19th May 2019

Fifth Sunday in Easter

As I have loved you, so you shall love one another.

“I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” (John 13: 34).

Sunday of the 5th week of Easter. Short Gospel but powerful message. Jesus gives us a new commandment. Actually, the only thing that is new here is: “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” This is what makes it tough and very challenging. When Jesus taught in His sermons on the mountain: “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect,” we thought this is a hyperbole. Now Jesus commands: “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”

How has Jesus loved you and me? Let us search the Scriptures.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

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“It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

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“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

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“It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Corinthians 13: 4 – 7).

In 1 Corinthians 13: 4 – 7, we see the attributes of love.

This is how Jesus loves you and me. Is this how you love yourself? Your neighbor?

17th May 2019

Have trust in Me as you trust the Father.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” (John 14: 1).

Paul continues his sermon at the synagogue in Antioch. He shows them how what the Old Testament foretold, the New Testament fulfils. Paul emphasizes the Good News that Jesus is the Messiah and He is risen from the dead, in fulfillment of God promises to their ancestors. Christ’s resurrection testifies to the Father’s faithfulness and the promise of eternal life for those who believe and follow the way.

If we reflect on the post-resurrection stories, one dimension that we will find consoling is that Jesus meets his friends where they are – Mary Magdalene in her grief, Thomas seeking proof, the scared disciples hiding behind closed doors, the disillusioned travelers to Emmaus – and helps them rise above the situation.

The Lord meets us too, where we are – in our anxiety, fear, doubt, loss, hopelessness, failure, discord, health issues, financial problems, joblessness-offering us hope if we are willing to follow Him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Fear is useless. What we need is trust. St Teresa of Avila gives us this verse about trusting God:

“Let nothing trouble you,

let nothing frighten you.

All things are passing;

God never changes.

Patience obtains all things.

He who possesses God lacks nothing:

God alone suffices.” (St Teresa of Avila)

IMO

16th May 2019

The pledge of God to David and to

us.

“I have found David, my servant;

with my holy oil I have anointed him, that my hand may be always with him, and that my arm may make him strong.” (Psalm 89: 21 – 22).

Paul begins his preaching in the synagogue in Antioch with an account of the salvation history of the Jewish people. He speaks, also, of John the Baptist, who fulfilled his call to preach repentance and point the way to Jesus.

Jesus tells his disciples – and this includes all of us who profess to follow Him – that our call is to servant leadership which requires that we put others before ourselves, to build a more just and caring environment. Servant-leaders focus primarily on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. This is the exact opposite of the traditional norm, where leaders see themselves as those who possess the power to control and exercise absolute authority.

Servant leadership promotes a culture of life where everyone thrives equally. The absolute authority of power, on the other hand, will eventually lead to corruption and the culture of death, where human life is expendable.

Jesus has shown us that servant leadership requires faith and courage. Are we prepared to fulfill the discipleship we profess?

14th May 2019

St. Matthias – Apostle

Today, the Church honours the memory of St Mathias, the Apostle and martyr. What we know of him comes solely from the Acts of the Apostles, from where we learn that he was a disciple of Jesus after witnessing the Lord’s Baptism in the Jordan.

It is amazing how the words of Jesus in today’s Gospel are so relevant to the life and mission of this Apostle. “You did not choose me, I chose you…”: Mathias was not among the initial 12 Apostles. He was chosen after the Ascension, by lot, following the prayer of discernment by the rest of the Apostles. “I have commissioned you to go out and bear fruit…”: It is believed that Mathias preached the Good News in Judea and Ethiopia, converting many. “A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends…”: That Mathias was martyred is certain, but the accounts of his death vary.

We believe that those who were among the first to follow Christ were truly privileged. But are we prepared to undergo the same sacrifice and martyrdom?

Do you believe that you too are chosen, called and anointed to bear witness to the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus by your daily walk with Jesus? Be open and discern your call. Trust Jesus to equip you fully for whatever mission He has for you.

Imo Fr. Donald

13th May 2019

Our Lady of Fatima

One hundred years ago, Our Lady appeared to three shepherd children – Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia – at Fatima, Portugal. Through them, our Blessed Mother conveyed the message: pray for conversion of hearts, make sacrifices on behalf of sinners. We remember this each time we pray the Rosary, as we recite after each decade, ‘O my Jesus, forgive us our sins and save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven especially those in most need of your mercy.’

There was also a secret message which was finally made public by Pope St. John Paul II. In its essence, it reminds all that ‘the action of God, the Lord of history, and the co-responsibility of man in the drama of his creative freedom, are the two pillars upon which human history is built. Our Lady, who appeared at Fatima, recalls these forgotten values. She reminds us that man’s future is in God, and that we are active and responsible partners in creating that future.’

