For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
26 July 2015 – 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B
27 July 2015 – Monday of Week 17 Year 1
28 July 2015 – Tuesday of Week 17 Year 1
29 July 2015 – St. Martha, Memorial
30 July 2015 – Thursday of Week 17 Year 1
31 July 2015 – Friday of Week 17 Year 1
Supposing one day your parish priest gets transferred to another parish, and you are to receive a new parish priest. Or supposing a religious sister who has been working with the parish community for years is transferred elsewhere and a new religious sister is coming to take her place. Would you be excited or anxious? Perhaps some of us may be quite excited about the prospect of working with “new blood” or with a different style of leadership. Some of us may be somewhat anxious, since we have not received news about who is coming to succeed the parish priest or the religious sister. Then the day comes, and guess who has come to take over? A son or daughter of the parish, that is, someone whose origins are from the parish he or she is now being posted to. What happens then? Some people may be become quite disappointed. Some may begin to feel resentment and frustration that the bishop or superior seems to have “played them out” so to speak, by sending someone they are familiar with, perhaps too familiar with.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells us: “‘A prophet is only despised in his own country and in his own house’, and he did not work many miracles there because of their lack of faith.” The people did not accept Jesus because he was a son of that community, people there thought they knew Him too well, and they already had preconceived opinions and ideas about Him. Their hearts were closed and they did not think Jesus had anything to offer them. As a result, they had rejected Jesus upfront, without even giving Him a chance to help and guide them.
Some of us too may have this attitude problem. Some of us think that a son or daughter of the parish is just not good enough to be our shepherd and guide. We know that we are short of vocations, and yet when we have a son or daughter of the parish in our midst, our preconceived ideas and opinions surface and rear their ugly heads, making it difficult for some to accept a familiar face. The question is: are we willing and docile enough to change our attitude and work with the son or daughter of the parish? Who knows, he or she may turn out to be an amazing and loving shepherd and guide. May we be willing to let go of our coloured vision and journey together even with someone we are familiar with, for God can use him or her as an instrument to transform the parish into something better.
Does anyone not want to be with the Lord in heaven? I believe most people would want to be with the Lord in heaven, and we would try our utmost best to live good Christian lives and try to avoid any occasion of sin with the help of God. But though it may seem strange, we do get people who do not want to be with the Lord in heaven for some reason or another. At the end of the day, whether we end up with the Lord in heaven or otherwise, depends on our fundamental option, which is the ultimate choice we make and we remain steadfast to that choice.
In today’s Gospel, we read: “Jesus said to the crowds, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea that brings in a haul of all kinds. When it is full, the fishermen haul it ashore; then, sitting down, they collect the good ones in a basket and throw away those that are no use. This is how it will be at the end of time: the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the just to throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.'” How we have lived our lives as Christians would give us some indication of whether we would end up in the basket or thrown away. May we not slack or neglect our responsibilities as Christians, constanly forgiving and asking for forgiveness, and making every effort to grow in our spiritual life and maintaining good relationship with God, so that we may be happy and rejoice in His presence for all eternity.
Many of us seem quite busy doing many things these days. We have to juggle work, leisure, family commitments and many other activities that eat into the amount of time we have each day. Some of us even complain that there does not seem to be enough hours in a day to get everything done. We begin to get uptight, stressed, frazzled, high-strung and moody as there seems so much to do and we find it difficult to cope.
In today’s Gospel, a woman named Martha welcomed Jesus into her house and made Him feel at home. In fact, she began to become extremely busy trying to make Jesus comfortable, that she too began to get uptight and stressed. On the other hand, her sister Mary sat down at the Lord’s feet and listened to him speaking. Some of us may have wondered: isn’t Mary being selfish and mean by leaving her sister Martha to do all the serving? Actually, no. Jesus gives us the answer in the Gospel: “‘Martha, Martha,’ he said ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.'”
Sometimes in our community gatherings, we may have been just like Martha, so busy doing so many other things and forgetting the actual meaning and purpose of the community gathering, which is usually to pray and reflect together. While it is good to have refreshments and fellowship as part of community bonding, we should not lose focus on why we gather in the first place. May we depend on the Lord and learn when to be like Martha, and when to be like Mary.
Some of us seem to be looking for quick solutions or instant gratification in this world. Some of us may become increasingly impatient when we do not get what we want or achieve what we desire. This could lead us to commit sin, especially when the options we think are open to us involve acts or practices which are wicked, mean, sinful or illegal. Some of us may have gone ahead and committed sin, because we allowed our pride and ego to take control of us. As we continue to try and satisfy our desires, we may find that we have drifted further and further away from God. But God is ever patient. He is constantly calling us to return to Him. In spite of the many sins we may have committed, God is willing to take us back if we are willing to repent, seek forgiveness and change our ways. The question is: are we allowing ourselves to be consumed by our pride and ego, or are we willing to let go and let God take control?
In today’s Gospel, we come across an explanation of the parable about the darnel. Jesus had cautioned us: “Just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!” Have we become more and more worldly and committed all sorts of evil or offences to satisfy our desires, and feed our ego and pride? Are we refusing to change our ways and remain like the darnel, only to face eternal damnation at the end? God is ever patient and merciful, and He is waiting for us to turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel. It is up to us to make the decision to change, and do our utmost best to avoid any occasion of sin, with the help of God.
