Faithfulness and Love

Monthly Archives: May 2015

Monday of the 2nd Week of Advent

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How many of us have got steadfast and great faith that Jesus would be able to help us and heal us? Some of us say that we have faith, but when help or healing does not happen, we begin to doubt and begin to look for other ways or means of help. Some of us say we have faith, but in our minds we are already having a defeatist attitude, thinking that we are only kidding ourselves. How many of us are willing to be patient and let Jesus do what is best for us, for the glory of God?

In today’s Gospel, the paralysed man was fortunate to have friends who had great faith in Jesus. They had so much faith in Jesus that they were even willing to take the trouble and: “went up on to the flat roof and lowered him and his stretcher down through the tiles into the middle of the gathering, in front of Jesus.” This is because “the crowd made it impossible to find a way of getting him in.” Because of the great faith of such friends, the paralysed man was cured.

If people could have such great faith in Jesus and go through so much trouble to help the paralysed man be cured, what about us? Are we willing to put aside our fears, our doubts, and our insecurities and let Jesus be our help and guide? Do we not trust in God’s providence? Let us be persistent and consistent in trusting God, since He can help us according to His terms and for His glory.

2nd Sunday of Advent Year C

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There are some among us who have used the words “happiness” and “joy” so often, that the meaning may have become lost in translation. There is actually a huge difference between joy and happiness. You can experience joy without feeling happy, but you can’t experience happiness without being joyful. Happiness is a feeling that changes with the emotions we have in a day, but joy is a constant state of being that we choose. Happiness is an outward expression of a feeling we have inside, while joy is an inward peace and contentment that expresses itself through our responses and reactions. So, though we may be experiencing trials and sufferings in our faith life, we can still experience true or perfect joy, which we also call as Christian joy, since as the second reading tells us, God “who began this good work in you will see that it is finished when the Day of Christ Jesus comes.” It is a joy based on what God can do instead of what we can achieve.

Christian joy is a choice, a decision based on faith and hope, knowing that God will not abandon us, no matter what happens. God did not promise us an easy life, but that He will be with us at all times, and God is faithful to what He has promised. In today’s Gospel, we read the fulfillment of one such promise, where “All mankind shall see the salvation of God.” Jesus is the salvation of God, promised from of old and He is the source of our joy and our hope. If we believe that Jesus is our salvation, then we should remain joyful, and not live lives as if we are defeated or victims of tragedy. Though we may have undergone failure, experienced pain, disappointment, challenges and encountered all sorts of other difficulties or problems, our joy lies in knowing that God has won the victory for us. We may not see the signs of God’s victory at the moment, but it is there. This is God’s promise and He is always faithful.

So we cannot just sit down and sulk or do nothing. We must do our part. We must prepare a way for the Lord, by having a conversion in our lives. St. Paul in the second reading prays that “your love for each other may increase more and more and never stop improving your knowledge and deepening your perception so that you can always recognise what is best. This will help you to become pure and blameless, and prepare you for the Day of Christ, when you will reach the perfect goodness which Jesus Christ produces in us for the glory and praise of God.” This too should be our prayer. May we grow and become ever more joyful in the Lord, and share this joy with all we meet.

Housekeeping – 1st Week of Advent

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For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

29 Nov 2015 – 1st Sunday of Advent Year C
30 Nov 2015 – Saint Andrew, Apostle – Feast
1 Dec 2015 – Tuesday of the 1st Week of Advent
2 Dec 2015 – Wednesday of the 1st Week of Advent
3 Dec 2015 – Saint Francis Xavier, Priest – Patron of Missions – Feast
4 Dec 2015 – Friday of the 1st Week of Advent

Saint Francis Xavier, Priest – Patron of Missions – Feast

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How do we transmit the Good News to others? Some of us think that we can get information about faith from the internet, from others who teach about faith, from our Christian friends or relatives, from books and magazines, and many other sources of information. While all these methods or means of are fine and good, we also need to do our part so that the Good News be heard by others.

This is why, in today’s Gospel, Jesus commands us: “Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.” As Christians, we are commissioned to preach the Good News to all around us, as best we can. We cannot just sit back and relax, expecting others to do it, since each and every Christian has a duty to preach the Good News. Have we been making effort and doing our part in sharing and promoting our Christian faith, just as Jesus has commanded us to do?

Wednesday of the 1st Week of Advent

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How much do we really care about others? Do we care about the people around us? Do we care about the people in our neighbourhood? Do we care about what is going on in our country? Many of us may say we care, but how much do we care? Just a little? A bit more? A lot? Saying that we care is easy, since words are cheap. But what have we done or are doing to show we care? Sometimes, some of us may just give a few Malaysian ringgit or dollars for the needs of people around us, but is that all we are willing to do? Or are we willing to do much more than that? How many of us are willing to give not only financial help, but also our time and talents so that others may learn to grow and change? Are we willing to even give all that we have, for the glory of God?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus not only cured the lame, blind, crippled, dumb and many others, He also fed them. Jesus shows us what it means to go that extra mile for another person, instead of just dealing with the person’s immediate needs and be done with it. May we be willing to learn from our loving Lord, and be loving and caring to others, just as He is loving and caring to all of us.

