Jeremiah 38:4-6, 8-10 / Hebrews 12:1-4 / Luke 12:49-53
One of the things that we don’t really feel comfortable about, that we don’t feel at ease with, is the dark.
There is this primeval fear of the dark and it not only affects children, even adults would avoid the dark places.
So as much as we may not say that we are afraid of the dark, our actions often show otherwise.
That is this joke about a little boy who was always afraid of the dark. And he wouldn’t go outdoors alone after sunset.
One day he forgot to bring in his badminton racket from the garden, and since it was already dark, he asked his mother to bring it in for him.
His mother wanted to help him overcome his fear of the dark, so she told him, “Don’t be afraid of the dark. Jesus is out there even in the dark. So just go and bring your badminton racket back.”
So the little boy opened the door a bit, and then said in a loud voice, “Jesus, if you are out there, please bring in my badminton racket.”
Oh yes, Jesus is out there even in the dark, but what He will do about it depends on what we want to do about it.
And if we were ever thrown into a dark well and sinking slowly into the muddy bottom, it is not going to be very useful to keep cursing the dark.
In the first reading, we heard that the Prophet Jeremiah was thrown into a well which has no water in it, but only mud, and into the mud Jeremiah sank.
We weren’t told what Jeremiah did as he was sinking into the mud, but we know what he did before he got thrown into the well.
He was telling the soldiers and the people living in Jerusalem to give up and surrender to the enemy who were laying siege on Jerusalem.
Certainly, to surrender was quite unthinkable, but Jeremiah’s point was that it would be better to surrender rather than to be in for total disaster.
In other words, in surrendering, there could still be a little light in spite of the impending darkness.
But the king’s leading men could only think of Jeremiah as bad and dark news.
But Jeremiah, being a prophet, should be proclaiming the good news of God’s protection and salvation, and not the bad and dark news of surrendering to the enemy.
But Jeremiah saw what the king’s leading men refused to see, that the people had turned away from God and turned into a people of darkness.
So God let a greater darkness cover them and if they had listened to Jeremiah, then they will realize that even in the overwhelming darkness, the light will still shine. But only if they listened and believed in Jeremiah.
Today’s Gospel sounded more like dark news instead of good news.
Jesus talked about bringing fire and then about a baptism He must still receive, and how great was His distress till it was over.
And then instead of peace, He talked about division and distress, and we might wonder what was His point and what was He talking about.
It was certainly one of those hard and tough sayings of Jesus. But we may remember that Jesus called Himself the Light of the world.
That light was now turning into a fire as Jesus prepares Himself to face the persecutions from the people of darkness, a persecution similar to what the Prophet Jeremiah faced.
And the light from that blazing fire was going to burn way the false securities of a man-made peace and divided those who are in the light and those who are in the dark.
Because the Light of Christ will bring out the truth of who we are and where we stand.
Certainly we want to stand on the side of Truth and be in the light.
But we must also remember that when the light is brightest, the shadows are darkest.
The noblest of intentions can also be tainted with ulterior motives.
Just a couple of days ago, the Hong Kong tycoon Li ka-shing, put a full-page advertisement in the newspapers calling for a stop to the chaos and violence that are happening in Hong Kong.
The advertisement had an interesting header that said “the best of intentions can lead to the worst outcome”. It did not specify what “the best of intentions” referred to.
At the bottom, it said “stop anger and violence in the name of love”.
It was a reminder to all those involved to rethink their intentions as they look at what is happening.
But people can only look and see clearly when there is the Light of Christ.
We are called to bring the Light of Christ to others and be the light of Truth for them.
But what is to give light must endure the burning.
May we let the fire of God’s love burn away the darkness and impurities of our lives so that we can shine with truth and with love.
Click the links under My Blog List to get to Chinese and English weekday homilies.
Saturday, August 17, 2019
Saturday, August 10, 2019
19th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 11.08.2019
Wisdom 18:6-9 / Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 / Luke 12:32-48
One of the things in life that is not nice to encounter are complains. That is simply because no one complains nicely.
In other words there is no such a thing as a nice complain; it is a contradiction of terms.
But whenever others complain, or when we complain, the cause of the complaints is that there is a disappointment.
Whether spoken or written, whether we hear it or we read it, the word “disappointed” tells us that it is not going to be something nice.
So it is not going to be nice when the boss tells the worker “I am disappointed with your performance”, or the parent tells the child “I am disappointed with your grades”.
And the litany goes on: I’m disappointed with your attitude; I’m disappointed with your progress; I’m disappointed with my spouse; I’m disappointed with my children; I’m disappointed with the Church; I’m disappointed with God.
And with the disappointments come all that sourness and bitterness that are the characteristics of complaints.
But as it is always said, disappointments come from expectations. So where there are expectations that will be disappointments, because the idea or the picture in our minds is not what it is in reality.
So the stoic way is to have no expectations, so that there will be no disappointments. But that is being like a robot. A robot has no expectations and hence it will never have disappointments.
