If Sin is Attractive

Today’s Gospel Text:  "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. 31 "It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I say to you that every one who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. Matt 5:27-32

Reflection: There are these Jewish laws which many follow or rather seek to follow even to this day. 

Our generation may ignore the laws and may walk in a freedom apart from the law; a freedom in which the conscience is not bound.

Very few realize that to reject the conscience and the law in freedom actually means to enter into a vicious bondage.

We fail to realize that Judeo-Christian faith preserves and promotes the well being of the human race with its strong sense of teaching, fortified with moral codes that are life sustaining in the long run.

In other words, even though in the immediate sense these moral codes at times may seem detrimental for life but in the long run they have a supportive and sustaining action on preserving life.

But to those who do not understand these things, Jesus' interpretation of these Jewish laws can further burden these fanatics of falsified freedom.

Because Jesus interprets the law much more strictly, with warning of what is in store for the breakers of these laws.

A mere glance at only these teachings of Jesus could present Jesus as a kill joy, hawkish and stone hearted, not understanding the pleasures nor the burden humans who have these problems carry.

Let any human being check his conscience and speak honestly and you will find that we all fall short of the standard which Jesus sets.

But we do not have a Jesus who only sets a standard, but rather a Jesus who warns us of the reality of afterlife and what is more he offers us his eternal presence, now in our midst, through various ways, whether it be through the church or through the sacraments or the close assistance of the angels and saints.

We have a sure hope, no matter how attractive sin at times can be.  

A close look at what salvation God offers us in his Son, who out of love for us died the most miserable death, can be far more attractive.

Prayer: He Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; thou holdest my lot.  I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I keep the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Ps 16:5, 7-8

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Never Alone

Today’s Gospel Text:  His disciples said, "Ah, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure! 30 Now we know that you know all things, and need none to question you; by this we believe that you came from God." 31 Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe? 32 The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, every man to his home, and will leave me alone; yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. 33 I have said this to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." John 16:29-33

Reflection: Loneliness is a great sickness they say. It can be killing and begins to haunt the ones who are facing it.

Yet there are many who prefer to be left alone, it is normally for a while because as the effects of loneliness begins to haunt then one wants to come out of it.

We may sometimes dream of being alone and quiet, especially when we are disturbed and hurt.

One of the greatest fact of life is that we could be in the midst of our family, friends and loved ones and yet be lonely.

What happens to a person who goes through so much of battering in life that he or she now can’t trust anyone and prefers to be in isolation? Is it not a situation of depression and pain?

Such a battering may not always be from people but can also be from the self which speaks the many voices of condemnation to the fragile mind and conscience.

Such are the types who are then suicidal, with the evil one assaulting the mind and conscience to give up.  

Some may in such situations adopt a spirituality of death, available in the plenty in the market places, because of their strong will to fight back. 

The market place is filled with such New Age spiritualities and practices to overcome stress of loneliness too. 

Yet in the midst of these challenges there are some who may deliberately adopt a way of life of moving away from the world, cutting oneself completely as in a cloistered or monastery.

Those who do so know that they are not alone in their loneliness and have learned to live in the company of the select or even in the company of God, as revealed in Christ Jesus.

Jesus in himself faced plenty of situation of loneliness, even in the midst of his select disciples; because no one really understood what he had to tell them and more so in his moments of rejection, betrayal and pain.

In such a moment he speaks the secret meant for all his followers: “The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, every man to his home, and will leave me alone; yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me.” (vs. 32)

Prayer:  Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down upon the heavens and the earth? Ps 113:5-6

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Shepherds Voice

Today’s Gospel Text:  It was the feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem; 23 it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered round him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." 25 Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness to me; 26 but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; 28 and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one." John 10:22-30

Reflection: One of the most humorous aspect of life is when people ask you a question and you know for sure that they would not believe and invariably they will not.

And they will ask you again and again, requiring of you and even reprimanding you for not speaking the truth.  In other words the answer they expect is the answer that is in their mind.

Simply put: they expect an answer which is a lie!

Such is the nature of truth too; the highest truth about God and his existence, his nature and his intervention in creation. Humans down the ages have distorted it, sometimes beautifully. 

The majority prefer the God of their imagination and so whatever truth we may have of the one true living God whom Jesus has revealed, even proving by the greatest ever sacrifice of the cross, is distorted. 

A distorted lie is preferable and hence the Gospel has met with obstacles wherever it is proclaimed. The worst is when men in authority in the church have distorted this message and reduced it to a social agenda, calling for a brotherhood of humanity based on distorted lies.

