given to him to share with others. Fourth, he was taken up with worries or anxieties about his wealth. He was starving to death spiritually in the midst of God’s abundance.
Let us control our greed. Our greed takes different shapes and forms. For some it may be the desire for the approval and praise of others. For others it is the uncontrolled desire for power, control or fame. For still others greed takes the form of excessive and sinful indulgence in eating, drinking, gambling, drugs or sexual activities. Greed also diverts our life away from God and away from serving and loving Him in other people. As greed directs all our energy and attention to fulfilling the self, its objects become our false gods, and they will consume us unless we become rich in the sight of God.
A man is walking down the beach and comes across an old bottle. He picks it up, pulls out the cork and out pops a genie!
The genie says, "Thank you for freeing me from the bottle. In return I will grant you three wishes."
The man says "Great! I always dreamed of this and I know exactly what I want. First, I want one billion dollars in a Swiss bank account."
Poof! There is a flash of light and a piece of paper with account numbers appears in his hand!
He continues, "Next, I want a brand new red Ferrari right here."
Poof! There is a flash of light and a bright red, brand-new Ferrari appears right next to him!
He continues, "Finally, I want to be irresistible to women."
Poof! There is a flash of light and he turns into a box of chocolates.
Greed will eat us up.
Henry Ford once asked an associate about his life goals. The man replied that his goal was to make a million dollars. A few days later Ford gave the man a pair of glasses made out of two silver dollars. He told the man to put them on and asked what he could see. "Nothing," the man said. "The dollars are in the way." Ford told him that he wanted to teach him a lesson: If his only goal was dollars, he would miss a host of greater opportunities. He should invest himself in serving others, not simply in making money. Money is important. No question about that. But money is only a means by which we reach higher goals. Service to others. Obedience to God.
By comparison how rich we are! And with our wealth comes responsibility. We should use it wisely, not be wasteful, and help others. We need to get back to the basics and re-establish our priorities. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Mt. 6:33).
Let me close with the beautiful prayer from the book of Proverbs: "Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God." (Proverbs 30: 8-9).
Saturday, July 10, 2010
XVth Sunday in Ordinary time.- Good Samaritan
15th Sunday: The Parable of Good Samaritan Lk 10: 25- 37.
We have all heard this parable of the Good Samaritan before and we know that Jesus is challenging us to act differently and love our neighbor no matter who they are. But we do not always recognize who is our neighbor in need. In the Gospel we have the image of a person beaten, stripped and left for dead. This person was ignored, forgotten and passed by.
In our lives we come across many people like this man who have been passed by who is hurt and in despair. There are spouses who are in a loveless relationship. There are teenage boys and girls who feel that they cannot talk with their parents without being criticized or scolded. There are those who work long hours and make sacrifices for their jobs and in the end are either laid off or overlooked when it comes time for that promotion. Finally there are the sick and the elderly that no one visits or calls. They may feel that there is no reason for living. There are many times in our own lives when we really need someone but feel ignored and disregarded, and we know how much it hurts.
Often it happens that we hesitate to go out and help fearing what might happen to us, like the priest and the Levite. An old man standing on a crowded bus. The young man standing next to him asked, "What time is it?" The old man refused to reply. The young man moved on. The old man’s friend, sensing something was wrong, asked, "Why were you so discourteous to the young man asking for the time?" The old man answered, "If I have given him the time of day, next he would want to know where I am going. Then we might talk about our interests. If we did that, he might invite himself to my house for dinner. If he did, he would meet my lovely daughter. If he met her, they would both fall in love. I don’t want my daughter marrying someone who can’t afford a watch." Often we behave like this man- unreasonably afraid of what would happen if I help others.
We are all called to make a difference in the lives of others. It may not involve binding the wounds of someone who has been physically beaten. But it does involve reaching out to those in need, especially those who feel that they have no one else to turn to. Jesus tells the lawyer in the gospel today that for him to inherit eternal life, he must show mercy to others like the Samaritan. We are challenged to be less fearful and judgmental and to be more compassionate and caring. Whatever good deed we do to someone, it does make a difference to that person.
Certainly, there is no written law detailing what to do if we come across someone in dire need of our help. There is no written law that says that we have to stop our car and see why a four year old is walking alongside a busy road, all alone. There is no written law that says that the old man in the walker should have someone help him take in his garbage barrels, but we know in our hearts what we need to be doing and what we need to be avoiding.