But we are human, with feelings and emotions, with hopes and dreams. And of course with some expectations. Only thing is just to keep our expectations at a realistic level.
Because expecting life to treat you well just because you are a good person is like expecting an angry bull not to charge at you because you are vegetarian. Well, you will be painfully disappointed.
In the gospel Jesus tells us a parable to give us an idea of what to expect in life. He tells us to be dressed for action and to have our lamps lit.
So what does that mean? It means to be like the servants waiting for the master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as the master comes.
So the servants are expecting their master. The question is when will the master arrive? Is it at second watch or the third watch? Is it that night or is it going to be another night?
And happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Yes happy the servants if he finds them ready, for they shall be rewarded.
And so we can actually have our expectations in life and have our expectations in God. God will reward us for being faithful and for being prayerful.
But at the same time, we have to be prepared to expect the unexpected. Even Jesus would tell us that we have to stand ready because He will come at a time that we do not expect.
So for example in our prayer we pray for an urgent need. We put our faith in God as we believe that every prayer uttered is also every prayer answered.
Yes God will hear our prayers and answer our prayers. The question is how are we expecting God to answer our prayers.
Well to keep our expectations at a realistic level, let us remember how God generally answers prayers.
Generally speaking, God gives us three answers to our prayers:
“YES” - our prayers are answered immediately.
“NOT YET” - we need to have faith in God and be patient.
Or, God says, “I have something better for you”.
So God doesn’t say “NO”. Rather He tells us to always expect the unexpected, so that instead of disappointment, that will be amazement.
There’s this story of a man who was catching fish by the river and he caught quite a number of fish.
A young boy came along to watch the man catching fish. The man looks at the boy and he says, “Hey boy, you can take all the fish back home.”
But the boy replied, “I don’t want the fish. I want the fishing rod so that I can catch fish everyday.”
Sounds like a smart answer from a clever boy, right? But the story is not finished yet.
The man said, “You can have the fishing rod but you would not be able to catch any fish.” The boy asked, “Why?” The man replied, “Because you need to learn from me the skill of catching fish.”
The point here is that the boy thought that if he had the fishing rod then he will be able to catch a lot of fish. That was his expectation and that will also be his disappointment.
So let us not put our expectations on things or on people. Let us put on expectations in God, and also be prepared to expect the unexpected, because God always have something beyond our expectations.
So that we will be amazed and marvel at the wonders that God will do for us.
19th Sunday OT C-2019 11-08-19
Wisdom 18:6-9 / Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 / Luke 12:32-48
One of the things in life that is not nice to encounter are complaints. That is simply because no one complains nicely.
In other words there is no such a thing as a nice complaint; it is a contradiction of terms.
But whenever others complain, or when we complain, the cause of the complaints is that there is a disappointment.
Whether spoken or written, whether we hear it or we read it, the word “disappointed” tells us that it is not going to be something nice.
So it is not going to be nice when the boss tells the worker “I am disappointed with your performance”, or the parent tells the child “I am disappointed with your grades”.
And the litany goes on: I’m disappointed with your attitude; I’m disappointed with your progress; I’m disappointed with my spouse; I’m disappointed with my children; I’m disappointed with the Church; I’m disappointed with God.
And with the disappointments come all that sourness and bitterness that are the characteristics of complaints.
But as it is always said, disappointments come from expectations. So where there are expectations there will be disappointments, because the idea or the picture in our minds is not what it is in reality.
So the stoic way is to have no expectations, so that there will be no disappointments. But that is being like a robot. A robot has no expectations and hence it will never have disappointments.
But we are human, with feelings and emotions, with hopes and dreams. And of course with some expectations. Only thing is just to keep our expectations at a realistic level.
Because expecting life to treat you well just because you are a good person is like expecting an angry bull not to charge at you because you are vegetarian. Well, you will be painfully disappointed.
In the gospel Jesus tells us a parable to give us an idea of what to expect in life. He tells us to be dressed for action and to have our lamps lit.
So what does that mean? It means to be like the servants waiting for the master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as the master comes.
So the servants are expecting their master. The question is when will the master arrive? Is it at second watch or the third watch? Is it that night or is it going to be another night?
And happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Yes happy the servants if he finds them ready, for they shall be rewarded.
And so we can actually have our expectations in life and have our expectations in God. God will reward us for being faithful and for being prayerful.
But at the same time, we have to be prepared to expect the unexpected. Even Jesus would tell us that we have to stand ready because He will come at a time that we do not expect.
So for example in our prayer we pray for an urgent need. We put our faith in God as we believe that every prayer uttered is also every prayer answered.
Yes, God will hear our prayers and answer our prayers. The question is how are we expecting God to answer our prayers.
Well to keep our expectations at a realistic level, let us remember how God generally answers prayers.
Generally speaking, God gives us three answers to our prayers:
“YES” - our prayers are answered immediately.
