1 Kings 19:16, 19-21 / Galatians 5:1. 13-18 / Luke 9:51-62
There are some phrases that are quite amusing. Because at first they sound contradictory, then after that they sound rather sensible, but after that we are not sure if they are understandable.
For example, there is this phrase “We agree to disagree”. At first, it seems nonsensical, but after thinking about it, it may seem sensible, but after that we wonder if it is practical.
Such phrases may seem to be like a paraprosdokian, which is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or to reinterpret the first part.
Some examples of a paraprosdokian are:
a. I asked God for a bike but I know that God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness. (Better not try that ok)
b. The last thing I want to do is to hurt you. But it’s still on the list. (Beware: the list may be very short)
c. Always borrow from a pessimist. He won’t expect you to pay it back.
d. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and then call whatever you hit as the target.
Anyway, back to that “we agree to disagree” phrase, we can further that by saying that “If I agree with you, then we would both be wrong.”
Now in the gospel, Jesus and His disciples went into a Samaritan town, but the people would not receive Him because He was heading for Jerusalem.
Seeing this, His disciples, James and John said: Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to burn them up?
But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went off to another village.
The disciples, James and John, could not agree or accept the rejection of the Samaritans, so they thought of resorting to a fiery reaction to teach the Samaritans a lesson.
But the response of Jesus was almost like telling His disciples “let’s agree to disagree”.
But Jesus was also teaching them this lesson: When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that the Fire Department usually uses water.
Anyway, fighting fire with fire only results in an inferno.
But how did the fire start? We know that when two hard stones are knocked against each other, the result is that only sparks will fly. That’s when the fire starts.
So when a disagreement between two persons happen, sparks begin to fly and a fire starts.
And then they start fighting fire with fire and dialogue and communication gets burned down and there goes the relationship as well.
And the fire does not go off. It continues to burn in the resentment, anger, bitterness and even hatred.
And all that just because of a disagreement that can burn into frustration and leading on to destruction.
A story goes that a man bought a fish and told his wife to cook the fish while he goes to watch a movie.
The wife wanted to go to the movies too, but the man told her to cook the fish so that when he comes back from the movie, he could eat the fish.
Also, he would watch the movie and tell her the story when he comes back.
So the man went to watch the movie alone. When he came back, he asked his wife for the fish.
The wife said that she had eaten it. She added: Well, you can sit down and tell me how the movie went, and I will tell you how the fish tasted.
We can imagine how the conversation went on from there.
Though it is just a story we can imagine the urge to call down fire to burn up the other party.
So, it is not so simple to say “let’s agree to disagree”. More than that, it calls for acceptance.
We may not agree with the other party, but let us accept the other person’s thinking and feelings about the matter at hand.
Jesus showed that He accepted the Samaritans’ rejection and He even taught His disciples to do so. And that’s what He is teaching us too.
As the 2nd reading teaches us: Serve one another in works of love, since the whole Law is summarized in a single commandment: love your neighbour as yourself.
And it continues: If you go snapping at each other and tearing each other to pieces, you had better watch or you will destroy the whole community.
Yes, a disagreement can lead to destruction. But acceptance can bring about reconciliation.
And when we accept the call of Jesus to follow Him in His way of love, then we will realise how unnecessary and futile disagreement are.
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Saturday, June 29, 2019
Saturday, June 22, 2019
Corpus Christi, Year C, 23.06.2019
Genesis 14:18-20 / 1 Cor 11:23-26 / Luke 9:11-17
The lessons of life are not learnt in classrooms or by going for higher studies.
In fact, the lessons of life are often learnt by simply observing and reflecting on what is going on around us, by what we are encountering and by what we are experiencing.
For example, the lift (or the elevator) tells us that what goes up must come down, and vice versa. That already tells us that life has its ups and downs, and we have to accept that.
Sunrise and sunset tell us that the brightness and happiness of life will fade into the darkness and loneliness, and yet night will also have to give way to the light of day. That’s the cycle of life.
