Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: 27th

Tuesday of Week 27 Year 1

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Some of us may have heard of the idiom, “once bitten twice shy,” which basically means when something or someone has hurt you once, you tend to avoid that thing or person. In the case of Jonah, this time he complied with God’s command, after having had the unpleasant experience of being in the fish’s belly for three days and threes nights and later vomited out on shore. Jonah went to warn the Ninevites of the impending doom coming their way. The Ninevites took Jonah’s warning seriously, and even the King of Nineveh issued a decree: “Men and beasts, herds and flocks, are to taste nothing; they must not eat, they must not drink water. All are to put on sackcloth and call on God with all their might; and let everyone renounce his evil behaviour and the wicked things he has done. Who knows if God will not change his mind and relent, if he will not renounce his burning wrath, so that we do not perish?”

The reading then tells us that “God saw their efforts to renounce their evil behaviour, and God relented: he did not inflict on them the disaster which he had threatened.” In the same way, when we listen to God’s warning and act upon it, we too may experience what the Ninevites experienced, and we would also avoid going through the unpleasant experience of Jonah. Are we willing to take seriously what God is telling us, before it is too late?

Monday of Week 27 Year 1

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If God calls you and asks you to do something, would you do it? Or would you try to find all sorts of excuses to avoid doing it?  Some of us may even go to the extent of trying to run away and hide, hoping that God would eventually let us go and not bother us, but that is not often the case. God is omnipotent and omniscient, meaning that He is all-powerful and all-knowing. This means that, no matter where we try to run, we cannot hide, for God can seek and find us anyhow.

In today’s reading, Jonah tried to run away from God, instead of doing His will by going to Nineveh. What Jonah failed to realise is that he was not dealing with just any other being, but he was dealing with God. Jonah tried to run away by boarding a ship to Tarshish, but God had other plans. In a way, the way God treated Jonah shows that He has got an interesting sense of humour, by causing Jonah to be swallowed by a big fish, only to be vomitted on to the shore after three days and three nights in the fish’s belly. Eww! Must have been quite yucky and disgusting to be stuck in a fish for a while.

In the same way, we too could experience a not so pleasant time like Jonah, if we choose to repeatedly ignore God’s voice. Sometimes we need to remember that God calls us because He has a better plan for us, and it would be to our benefit to do His will for His greater glory.

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B

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What does it mean to be married? Is marriage merely an event for show or for display, such as what we see in some of the reality shows appearing on television these days, which treats marriage as a form of entertainment? Some people may say that they have a right to get married, so long as they are at the right legal age, and they love each other. No matter what others say, no matter what the church may say, they insist that they have a right to marry. While the church recognises that individuals have a right to marry, the church also requires that those planning to marry be properly informed about what marriage is all about, in other words, what such individuals are getting themselves into.

Why is the church so fussy about preparing couples for marriage? What is the big deal, some may ask. Is the church behaving like a Big Brother, trying to control our lives, even when it comes to marriage? No. The church is not like that. It is precisely because we have seen many marriages fail, sometimes so quickly and at an alarming rate, that it is a great cause of concern. When affected couples were asked what had happened and what went wrong, it is quite often the same story: they were actually not ready for marriage, even though they had initially thought they were; they had not known each other long enough or well enough; they had not truly and clearly understood what commitment in marriage is all about; they were more concerned about their own needs and issues; and a significant number of affected couples realised that God was not present in their minds when they decided to get married. When you marry without being ready in all sense of the word, you are merely brewing a recipe for disaster, leading to another statistic for marriages gone bust.

The readings today gives us some understanding of what marriage is all about. We must realise that marriage is not a human institution but a divine institution. It is a vocation. Very often, God is forgotten in all the hustle and bustle of making preparations for marriage. Couples are more concerned with so many other things, that God and the church seems to have become a necessary inconvenience. Some couples feel as if they are being forced or pressured by their parents to marry in church. But what they forget is that it is God who makes marriages possible and lasting. If God is absent from our lives, it would really be very difficult to make the marriage work. Also, a marriage calls for couples to experience a conversion in their lives. Conversion must take place because, as Jesus reminds us in today’s Gospel: “the two must become one body.” Conversion must take place for couples to die to their selfishness and learn to live together as one. That is why the preparation is so important. Some people try to find ways and means to take short cuts during the preparation, but what they fail to realise is that Rome was not built in a day. If you want to graduate with a degree, you work hard for it and you pursue it relentlessly. Likewise, if you want to stay married, you must also be properly prepared and work hard for it. Moreover, marriage is about commitment. Love is all about commitment, and never about feelings and emotions. Commitment means accepting the whole package as is, “for better or for worse,” and not just pick and chooose the parts we like. Commitment means learning to forgive not once but again and again, and is more concerned with giving than with taking and receiving. Commitment calls us to change ourselves throughout our lives.