“NOT YET” - we need to have faith in God and be patient.
Or, God says, “I have something better for you”.
So God doesn’t say “NO”. Rather He tells us to always expect the unexpected, so that instead of disappointment, there will be amazement.
There’s this story of a man who was catching fish by the river and he caught quite a number of fish.
A young boy came along to watch the man catching fish. The man looked at the boy and he said, “Hey boy, you can take all the fish back home.”
But the boy replied, “I don’t want the fish. I want the fishing rod so that I can catch fish everyday.”
Sounds like a smart answer from a clever boy, right? But the story is not finished yet.
The man said, “You can have the fishing rod but you would not be able to catch any fish.” The boy asked, “Why?” The man replied, “Because you need to learn from me the skill of catching fish.”
The point here is that the boy thought that if he had the fishing rod then he would be able to catch a lot of fish. That was his expectation and that would also be his disappointment.
So let us not put our expectations on things or on people. Let us put our expectations in God, and also be prepared to expect the unexpected, because God always have something beyond our expectations.
So that we will be amazed and marvel at the wonders that God will do for us.
One of the things in life that is not nice to encounter are complains. That is simply because no one complains nicely.
In other words there is no such a thing as a nice complain; it is a contradiction of terms.
But whenever others complain, or when we complain, the cause of the complaints is that there is a disappointment.
Whether spoken or written, whether we hear it or we read it, the word “disappointed” tells us that it is not going to be something nice.
So it is not going to be nice when the boss tells the worker “I am disappointed with your performance”, or the parent tells the child “I am disappointed with your grades”.
And the litany goes on: I’m disappointed with your attitude; I’m disappointed with your progress; I’m disappointed with my spouse; I’m disappointed with my children; I’m disappointed with the Church; I’m disappointed with God.
And with the disappointments come all that sourness and bitterness that are the characteristics of complaints.
But as it is always said, disappointments come from expectations. So where there are expectations that will be disappointments, because the idea or the picture in our minds is not what it is in reality.
So the stoic way is to have no expectations, so that there will be no disappointments. But that is being like a robot. A robot has no expectations and hence it will never have disappointments.
But we are human, with feelings and emotions, with hopes and dreams. And of course with some expectations. Only thing is just to keep our expectations at a realistic level.
Because expecting life to treat you well just because you are a good person is like expecting an angry bull not to charge at you because you are vegetarian. Well, you will be painfully disappointed.
In the gospel Jesus tells us a parable to give us an idea of what to expect in life. He tells us to be dressed for action and to have our lamps lit.
So what does that mean? It means to be like the servants waiting for the master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as the master comes.
So the servants are expecting their master. The question is when will the master arrive? Is it at second watch or the third watch? Is it that night or is it going to be another night?
And happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Yes happy the servants if he finds them ready, for they shall be rewarded.
And so we can actually have our expectations in life and have our expectations in God. God will reward us for being faithful and for being prayerful.
But at the same time, we have to be prepared to expect the unexpected. Even Jesus would tell us that we have to stand ready because He will come at a time that we do not expect.
So for example in our prayer we pray for an urgent need. We put our faith in God as we believe that every prayer uttered is also every prayer answered.
Yes God will hear our prayers and answer our prayers. The question is how are we expecting God to answer our prayers.
Well to keep our expectations at a realistic level, let us remember how God generally answers prayers.
Generally speaking, God gives us three answers to our prayers:
“YES” - our prayers are answered immediately.
“NOT YET” - we need to have faith in God and be patient.
Or, God says, “I have something better for you”.
So God doesn’t say “NO”. Rather He tells us to always expect the unexpected, so that instead of disappointment, that will be amazement.
There’s this story of a man who was catching fish by the river and he caught quite a number of fish.
A young boy came along to watch the man catching fish. The man looks at the boy and he says, “Hey boy, you can take all the fish back home.”
But the boy replied, “I don’t want the fish. I want the fishing rod so that I can catch fish everyday.”
Sounds like a smart answer from a clever boy, right? But the story is not finished yet.
The man said, “You can have the fishing rod but you would not be able to catch any fish.” The boy asked, “Why?” The man replied, “Because you need to learn from me the skill of catching fish.”
The point here is that the boy thought that if he had the fishing rod then he will be able to catch a lot of fish. That was his expectation and that will also be his disappointment.
So let us not put our expectations on things or on people. Let us put on expectations in God, and also be prepared to expect the unexpected, because God always have something beyond our expectations.
So that we will be amazed and marvel at the wonders that God will do for us.
19th Sunday OT C-2019 11-08-19
Wisdom 18:6-9 / Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 / Luke 12:32-48
One of the things in life that is not nice to encounter are complaints. That is simply because no one complains nicely.
In other words there is no such a thing as a nice complaint; it is a contradiction of terms.
But whenever others complain, or when we complain, the cause of the complaints is that there is a disappointment.
Whether spoken or written, whether we hear it or we read it, the word “disappointed” tells us that it is not going to be something nice.