Even a simple room can teach us some lessons of life:
The roof says: Aim high
The fan says: Stay cool
The clock says: Value time
The calendar says: Be up to date
The mirror says: Always observe yourself
The wall says: Don’t bang your head here
The window says: Expand the vision
The floor says: Be down to earth
The bed says: Rest well
And finally, the toilet bowl says: When it is time to let go, just let go …
But often in life, a situation keeps repeating itself until we learn the lesson from it.
Maybe it is because we are slow to learn and quick to forget, that some situations keep repeating.
One such situation is the gospel passage that we have just heard.
The miracle of the multiplication of bread and the feeding of the crowds is a significant event that is recorded in all the four gospels.
That event in all the four gospels has the similar settings. Jesus was teaching the crowds and healing the sick. They were in a lonely place and it was getting late.
The disciples wanted to send the crowds away so that they can find food for themselves as there was not much food around.
There were just five loaves of bread and two fish, which was just enough for Jesus and His disciples but certainly not enough for that crowd of five thousand.
And yet Jesus tells His disciples, “Give them something to eat yourselves.” The disciples tried to protest politely, but behind Jesus’ back, they were probably saying something else.
And here again, Jesus shows that God does not think as man thinks, and with God nothing is impossible.
What is significant and also the lesson that Jesus wanted His disciples to learn is this: Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish, raised His eyes to heaven, said the blessing over them, broke it and handed them to His disciples to distribute among the crowd.
And we must catch it there - Jesus said the blessing over the loaves and the fish. In other words, Jesus asked God to pour out His love on the loaves and fish, so that as the food is eaten, God’s love is also experienced.
The miracle is not the loaves and fish multiplying by themselves. It is the blessing of love that multiplied the loaves and fish, because whenever love is given, love is multiplied. And that’s the miracle.
Today the Church celebrates the feast of Corpus Christi, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Body and Blood of Christ, or simply called the Eucharist, is the greatest and deepest mystery of the Church, and at the same time it is also the most difficult to comprehend and understand and to believe.
But that is because it is the mystery of God’s love for us which is certainly beyond our comprehension and understanding.
What happened at the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fish happens at every Mass. The bread and wine are blessed and consecrated and it becomes the Body and Blood of Christ.
Yes, this happens at every Mass. And as it is said, a situation will keep repeating itself until we learn the lesson from it.
And for those who believe, no explanation is necessary. But for those who do not believe, then no explanation is possible.
In five days’ time, the Church will be celebrating the feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. So the feast of Corpus Christi prepares us to encounter the Heart of Christ.
Because the Body of Christ that we receive at Holy Communion is nothing less than the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the most profound blessing of God.
And that’s why in receiving the Body of Christ, which is the Heart of Christ, we must make that act of faith – we must say “Amen.”
In doing so, we are also asking Jesus to make our hearts like His, so that our love may be multiplied to feed the hunger of the world.
That is the lesson that we must keep learning at every Eucharist.
The lessons of life are not learnt in classrooms or by going for higher studies.
In fact, the lessons of life are often learnt by simply observing and reflecting on what is going on around us, by what we are encountering and by what we are experiencing.
For example, the lift (or the elevator) tells us that what goes up must come down, and vice versa. That already tells us that life has its ups and downs, and we have to accept that.
Sunrise and sunset tell us that the brightness and happiness of life will fade into the darkness and loneliness, and yet night will also have to give way to the light of day. That’s the cycle of life.
Even a simple room can teach us some lessons of life:
The roof says: Aim high
The fan says: Stay cool
The clock says: Value time
The calendar says: Be up to date
The mirror says: Always observe yourself
The wall says: Don’t bang your head here
The window says: Expand the vision
The floor says: Be down to earth
The bed says: Rest well
And finally, the toilet bowl says: When it is time to let go, just let go …
But often in life, a situation keeps repeating itself until we learn the lesson from it.
