4th Sunday of Easter, Year A, 30.04.2023

 Acts 2:14, 36-41 / 1 Peter 2:20-25 / John 10:1-10

The general understanding of a religion is that there is a God and the followers of that religion worship that God. 

Then comes along the precepts of the religion, like Commandments and regulations. 

The reason that people follow a particular religion is because of family traditions, or that they have experienced some goodness of that religion. 

As for the Christian faith, it has all the above aspects and maybe even more. 

But, as we reflect either on our Christian faith, we will come to see one fundamental and essential aspect. 

And that aspect is relationship. 

It is the relationship between God and us, and our relationship with one another. 

That relationship is profoundly expressed in the Commandment to love God and to love one another. 

And as much as God calls us His people, there is also another image that is used to express the relationship between God and us. 

And that image is the shepherd and his sheep. That image runs throughout the Bible, in the writings of the prophets, in the Psalms and in the gospels, like in today's Gospel. 

And this Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Easter, is also called Good Shepherd Sunday, with an emphasis on vocations to the priesthood and religious life. 

So, there is a religious basis to call Jesus our Good Shepherd, and we willingly call ourselves His sheep. 

And when we understand the relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, then we will know why that imagery is used. 

Out there in the fields and in the pastures, the shepherd is often alone with his sheep. 

He knows every one of his sheep, and the unique characteristic of the sheep is that they listen to the shepherd's voice, and only to his voice. 

At the end of the day, the shepherd will gather his sheep into a cove-like area, and he will rest at the entrance. 

It is an image of an intimate relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, almost like that of a father and his children. 

So, we may wonder, how can a sheep go missing and be lost. The reason is that when a sheep is sick, it will not be able to listen clearly, and it will not see clearly as well, so it will not hear the shepherd's voice and lose sight of the flock.

Hence, the urgency of the shepherd to look for that lost sheep before anything tragic happens to it. 

As we think about all these on Good Shepherd Sunday, we may come to see that to be a shepherd is a challenging and demanding vocation. 

Yes, we pray for those who are preparing for the priesthood to offer themselves in service to God and to His people. 

We also pray for those who have answered the call to serve, meaning the priests who are the shepherds of the Church, that they will be faithful and committed to their sacred vocation. 

We pray also for ourselves who are God's sheep, that we will listen to the voice of truth and love, and follow the Good Shepherd in the path of salvation. 

And we pray that we will also look out for the lost sheep. 

For whatever reason that they have left the Church, their deep desire is to come back to God and to the Church. 

And may we, the shepherds and the sheep, the priests and the People of God, be the voice, the hands and the feet of the Good Shepherd who will look for those lost sheep. 

The world has many other distracting voices, and there are those who want to steal, to kill and to destroy. 

We pray that Jesus, our Good Shepherd, will protect the shepherds and the sheep of His Church, and lead us to the pastures of blessings, and to the eternal pastures of the Kingdom of Heaven.

3rd Sunday of Easter Year A, 23.04.2023

 Acts 2:42-47 / 1 Peter 1:3-9 / John 20:19-31

In the journey of life, we don't walk alone. 

In the story of creation, God saw that man, and the rest of creation was good. 

But there was one thing that God saw that was not good, and that was, man was alone. 

And hence, God created woman, and together with the man, they were to go forth and multiply and fill the Earth with love. 

But there were times when man chose to go alone, maybe because to go fast, one goes alone. 

But going alone, or wanting to go fast, will certainly have problems. 

Peter was alone when he denied Jesus, not once, but three times. 

Judas had his own ideology, and he ended up as a tragedy. 

Thomas chose to be in isolation, and he missed the first appearance of the Risen lord. 

As we have heard, to go fast, one goes alone. But to go far, we go together. 

To be together is to keep each other company, whether we are happy or in misery. 

For the two disciples of Jesus who were on their way to Emmaus, they were downcast and in misery. 

They were walking away from Jerusalem as their hopes were shattered with the death of Jesus. 

Their only consolation was that they had each other's company in their misery. 

But we remembered that Jesus promised where two or three are gathered, He will be there. 

Jesus came along and walked with the two disciples along their journey, and listened to their story. 

He then enlightened them with the Scriptures, and finally revealed Himself to them at the breaking of bread. 

For the two disciples, the journey to Emmaus was heavy with disappointment. 

But the journey back to Jerusalem was burning with excitement. 

Jesus had promised His disciples that He would rise from the dead, and the two disciples experienced the Resurrection. 

But for the two disciples as well as for the rest of the disciples, there was a deeper revelation. 

The Risen Lord Jesus had kept His promise that He will be with them, and will journey with them to the end of time. 

As we journey in our faith, let us remember that Jesus promised to be with us. 

As we journey on, let us also journey together with each other, whether it is in excitement or in disappointment. 

And let us also look out for the lonely and the lost. 

Let us look out for those who are unhappy and in misery. 

They are the ones who walk alone in misery and with no company. 

Let us walk with them, and Jesus will walk with us. 

Together with Jesus, we will go far and will even receive a revelation of Heaven. 

And it will be a journey together with hearts burning with love.

2nd Sunday of Easter, Year A, 16.04.2023

 Acts 2:42-47 / 1 Peter 1:3-9 / John 20:19-31

One of the easiest words to say is a mono syllable word that has just two letters, and that word is “No”. 

It can be said without much effort, and without having to exercise much of the mouth muscles. 

And there are many ways to say it. It can be groaned out; it can be said with teeth clenched; it can be repeated multiple times to emphasize objection or opposition; or it can be said just once, and it's meaning and message is clear enough. 