So it is not going to be nice when the boss tells the worker “I am disappointed with your performance”, or the parent tells the child “I am disappointed with your grades”.
And the litany goes on: I’m disappointed with your attitude; I’m disappointed with your progress; I’m disappointed with my spouse; I’m disappointed with my children; I’m disappointed with the Church; I’m disappointed with God.
And with the disappointments come all that sourness and bitterness that are the characteristics of complaints.
But as it is always said, disappointments come from expectations. So where there are expectations there will be disappointments, because the idea or the picture in our minds is not what it is in reality.
So the stoic way is to have no expectations, so that there will be no disappointments. But that is being like a robot. A robot has no expectations and hence it will never have disappointments.
But we are human, with feelings and emotions, with hopes and dreams. And of course with some expectations. Only thing is just to keep our expectations at a realistic level.
Because expecting life to treat you well just because you are a good person is like expecting an angry bull not to charge at you because you are vegetarian. Well, you will be painfully disappointed.
In the gospel Jesus tells us a parable to give us an idea of what to expect in life. He tells us to be dressed for action and to have our lamps lit.
So what does that mean? It means to be like the servants waiting for the master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as the master comes.
So the servants are expecting their master. The question is when will the master arrive? Is it at second watch or the third watch? Is it that night or is it going to be another night?
And happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Yes happy the servants if he finds them ready, for they shall be rewarded.
And so we can actually have our expectations in life and have our expectations in God. God will reward us for being faithful and for being prayerful.
But at the same time, we have to be prepared to expect the unexpected. Even Jesus would tell us that we have to stand ready because He will come at a time that we do not expect.
So for example in our prayer we pray for an urgent need. We put our faith in God as we believe that every prayer uttered is also every prayer answered.
Yes, God will hear our prayers and answer our prayers. The question is how are we expecting God to answer our prayers.
Well to keep our expectations at a realistic level, let us remember how God generally answers prayers.
Generally speaking, God gives us three answers to our prayers:
“YES” - our prayers are answered immediately.
“NOT YET” - we need to have faith in God and be patient.
Or, God says, “I have something better for you”.
So God doesn’t say “NO”. Rather He tells us to always expect the unexpected, so that instead of disappointment, there will be amazement.
There’s this story of a man who was catching fish by the river and he caught quite a number of fish.
A young boy came along to watch the man catching fish. The man looked at the boy and he said, “Hey boy, you can take all the fish back home.”
But the boy replied, “I don’t want the fish. I want the fishing rod so that I can catch fish everyday.”
Sounds like a smart answer from a clever boy, right? But the story is not finished yet.
The man said, “You can have the fishing rod but you would not be able to catch any fish.” The boy asked, “Why?” The man replied, “Because you need to learn from me the skill of catching fish.”
The point here is that the boy thought that if he had the fishing rod then he would be able to catch a lot of fish. That was his expectation and that would also be his disappointment.
So let us not put our expectations on things or on people. Let us put our expectations in God, and also be prepared to expect the unexpected, because God always have something beyond our expectations.
So that we will be amazed and marvel at the wonders that God will do for us.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
18th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 04.08.2019
Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23 / Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11 / Luke 12:13-21
It is said that in order to understand what life is about, we may have to visit these three places: the hospital, the prison and the cemetery.
At the hospital, we will understand that nothing is more beautiful than health.
At the prison, we will see that freedom is a very precious thing.
At the cemetery, we will realize that the ground we walk on today will be our roof tomorrow.
Of these three places, the cemetery may be the quietest, but the message from the graves may be the loudest, if only we want to listen.
The words engraved on the tombstones, form an epitaph, and they tell us something about the now and the beyond. And here are some examples:
- Prepare yourself to follow me
- I was hoping for a pyramid
- He left behind a lot of stuff and no one knows what to do with it.
Of course, those are one of a kind epitaphs, a bit funny, but they tell us a lot about life and what happens after death.
But even with these messages from the graves, we live like as if we will never die, and we work like as if we want to build pyramids to reach the sky.
The 1st reading calls that the vanity of vanities, and even going on to say that all is vanity. For so it is that a man who has labored wisely, skillfully and successfully must leave what is his own to someone who has not toiled for it.
That’s a rather grim reminder for us that we came into this world naked and with nothing, and we won’t be able to bring anything with us when we have to leave this world.
So if one leaves behind a lot of stuff, useful or not, the epitaph might just read “Here lies the garang-guni man” (rag-and-bone collector)
Or if one leaves behind a lot of wealth and riches, now what would the epitaph read? “Here lies the Rich man”? or “Here lies the Miser”? or “Here lies the Hoarder”? There are so many nouns that can be used.
But the gospel tells us what such a person is called. Such a person is called “Fool”.
Jesus told a parable about a rich man who had a good harvest, and not having enough storage, he wanted to build bigger barns to store his crops.
