Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: Easter

Easter Friday

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Why do some people get annoyed or even angry so easily? Some people become annoyed or even angry when things do not go their way, when they are misunderstood by another person, or when their viewpoints clash with another’s viewpoints. Some become annoyed or even angry when they are accused of being wrong, when they think they are right, and their perception causes them to believe that they are right. Some become so easily annoyed or even angry because they do not know how to or refuse to reason. Some become annoyed or even angry when they are insulted, when they incur a loss, or when they are trying to protect their pride or their greed. Our reactions vary in different situations, and sometimes, we may be making mountains out of molehills in our annoyance or anger.

In today’s reading, Peter and John were talking to the people, much to the extreme annoyance of the priests, who were accompanied by the captain of the Temple and the Sadducees.These priests and Sadducees were extremely annoyed because their pride and ego had been hurt by the truth being proclaimed by Peter and John. But Peter and John did not back down and did not water things down to appease these priests and Sadducees. Instead, Peter and John continued to preach the truth, the Good News, with enthusiasm and vigour. Would we be willing to face persecution and even death, just like Peter and John, so that the Good News would be known to all.

Easter Thursday

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When you see a wound, especially if the wound looks serious or grievous, how would you react? Some of us may feel faint, especially if the wound is oozing with blood. Some of us may feel quite squeamish and try to look the other way. Some of us may even run away, afraid to see more than just the wound. But could a wound be a source of tremendous joy or happiness? Some of you may be thinking: “Has this padre gone bonkers and needs his head examined? How could a wound ever be a source of tremendous joy or happiness?”

But surprising as it sounds, a wound could indeed be a source of tremendous joy and happiness. How so? In today’s Gospel, Jesus showed the wounds of his hands and his feet. Not only that, He even ate a piece of grilled fish right in front of the eyes of His disciples. The wounds of Jesus became a source of great and tremendous joy and happiness, because they show that Jesus is not a ghost, but is risen, and that the disciples not only had Jesus in their midst again, they were also healed of their possible feelings of guilt of having deserted and abandoned Jesus in His darkest moment.

In a way, Jesus is also beckoning us to show the wounds of our hearts, to tell Him what is troubling and disturbing us, to tell Him our hurts and pains, as well as our anger and resentment. Jesus is inviting us to let Him heal us, since by His wounds, we are healed and saved. May we with tremendous joy and happiness and without any hesitation, show our wounds to Jesus, so that He can heal us and make us whole again.

Easter Wednesday

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Giving up seems to be the easiest thing to do for some people. People give up due to a number of reasons. However, if we examine the motives of some people as to why they give up, we may begin to discover that some of the real reasons why they do so may be because they do not want to take responsibility for the situation or task, or perhaps they feel that their pride is at stake, or that their reputation is more important to them, and would rather salvage what they can instead of risking things further.

The two disciples on the way to Emmaus in today’s Gospel were walking away from Jerusalem, walking away from the situation at hand. They were giving up, thinking that there was nothing left for them to cling on to. But Jesus did not give up on them. Jesus walks along with them and helps them realise that there is hope. Eventually, the fire within them which at first seemed to have sizzled out started burning again. They became aware again of their mission and they responsibilities to bear witness to the Good News.

If some of us are feeling like giving up, like there is no hope, remember this: Jesus is there. We may not see Him, but He is there. He wants you to come closer to Him and let Him heal you and rekindle the fire in your hearts. Do not be afraid. The hearts of the two disciples at Emmaus were set aflame with new vigour, new zeal, new enthusiasm, because they opened their hearts to Jesus. Let us too open our hearts to Jesus.

Easter Tuesday

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Usually on a Sunday, we may get a sizeable crowd for Mass. In some parishes, several Masses may need to be celebrated to accommodate the crowd. Sometimes, Masses may be celebrated in different languages, so that persons of different language preference would be able to understand and participate at Mass. However, just imagine for a moment… 3000 people coming for Mass at the same time. Surely such a situation would be unusual or amazing, especially on a Sunday, not a Feast Day, Solemnity or some other significant celebration, but an ordinary Sunday. If 3000 people coming for Mass at the same time is already considered phenomenal, just imagine if we had 3000 baptisms happening on the same day and time. Wouldn’t it be a miracle? Could such a miracle happen ever again in our churches at this present time?