Maybe it is because we are slow to learn and quick to forget, that some situations keep repeating.
One such situation is the gospel passage that we have just heard.
The miracle of the multiplication of bread and the feeding of the crowds is a significant event that is recorded in all the four gospels.
That event in all the four gospels has the similar settings. Jesus was teaching the crowds and healing the sick. They were in a lonely place and it was getting late.
The disciples wanted to send the crowds away so that they can find food for themselves as there was not much food around.
There were just five loaves of bread and two fish, which was just enough for Jesus and His disciples but certainly not enough for that crowd of five thousand.
And yet Jesus tells His disciples, “Give them something to eat yourselves.” The disciples tried to protest politely, but behind Jesus’ back, they were probably saying something else.
And here again, Jesus shows that God does not think as man thinks, and with God nothing is impossible.
What is significant and also the lesson that Jesus wanted His disciples to learn is this: Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish, raised His eyes to heaven, said the blessing over them, broke it and handed them to His disciples to distribute among the crowd.
And we must catch it there - Jesus said the blessing over the loaves and the fish. In other words, Jesus asked God to pour out His love on the loaves and fish, so that as the food is eaten, God’s love is also experienced.
The miracle is not the loaves and fish multiplying by themselves. It is the blessing of love that multiplied the loaves and fish, because whenever love is given, love is multiplied. And that’s the miracle.
Today the Church celebrates the feast of Corpus Christi, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Body and Blood of Christ, or simply called the Eucharist, is the greatest and deepest mystery of the Church, and at the same time it is also the most difficult to comprehend and understand and to believe.
But that is because it is the mystery of God’s love for us which is certainly beyond our comprehension and understanding.
What happened at the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fish happens at every Mass. The bread and wine are blessed and consecrated and it becomes the Body and Blood of Christ.
Yes, this happens at every Mass. And as it is said, a situation will keep repeating itself until we learn the lesson from it.
And for those who believe, no explanation is necessary. But for those who do not believe, then no explanation is possible.
In five days’ time, the Church will be celebrating the feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. So the feast of Corpus Christi prepares us to encounter the Heart of Christ.
Because the Body of Christ that we receive at Holy Communion is nothing less than the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the most profound blessing of God.
And that’s why in receiving the Body of Christ, which is the Heart of Christ, we must make that act of faith – we must say “Amen.”
In doing so, we are also asking Jesus to make our hearts like His, so that our love may be multiplied to feed the hunger of the world.
That is the lesson that we must keep learning at every Eucharist.
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Trinity Sunday, Year C, 16.06.2019
Proverbs 8:22-31 / Romans 5:1-5 / John 16:12-15
All high-rise buildings have this important feature, without which no one would occupy or go up to the upper floors. We are talking about the lifts.
Usually there is at least one lift, and in some commercial buildings, there can be as many as eight lifts in one lift lobby.
Outside the lift, there are only two buttons, the “up” and the “down” buttons, and depending on which way we are going, we press the button accordingly.
Inside the lift, the control panel has more buttons, and most are clearly marked. There are the buttons with numbers on them to indicate the floors to go to. There is the bell or alarm button which we will press only when necessary.
And then there are those two buttons, usually situated at the lowest row, to open and to close the lift doors. Those two buttons come in handy if we want to keep the lift doors open, or to close it if we can’t wait for it to close automatically.
The strange and mysterious thing about those two buttons is that, unlike the other buttons on the control panel which are marked clearly and comprehendible immediately, those two buttons are not marked with the words “open” or “close”.
Rather they are marked with arrow-head symbols, with two arrow-heads pointing inwards to mean close and two arrow-heads pointing outwards to mean open.
But so very often, we press the wrong button. Instead of pressing the “open” button for someone who wants to come in when the lift-doors are closing, we press the “close” button, resulting in nasty stares.
We just wonder why can’t they put the words “open” and “close” on those two buttons. That would solve the problem of pressing the wrong button, isn’t it.