He envisaged his barns to be like pyramids reaching sky-high. And then he dreams of enjoying life – taking things easy, eat, drink and having a good time.
But that dream turned into a nightmare when God said to him: Fool! This very night, the demand will be made of your soul, and this hoard of yours, whose will be it then?
So the epitaph on that rich man’s tomb will just have this 4-letter word – FOOL
It is such a sad end, but as Jesus warns us, so it is when a man stores up treasure for himself, instead of making himself rich in the eyes of God.
But the question is not about riches; rather the problem is greed, and Jesus tells us to be on our guard against avarice of any kind, for a man’s life is not made secure by what he owns, even when he has more than he needs.
Riches and wealth and possessions don’t give us security. And God wants us to live simply and humbly.
To live simply and humbly would be like what the 2nd reading tells us, that we have been brought back to true life in Christ, and that our thoughts are to be of things above, and not of the things of earth.
And when the demand is made of our souls, we pray that neither God nor anyone would call us “Fool”.
Well, one morning, something like 120 years ago, a man opened the newspapers and he happened to glance at the obituaries.
That was before they started putting photos in the obituaries.
He was shocked to see his name in the column.
The newspapers had carelessly reported his death in place of his brother who had just passed away.
Anyway, the man continued reading the obituary, and from shock, he became shell-shocked.
For the first time in his life, he saw himself as others saw him.
Because the obituary described him as the “dynamite king” who had spent his life making instruments of death and destruction.
That morning, that man, whose name is Alfred Nobel, resolved to change his image and his life.
His resolution resulted in the annual Nobel prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and world peace.
So, from meaningless death-dealing, Alfred Nobel became a life-giving person, and till today he is remembered for that.
So when life is over and done, may God nor others not call us “Fool”.
Rather may we be known as a person who is life-giving, who lived simply and humbly, and was rich in the eyes of God.
It is said that in order to understand what life is about, we may have to visit these three places: the hospital, the prison and the cemetery.
At the hospital, we will understand that nothing is more beautiful than health.
At the prison, we will see that freedom is a very precious thing.
At the cemetery, we will realize that the ground we walk on today will be our roof tomorrow.
Of these three places, the cemetery may be the quietest, but the message from the graves may be the loudest, if only we want to listen.
The words engraved on the tombstones, form an epitaph, and they tell us something about the now and the beyond. And here are some examples:
- Prepare yourself to follow me
- I was hoping for a pyramid
- He left behind a lot of stuff and no one knows what to do with it.
Of course, those are one of a kind epitaphs, a bit funny, but they tell us a lot about life and what happens after death.
But even with these messages from the graves, we live like as if we will never die, and we work like as if we want to build pyramids to reach the sky.
The 1st reading calls that the vanity of vanities, and even going on to say that all is vanity. For so it is that a man who has labored wisely, skillfully and successfully must leave what is his own to someone who has not toiled for it.
That’s a rather grim reminder for us that we came into this world naked and with nothing, and we won’t be able to bring anything with us when we have to leave this world.
So if one leaves behind a lot of stuff, useful or not, the epitaph might just read “Here lies the garang-guni man” (rag-and-bone collector)
Or if one leaves behind a lot of wealth and riches, now what would the epitaph read? “Here lies the Rich man”? or “Here lies the Miser”? or “Here lies the Hoarder”? There are so many nouns that can be used.
But the gospel tells us what such a person is called. Such a person is called “Fool”.
Jesus told a parable about a rich man who had a good harvest, and not having enough storage, he wanted to build bigger barns to store his crops.
He envisaged his barns to be like pyramids reaching sky-high. And then he dreams of enjoying life – taking things easy, eat, drink and having a good time.
But that dream turned into a nightmare when God said to him: Fool! This very night, the demand will be made of your soul, and this hoard of yours, whose will be it then?
So the epitaph on that rich man’s tomb will just have this 4-letter word – FOOL
It is such a sad end, but as Jesus warns us, so it is when a man stores up treasure for himself, instead of making himself rich in the eyes of God.
But the question is not about riches; rather the problem is greed, and Jesus tells us to be on our guard against avarice of any kind, for a man’s life is not made secure by what he owns, even when he has more than he needs.
Riches and wealth and possessions don’t give us security. And God wants us to live simply and humbly.
To live simply and humbly would be like what the 2nd reading tells us, that we have been brought back to true life in Christ, and that our thoughts are to be of things above, and not of the things of earth.
And when the demand is made of our souls, we pray that neither God nor anyone would call us “Fool”.
Well, one morning, something like 120 years ago, a man opened the newspapers and he happened to glance at the obituaries.
That was before they started putting photos in the obituaries.
He was shocked to see his name in the column.
The newspapers had carelessly reported his death in place of his brother who had just passed away.
Anyway, the man continued reading the obituary, and from shock, he became shell-shocked.
For the first time in his life, he saw himself as others saw him.
Because the obituary described him as the “dynamite king” who had spent his life making instruments of death and destruction.