Such a house will definitely not last but the damage has been done even as a severe judgment awaits these false prophets whose god is their stomach and their self-glory.

Hence, to be focused on only the Jews as breakers of this norm is another distortion,  their attitude of doubting Jesus and his Christhood should be an eye-opener for each one of us to check our conscience and ask whether we are sincere in seeking God and his wisdom, to guide us into the right path.

It is again a call to develop the gift of discerning the voice of the Shepherd who guides us amidst the clutter of the many voices that speak, some even with the greatest sense of logic but based on a wrong premise.

May the Lord in his mercy, allow not his chosen to go astray but strengthen them to listen to his voice.

Prayer: May I seek you Jesus and your voice to guide me, in all that I do.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Life of God

Today’s Gospel Text: The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" 53 So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; 54 he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live for ever." 59 This he said in the synagogue, as he taught at Caper'na-um. John 6:52-59

Reflection: Yuck! Eating the flesh of any man? Yet there have been tribes who have been cannibals by nature and there have been some who have been even living on the dead.

How can men who are rational being ever do that; rationality with a conscience?

However yucky it may sound, in reality we sinful creatures tend to be cannibals, if not in the literal sense then at least in the allegorical sense we do.

We eat up people when we kill them with words or trouble them.

We kill people through our self-centered sinful ways, even though these ways may not affect our relationship with others directly.

Above all we kill people by allowing ourselves to be killed. How do we do this?

When we do not recognize the source of life or are unable to recognize him who alone is able to save us then we are walking the path of death and even drag those over whom we act as guardians and leaders and all those whom we relate with.

Apart from God each one of us is walking the path of damnation; the God revealed by Christ Jesus and through whose sacrifice we have life, even eternal life.

Jesus reconciles us to the God by the sacrifice of the cross and introduces us to God as our beloved Father.

The necessary sacrifice of Jesus was to save us from death as asserted by the following scriptures: 

• "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; (vs. 53)

•  He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.(vs. 54)   

• He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. (vs. 56)  

• As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. (vs.57)

Prayer:  Lord, give us your life that we may never walk in darkness.

                                                                                     

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Born Again

Today’s Gospel Text: 'You must be born anew.' 8 The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with every one who is born of the Spirit." 9 Nicode'mus said to him, "How can this be?" 10 Jesus answered him, "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand this? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen; but you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life." John 3:7-15

Reflection: “You must be born anew” and so we have the Born Again Christians!

Are they the select and the elect or what should be the response to such claim of being “Born Again”?

Are we also called to be born again or shall we resign ourselves to the fact that we are baptized Christians and now in no need to be born again?

 If one understands what Jesus meant when he said that we must be ‘Born Again’ then one would know what we should be doing to live up to this calling and whether we still need to be one in spite of being baptized in the faith:

“The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." (vs.8)

These are some of the questions that everyone who claim themselves to be Christians, irrespective whether we are Born Again or not, should ask:

·     Are we in any way different then the people of the world? Is there something about us which is unique in relation to Christ and his Gospel?

·      Do people hear the sound of the gospel rather than our sounds? In other words: whom do we proclaim, Christ or ourselves?

·      Do people have more information about ourselves or do they have more information of Christ Jesus through us, as his mere instrument.  

·     God the Lord of all creation makes the wind to blow where he want to: are we directed by this our Lord and God to blow where he wants to and when? (cfr. Gen. 8:1; Ex. 15:10; Ps. 78:26; 147:18; Rev. 7:1)

If one is genuine in searching ones conscience in the light of the grace of God and his Holy Spirit then one will realize that what has begun in baptism is an ongoing process because the wind never dies off but continues in spurts and intervals, in strength and absence.

But it has to continue in dedication, with endurance and determination and just claiming that one is Born Again is never enough!

  

Prayer: Restore us to thyself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old! Lam 5:21

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Perfect Duty

Today’s Gospel Text:  And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, 27 and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. 28 The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

30 And he said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade." Mark 4:26-32

Reflection: There are some people who are only concerned with performing their duty and nothing else.

There are some who hold on to this philosophy as if it is the only thing in life that counts; duty for duty sake!

It is a wonderful noble thought, but how can one  think about duty without a goal in life? On the other hand, a compulsion to perform, not originating from an upright moral source, is dangerous.

When one diligently follows the orders of duty without asking the subjective conscience, which God has created and which, unless it is totally contaminated, can result in moral degeneration of the society.