But do we know that the button for opening the lift-doors is usually the button closer to the lift-doors. That seems to be the standard layout for the “open” and “close” buttons in the lift’s control panel.
Well, if we didn’t know this, then we have learnt some new today. That might be helpful to know. Whatever it is, everyday there is always something new to learn.
Jesus says this in the gospel: I still have many things to say to you, but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes, He will lead you to the complete truth.
In other words, Jesus is telling us that when it comes to matters about the faith, about the nature of God, about the meaning of our lives, we can never know it all.
After all, faith is a mystery, God is a mystery, our lives are a mystery, and there is a continuous discovery of this mystery.
Today we celebrate the feast of the most Holy Trinity, and that indeed is a great mystery. We know what it means and yet there is also a lot more to know.
We know that God is Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We know that the Father is Creator, the Son is Saviour, and the Holy Spirit is the Sanctifier.
We know that much about the mystery of God, but we also want to know about the reality of the Trinity in our lives.
Many symbols have been used to give an analogy to the mystery of the Trinity: the triangle, the shamrock (which is a three-leaved plant), the different states of water-ice-steam, etc.
They are only analogies but not the reality. But still they can be helpful in teaching about the Trinity.
Another analogy that can be used, although not immediately obvious, is the “Jesus Invites” envelopes which are prepared for the parish triduum leading up to the feast day celebrations.
In this simple piece of folded envelope are actually three processes: the one who folds it; the one who distributes it; and the one who receives it.
But that is not all. The process continues with the one who writes the petition, the one who offers the petition, and the One who will answer the petition.
And there are also three reasons for the “Jesus Invites”:
1. To promote the Devotion to the Sacred Heart.
2. To give us the opportunity to offer the prayers of our hearts to the Heart of Jesus.
3. To reach out to those who find life a misery and to introduce them to the mercy of Jesus.
Oh yes, we have many prayers that are still waiting to be answered. But let us put these prayers and petitions into these “Jesus Invites” and see how Jesus is going to answer them.
And it is also our parish commitment to pray for these petitions for a year. We are doing this because we know that prayers have been answered.
So in a way we know what buttons to press for us to offer our petitions.
But let us also press the “open” button to keep the lift-door open to the many who have urgent prayers.
And as we lift up our prayers and petitions, may we also have an uplifting experience of God who is Trinity, the Trinity of love, peace and mercy.
All high-rise buildings have this important feature, without which no one would occupy or go up to the upper floors. We are talking about the lifts.
Usually there is at least one lift, and in some commercial buildings, there can be as many as eight lifts in one lift lobby.
Outside the lift, there are only two buttons, the “up” and the “down” buttons, and depending on which way we are going, we press the button accordingly.
Inside the lift, the control panel has more buttons, and most are clearly marked. There are the buttons with numbers on them to indicate the floors to go to. There is the bell or alarm button which we will press only when necessary.
And then there are those two buttons, usually situated at the lowest row, to open and to close the lift doors. Those two buttons come in handy if we want to keep the lift doors open, or to close it if we can’t wait for it to close automatically.
The strange and mysterious thing about those two buttons is that, unlike the other buttons on the control panel which are marked clearly and comprehendible immediately, those two buttons are not marked with the words “open” or “close”.
Rather they are marked with arrow-head symbols, with two arrow-heads pointing inwards to mean close and two arrow-heads pointing outwards to mean open.
But so very often, we press the wrong button. Instead of pressing the “open” button for someone who wants to come in when the lift-doors are closing, we press the “close” button, resulting in nasty stares.
We just wonder why can’t they put the words “open” and “close” on those two buttons. That would solve the problem of pressing the wrong button, isn’t it.
But do we know that the button for opening the lift-doors is usually the button closer to the lift-doors. That seems to be the standard layout for the “open” and “close” buttons in the lift’s control panel.
Well, if we didn’t know this, then we have learnt some new today. That might be helpful to know. Whatever it is, everyday there is always something new to learn.