In today’s readings we see both those who choose not to believe the Gospel message and those who do. The world, now, is no different. Many still deny the very existence of God by their actions, despite all proofs, and foster a culture of death which leads many astray. The message of Fatima reminds us of what Jesus, in the Gospel, asks us to do: believe in Him and carry forward His work.

12th May 2019

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Jesus freely and frequently uses the analogy of sheep and shepherd. For most people, sheep are stupid animals that blindly follow where they are led. But speak to the shepherd and you will see a very different picture. The shepherd will tell you of each of his sheep by name; of the ewe that died while giving birth and the surviving lamb now adopted by another. He will tell you of lambs that are mischievous and others that are docile, of sheep that sometimes have a mind of their own; he will confirm that they respond to him and he will speak about all of them with great love. He spends his life far away from the comforts of home, out on rugged, open land in all kinds of weather. All that matters is the wellbeing of his sheep. He lives for them.

This is who Jesus is to us. We should be proud to be called his sheep and live within his protection. Let no one tell you different.

Today is Mother’s Day. One mother who understood that any foolish sheep outside the Shepherd’s control is in mortal danger is St Monica. St Monica is the mother of the great St Augustine: Bishop, Doctor and Father of the Church. Through many prayers and tears, she was able to snatch her wayward son from the jaws of hell.

Augustine understood as few men have done that the so-called pleasures of this world are slippery and illusory. “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8: 36).

WRITTEN ON OUR HEARTS

GOD INSTRUCTS us to write God’s word on our hearts, to meditate on it day and night. It is important to God that we know not only the stories but also those verses that speak to us, through us, and for us when we lack the words to pray, praise, or even speak. Memorizing scriptures is not for the goal of winning competitions or conversations or even for a litany of moral takeaways but rather for the nourishment and encouragement of our hearts and the hearts of others. It helps form the spiritual foundation we stand on as we grow from children to adults, from young Christians to mature disciples.

Memorizing scripture also helps form a common prayer language—praise, lament, dependence on God, grace, hope, peace, and joy. In praying the scriptures we identify with the sadness of the Jobs and the Josephs and discover the joys of the Sarahs and the Marys. We speak our beliefs with the words of the scriptures when our hearts feel doubtful and uncertain. We claim the promises of God when the circumstances of our lives are shaky. And we pray the scriptures when we simply don’t have the words ourselves.

EXAMINE YOUR DAY

ONE OF THE SPIRITUAL PRACTICES I have come to love is the practice of Examen, or a prayerful examination of the day. The practice comes from Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a sixteenth-century mystic and the founder of the Jesuit order of priests. He believed this form of prayer to be one of the most important, and he saw it as a gift of God to be practiced regularly. …

In this prayer practice, you focus and reflect on the awareness of God’s presence throughout the day. You ask questions such as, Where did I see God today?, At what points in the day did I feel far from God?, How did I experience joy today?, and What made me sad today?

FACE-OFF

“Jesus…appeared to you…” —Acts 9:17

The Lord Jesus has enemy-converting power. The fury of enemies cannot stand against the Lord. Saul saw Jesus, or at least the blinding flash of Jesus, the Light (Jn 9:5). This vision of Jesus remained with Saul the rest of his life. Throughout the rest of his life, Saul (later called Paul) would experience sporadic eye problems limiting his physical sight (see Gal 4:13-15; 6:11). However, his spiritual vision was a perfect 20-20; Paul never took his eyes off Jesus again. Paul came face-to-face with Jesus, and his life was forever transformed. Coming face-to-face with Jesus is fundamental to our faith. Pope St. John Paul II taught that an encounter with Jesus Christ is the key to our faith walk (Church in America, 3).

In the Eucharist, we also come face-to-face with Jesus. Holy Communion renews our being adopted into His family at our Baptism. Paul spent the rest of his life speaking of Jesus. The apostles responded in the same way when pressed about their relationship with Jesus: “Surely we cannot help speaking of what we have heard and seen” (Acts 4:20). St. John wrote about Who he saw and his hands had touched (1 Jn 1:1). When we have truly encountered Jesus face-to-face, we will respond in the same manner.

Seek the face of the Lord (Ps 27:8). Allow Him to look at you with love (Mk 10:21). Let the loving gaze of Jesus heal, renew, and restore you.

The Gospel tells us that Jesus put his fingers in the ears of the deaf-mute, touched the sick man’s tongue with spittle and said “Ephphatha” -“Be opened .“ The evangelist has preserved for us the original Aramaic word which Jesus spoke, and thus he brings us back to that very moment.

What happened then was unique, but it does not belong to a distant past: Jesus continues to do the same thing a new, even today. At our Baptism he touched each of us and said “Ephphatha”-“Be opened,” thus enabling us to hear God’s voice and to be able to talk to him.