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Sunday, April 22, 2012

3rd Sunday of Easter, Year B, 22.04.2012

Acts 3:13-15, 17-19/ 1 John 2:1-5a/ Luke 24: 35-48


I am sure we know what a horror movie is.

Horror movies have become more horrible ever since the days of the Dracula movies.

The present production of horror movies are certainly scarier, more blood, very gory, and of course we get more nightmares because they dig into our primal fears.

It is strange that people would go and watch a horror movie and get scared out of their wits.

And then there are those movies that touch on the supernatural.

What I am talking about are movies about ghosts. These are not as horrible as those horror movies but still it can be a bit scary.

Yet, one of the movies about ghosts that has some kind of corny humour was the movie “Ghostbusters”.

Maybe we can’t remember much about the movie but we may be able to remember the theme song.

"There is something strange in the neighbourhood, who you gonna call…. Ghostbusters"

Yet, the things of the supernatural are not a joke, and they are no laughing matter.

I guess we have also heard enough of ghost movies to make us afraid of the dark.

And we may have also seen some ghost stories about how the spirit of a person comes back as a ghost to haunt and take revenge.

Whatever it may be, this fascination about ghosts and spirits certainly goes a long way back in time.

The gospel passage was set in the upper room where the disciples of Jesus had locked themselves in guilt and in fear.

It was as if they had watched some kind of horror movie and they were scared to death.

The difference was that the horror was in real-life and they saw how Jesus died a horrible death.

They had two fears: one was that if the soldiers break open the door, then it was their turn to die.

The other fear came from the fact that they deserted Jesus and left Him to die alone and horribly.

That fear was now creating "ghosts" in their minds and that was haunting them and they were getting scared to death.

And then two disciples came in to tell them some "ghost" story about how they saw Jesus on the road.

We must really sympathize with the disciples. There was fear of the outside, and there was fear on the inside, and there was nowhere to run.

So we can imagine when Jesus appeared to them, they were in a state of alarm and fright, in a state of shock, for they thought they were seeing a ghost. And that was how the gospel puts it.

If they could, they would have ran out screaming “Ghost, ghost!” but they couldn’t, there was nowhere to run to.

Actually Jesus was also very smart. He knew they couldn’t run anywhere, so there He appeared to them.

But if the disciples could run, then it would be total chaos, total panic, mega hysteria.

After all, who has ever heard of anyone coming back after he was dead and buried, and after that there some astonishing stories about his appearance here and there.

Yes, who has ever heard of that.

Neither had the disciples, and neither have we either.

All we know is that anything that causes fear and fright is not from God.

And what we will do is that we will sprinkle or even spray holy water at where we saw a dark shadow, and make the sign of the cross and say our prayers loudly, hoping that it would chase the ghost away.

Yes, we can say that anything that causes fear and fright is certainly not from God.

What comes from God is peaceful and joyful.

That was why the first words of Jesus was “Peace be with you”.

And just as Jesus rose from the dead and conquered sin and death, He now wants us to open the closets of our hearts where we have kept the skeletons of our sinful past.

Yes, in the dark closets of our hearts, we have created our own ghosts that keep haunting us and kept us chained in fear and anxiety.

It could have been that we did some injustice that resulted in someone being wrongly accused and punished.
But to save our skin, we let that person take the blame. But it has kept haunting us.

Or it could be that we schemed and sabotaged someone’s project out of envy and jealousy and we gloated with glee with it failed.

As we think about it now, we feel ashamed and our hearts are not at rest.

Or we may have abetted someone to go for an abortion or to terminate a pregnancy.

And now the burden of guilt weighs heavy in our hearts.

There seems to be no way out of our closets or prison of sin and shame and guilt.

Yes, there seems to be no way out. Or is it really no way out?

Jesus rose from the dead not to come and haunt us or to condemn us.

In fact, today, the Risen Lord offers us healing and forgiveness of our sins with these words “Peace be with you”.

The peace of the Risen Christ will heal us and give us the strength to come to terms with our sins, and to go forth and make peace with those whom we have wronged and to seek reconciliation.

The worst horror movies in life are not the ones we see in the cinema, but the very ones we had directed and acted out.        

The scariest ghosts are not the ones outside of us, but the ones we have created in ourselves.

Yes, we know that Jesus cast out demons, but Jesus is not just a ghost-buster.

He is our Saviour, our sin-buster. He wants to save us from our sins so that we won’t be haunted by our sins and live in fear.

But first let us open our hearts to His peace. It's a peace that the world cannot give. Because it's a peace that comes from the forgiveness our sins.

And we also must be witnesses of that peace to others.

At least we can begin by saying that if they want peace, then it's better that they stop watching all those horror movies.

And also to stop telling all those ghost stories. It only glorifies the devil.

Instead let us tell the gospel stories, the gospel stories of forgiveness and healing, the gospel stories of God's love that brings peace and joy.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Sunday of Divine Mercy, 15.04.12

Acts 4:32-35/ 1 John 5:1-6/ John 20:19-31


In the Bible, there were two creatures that were given the faculty of speech. Do you know which are the two creatures?