Some of us may have felt quite insecure as babies, toddlers or young children, when our parents were not around, even for a short moment. When our parents were not nearby even for a short moment, some of us may get into trouble or danger, and our parents would end up having to run and rescue us from our predicament. When we went to school or kindergarten for the first time, some of us may have created a scene and were reluctant to let go of mum (in some cases, even dad), and we would be bawling away. Actually, our parents were still around but in our mind, we may have been fearful and feeling insecure, thinking that they had abandoned us. It must have been quite stressful for our parents to have to put up with our behaviour during those early years. Fortunately, we would have eventually grown out of such fear and learnt to carry on without having to have our parents being present or keeping an eye on us all the time.
In today’s reading, we come across the sons of Israel who were behaving like babies, toddlers or young children. Just because Moses was not around for a moment, the sons of Israel thought that Moses and even God had abandoned them and they became increasingly worried and insecure. This made them make a gold calf to be their god to go at their head. Of course, their idolatry was inexcusable, and Moses had to plead with God on their behalf. Moses certainly was like a parent, frazzled with such attitude and behaviour among the sons of Israel, and yet, God was still merciful and continued to guide them.
Sometimes we may have been impatient, felt insecure, and feared being abandoned by God, especially when we are experiencing difficulties, persecution or even the possibility of death. But let us not despair or go off seeking other forms of help or even other so called gods, for God can and will help us. It is a question of whether we are willing to have full trust in God and be patient, humble and willing to let God take care of us, according to His time and for His glory.
What sort of world do we live in these days? Is the wealth of the world fairly and evenly distributed? Most likely, the wealth of the world is controlled by a few, maybe about less than ten percent of the entire world’s population. Some countries have got lots of resources, but these countries are often unwilling to share such resources with poorer countries, unless there is some benefit or advantage in it for them. For example, certain countries produces more than enough grain or other foodstuff to feed many of the poor in the world, but how much of these is shared? What is the problem here? It is basically greed and selfishness. Some people only think of themselves, are unwilling to share with others, are more concerned about protecting what is theirs, and in some cases even to the point of trying to increase what they have at the expense of others. Likewise, we see the same matter in our churches. There are many people who are skilled or talented in one way or another, but some people seem to be interested in using their skill or talent only if there is some sort of benefit, advantage or perk attached. It is like as if “what’s in it for me” is more important than “how can I be of service to glorify God.” It seems quite difficult to get some people to volunteer their talent or offer their help happily and willingly, since such people rather spend time shopping, going to the movies, making holiday trips, and sleeping, than spend that time serving in the church or helping someone else. Such people prefer to take care of their own needs and have time only for themselves and not for others. But as Christians, what sort of stance or attitude should we be having?
In today’s second reading, St. Paul reminds us to “bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience.” Today’s Gospel goes further by giving us a wonderful example of the kind of miracles that may happen when one is generous to share what little we possess. Many people think that the gospel story is merely a miracle where Jesus took five barley loaves and two fish and performed a miracle so that all five thousand men (not counting the women and children) could have enough to eat. But if we look closer, we would discover that the Gospel is more than that. It is about the generosity of the small boy who offered all that he had, five loaves and two fish. The disciples were not prepared to share. They felt that they had only enough for themselves to eat. But the boy was prepared to give up his food for others. He was not embarrassed about the amount that he had. He was prepared to give all that he had, although it may seem little to others. And what did Jesus do? He did what others thought was impossible, He fed so many with so few. Miracles happen when people are willing and happy to share what they have with others. When people are willing and happy to do so, there will always be enough. When we are prepared to share, God blesses us with much more. But for those who are not willing to share because they feel as if there is not enough to go around, no matter how much they try to amass and protect their resources, there will never be enough. They will never be satisfied, even if all has been given to them.
As Christians, we are supposed to be examples to others in our families, our community and our country. We are supposed to “bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience.” But if we take a good hard look at our lives, our behaviour, our attitude, and our conduct, are we living good Christian lives and practising Christian virtues? Are we following the example of Christ? Or have we become more and more immersed with the ways of the world, where greed, power, ego, ruthlessness, selfishness, impatience, intolerance and other kinds of vices seem to be more and more dominant? What is it that ultimately matters to us: the ways of Christ, or the ways of the world? May we be wise, careful and prudent with our choice, for our eternal future and happiness is at stake.
For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:
19 July 2015 – 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B
20 July 2015 – Monday of Week 16 Year 1
21 July 2015 – Tuesday of Week 16 Year 1
22 July 2015 – St. Mary Magdalene, Memorial
23 July 2015 – Thursday of Week 16 Year 1
24 July 2015 – Friday of Week 16 Year 1
As children, we would have learnt about the ten commandments at some point of our lives at Religious Education or catechism classes. Our teachers may have come up with creative ways for us to try and remember the ten commandments by heart, and many of us would have been able to recite the ten commandments with ease after a while. But did we understand what we were reciting? Perhaps to some degree, but as we grew older, some of us may have begun to forget the ten commandments.
In today’s reading, we are reminded once again of the ten commandments. Jesus summarised the ten commandments to two: love God and love neighbour. For many of us, loving God seems easier as we do not need to deal with Him directly face to face. But Jesus has also reminded us that we cannot love God if we do not love our neighbour. Loving our neighbour is certainly not easy, especially since we often encounter difficult people, or people who have hurt us or have been hurt by us, or people who seem so unlovable. But if we consider and ponder for a while, Jesus came and died on the cross for all of us and to save us from our sins. That is why we need to be constantly reminded of how we should live our lives by observing faithfully the ten commandments, which is basically the law of love. Are we able to put aside our pride, ego, self-centredness and selfish ways, and love all, God and neighbour alike, the way God loves us all?