The Temple ministers, the Levite and priest know the law, at least theoretically. They also know that if they touch someone who the law said would be defiled in any way, they could not perform their service in the Temple. They had the written law, but they did not have the law of God in their hearts. So they walked pass the injured man on the side of the road.
The Good Samaritan did not base his actions on the written law. He based his actions on the Law within his heart, the Law of Love. The Samaritan’s were a mixed people, part Jewish and part pagan. The Jews called them half breeds and looked down on them for selling out to the pagans. But the Good Samaritan knew the Law better than the Temple priest and Levite. He did what a person who loves God would naturally do: care for someone who was hurting.
Let us remember that the road from Jerusalem to Jericho passes right through our home, and workplace. We are invited to be people of generosity, kindness, and mercy toward all who are suffering. A sincere smile, a cheery greeting, an encouraging word of appreciation, a heartfelt “thank you” can work wonders for a suffering soul.
What is it that we need to do to inherit eternal life ? Jesus gives us the answer: we need to look within ourselves and reach out to God’s Presence wherever our hearts find Him.
We have all heard this parable of the Good Samaritan before and we know that Jesus is challenging us to act differently and love our neighbor no matter who they are. But we do not always recognize who is our neighbor in need. In the Gospel we have the image of a person beaten, stripped and left for dead. This person was ignored, forgotten and passed by.
In our lives we come across many people like this man who have been passed by who is hurt and in despair. There are spouses who are in a loveless relationship. There are teenage boys and girls who feel that they cannot talk with their parents without being criticized or scolded. There are those who work long hours and make sacrifices for their jobs and in the end are either laid off or overlooked when it comes time for that promotion. Finally there are the sick and the elderly that no one visits or calls. They may feel that there is no reason for living. There are many times in our own lives when we really need someone but feel ignored and disregarded, and we know how much it hurts.
Often it happens that we hesitate to go out and help fearing what might happen to us, like the priest and the Levite. An old man standing on a crowded bus. The young man standing next to him asked, "What time is it?" The old man refused to reply. The young man moved on. The old man’s friend, sensing something was wrong, asked, "Why were you so discourteous to the young man asking for the time?" The old man answered, "If I have given him the time of day, next he would want to know where I am going. Then we might talk about our interests. If we did that, he might invite himself to my house for dinner. If he did, he would meet my lovely daughter. If he met her, they would both fall in love. I don’t want my daughter marrying someone who can’t afford a watch." Often we behave like this man- unreasonably afraid of what would happen if I help others.
We are all called to make a difference in the lives of others. It may not involve binding the wounds of someone who has been physically beaten. But it does involve reaching out to those in need, especially those who feel that they have no one else to turn to. Jesus tells the lawyer in the gospel today that for him to inherit eternal life, he must show mercy to others like the Samaritan. We are challenged to be less fearful and judgmental and to be more compassionate and caring. Whatever good deed we do to someone, it does make a difference to that person.
Certainly, there is no written law detailing what to do if we come across someone in dire need of our help. There is no written law that says that we have to stop our car and see why a four year old is walking alongside a busy road, all alone. There is no written law that says that the old man in the walker should have someone help him take in his garbage barrels, but we know in our hearts what we need to be doing and what we need to be avoiding.
The Temple ministers, the Levite and priest know the law, at least theoretically. They also know that if they touch someone who the law said would be defiled in any way, they could not perform their service in the Temple. They had the written law, but they did not have the law of God in their hearts. So they walked pass the injured man on the side of the road.
The Good Samaritan did not base his actions on the written law. He based his actions on the Law within his heart, the Law of Love. The Samaritan’s were a mixed people, part Jewish and part pagan. The Jews called them half breeds and looked down on them for selling out to the pagans. But the Good Samaritan knew the Law better than the Temple priest and Levite. He did what a person who loves God would naturally do: care for someone who was hurting.
Let us remember that the road from Jerusalem to Jericho passes right through our home, and workplace. We are invited to be people of generosity, kindness, and mercy toward all who are suffering. A sincere smile, a cheery greeting, an encouraging word of appreciation, a heartfelt “thank you” can work wonders for a suffering soul.
What is it that we need to do to inherit eternal life ? Jesus gives us the answer: we need to look within ourselves and reach out to God’s Presence wherever our hearts find Him.
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