One, of course, was the snake, which tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit that eventually caused Adam and Eve to sin.

The other creature may not be as well-known. In fact, this other creature is a dull beast of burden, and this creature is often used as a joke and it also looks like a joke.

But if we turn to the book of Numbers 22:22-33, there was this donkey who spoke to its master who was the prophet Balaam, and who was on his way to curse Israel.

It complained to Balaam about his ill-treatment because it saw an angel with a drawn sword who wanted to slay Balaam, and so it avoided the angel and detoured.

But Balaam couldn’t see the angel and so he beat the donkey till it fell flat and it was then that the donkey spoke. And then Balaam saw the angel.

It was a strange and interesting story in the Bible about a donkey that was given the faculty of speech.
And the angel actually spared Balaam’s life for the sake of the donkey.

So what has this donkey story got to do with the 2nd Sunday of Easter?

In a way, the donkey tried to protect its master, and also in a way, it is a symbol of mercy, in that its master's life was spared.

The 2nd Sunday of Easter was designated as Divine Mercy Sunday.

It was instituted in the year 2000 by Pope John Paul II, following the visions of St Faustina that the Lord Jesus wanted it in this particular Sunday of Easter.

The central doctrine of the Feast of Divine Mercy is what the Lord Jesus told St Faustina: Where the sin is hardest, My mercy will be greatest.

And that doctrine is encapsulated in the prayer of the Divine Mercy devotion.

And it is this: Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement of our sins and those of the whole world.

Yes, God offers us His abundant mercy through His only Son Jesus Christ, so that we can experience forgiveness and peace of heart.

And that is precisely the theme of the gospel - forgiveness and peace.

The disciples had sinned against Jesus in the gravest possible manner.

Not only did they lose faith and lost courage when they were put to the test, but collectively, they had also betrayed Him, denied Him and deserted Him.

But the risen Jesus came, not to condemn but to console them.

He came to forgive them and to offer them peace.

Even for Thomas who doubted and had been so obstinate, it was the forgiveness and peace of Jesus that enabled him to say “My Lord and my God”.

Indeed, that reiterates the doctrine of the Divine Mercy - Where the sin is hardest, My mercy is the greatest.
And that is what the Risen Christ offers us at every Mass, forgiveness and peace.

Through the Eucharist, the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus, we are forgiven and granted peace.

But the image of the Divine Mercy also has those words: Jesus, I trust in You.

To trust in Jesus also means that we must forgive just as we have been forgiven.

And Jesus offers us peace so that we in turn can be instruments of peace.

Well, coming back to the story of the donkey and Balaam in the Book of Numbers.

We can say that although Balaam ill-treated the donkey, and it complained about it, yet it forgave Balaam and did not take revenge for the ill-treatment.

And in the Bible, the donkey is an animal that symbolized peace.

That was why Jesus rode on a donkey in His entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.

He entered Jerusalem as the Prince of Peace.

I often wonder what happened to the donkey that Jesus rode on that day.

Surely, in a sense, we can say that it was a blessed donkey, since it had the privilege of having Jesus ride it.

Well, there is this story about what happened to the donkey. Let us just call it a blessed donkey.

So as time went by, the blessed donkey also aged and grew old.

Then one day, the donkey fell into a dried up well.

The donkey cried piteously for hours as the owner tried to figure out what to do.

Finally, he decided the donkey was too old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway, so it just wasn’t worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited his neighbours to come over and help him. They each grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well.

At first, when the donkey realized what was happening it cried horribly; and then to everyone’s amazement, he quieted down.

After a few shovels of dirt, the owner finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw.

With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the owner and his neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up.

Pretty soon, the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off happily, and everyone was so amazed.

Well, in life we get many shovels of dirt coming our way, and at times, lots of dirt!

But God gives us His mercy, to shake it off and take a step up - to take a step up in forgiveness and freedom.

Yes, we need God’s mercy to free our hearts from bitterness and resentment and hatred, in order to forgive.

We need God’s mercy to be free from anxiety so as to have hearts of peace.

We need God’s mercy to have thankful and grateful hearts so that we can live our lives in love.

If a donkey can speak, then for us to forgive and be at peace with others is certainly not impossible.

And if a donkey can forgive, then we can certainly do much more than that.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Easter Sunday, Year B, 08.04.2012

Ac 10:34a, 37-43/ Col 3:1-4 or 1 Cor 5, 6b-8/ Jn 20:1-9


One of the most popular computer games is Angry Birds.

It is popular but also very time absorbing and addictive.

The story behind the game is actually quite simple.

The birds laid their eggs and were very happy about it.

But the green pigs saw the eggs and stole it when the birds were not watching.

The birds were shocked and were angry and went after the pigs to get back their eggs.

The pigs ran and took cover in every possible setting.

The birds used their individual unique abilities to try to break through the pigs' fortifications in order to get the eggs back.