Wednesday of the 1st Week of Advent

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Nowadays, we are seeing more and more people becoming more and more concerned only about themselves. It seems as if “the survival of the fittest” is becoming more and more important than being in community or even being in family. In certain countries, the situation has come to such a state where even the parents are given a legislation where they could sue their children for maintenance and upkeep, as some of such countries have seen an increasing number of people abandoning or ignoring their parents. What is happening to such countries? Have people forgotten about being human, being a family, or even being a community? Has the attitude of “me, myself and I” become more important?

In today’s Gospel, we see a contrast between Jesus and His disciples. The disciples seemed to be more concerned about their needs, but Jesus was more concerned about the crowd, not only by teaching and healing them, but also in seeing to their welfare by giving them something to eat. Logistically speaking, the disciples seemed to be in a nightmarish situation, since realistically, it seemed impossible to feed so many. But what the disciples failed to realise is that Jesus is not just any ordinary preacher, and He showed them the true meaning of love and compassion by taking that extra step in giving the crowd something to eat.

What about us? Would we be willing to take that extra step and feed the multitude, not only spiritual food, but also physical food? Or have we become so concerned only about the costs and about ourselves? May we do our best to be like Jesus in the way He loved and served the crowd, so that others would know we are Christians by our love.

Tuesday of the 1st Week of Advent

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Some of us may have grown up entertained in a world of make believe, especially when we were children. We may have fantasised about fairy tales, imaginative heroes and imaginative villians, imaginative friends, and many other forms to keep ourselves happy, occupied and entertained. But what happens when we grow up, when we grow older? Quite possibly, we may come face to face with reality, that what we imagine or fantasise is not likely to happen, or we may begin to become more and more realistic about life, and set aside the many forms of imagination which we once had.

In today’s reading, what we hear from the prophet Isaiah seem to be like a fairy tale or figments of our imagination. The wolf lives with the lamb, the lion eats straw like the ox, the infant plays over the cobra’s hole: all these seem to portray a picture of serenity, peace and harmony. But could such things ever happen in the real world? Those of us who remain sceptical or realist in our thinking may say that such things are mere fairy tales or imagination. But God can make the impossible possible, and His ways are not our ways. What we thought to be imagination could be made real by God. So let us not remain doubtful or sceptical, but become like mere children as mentioned in the Gospel, knowing that our God can do wonders beyond our imagination and expectation. Let us learn to be more dependent in Him, and walk in His ways, while doing our part in promoting peace and harmony.

Saint Andrew, Apostle – Feast

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Some of us may be able to learn certain subjects through the internet these days. The internet has become so full of resources that we can get information about a certain topic or subject, and learn much about it with ease. However, we also know that the information available on the internet is not always accurate or reliable. We need to be cautious about what we read, because what we sometimes get could be false or inaccurate.

What about information concerning faith? Can we learn about faith through the internet? To some extend, we may glean some information there, but once again, we need to be cautious and verify that the source of such information concerning faith is reliable and reputable. That is why it is sometimes better to learn about faith from a person or persons who has been properly trained and qualified in teaching about faith to others. As St. Paul reminds us in today’s reading: “Faith comes from what is preached, and what is preached comes from the word of Christ.” May we be alert and cautious not to be misled by false information or false doctrine, but go and seek those who can preach it to us, those who really know their stuff and teach what the church teaches.

1st Sunday of Advent Year C

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Every year, many of us would celebrate the new year to remember and give thanks to God for all the blessings of the past year and also take the opportunity to pray for a good year ahead. But today’s readings and Gospel seems to give us a different way of how Christians should celebrate the new year. What is this different way all about? This different way is that we celebrate the new year not by looking to the past or to the following year but to focus on the end of time or on the end of the world. It seems strange for us to focus on the end of time, so why should we do so, since some may find the end of time a not-so-pleasant topic?

Today’s Gospel appears to give us a frightening picture of the end of the world: “There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamour of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken.” For some, such natural disasters may seem scary or frightening, but science has shown us that such natural disasters mean that the earth is growing and evolving, which are signs of life instead of death. Planets that no longer have such natural disasters like earthquakes, storms, or volcanoes have no life, in other words, they are dead. Jesus gives us examples of such natural disasters to describe the end of the world and tell us that something new is about to take place. This means that, from this point of view, we should see the end of the world as a celebration of hope instead of fear.

Some of us may be wondering: when and how will all these take place? When and how is not important, but what we should do in preparation for such an event should be our focus. To begin with, even if there is confusion in our lives, even if things don’t go according to plan, nobody should lose heart, as Jesus reminds us: “When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.” Also, we may be tempted to run away or look for excuses or other solutions when faced with problems and challenges in the world, but we should instead watch ourselves and stay alert and ready, as Jesus reminds us: “Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, like a trap.” Moreover, we must “stay awake and pray.” This means that we must take our spiritual growth seriously, as St. Paul in the second reading urges each and every one of us to continue growing in our faith life.

So what does this mean to us? It means that we cannot rest on our laurels and think that we have plenty of time to grow closer to God. Instead, we should be consistent and persistent in our efforts to grow in our spiritual life and in our relationship with God and with others, as St. Paul advises us in the second reading: “We urge you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus to make more and more progress in the kind of life that you are meant to live: the life that God wants, as you learnt from us, and as you are already living it.” May we do our best and stay alert and prepared, with hope and confidence that God will be our providence and guide.