Jesus says this in the gospel: I still have many things to say to you, but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes, He will lead you to the complete truth.
In other words, Jesus is telling us that when it comes to matters about the faith, about the nature of God, about the meaning of our lives, we can never know it all.
After all, faith is a mystery, God is a mystery, our lives are a mystery, and there is a continuous discovery of this mystery.
Today we celebrate the feast of the most Holy Trinity, and that indeed is a great mystery. We know what it means and yet there is also a lot more to know.
We know that God is Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We know that the Father is Creator, the Son is Saviour, and the Holy Spirit is the Sanctifier.
We know that much about the mystery of God, but we also want to know about the reality of the Trinity in our lives.
Many symbols have been used to give an analogy to the mystery of the Trinity: the triangle, the shamrock (which is a three-leaved plant), the different states of water-ice-steam, etc.
They are only analogies but not the reality. But still they can be helpful in teaching about the Trinity.
Another analogy that can be used, although not immediately obvious, is the “Jesus Invites” envelopes which are prepared for the parish triduum leading up to the feast day celebrations.
In this simple piece of folded envelope are actually three processes: the one who folds it; the one who distributes it; and the one who receives it.
But that is not all. The process continues with the one who writes the petition, the one who offers the petition, and the One who will answer the petition.
And there are also three reasons for the “Jesus Invites”:
1. To promote the Devotion to the Sacred Heart.
2. To give us the opportunity to offer the prayers of our hearts to the Heart of Jesus.
3. To reach out to those who find life a misery and to introduce them to the mercy of Jesus.
Oh yes, we have many prayers that are still waiting to be answered. But let us put these prayers and petitions into these “Jesus Invites” and see how Jesus is going to answer them.
And it is also our parish commitment to pray for these petitions for a year. We are doing this because we know that prayers have been answered.
So in a way we know what buttons to press for us to offer our petitions.
But let us also press the “open” button to keep the lift-door open to the many who have urgent prayers.
And as we lift up our prayers and petitions, may we also have an uplifting experience of God who is Trinity, the Trinity of love, peace and mercy.
Saturday, June 8, 2019
Pentecost Sunday, Year C, 09.06.2019
Acts 2:1-11 / 1 Cor 12:3-7, 12-13 / John 20:19-23
A sigh can be described as a deep big breath. In order to sigh, a deep breath is inhaled and an audible breath is exhaled. So it can be said that there is no such a thing as a silent sigh.
With the word “sigh”, the assumption is that it is a response to a helpless or hopeless situation, or an indication of giving up, or a lack of motivation or inspiration, or a sign of pessimism or subtle criticism.
That word “sigh” appears frequently in our text messages when we don’t know how to reply to a complaint or when we don’t know how to response to a sticky situation. So we type “sigh”, and hopefully that will end the conversation.
But a sigh actually has a few shades of meaning. Besides a sigh of helplessness, there is also a sigh of relief, especially when something tedious or burdensome is finished, or when an anxiety or worry is over, we heave a sigh of relief.
So a sigh have at least two meanings or even more. We know what it means when we sigh, and others will know what it means, when we sigh.
Generally speaking, a sigh is a deep inhaling of air followed by a quick exhale, and not a slow release.
But what would we call a quick inhale and no exhaling. That would be like holding the breath.
In the gospel, when the disciples were in the room, with the doors closed for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them.
The disciples, in a state of surprise and shock, probably took in a quick breath and held it there. But they didn’t have to hold it that long as Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you.”
And after saying that, Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This is a rather unique action of Jesus, where breath is used to symbolize the presence and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But this action of breathing on the disciples brings us back to the book of Genesis 2:7, where in the creation of man, God formed man from the dust of the earth and then He breathed into the nostrils of the man and the man became alive.
So the breath of God is the breath of life, the gift of the Holy Spirit, who is the Lord and Giver of life who proceeds from the Father and the Son, as we profess in the Creed.