So the game is about slinging the birds into the pigs' cover and to break their fortifications in order to get to the eggs.

A simple story and a simple game and that is what made it so popular.

So what has Angry Birds got to do with an Easter homily?

What has Angry Birds got in common with Easter?

Nothing much actually. Maybe by a long shot, then it could be the eggs.

Because one of the images of Easter is eggs, as in Easter eggs.

Yet the Angry Birds story is also a bit like the Easter story isn't it.

Just like the birds laid their eggs and guarded it preciously, we are also made in the image and likeness of God and created in love.

But just as the green pigs came to steal the eggs, the devil in his wickedness and jealousy came to tempt us, and when we sin, it is like he steals us away for God.

And God wasn't just going to sit there and watch us get eaten away by the devil.

God came to search for us and to rescue us from the devil, just as how the birds went after the pigs to get their eggs back.

God sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, who fought with the devil and even had to suffer and die on the cross and be buried.

Yet Jesus did not remain dead and buried.

He rose from the dead, and in rising from the dead, He conquered the devil, He conquered sin and death.

And in rising from the dead, Jesus Christ rescued us from the snare of the devil and saved us from being eaten away by sin and from eternal damnation.

This morning we are going to witness the baptism of 12 babies.

These 12 babies are not just precious to the parents. They are precious to us the parish community. But most importantly they are precious to God.

My dear parents and godparents, God is giving you the responsibility to guard and protect your babies and bring them up in the faith.

Teach them to love God and to love others. Teach them to be beware of the devil and his traps to make us sin and steal us away from God.

Your responsibilities are great, but God's grace will be even greater.

The dangers are there, but God will also be there to protect you and your child.

We can be assured of all this because Jesus Christ rose from the dead to save us and to fulfill God's promise of salvation for us.

Life is not a game, and certainly not a computer game.

When we are not careful, it is not eggs that  are stolen.

When we are not careful, it is our lives and the lives of our children that will be stolen and destroyed.

But the Risen Christ has stopped all that. He has crushed the devil and saved us by His resurrection.

Yes, in Christ we are saved. In Christ we will be safe.

Yet we must always renounce the devil and profess our faith in God.

We will be doing that later. And let us do it with the serious conviction of our faith.

It is certainly not a game. In fact, it's about life and death.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Palm-Passion Sunday 01-04-12

Isaiah 50:4-7/ Phil 2:6-11/ Mark 14:1 - 15:47
The palm branches that we were waving in our hands are still fresh and green.

This Sunday is called Palm Sunday because at the beginning of the Mass, we commemorated the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.

We blessed the palm branches, waved them joyfully, and sang "Hosanna, Hosanna to the Son of David.

Hosanna means, “Save us! please!” and it was a quote from Ps 118:25, and so the people were actually addressing Jesus as Saviour and Lord, and that was what made the chief priests and scribes so angry.

That was at the beginning, which was hardly about half an hour ago.

The palm branches had their "prime time" and now they lay almost hidden among the pews.

And then only just a few minutes ago, we heard the passion narrative, the gospel passage about how Jesus was betrayed and captured and interrogated and finally nailed to the cross.

That is why besides being called Palm Sunday, this Sunday is also called Passion Sunday.

Earlier on it was "Hosanna to the Son of David".

Then in the passion gospel narrative, it was "Crucify Him, crucify Him".

The gospel narrative of the passion of Jesus prepares us for the events during the last days of the life of Jesus, which will be recalled and unfolded in the coming week, which is called Holy Week.

Hence this Sunday, the Church prepares to enter into a sacred and spiritual time of prayer and reflection.

We enter with Jesus into His suffering and death.

And we also wait with Him for His resurrection.

Yes, things will be happening quickly, and the mood of things will also be changing fast.

Just like how one moment we were singing "Hosanna to the Son of David", and in a matter of minutes, it was "Crucify Him, crucify Him".

That was what happened to Jesus in His last days in Jerusalem.

And that is also what our life is like, isn't it?

Things happen so fast in life, especially during the last few months.

There was Advent and Christmas, and then there was Chinese New Year, and then it was Ash Wednesday, and now we are already coming to end of Lent.

And in between, our life may have been like a roller coaster.

With the blink of the eye, or the snap of the fingers, happiness can just turn into sadness, success into failure, joy to grief, expectation to disappointment.

In other words, it was like "Hosanna to the Son of David" turned into "Crucify Him".

Yet as we enter into the suffering and death of Jesus, we also know that "Crucify Him" is not the last word.
"Crucify Him" will eventually give way to "Alleluia, the Lord is risen".

And that is only next Sunday.

But for this Sunday and this coming week, let us unite our hearts with Jesus in His suffering and death, as we ourselves reflect on our own sufferings and how we need to die to ourselves.

But let us also prayerfully wait in hope, that just as Jesus died and rose, we will also rise with Him.

That is our hope and our joy, and that will be enough to see us through life, and beyond.