Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: 16th

Tuesday of Week 16 Year 1

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Some people seem to think that being related to a priest or a bishop gives them the right to demand special treatment or certain privileges. Just because such people are either the parents, sibling or related to the priest or bishop in some way, they think that others must kow tow to them or satisfy their demands. Some of such people even have the gall to threaten others by claiming that if their demands are not met, or if they don’t get the treatment they think they deserve, then they would complain to the priest or bishop, thinking that the priest or bishop would entertain their complaint. But is this the kind of “relationship” that Jesus expects of us?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is reminding us that having a relationship with Him is more than just familial or blood-relationship. In the Gospel, He says: “‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.'” Are we claiming “relationship” with Jesus only in name, while we lord it over others? Or have we learnt to be humble and do the will of God?

Monday of Week 16 Year 1

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Some people can never be satisfied or content, no matter how much you have done for them. Give them an inch, and they demand a yard; pacify them by giving in to some of their demands, and they may try to take away more if given the slightest opportunity. Such people are impossible to please, since whatever they are given is never enough, and there may seem to be no end to their demands. Could some of us fall into the category of such people?

In today’s reading, we come across the Israelites who are classic examples of such people. The Israelites had been rescued out of Egypt by God. God had provided for them and protected them but when they discovered that the Egyptians were in pursuit of them, they began to doubt God’s sincerity, despite all He had done for them so far. The Israelites were terrified and cried out to the Lord, and even had the gall to say to Moses:”‘Were there no graves in Egypt that you must lead us out to die in the wilderness? What good have you done us, bringing us out of Egypt? We spoke of this in Egypt, did we not? Leave us alone, we said, we would rather work for the Egyptians! Better to work for the Egyptians than die in the wilderness!” But did God get angry or fed up with these Israelites? No. He still continued to rescue them even though they were ungrateful and difficult to satisfy.

What about us? Have we been so stubborn and unsatisfied, no matter what God has done for us? Or have we so easily lost patience towards others, preferring to wash our hands off them instead of being patient and persistent towards them, just like God has been patient and persistent towards us? God did not abandon the Israelites and continued to care and provide for them. In the same way, God has not abandoned us, no matter how difficult, dire or dangerous the situation we may be in. Are we willing and humble enough to continue trusting in God and let Him care for us?

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

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Family members these days seem to be getting busier and busier with their own thing. Parents are busy with work, socialising with their friends, doing all sorts of errands, and other matters to attend to. Children are busy with school, college or university, socialising with their friends, doing errands entrusted to them, and other matters that crop up. Work, study and personal interests have become more and more important, at the expense of family life, family bonding and couple bonding. If left unchecked, family relationships suffer. We hear of more and more cases of couples divorcing, children developing social problems, and when these children grow up, they move away and abandon their aging parents, or even become misfits in society. The reason for these problems is that family members just do not seem to have time for each other, they have lost that bonding or loving feeling, they drift apart.

When it comes to our relationship with God, we too could be drifting away from Him when we pray less, when we seldom come to church, when we don’t hear His word in the bible, when we do not spend much time listening to Him in front of the Blessed Sacrament, and when we do not get involved in the various church activities. We become more and more engrossed with the ways of the world, while becoming less and less connected to God. We begin to lose our ability to listen to His voice, until one day, we may find that we have become alienated from Him. Why? Because we have, through our actions, attitude and behaviour, chosen to abandon Him, even though we may not always realise it until it is too late. On the other hand, God has not abandoned us. In fact, He is constantly looking out for us, earnestly and tenderly calling us to return to Him, but we have neglected or have become less and less sensitive to listen to His voice.

In today’s gospel reading, we see how the apostles themselves were so enthusiastically caught up with their work that they had forgotten the need to spend time with one another and with Jesus. Work is good and important, but spending time with one another and with God in prayer and reflection is more important. We sometimes forget that we are not superman or superwoman, since without prayer, we will not have the spiritual strength, stamina and energy to face the many challenges of life which come our way. We will soon experience burnout, fatigue and frustration.

In the first reading, the prophet Jeremiah has issued a stern warning to all of us, clergy, religious and laity alike: “Doom for the shepherds who allow the flock of my pasture to be destroyed and scattered… You have let my flock be scattered and go wandering and have not taken care of them. Right, I will take care of you for your misdeeds…” Each and every one of us have been called and chosen to be shepherds in our own situations, and we have been entrusted to the moral, educational and spiritual development of not only ourselves, but also of those under our care. If we fail or neglect to take care of the pastoral needs of all under our care, then God will “raise up shepherds to look after them and pasture them.” We will face the consequences of our neglect. Are we aware of this? Have we taken the necessary steps to address this before it is too late?