Today, marriages are in trouble. Couples are behaving more and more individualistic. The togetherness and oneness seems to have become lost in translation. Divorces have become so rampant. I recall being present for a hearing for divorce cases at a family court some time back, and on that one day, more than fifty cases were being heard, and each case was disposed like products moving along a conveyor belt. Can you imagine that? What has marriage become? Have some couples become so selfish and self-centred, that people are seen as objects to be used, and when they are no longer seen as useful, they are then discarded? This is why I pray that couples will take responsibility and initiative for their marriage to remain strong. Remember that your children learn from you, and your children too may someday follow in your footsteps. If your marriage is messed up, do something about it and seek help where necessary, don’t play play with your marriage, don’t wait until it is too late. Let us pray that God would continue to bring healing into our lives so that our lives would be filled with selfless love instead of selfishness.

Friday of Week 27 Year 2

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When people are jealous or envious of another person’s abilities, talents or achievements, some may begin to find ways and means to belittle the other person or put the other person down. Sometimes a person may go to the extend of committing character assassination on another person just to eliminate what they perceive is a threat to their prestige, power or position. There have also been cases of people actually going to the extend of committing murder. Pride could lead some people to committing hideous sins just to protect their interests or status.

In today’s Gospel, we see how some of the people were jealous when Jesus had cast out a devil, and they tried to belittle Jesus by saying “It is through Beelzebul, the prince of devils, that he casts out devils.” Others asked him, as a test, for a sign from heaven. By trying to belittle Jesus, these people were actually making a fool of themselves. They were talking rubbish or nonsense, as their jealousy had clouded their minds and made them unable to think or argue logically or sensibly. Moreover, Jesus began to “go to town” giving these people a good lecture or reprimand for making such silly comments or accusations.

What about us? Have we been quite jealous of other people, that we may have made similar comments? Have we allowed pride to take control of us? Let us be cautious and not allow ourselves to be consumed with jealousy and pride, as these would only lead us to our ruin. Let us learn to be humble and thankful for our gifts, abilities and talents, as well as the gifts, abilities and talents of others. God made each and every one of us unique and special in different ways. Why should we be jealous and proud?

Thursday of Week 27 Year 2

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Nowadays we tend to expect things to be done quite quickly. For example, we have instant coffee, instant tea, instant milo, or instant noodles. We also have ATM machines which enable us to withdraw money without having to wait for too long. We have machines to deposit money or a cheque, which also enables us to do our banking transactions quite easily. The internet too has made it easy for us to get instant news or latest updates of certain issues.

However, there are things in this world which are not so instant. For instance, when we pray and ask God for something, we do not always get our prayers answered instantly. Sometimes our prayers get answered much later, sometimes not at all. When our prayers do not get answered, what do we do? Some may begin to feel that God does not care and they give up or despair. Some may turn to other sources such as medicine men, witch doctors or fortune tellers, hoping that these other sources could help them, only to find that these other sources do not really help. Some pray to God but in their mind, they are already thinking that God would probably not help them or answer their prayers. But what about us? As Christians, what should be our attitude towards prayer?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us that we should be persistent in our prayer. Sometimes we need to persistently, patiently and repeatedly pray for God’s help, and be convinced that God would help us in His time and according to His plan. Have we been praying with sincerity, conviction and for His greater glory?

Wednesday of Week 27 Year 2

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When a person does something wrong, how would we respond? Supposing the person is a VIP (Very Important Person) or some high ranking official. Would we be daring or brave enough to tell the person that he or she is wrong (in a brotherly or sisterly manner perhaps)? But what if the person is somebody we happen to meet or know in our community, in our neighbourhood, or perhaps at church. Would we be willing to tell the person that he or she is wrong? Some of us may feel quite reluctant to tell a VIP or some high ranking official that he or she is wrong, but perhaps we may have no qualms to tell other persons of less importance or status. Why is this so? Are we being good examples by being fair and just to all?

In today’s reading, we see St. Paul being bold and willing to tell St. Peter off in his face. Even though St. Peter was an apostle and a VIP in those days, St. Paul was impartial in his counsel. St. Peter had done something wrong by suddenly changing his attitude towards eating with pagans, just because a certain group of friends of James arrived. St. Peter may have been unwilling to create tension or issues with those group of friends of James, but his conduct was unbecoming of an apostle, who is supposed to be loving and fair to all, without fear or favour. Because of this, St. Paul gave St. Peter a piece of his mind: he told him off!

What about us? As Christians, we should be fair and loving to all, regardless of status, rank, or importance. We should not discriminate in our praises or criticism. Are we one, united, brothers and sisters in Christ, children of God? Or have we become divisive and selective in our conduct and attitude towards people, imitating the ways of the world instead, when it comes to praises or criticism?

Monday of Week 27 Year 2

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Every once in a while, we come across a preacher who seems to be sharing the Good News quite different from what we have heard. For example, we may heard about some so called preachers who claim that we will receive greater rewards from God if we are more generous in our contributions or love offerings. Some are so easily taken in by such easy access to God’s grace and providence, that they are duped into parting with their cash and even property, thinking that they can so conveniently and so easily buy their way to heaven. More often than not, such so called preaching is only meant to enrich the preacher.