That morning, that man, whose name is Alfred Nobel, resolved to change his image and his life.
His resolution resulted in the annual Nobel prizes in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and world peace.
So, from meaningless death-dealing, Alfred Nobel became a life-giving person, and till today he is remembered for that.
So when life is over and done, may God nor others not call us “Fool”.
Rather may we be known as a person who is life-giving, who lived simply and humbly, and was rich in the eyes of God.
Sunday, July 28, 2019
17th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 28.07.2019
Genesis 18:20-32 / Colossians 2:12-24 / Luke 11:1-13
If we want to know how much parents love their children and what they will do for their children, we just have to ask those parents who are applying for their children’s admission to Primary school under Phase 2B.
For those of us who have already experienced that, we will surely empathize with these parents who are going through that process.
It is a high-anxiety, stressful and nerve-wrecking experience for these parents.
And not just for the parents. Even the priests get involved in the process.
Parents request the priests to write letters especially if it is for application to a prominent Catholic school. Parents and their children come and ask for prayers that the application will be successful.
The priests also pray that the application will be successful, otherwise the parents will say that the prayer is not powerful enough.
Of course, some applications are successful and some are not. And for those that are not successful for Phase 2B, they will have to go through the “now-or-never” Phase 2C balloting where the chances are even slimmer.
So the parents are anxious and stressed, the priests also get anxious and stressed. At stake for the parents is the admission of their children to the preferred school. At stake for the priests is the faith in the power of prayer.
For parents and for priests the critical question is: Will God hear the prayers? And will He answer the prayers?
It is not just a question for parents and priests. It is also our question. Every one of us will have the experience of a stressed-out, high-anxiety, nerve-wrecking time of our lives.
So how did it all those episodes turn out? Were our prayers answered? Did we ask for bread and got a stone? Did we ask for fish and got a snake? Did we ask for an egg and got a scorpion?
In the 1st reading, we heard of a rather amazing, and maybe amusing, story of Abraham who stood before the Lord, and he was pleading and negotiating with the Lord not to destroy the towns of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Abraham pleaded that why should the virtuous man be destroyed with the wicked? And he went from 50, to 45, to 40, to 30, to 20 and then finally to 10.
The boldness and persistence of Abraham was really something, and it takes a lot of faith and courage to do this with the Lord.
Yet in doing this, Abraham taught us something and the Lord God also showed us something.
Abraham believed in the mercy and compassion of God, and God also showed that He relented when Abraham appealed to His mercy and compassion.
And we might even wonder: if Abraham had gone further down to 5, or even to 1, will the Lord still relent?
And Jesus also gave us a very encouraging teaching about asking, searching and knocking. He says: For the one who asks always receives, the one who searches always finds, and the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him.
Yes, it is very encouraging indeed. But if that is so, then why is it that some people say that their prayers were not answered?
And maybe we are the ones who say that God does not answer our prayers. And so our faith is shaken, we get angry with God, and we wonder if we should still continue believing in God. What is the point in believing in God when He doesn’t hear or answer our prayers?
Maybe we prayed that our child be admitted to the school of our choice, but got rejected. We get disappointed. Or maybe we prayed to get that $54 mobile phone and went to queue for it but we didn’t get it and were disappointed.
We asked, we searched, we knocked and all we got is zero. So how? So what now?
Maybe we should look at our prayer and see what it is about. Very often we state our needs first. We tell God that we want this and we want that.
But we forget to acknowledge God for who He is, that He is our Father, as in the prayer that Jesus taught us, which begins with the words “Our Father”.
And we also need to acknowledge that God our Father is merciful and compassionate. That is the “soft spot” of God, and because we appealed to His mercy and compassion, God will certainly show us how merciful and compassionate He is.
So our prayer should go like this:
O God our Father, You are merciful and compassionate. Have pity on me as I place this prayer before You.
Oh yes, God will hear and answer our humble prayer and He will even give us the Holy Spirit who will teach us how to pray.
Then we will know how to ask, how to search and how to knock.
If we want to know how much parents love their children and what they will do for their children, we just have to ask those parents who are applying for their children’s admission to Primary school under Phase 2B.
For those of us who have already experienced that, we will surely empathize with these parents who are going through that process.
It is a high-anxiety, stressful and nerve-wrecking experience for these parents.
And not just for the parents. Even the priests get involved in the process.
Parents request the priests to write letters especially if it is for application to a prominent Catholic school. Parents and their children come and ask for prayers that the application will be successful.
The priests also pray that the application will be successful, otherwise the parents will say that the prayer is not powerful enough.
Of course, some applications are successful and some are not. And for those that are not successful for Phase 2B, they will have to go through the “now-or-never” Phase 2C balloting where the chances are even slimmer.
So the parents are anxious and stressed, the priests also get anxious and stressed. At stake for the parents is the admission of their children to the preferred school. At stake for the priests is the faith in the power of prayer.