The word “No” is so much easier to say than the word “Yes”. To say “Yes”, will make us feel vulnerable, and our availability will be taken up by others. 

To say “Yes”, will require our submission as well as our obedience to our superiors or to a higher authority. 

So, the word “Yes” is a word that will have to be used with caution, as there will be implications on our availability, our vulnerability and our security.

So, the easiest word out of any situation that we don't like or that we do not want to be involved in, would be to say “No”. 

That would shut the door to any further discussion or negotiation or agreement. 

So, for Thomas, who was not with the disciples when the Risen Lord appeared to them, his response to what they said about having seen the Risen Lord is a straight and sharp “No”. 

And he showed how adamant he was when he said this: Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands, and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe. 

So, in short, it was: “No” means “No”. 

But, it was understandable why Thomas was so adamant. When he saw Jesus being nailed to the cross and died on it, it was a shocking “No” to him – “No” it can't be. 

Then after that, with no hope left in him, he decided that it was no point being with the disciples anymore, so, maybe, that was why he wasn't with the disciples when the Risen Lord first appeared to them. 

For Thomas, he was like one big tied up knot. His mind, his heart and his life were tied up like a knot, and he had only one word to say to anything and to anyone, and that word was “No”. 

But, it was to such resistance that Jesus appeared again to show compassion and mercy to Thomas. 

With love, mercy and compassion Jesus turned the “No” into a “Yes”. 

And that “Yes” from Thomas became a profound statement of faith - My Lord and my God. 

On this second Sunday of Easter, as we give thanks to God for His love, mercy and compassion, let us surrender our “No” that has tied up the many knots in our lives. 

There are the tight and hardened knots of our minds, our hearts and our lives. 

There are the tight knots of our faith and that have resulted in our disobedience to God. 

There are the tight knots in our relationships that have caused tension and friction. 

We have said “No” too many times that we are like a big “No” to God and to others. 

But Jesus came for Thomas to untie the knots of his life, and to change his “No” to a “Yes”. 

It was a resounding “Yes” from Thomas as he proclaims: My Lord and my God. 

Let us not say “No” to Jesus, but let us say “Yes” to Him in this following prayer.

O God,

Please untie the knots that are in my mind, 

my heart and my life. 

Remove the have nots ,

the can nots and the do nots

that I have in my mind,

Erase all the will nots , 

might nots 

that may find a home in my heart .

Release me from the could nots

would nots

that obstruct my life.

And most of all O God;

I ask that you remove from my mind ,

my heart and my life

all the “am nots” 

that I have allowed to hold me back , 

especially the thought,

that I am not good enough 

Amen.

Easter Sunday, 09.04.2023

 The word “Resurrection” is not a common word that is used in everyday vocabulary, and much less in the secular world. 

As a matter of fact, the word “Resurrection” is often used in Church because of its religious meaning, and it is used especially during this particular period of time. 

It is often said that the Feast of the Resurrection, or the feast of Easter, is the greatest celebration of our faith. 

If that is so, then the reality of the Resurrection must permeate and be seared into our lives, so that the power and the glory of the Resurrection is not just an expression in the Mass and in Church, but the essence and substance of our lives in the world. 

So, we know, and we believe, that in the Resurrection, Jesus rose from the dead and conquered sin and death and gave us new life. 

That means Jesus has freed us from the bonds  and snares of sin, and He raised us to the new life of heaven. 

So, the empty tomb is history, as Jesus calls us to share in His glory. 

So, we can't keep looking and wondering at the empty tomb, like how the disciples were initially looking and wondering at the empty tomb. 

Yes, initially the disciples wondered about the empty tomb, until the encounter with the Risen Christ in the upper room. 

We too may wonder about the message of the empty tomb, and we might even be tempted to linger in that empty tomb. 

Because the empty tomb distracts us. In that empty tomb we may look for security in earthly riches, and forget our eternity with Jesus. 

In that empty tomb, we may want to clutch at our pride and ego, and forget that humility and simplicity is what we really need to let go. 

In that empty tomb, we may want to wallow in our disappointments, frustrations, anger and resentment, and forget that Jesus, our Risen Lord, wants to give us peace and joy and contentment. 

The empty tomb is history, and has absolutely nothing for us. 

Jesus is calling us to look up and head towards that Upper Room.

It is not that Upper Room that the disciples once gathered. 

It is that Upper Room in heaven where Jesus has prepared a home for each of us. 

So, let us move on from the empty tomb to that Upper Room, where we will sing “Alleluias” forever.

Palm-Passion Sunday Year A, 02.04.2023

 Ezekiel 37:12-14 / Romans 8:8-11 / John 11:1-45 

The one thing that we will bring back from Church is the palm branch. 

After all, today is Palm Sunday, and we would expect to bring home a palm branch. 

And since it is a blessed object, (it was blessed at the beginning of the Mass), we will put it on our home altar, or hang it on our main door, or maybe just leave it lying around. 

In a way, the palm branch is like a reflection of our lives.

We wave the palm branches at the beginning of the Mass in celebration of the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. 

We too had our moments of glory and celebrated our achievements and success. 

In the days to come, the palm branch will dry up and turn brown, and after a while it will be almost forgotten. 

We too will have our dry moments, and we may feel like being left aside, being left out, and at times even feel rather useless. 

But we must remember that one year later, we will bring back these palm branches to Church, where they will be burnt and made into ashes for Ash Wednesday. 

That also tells us that we have to die to ourselves in repentance, so as to rise to the new life of the Resurrection. 

As we enter into Holy Week, let us unite ourselves with Jesus in His suffering and death, so that together with Jesus, we will rise to the new life of the Resurrection.