Being a shepherd caring for God’s flock is certainly no easy task. Moreover, the shepherd is not only the clergy, since each and every one of us are called to be shepherds in our own way and in our own circumstances. We must follow the example of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, but if we have been so caught up with our own busy schedule that we have no time for God, for our families or others, then how are we going to be effective shepherds and effective witnesses of the Gospel? No. We cannot nourish others if we ourselves are malnourished or stressed out. That is why we must heed Jesus’ voice, beckoning us in today’s Gospel to “come away to some lonely place all by yourselves and rest for a while.” Let us not take lightly or play play with Jesus’ invitation. Rather, let us seize the opportunity to rest a while with the Lord and with each other, so that we will be rejuvenated and recharged to become effective shepherds in our different situations, following after the example of Jesus, our loving and Good Shepherd.

Thursday of Week 16 Year 2

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Some of us could be quite stubborn or refusing to admit our mistakes. We may prefer to continue living in a particular way of life, or do things a certain way, because we refuse to change or come out of our comfort zone. Some of us may try to change but we procrastinate or are distracted with so many other things that the world has to offer.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His disciples about the crowd: “Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see. Coarse is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted, and I heal them.” Ultimately, it is our choice. We can choose to change our ways and let God care and heal us just like He did for the disciples; or we can choose to remain like the crowd. Are our hearts so cold and stubborn that we are still like the crowd? Or have we learnt to become more like Jesus’ disciples; being open to God’s care and healing?

Wednesday of Week 16 Year 2

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Some of us at some point or another question what is our purpose in life. We reflect on our history and the many little things that have happened along the way, and some of us may have noticed God’s promptings. Sometimes, in our reflection, we may have discovered our true vocation. Have you discovered your true vocation? Do you know what needs to be done?

In today’s reading, Jeremiah discovered his vocation when He encountered the word of the Lord. The Lord had appointed him a prophet of the nations and the Lord said to him: “To whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak. Have no fear before them because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.” With such instructions and assurance from the Lord, Jeremiah was able to go forth and do as the Lord wanted of him.

What about us? The Lord may be calling you. Have you heard His voice? He has plans for you but are you willing to let Him take control and guide you? Let us open our hearts and listen carefully for His promptings.

Tuesday of Week 16 Year 2

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Some people get the impression that God is like a policeman, just waiting to catch us and punish us for doing or committing the smallest sin. Others tend to think that God is an unforgiving God who keeps track of our sins. Some think that God is like a fierce and fiery volcano, always angry and ever ready to spout out lava and cause suffering to us. As Christians, what sort of God do we really have?

Today’s reading gives us glimpses of the kind of God we have. The reading tells us that God:

  • Is a shepherd to all of us…
  • Removes guilt and pardons sin for the remnant of his inheritance;
  • Does not persist in anger forever but delights rather in clemency,
  • Have compassion on us, treading underfoot our guilt?
  • Cast into the depths of the sea all our sins;
  • Show faithfulness

Seeing that we have such a loving, caring and forgiving God, what about our attitudes and behaviour towards others? Are we just as loving, caring and forgiving to others like God is to us?

Monday of Week 16 Year 2

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Some of us think that we need to do a lot of things to win favour from God. Others think that they must behave in a certain way to gain God’s blessings. Sometimes in our efforts to stay in good relationship with God, we may be neglecting our relationship with others. We think that our relationship with God is all that matters. But today’s reading reminds us: “What is good has been explained to you, man; this is what the Lord asks of you: only this, to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God.”

Are we acting justly towards others? Do we really love others just as God loves us all? Are we humble enough to admit our limitations and mistakes? If we are unable to love, forgive, seek forgiveness, reconcile, be loving and humble towards others whom we can see, then how can we claim to love God whom we cannot see?

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

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What is strength? What is weakness? We sometimes equate strength or weakness with the amount of energy or muscle we have. Some of us think that strength means being able to hold your own, to avoid losing face, being able to deal with a situation effectively to our advantage. Some people think that one needs to be “kiasu” or “scared to lose” to be strong. Some think that to be strong, one needs to be adept or capable of putting a brave front, refusing to give in, refusing to admit our mistakes or errors, refusing to say sorry or apologise, refusing to forgive others who may have hurt us or done something wrong. But are we really strong in these situations?

Today’s readings give us a different view or understanding of strength. Strength means having compassion. In the First Reading, we learn that God’s justice has its source in strength, and yet God is mild in judgement, and God governs us with great lenience. He could have easily used His Power to punish us or wipe out our enemies, but He chose not to. This is a great example of God’s compassion towards all of us, regardless of who we are. In the Second Reading, we come to realise that God is always there to help us and guide us, even in our weaknesses. In the Gospel, we discover that each of us have got some good and some bad, some wheat and some darnel, all mixed up together. We are not perfect and no one is completely strong or completely weak. By learning to have compassion, we learn to accept our own weaknesses and limitations. By recognising our own weaknesses and our need for God’s forgiveness and compassion, we will also begin to be compassionate with our brothers and sisters who are struggling in one way or another like us.

At the end of the day, we need to learn to be compassionate, just as our Heavenly Father is compassionate to all. Being compassionate does not mean we will be at the losing end or that we are weak. Instead, we would learn to be more like our strong, loving and benevolent God.