So in the gospel, the Risen Jesus is recreating the scene from the book of Genesis as He breathed the Holy Spirit into the hearts of His disciples.
He breathed into His disciples the breath of new life, a breath of forgiveness, a breath of healing, a breath of love, the breath of the Holy Spirit.
And we see the effects of the Holy Spirit in the disciples in the 1st reading as they went forth to proclaim the marvels of God in different languages as the Spirit gave them the gift of speech.
Today as the Church celebrates the feast of Pentecost, the Lord Jesus breathes on us the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But we can’t help but wonder if Jesus is breathing on us the gift of the Holy Spirit, or is He sighing at us with pity and compassion.
As it is said, we begin life with a wail and we end our life with a sigh; our last breath is like a sigh.
Not only is our last breath like a sigh, our whole life seems like a big sigh.
We sigh with frustrations, disappointments, hurts, helplessness, fears and anxiety. We sigh with the burden of sin and unforgiveness.
Sighing has become associated with pessimism, hopelessness and lifelessness.
But today we want to sigh, but sigh with relief. Like the disciples in the gospel, we want to sigh with relief as the Lord Jesus is offering us peace and forgiveness.
We want to breathe in the breath of God and breathe out all that is not of God.
We want to breathe in peace and forgiveness, and breathe out our fears and anxiety.
We ask the Lord Jesus to remove the blockages so that we can breathe in the gift of the Holy Spirit, and with the breath of the Holy Spirit we want to go forth to proclaim the Good News of the marvels of God.
Let us change our sighs of burden into sighs of relief because Jesus has forgiven us and saved us.
Let us breathe in the gift of the Holy Spirit and with the breath of the Holy Spirit, let us go forth to proclaim the Good News of salvation.
A sigh can be described as a deep big breath. In order to sigh, a deep breath is inhaled and an audible breath is exhaled. So it can be said that there is no such a thing as a silent sigh.
With the word “sigh”, the assumption is that it is a response to a helpless or hopeless situation, or an indication of giving up, or a lack of motivation or inspiration, or a sign of pessimism or subtle criticism.
That word “sigh” appears frequently in our text messages when we don’t know how to reply to a complaint or when we don’t know how to response to a sticky situation. So we type “sigh”, and hopefully that will end the conversation.
But a sigh actually has a few shades of meaning. Besides a sigh of helplessness, there is also a sigh of relief, especially when something tedious or burdensome is finished, or when an anxiety or worry is over, we heave a sigh of relief.
So a sigh have at least two meanings or even more. We know what it means when we sigh, and others will know what it means, when we sigh.
Generally speaking, a sigh is a deep inhaling of air followed by a quick exhale, and not a slow release.
But what would we call a quick inhale and no exhaling. That would be like holding the breath.
In the gospel, when the disciples were in the room, with the doors closed for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them.
The disciples, in a state of surprise and shock, probably took in a quick breath and held it there. But they didn’t have to hold it that long as Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you.”
And after saying that, Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This is a rather unique action of Jesus, where breath is used to symbolize the presence and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But this action of breathing on the disciples brings us back to the book of Genesis 2:7, where in the creation of man, God formed man from the dust of the earth and then He breathed into the nostrils of the man and the man became alive.
So the breath of God is the breath of life, the gift of the Holy Spirit, who is the Lord and Giver of life who proceeds from the Father and the Son, as we profess in the Creed.
So in the gospel, the Risen Jesus is recreating the scene from the book of Genesis as He breathed the Holy Spirit into the hearts of His disciples.
He breathed into His disciples the breath of new life, a breath of forgiveness, a breath of healing, a breath of love, the breath of the Holy Spirit.
And we see the effects of the Holy Spirit in the disciples in the 1st reading as they went forth to proclaim the marvels of God in different languages as the Spirit gave them the gift of speech.
Today as the Church celebrates the feast of Pentecost, the Lord Jesus breathes on us the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But we can’t help but wonder if Jesus is breathing on us the gift of the Holy Spirit, or is He sighing at us with pity and compassion.