In today’s reading, 3000 people were cut to the heart when they heard Peter’s words, they were convinced by his arguments, and they accepted what he said and were baptised. What Peter said had moved the hearts of so many and changed their lives completely, bringing about their conversion. Likewise, may our hearts be moved like those 3000 people, and may we renew our zeal and commitment in bringing Jesus’ Good News to others.

Easter Monday

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What sort of persons are we? What sort of stuff are we made off? Do we have only outer strength, or do we have inner strength as well? Some people may have outer strength: for example, they have the military power, weapons, political and social influence, connections and standing, or some other form of external factor which gives the illusion that such people are strong and powerful. But the problem with outer strength is that such outer strength comes and goes. People with only outer strength could lose such strength at any time or at any moment. But how many of us have inner strength, which includes truth, integrity and other virtues which come from within us?

In today’s Gospel, we come across examples of outer strength and inner strength. The soldiers, the chief priests and the elders, had outer strength, but they lacked inner strength, since they chose to cook up a lie and live on in fear and worry. Instead of being people of courage and bravery, they succumbed to cowardice and deceit. They failed to adhere to good principles and good virtues expected of them. On the other hand, the women, who were thought to be powerless, discounted and devalued, were the ones who lived up to the truth with courage and integrity. These women showed their inner strength, as they saw the empty tomb, the truth in the Risen Christ, and went off to proclaim the truth with joy and fervour.

Let us ponder and ask ourselves sincerely: are we people of merely outer strength? Or have we grown especially in our inner strength? Do we depend only on outer strength to define who we are? Or have we shown our inner strength through our words and actions? May we come to realise the folly and illusion of outer strength, and learn to follow the ways of the Lord.

Pentecost Year C – Mass of the Day

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Today we celebrate Pentecost, where Jesus finally sends us the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, the one who will teach us everything and remind us of all that Jesus has said. But what does the coming of the Holy Spirit mean to us? What is its significance in our lives?

The coming of the Holy Spirit enables us to overcome our fears. It does not mean we would no longer have any fear, but fear can no longer control us, since the Holy Spirit is in control and will guide us. In the first reading, the apostles were at first fearful, and they hid behind closed doors. When they were filled by the Spirit, they came out from that room to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Also the coming of the Holy Spirit breaks down barriers between us and creates unity among people from diverse backgrounds. The church does not belong to any particular group, since the church is the Church of Christ and all people, regardless of race, color or language are part of it. As St. Paul reminds us in the second reading, we are “children of God”, “heirs of God and coheirs with Christ.” If we live according to the Holy Spirit, then we must not allow prejudice to affect the way we live our Christian lives. This means that since the church is made up of peoples from diverse backgrounds, we must be able to look after the interest of everyone and not only look towards our own interest.

Moreover, the alternative Gospel reminds us that the coming of the Holy Spirit is to “teach you everything and remind you of all I (Jesus) have said to you.” This is because we forget so easily and need to be constantly reminded of our identity as children of God, as brothers and sisters in Christ. We need to be reminded that our life in the Spirit is a life that must be founded on love, and that there is no room for hatred, prejudice, unforgiveness, or selfishness.

Thus, let us give thanks to God for the gift of the Holy Spirit, and allow Him to take control of our lives. Let us always be ready to listen to His promptings and learn to live as brothers and sisters in Christ, children of God. May we let the Holy Spirit transform us, so that we may be united as one and go forth to proclaim the Good News to all the earth.

