Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: Year 1

Friday of Week 18 Year 1

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Many people call themselves Christians or claim to be followers of Christ. But are these people really following Christ? Or are they merely Christians in name only? Are we following and practicing Jesus’ teachings, or are we only picking and choosing what suits us or what is convenient to us? It is easy to call ourselves Christians, but it is a different matter altogether to remain faithful in following and practising His teachings, not just a portion or a part of His teachings which appeal to us, but all that He has taught us, even those parts which are difficult or challenging to observe. What exactly does Jesus expect of us then?

In today’s Gospel, we read: “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it. What, then, will a man gain if he wins the whole world and ruins his life? Or what has a man to offer in exchange for his life? For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and, when he does, he will reward each one according to his behaviour.’

Being a follower of Christ basically means we are willing to renounce ourselves, renounce our old ways, our pride, our ego and our prejudices, and be willing to put on new ways in Christ. It means we are to follow the law of love which sums up what Christ has taught us; not just loving God, but loving neighbour as well. Have we truly been faithful disciples of Christ in word and deed?

Wednesday of Week 18 Year 1

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Some of us may have taken our faith for granted at times. When times are good, when we are enjoing peace and prosperity, some of us may have become complacent, wallowing in the good life. But what if, all of a sudden, the good life we had been enjoying is gone. Persecution is taking place all around us, many of our faithful are being put to death, and we are living in a perilous environment. Many of us would then turn to God in prayer and supplication, asking Him to rescue us, but some may lose faith and turn to other forms of help, thinking that they would stand a better chance of survival, and yet some would even go so far as to abandon their faith to save their skin. As Christians, how should we respond to such a situation?

In today’s Gospel, we come across a Canaanite woman who was pestering Jesus to heal her daughter. The Canaanites generally have got nothing to do with the Jews or even Jesus for that matter. They were considered pagans and the Jews had been warned not to mix around with them, for fear that they would become attracted to their pagan ways. But despite the suffering this Canaanite woman was experiencing, despite the fact that the Jews shunned such people, this Canaanite woman had great faith in Jesus. She had faith, trust and confidence that Jesus would heal her daughter. Jesus must had been quite amazed with such great faith, and even though He said: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel,” Jesus had found that even a Canaanite woman could have greater faith in Him than “the lost sheep of the House of Israel” at times. Because of the Canaanite woman’s great faith in Jesus, her daughter was freed from her torment.

What can we make out of this? Today’s Gospel shows us that we should never take our faith for granted. We should have trust and faith in Jesus, in good times and in bad. We should not be complacent with our faith, but be alert and ready at all times. When the time comes to show our faith, may we be courageous and bold, knowing that we are being witnesses of Jesus for His glory.

Tuesday of Week 18 Year 1

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Sometimes life can be tough, especially in the present economic situation many of us are in. We begin to worry about making ends meet, and we become more and more engrossed with our work and trying to make a living, that we may have given less and less time for God. We think that this is real life, it is not fair, it is a struggle, and we have to go at it on our own. But sometimes, we come to a situation that we cannot seem to free ourselves from, or we are stuck and do not know how to resolve. What do we do? Some of us may try alternative forms of help, thinking that these would somehow help us through, but more often than not, these alternative forms may only land us into more problems than solutions. Then what?

In today’s Gospel, the disciples were in a boat battling with a heavy sea, for there was a head-wind.went towards them. We read: “When the disciples saw him walking on the lake they were terrified. ‘It is a ghost’ they said, and cried out in fear. But at once Jesus called out to them, saying, ‘Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid.’ It was Peter who answered. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘if it is you, tell me to come to you across the water.’ ‘Come’ said Jesus. Then Peter got out of the boat and started walking towards Jesus across the water, but as soon as he felt the force of the wind, he took fright and began to sink. ‘Lord! Save me!’ he cried. Jesus put out his hand at once and held him. ‘Man of little faith,’ he said ‘why did you doubt?’ And as they got into the boat the wind dropped.”

Each of us may have been experiencing heavy seas in our lives. We think that our problems are too difficult to solve. But if we put our trust in Jesus and let Him be our guide, then our problems are no longer problems but opportunities for us to grow closer to Jesus. We may not get everything we want, but Jesus can provide for us our needs, if we have faith and trust in Him. Let us not doubt any longer or think that Jesus has abandoned us, but continue to be patient and persistent in our trust and faith in Him, knowing that He will do what is best for us in His time and for His glory.

Monday of Week 18 Year 1

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Some of us worry a lot and are worrywarts. We worry about so many things, sometimes things which are actually not a big deal. So how do we lessen or stop our worrying? By being more trusting towards God’s care, love, goodness and providence. If God is there for us, and if we believe that God can help us, then we should be free from worries. We should be more willing to care and share with others, because God is there for us and we will not be lacking as God can provide for us.

In today’s Gospel, we see how the disciples were worried about what to do with the crowd. We read: “When evening came, the disciples went to him and said, ‘This is a lonely place, and the time has slipped by; so send the people away, and they can go to the villages to buy themselves some food.’ Jesus replied, ‘There is no need for them to go: give them something to eat yourselves.’ But they answered ‘All we have with us is five loaves and two fish.’” Here, we see how the disciples still did not get it. They still did not recognise or have enough trust in Jesus. They were more concerned of themselves and wondered how they were going to feed such a crowd with so few loaves and fish. But Jesus showed them that when we give, we can receive even more, and we see this in the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and fish which Jesus performed right in front of their eyes.

So let us not be too worried or concerned. Instead, let us put our trust in God, knowing and trusting in His providence. After all, if He can feed so many with so little, just imagine what He could do for us if we depend on Him and let Him be our help and guide.

Friday of Week 17 Year 1

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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.

Thursday of Week 17 Year 1

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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.

Tuesday of Week 17 Year 1

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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.

Monday of Week 17 Year 1

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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.

Friday of Week 16 Year 1

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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?

Thursday of Week 16 Year 1

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Every once in a while, we come across people who call themselves Christians, but they live lives quite contrary to a Christian way of life. Some of these people seem to think that being a Christian merely means accepting Christ as a personal saviour, but beyond that, how they behave, how they conduct themselves, how they treat others, is irrelevant to them. They claim that once they have accepted Christ as a personal saviour, they can do as they please and behave as they like. But is this what being a Christian all about? Is it so simple as that?

Being a Christian basically means we are following the ways of Christ. This means that we must love God and love neighbour, not just to put on a show, but with genuineness and integrity. But when people begin to interpret Christianity according to their own ways and for their own covenience, then perhaps they may be like what Jesus said in today’s Gospel concerning the prophecy of Isaiah: “You will listen and listen again, but not understand, see and see again, but not perceive. For the heart of this nation has grown coarse, their ears are dull of hearing, and they have shut their eyes, for fear they should see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and be converted and be healed by me.” If we are so stubbornly holding on to our views, beliefs and understanding of what we think Christianity is all about, then we may be missing the point of Christianity’s true meaning, since our ears have become dull, our heart has grown coarse and our eyes are shut.

Today, if we realise and readily admit that we have gone off course as Christians, then let us come back to its true meaning. Let us not be afraid to see with our eyes, hear with our ears, and understand with our hearts, so that we could truly be healed by Christ and follow His ways faithfully.