As it is said, we begin life with a wail and we end our life with a sigh; our last breath is like a sigh.
Not only is our last breath like a sigh, our whole life seems like a big sigh.
We sigh with frustrations, disappointments, hurts, helplessness, fears and anxiety. We sigh with the burden of sin and unforgiveness.
Sighing has become associated with pessimism, hopelessness and lifelessness.
But today we want to sigh, but sigh with relief. Like the disciples in the gospel, we want to sigh with relief as the Lord Jesus is offering us peace and forgiveness.
We want to breathe in the breath of God and breathe out all that is not of God.
We want to breathe in peace and forgiveness, and breathe out our fears and anxiety.
We ask the Lord Jesus to remove the blockages so that we can breathe in the gift of the Holy Spirit, and with the breath of the Holy Spirit we want to go forth to proclaim the Good News of the marvels of God.
Let us change our sighs of burden into sighs of relief because Jesus has forgiven us and saved us.
Let us breathe in the gift of the Holy Spirit and with the breath of the Holy Spirit, let us go forth to proclaim the Good News of salvation.
Saturday, June 1, 2019
7th Sunday of Easter, Year C, 02.06.2019
Acts 7:55-60 / Apocalypse 22:12-14, 16-17, 20 / John 17:20-26
It is said that the eyes are the windows and mirrors of the heart. That is indeed quite true when we observe the eyes of a person.
When a person is deep in thought or dreaming, the eyes seem to be looking into space or looking at something a mile away.
When a person is excited and lively, the eyes seem to be wide open and even dancing.
When a person is troubled or unwell, the eyes would seem to be droopy and dull.
When a person is evasive, the eyes would avoid eye contact.
And when a person is staring at something or someone, those eyes seem to be locked on to the object, like how cats fix their eyes on the prey.
Indeed the eyes of a person are like windows and mirrors of the heart. Those eyes can tell us something about how the person is feeling and what the person is thinking.
We just have to look into the eyes of a person and maybe more than just feelings and thoughts, we may also see the story of that person.
The Bible doesn’t say much about the eyes of the characters in its pages. But it does say something about where they are looking and what they are seeing.
The 1st reading begins by saying that Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand.
But the members of the council didn’t see what Stephen saw. They didn’t believe that Stephen could have a glimpse of heaven. For them, no human being could ever see heaven while on earth.
And for that, they dragged Stephen out to execute him by stoning him to death. For them their eyes were only looking for the biggest and sharpest stones to throw at Stephen.
Their eyes did not, or maybe dare not, look into the eyes of Stephen, for fear that they could see what he saw and be converted.
But even if they didn’t want to look into the eyes of Stephen, their eyes couldn’t avoid the sight of the kneeling and dying Stephen as he made that invocation: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”
That sight of the praying Stephen when he was dying might not mean much then to his executioners. But it may mean something much later to that young man Saul, who later would become Paul.
And in the gospel, Jesus raised His eyes to heaven and said a long prayer to God.
We may be able to remember what He prayed for, but we will also remember that posture of prayer as Jesus raised His eyes to heaven.
Jesus, as well as Stephen, raised their eyes to heaven and they saw something, and we wish that we could see what they saw.
But they raised their eyes to heaven not because they wanted to see something. They raised their eyes to heaven because of what they saw on earth.
Stephen saw the stubbornness of the people who refused to believe even though they saw the signs and wonders that he worked.
As Stephen gazed into heaven, he saw the glory of God and of Jesus and that gave him the faith and love to forgive his enemies even as he was dying.
Jesus raised His eyes to heaven to pray for His disciples that they be united in the same love that He has for His Father.
He could see how easily the faith of His disciples could be shaken and how easily they could be disunited, and hence He raised His eyes to heaven in prayer.
As we look at our world and our Church, we could be dismayed or disturbed by what is going on around us.
The world has its problems, the Church also has its problems, we too have our own problems.