Housekeeping – 7th Week of Easter

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

8 May 2016 – 7th Sunday of Easter Year C
9 May 2016 – Monday of the 7th Week of Easter
10 May 2016 – Tuesday of the 7th Week of Easter
11 May 2016 – Wednesday of the 7th Week of Easter
12 May 2016 – Thursday of the 7th Week of Easter
13 May 2016 – Friday of the 7th Week of Easter

7th Sunday of Easter Year C

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Sometimes at church, we come across faithful who seem to be more comfortable with their own group, such as a particular ministry, or language group, or some other group which share a common interest or practice. While there is nothing wrong with getting involved in a particular group, we need to be careful not to form cliques, where our particular group is more important or all that matters, and we begin to avoid other faithful, just because of some differences such as interests or language which could alienate us from others. After all, we are all brothers and sisters in Christ and one family of God, and there is no room for division and distinction in this one family of God.

This is why, in today’s Gospel, Jesus prayed: “Holy Father, I pray not only for these, but for those also who through their words will believe in me. May they all be one. Father, may they be one in us as you are in me and I am in you.” Jesus was concerned not only for his disciples, those that the Heavenly Father had given to His care, but also for others, including those who rejected him and even his enemies. This is also why we cannot only be praying for our loved ones and friends and only help people who are close to us. We are also called to pray for ‘others,’ including our enemies, people who hurt us, those speak ill of us, those who think differently, those who are of a different skin colour or language. In the first reading, we are reminded that, filled with the Holy Spirit, Stephen did exactly this, since he prayed that God would forgive his enemies their sins as he was being stoned.

Today, we are challenged to remain as one family of God. We are challenged to set aside our differences and let God be our help and guide. It is certainly not easy to come out of our comfort zones and unite with others who seem so different from us, but that is what being Christian is all about, to be able to see others as our brother or sister, and to accept them as part of God’s family. May we be humble and willing to let God take charge of our lives, and keep us as one.

Housekeeping – 6th Week of Easter

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

1 May 2016 – 6th Sunday of Easter Year C
2 May 2016 – Monday of the 6th Week of Easter
3 May 2016 – Saints Philip and James, Apostles – Feast
4 May 2016 – Wednesday of the 6th Week of Easter
5 May 2016 – The Ascension of the Lord – Mass of the Day
6 May 2016 – Friday of the 6th Week of Easter

The Ascension of the Lord – Mass of the Day

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Some of us would have experienced, every now and then, the necessity for us to go away from where we presently are to another place where we are needed. Quite often, our duty and responsibility would require us to move on to another kind of duty or responsibility, or to another location where our services are needed. For example, priests and religious are transferred from one location to another, or from one parish to another, to serve the needs of the faithful in different parts of the diocese or even in different countries. Even teachers too are sometimes transferred from one school to another, depending on where their skills and specialties are needed. For some, it seems difficult and painful to move on, especially when we have become quite comfortable with where we are and with the people we are familiar with, but life is such that sooner or later, we would need to go.

This is why we could understand how the disciples must have felt when Jesus, after His resurrection, had to leave and return to His Father. His first departure when He died was already devastating enough, and now a second departure? It must have been unthinkable and disconcerting for the disciples to lose Jesus, this time for an unknown period of time. But why did Jesus leave? He left so that He could send the Holy Spirit to the disciples, giving them the strength, courage and that extra oomph to become His witnesses to the ends of the earth. This would not have been possible if Jesus had remained with His disciples, since they would still have clung close to him and not have been able to move off on their own.

So what can we learn from this? Many of us try to help others, accompany them, or even offer solutions to their problems, but we sometimes do not know when to stop. We give so much time and effort to help people that we fail to allow God to help them. Some of us even begin to act as if we are God and without us, people would go astray and there would be chaos. If such people whom we are helping become so dependent on us, then there is no need for them to seek God’s help, since we would have become like their ‘saviour.’ So, we must ‘leave’ like Jesus, so that the Holy Spirit could come and touch the lives of these people. This does not mean that we are trying to shirk our responsibilities, but what we are doing is to allow space for God to work in our lives and the lives of others, so that we and they could learn to grow in His love and care, and let Him be our guide.

Today, let us learn to know when and how to let go, and have greater faith and trust that God will take care of things. Even though Jesus has already ascended, even though He has already ‘left’ us, He is still present with us in a very special way: in the Body and Blood of Christ. May we be humble and docile enough to let God take control, so that we can be His witnesses for His glory.