One of the popular examples of such obedience to the call of the duty is the famous holocaust and many genocides committed in the name of duty.

It is necessary for humanity to be safe in what it practices, in all of one’s action. One cannot just say we have to be practical and without asking conscience work for the betterment of society. That betterment has to be first defined, before being dutiful.

To those who would pay more attention to performing their duty then the best is what Christ Jesus gives us and he even shows us, in the parable above, the fruit of such a labour in God’s vineyard.

Such a duty is sound in every doctrine, because one will first pick up the seed which Christ himself, by means of the gospel, gives us and we have to dutifully sow it.

What is more, he shows us the process our action will generate and the fruit it will produce. Christ Jesus approves of the fruit and there is a reward that awaits, not the wages that perish but the abundance that should accompany us to eternal life.

Prayer: Lord, I pray that I may seek to sow the seed of the gospel and have the strength to do so dutifully.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Uselessness of Good Deed

Today’s Gospel Text: And behold, one came up to him, saying, "Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?" 17 And he said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good? One there is who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments." 18 He said to him, "Which?" And Jesus said, "You shall not kill, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, 19 Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 20 The young man said to him, "All these I have observed; what do I still lack?" 21 Jesus said to him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." 22 When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. Matt 19:16-22

Reflection: That man in the gospel was much more perfect than the many of who are still worse off. He tells Jesus that he has observed the good commandments of the giver of all good: God himself.

If that man, even after keeping all the commandments perfectly, felt that he lacked something that could prevent his entering into life eternal, then what would happen to the many who falter in every bit of the commandment or who break even one of them?

In the light of the young man’s experience of life and that too in the presence of Jesus, who scripture reveals will be the ultimate to judge the living and the dead, the above question becomes a serious issue for reflection.

What chances do those who follow their conscience or still follow a religion of justification by the law stand? What chances do those who are looked upon as good people, because of their honesty and sincerity, stand in order to enter into eternal life? 

What chances can those who sincerely think that they can and will enter eternal life, purely on the merits of their good works, stand?

As for me, though the young man was sincere in every detail and spoke truthfully, in keeping with his self judgment, he was still not following the commandments perfectly as it was required. Was he still being dishonest? In keeping with his subjective conscience he was not dishonest either; that’s the limitation of our conscience and its knowing!

But fortunately for that man, somewhere in his heart he still felt convicted that he lacked something. That something was his imperfect love of God, the breaking of the first and primary commandment.

Most of us fail in keeping this commandment of loving God and thus even falter and walk imperfectly in the practice of the other commandments too.

Prayer: Lord, may my conscience be ever alive to the promptings of your Holy Spirit and that I may love you above all things.  

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Form your conscience

Today’s Gospel:  King Herod heard of it; for Jesus' name had become known. Some said, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him." 15 But others said, "It is Eli'jah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." 16 But when Herod heard of it he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised." 17 For Herod had sent and seized John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Hero'di-as, his brother Philip's wife; because he had married her. 18 For John said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 19 And Hero'di-as had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he was much perplexed; and yet he heard him gladly. 21 But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and the leading men of Galilee. 22 For when Hero'di-as' daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will grant it." 23 And he vowed to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." 24 And she went out, and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of John the baptizer." 25 And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." 26 And the king was exceedingly sorry; but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. 27 And immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard and gave orders to bring his head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb. Mark 6:14-29

Reflection:  Conscience is not always a perfect guide, when it is not formed then it is dangerous and still worse.  Then there is the hardening of one’s conscience and there is a consequence of hardening of one’s conscience, it begins to manifest in states of confusion and disturbance.

Who does not believe in the consequence of sins inherited? If one were to study conscience and its role in human development then one will realize that this disturbance and confusion of Herod is as a result of hardening of his conscience. Consider passing on this confusion to children and generations.  Many a times there are certain trends that are manifested in certain families and cultures because of the belief systems which over rule legitimate conscience.

In the gospel of today Herod is in a state of confusion, not just for his action of beheading John the Baptist but also for his other action of marrying his Brother Philip’s wife contrary to Jewish law and customs; it is an indication of his hedonistic lifestyle.  God had to send John the Baptist to remind him of his obligation to his brother and not to abuse his position as king.

God’s word is best formative of our consciences. Even a dead conscience is brought to life by God’s word through the action of the Holy Spirit, if only we allow him.

Prayer: Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! Ps 139:23-24

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us