When we see a child making a commotion in Church, let us not stare or glare at the parents. Let us look at the parents and feel their embarrassment and difficulty, and have compassion and empathy for them.
When we see someone complaining and criticizing about this or that, let us look at that person and see that he is fighting with his own problems and he is looking for solutions but ending up in frustrations.
As we look into the eyes of these people, let us raise our eyes to heaven and pray for God’s revelation.
God will give us the consolation that when there are tears in the eyes, there will also be rainbows in the heart.
Let us continue to raise our eyes to heaven and pray to have eyes that will see the best in people, a heart that forgives the worst, a mind that forgets the bad and a heart that will not lose faith in God.
It is said that the eyes are the windows and mirrors of the heart. That is indeed quite true when we observe the eyes of a person.
When a person is deep in thought or dreaming, the eyes seem to be looking into space or looking at something a mile away.
When a person is excited and lively, the eyes seem to be wide open and even dancing.
When a person is troubled or unwell, the eyes would seem to be droopy and dull.
When a person is evasive, the eyes would avoid eye contact.
And when a person is staring at something or someone, those eyes seem to be locked on to the object, like how cats fix their eyes on the prey.
Indeed the eyes of a person are like windows and mirrors of the heart. Those eyes can tell us something about how the person is feeling and what the person is thinking.
We just have to look into the eyes of a person and maybe more than just feelings and thoughts, we may also see the story of that person.
The Bible doesn’t say much about the eyes of the characters in its pages. But it does say something about where they are looking and what they are seeing.
The 1st reading begins by saying that Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand.
But the members of the council didn’t see what Stephen saw. They didn’t believe that Stephen could have a glimpse of heaven. For them, no human being could ever see heaven while on earth.
And for that, they dragged Stephen out to execute him by stoning him to death. For them their eyes were only looking for the biggest and sharpest stones to throw at Stephen.
Their eyes did not, or maybe dare not, look into the eyes of Stephen, for fear that they could see what he saw and be converted.
But even if they didn’t want to look into the eyes of Stephen, their eyes couldn’t avoid the sight of the kneeling and dying Stephen as he made that invocation: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”
That sight of the praying Stephen when he was dying might not mean much then to his executioners. But it may mean something much later to that young man Saul, who later would become Paul.
And in the gospel, Jesus raised His eyes to heaven and said a long prayer to God.
We may be able to remember what He prayed for, but we will also remember that posture of prayer as Jesus raised His eyes to heaven.
Jesus, as well as Stephen, raised their eyes to heaven and they saw something, and we wish that we could see what they saw.
But they raised their eyes to heaven not because they wanted to see something. They raised their eyes to heaven because of what they saw on earth.
Stephen saw the stubbornness of the people who refused to believe even though they saw the signs and wonders that he worked.
As Stephen gazed into heaven, he saw the glory of God and of Jesus and that gave him the faith and love to forgive his enemies even as he was dying.
Jesus raised His eyes to heaven to pray for His disciples that they be united in the same love that He has for His Father.
He could see how easily the faith of His disciples could be shaken and how easily they could be disunited, and hence He raised His eyes to heaven in prayer.
As we look at our world and our Church, we could be dismayed or disturbed by what is going on around us.
The world has its problems, the Church also has its problems, we too have our own problems.
When we see a child making a commotion in Church, let us not stare or glare at the parents. Let us look at the parents and feel their embarrassment and difficulty, and have compassion and empathy for them.
When we see someone complaining and criticizing about this or that, let us look at that person and see that he is fighting with his own problems and he is looking for solutions but ending up in frustrations.
As we look into the eyes of these people, let us raise our eyes to heaven and pray for God’s revelation.
God will give us the consolation that when there are tears in the eyes, there will also be rainbows in the heart.
Let us continue to raise our eyes to heaven and pray to have eyes that will see the best in people, a heart that forgives the worst, a mind that forgets the bad and a heart that will not lose faith in God.
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