For parents and for priests the critical question is: Will God hear the prayers? And will He answer the prayers?
It is not just a question for parents and priests. It is also our question. Every one of us will have the experience of a stressed-out, high-anxiety, nerve-wrecking time of our lives.
So how did it all those episodes turn out? Were our prayers answered? Did we ask for bread and got a stone? Did we ask for fish and got a snake? Did we ask for an egg and got a scorpion?
In the 1st reading, we heard of a rather amazing, and maybe amusing, story of Abraham who stood before the Lord, and he was pleading and negotiating with the Lord not to destroy the towns of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Abraham pleaded that why should the virtuous man be destroyed with the wicked? And he went from 50, to 45, to 40, to 30, to 20 and then finally to 10.
The boldness and persistence of Abraham was really something, and it takes a lot of faith and courage to do this with the Lord.
Yet in doing this, Abraham taught us something and the Lord God also showed us something.
Abraham believed in the mercy and compassion of God, and God also showed that He relented when Abraham appealed to His mercy and compassion.
And we might even wonder: if Abraham had gone further down to 5, or even to 1, will the Lord still relent?
And Jesus also gave us a very encouraging teaching about asking, searching and knocking. He says: For the one who asks always receives, the one who searches always finds, and the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him.
Yes, it is very encouraging indeed. But if that is so, then why is it that some people say that their prayers were not answered?
And maybe we are the ones who say that God does not answer our prayers. And so our faith is shaken, we get angry with God, and we wonder if we should still continue believing in God. What is the point in believing in God when He doesn’t hear or answer our prayers?
Maybe we prayed that our child be admitted to the school of our choice, but got rejected. We get disappointed. Or maybe we prayed to get that $54 mobile phone and went to queue for it but we didn’t get it and were disappointed.
We asked, we searched, we knocked and all we got is zero. So how? So what now?
Maybe we should look at our prayer and see what it is about. Very often we state our needs first. We tell God that we want this and we want that.
But we forget to acknowledge God for who He is, that He is our Father, as in the prayer that Jesus taught us, which begins with the words “Our Father”.
And we also need to acknowledge that God our Father is merciful and compassionate. That is the “soft spot” of God, and because we appealed to His mercy and compassion, God will certainly show us how merciful and compassionate He is.
So our prayer should go like this:
O God our Father, You are merciful and compassionate. Have pity on me as I place this prayer before You.
Oh yes, God will hear and answer our humble prayer and He will even give us the Holy Spirit who will teach us how to pray.
Then we will know how to ask, how to search and how to knock.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
16th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 21.07.2019
Genesis 18:1-10 / Colossians 1:24-28 / Luke 10:38-42
In our casual conversations, one of the topics that will certainly come up is the weather.
Needless to say, the one word that will be used to describe the current weather is “hot”. And it is not just hot, it is like so hot. If that is used on a person, it can be quite flattering, but used for the weather it is sweltering. Nothing new to our country actually.
But we shouldn’t be complaining. Because not that long ago, just a few years back, there was the haze. Remember the haze? Sounds like some horror movie title.
Although it was choking us, there were people who saw beyond the haze and were joking about it.
Remember the joke about the new ice cream that is called – Haze-gen-daz?
Or that one about not leaving the fish and the meat in the open? Because they will become smoked salmon and smoked ham.
Or about this classroom joke:
Lecturer: Why are you late for class?
Student: I was in class the whole time?
Lecturer: How come I didn’t see you?
Student: Oh, must be the haze.
Oh yes, it was quite bad, and coupled with the heat, it was hot and hazy, and no one was laughing because they were all coughing.
And in that kind of situation, the best thing is to stay indoors with air-con. Going out is just asking for trouble.
In the 1st reading, we heard of Abraham sitting by the entrance of the tent during the hottest part of the day.
And in that region where Abraham was, the hottest part of the day is indeed the hottest, and the only thing to do was to be inside the tent and human activity is reduced to just breathing.
And then Abraham saw three men standing nearby. Now, Abraham could have slid further into his tent and pretended not to see them and wait for them to go away. To go out in that heat is to ask for trouble.
After all, why must those three men be moving around at that hottest part of the day? That is crazy.
But Abraham immediately got up and welcomed them and served them. Well, it was his obligation, as was the custom, to provide hospitality and service to visitors.
Abraham had enough of valid reasons to remain where he was and do nothing. It was the hottest part of the day, it was all so utterly inconvenient for him and his household, it was unexpected and troublesome.
But Abraham chose to do what was right and just. It was the hottest part of the day but he chose to do the most inconvenient, difficult and troublesome thing.
It was at that hottest part of the day that the Lord chose to appear to Abraham, and Abraham chose to respond with best of himself.
And with that Abraham received the best blessings from the Lord, the gift of a son, as promised by the Lord.
But in the gospel, we heard how the heat in the kitchen got Martha worked up and she resorted to complaining to Jesus about her sister Mary not helping her with the serving.