In today’s reading, St. Paul warns us: “if anyone preaches a version of the Good News different from the one you have already heard, he is to be condemned. So now whom am I trying to please – man, or God? Would you say it is men’s approval I am looking for? If I still wanted that, I should not be what I am – a servant of Christ. The fact is, brothers, and I want you to realise this, the Good News I preached is not a human message that I was given by men, it is something I learnt only through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” St. Paul is cautioning us to be vigilant, because many preachers claiming to proclaim the Good News could emerge and give us false teaching. We could notice such preachers in their motives and in their fruits; whether what they are doing is for the glory of God, or for their own glory while lining their pockets. Let us not be so easily taken for a ride, and adhere to true and proper preaching, for the good of our eternal future.

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

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As we journey through life, we begin to accumulate a lot of things. Some of us accumulate wealth, property and riches. Some of us accumulate friends and acquaintances. Some of us get married and have children. Some of us accumulate educational and dignitary titles and honours. Some accumulate all sorts of odds and ends which we may not use or need. When we accumulate these things or people, some of us begin to think that we own them. We think that we are entitled to have power and authority over them. We begin to control, manipulate, or jealousy cling on to them, thinking that no one else but we can have them. We become quite possessive towards them.

But do we really own these things and people? Are these things and people our sole property, to be used and possibly abused as we see fit? No. We do not own these things and people, simply because these things and people are only temporary. The tenants in today’s Gospel thought that the vineyard belonged to them and they attempted to completely take over the vineyard from the owner by beating up the owner’s servants and ultimately by killing his son. But what the tenants failed to realise is that the vineyard is not theirs, they were merely staying there for a time, and one day they would need to move on.

When we think we possess or own something, or when we think that the thing or person is only for us, we may actually be hurting others in our desire to hold on tightly. For example, some of us have children. Our children are God’s gifts and they were given to us “on loan” or “on trust” so that we could learn to care, feed, love and share our faith with them. There will come a time we would need to let go, and let them fly away so that they could live independent and fruitful lives. But when we are so possessive towards our children, we become a stumbling block towards their growth, freedom and happiness. We begin to interfere with almost every aspect of their lives, only to make matters worse and create unnecessary anger, resentment, tension and hurt.

In the same way, when we become possessive towards our husband or wife, we are actually hurting them. We begin to get suspicious of our husband or wife, even for the smallest reason such as having friends. Is it wrong for your husband or wife to have friends? Just because he or she occasionally goes out for a bite or to watch a movie (especially with their friends of the same gender) does not mean he or she is being unfaithful or will leave you. We need to learn to trust and not be so possessive, suspicious or jealous, because we only create further resentment or tension if we behave this way. It is unfortunate that some men resort to violence to control their wives and prevent them from living a decent life. In the same way, it is equally unfortunate that some women begin to get extremely jealous, cautious, suspicious and possessive towards their husbands, to the extend of nagging, throwing tantrums, or even hen-pecking them for the slightest issue.

At church, some of us think that without us, the church would collapse or fall apart, or a particular church ministry would go bust. What we forget is that the church or church ministry does not belong to us. We should remember that we are merely servants and we should treat involvement in church and church ministry as a temporary thing. We should make effort to train and encourage others, especially the younger generation, so that one day they will be able to replace us and continue working for the Lord. It is when we refuse to let go, when we stubbornly insist in holding on to a particular ministry or office, we could be actually stifling the growth of the church. By doing so, we could be building our own kingdom, instead of God’s Kingdom.

Ultimately, we need to remember that we are all pilgrims here on earth. Our time on earth is short, and instead of bickering or being possessive towards something or someone, we should be humble and willing to be detached, to let go, to love just as God loves us. We should be reminded, as St. Paul advises us in the second reading: “There is no need to worry; but if there is anything you need, pray for it, asking God for it with prayer and thanksgiving, and that peace of God, which is so much greater than we can understand, will guard your hearts and your thoughts, in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, fill your minds with everything that is true, everything that is noble, everything that is good and pure, everything that we love and honour, and everything that can be thought virtuous or worthy of praise.” Let us use our time here on earth wisely to give glory to God in all we do, and be genuine, respectful, loving, forgiving and caring towards all.

Friday of Week 27 Year 1

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When a person is blinded with envy or jealousy, then anything that other people do, no matter how good or noble the deed may be, is seen as evil or bad. This was the problem with some people during Jesus’ time. Due to their narrow-mindedness and self-centeredness, they saw him as a threat as he was doing good deeds and attracting large crowds, possibly causing their own “fans” to dwindle.

We too could fall into the same trap, especially when pride and greed have taken over our being. Instead of belittling others just because they are doing better than us, let us be reminded that ultimately, what we are doing is for the greater glory of God.

Non nobis, non nobis, Domine Sed nomini tuo da gloriam (Psalm 115:1)

Thursday of Week 27 Year 1

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How persistent are we in praying to God for His bounty? Sometimes when we ask for something and we don’t get it, we may give up, thinking that God is never going to grant us our needs. However, if you look closely at the Gospel, we can identify 2 important points. The first is, are we persistent in asking? The second is, are we asking for our own selfish needs or is what we are asking ultimately for His glory? After all, in the Our Father, we pray “thy Kingdom come, thy will be done.” If what we are asking is ultimately to glorify God, then surely what we “ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” Otherwise, we may be asking so that Our Kingdom come and Our will be done.