Like Abraham, Martha had welcomed Jesus to her home, although she probably had no prior notice of his visit.
Like Abraham, Martha went ahead to prepare the serving. But she got distracted with all the serving, and then resorted to complaining to Jesus about Mary not helping her.
The word to note here is “distracted”. Martha got distracted, she lost her focus, and resorted to complaining in a bid to call for attention to what she was doing.
Whereas Abraham was focused on serving his visitors and eventually got his blessings, Martha got distracted and lost focus and had to learn the lesson of the better part.
So is the “better part” about just sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to Him speak, and doing nothing else?
What is this better part then? For Abraham, it was at the hottest of the day, he chose to welcome and serve his visitors, instead of remaining in his tent and do nothing.
It was inconvenient, troublesome and unexpected but he responded with his best. And it was at that hottest part of the day that the Lord came to visit Abraham and because Abraham chose the better part, the Lord gave him the best blessings.
And that is the lesson that the Lord is teaching us. He comes to visit us at the hottest part of the day, when it is most inconvenient, most troublesome, and most unexpected.
It is in the hot and hazy situations of life that we have to choose the better part and to respond with the best of ourselves and do what is the good, the right and the just thing.
With great tribulations come great blessings, and when we respond with the best of ourselves, the Lord responds with the best of His blessings.
The better part comes with the heat, the haze, the inconvenience, and it is troublesome and unexpected.
But when we choose it, the Lord will bless us abundantly, blessings that will not be taken from us.
In our casual conversations, one of the topics that will certainly come up is the weather.
Needless to say, the one word that will be used to describe the current weather is “hot”. And it is not just hot, it is like so hot. If that is used on a person, it can be quite flattering, but used for the weather it is sweltering. Nothing new to our country actually.
But we shouldn’t be complaining. Because not that long ago, just a few years back, there was the haze. Remember the haze? Sounds like some horror movie title.
Although it was choking us, there were people who saw beyond the haze and were joking about it.
Remember the joke about the new ice cream that is called – Haze-gen-daz?
Or that one about not leaving the fish and the meat in the open? Because they will become smoked salmon and smoked ham.
Or about this classroom joke:
Lecturer: Why are you late for class?
Student: I was in class the whole time?
Lecturer: How come I didn’t see you?
Student: Oh, must be the haze.
Oh yes, it was quite bad, and coupled with the heat, it was hot and hazy, and no one was laughing because they were all coughing.
And in that kind of situation, the best thing is to stay indoors with air-con. Going out is just asking for trouble.
In the 1st reading, we heard of Abraham sitting by the entrance of the tent during the hottest part of the day.
And in that region where Abraham was, the hottest part of the day is indeed the hottest, and the only thing to do was to be inside the tent and human activity is reduced to just breathing.
And then Abraham saw three men standing nearby. Now, Abraham could have slid further into his tent and pretended not to see them and wait for them to go away. To go out in that heat is to ask for trouble.
After all, why must those three men be moving around at that hottest part of the day? That is crazy.
But Abraham immediately got up and welcomed them and served them. Well, it was his obligation, as was the custom, to provide hospitality and service to visitors.
Abraham had enough of valid reasons to remain where he was and do nothing. It was the hottest part of the day, it was all so utterly inconvenient for him and his household, it was unexpected and troublesome.
But Abraham chose to do what was right and just. It was the hottest part of the day but he chose to do the most inconvenient, difficult and troublesome thing.
It was at that hottest part of the day that the Lord chose to appear to Abraham, and Abraham chose to respond with best of himself.
And with that Abraham received the best blessings from the Lord, the gift of a son, as promised by the Lord.
But in the gospel, we heard how the heat in the kitchen got Martha worked up and she resorted to complaining to Jesus about her sister Mary not helping her with the serving.
Like Abraham, Martha had welcomed Jesus to her home, although she probably had no prior notice of his visit.
Like Abraham, Martha went ahead to prepare the serving. But she got distracted with all the serving, and then resorted to complaining to Jesus about Mary not helping her.
The word to note here is “distracted”. Martha got distracted, she lost her focus, and resorted to complaining in a bid to call for attention to what she was doing.
Whereas Abraham was focused on serving his visitors and eventually got his blessings, Martha got distracted and lost focus and had to learn the lesson of the better part.
So is the “better part” about just sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to Him speak, and doing nothing else?
What is this better part then? For Abraham, it was at the hottest of the day, he chose to welcome and serve his visitors, instead of remaining in his tent and do nothing.
It was inconvenient, troublesome and unexpected but he responded with his best. And it was at that hottest part of the day that the Lord came to visit Abraham and because Abraham chose the better part, the Lord gave him the best blessings.
And that is the lesson that the Lord is teaching us. He comes to visit us at the hottest part of the day, when it is most inconvenient, most troublesome, and most unexpected.
It is in the hot and hazy situations of life that we have to choose the better part and to respond with the best of ourselves and do what is the good, the right and the just thing.
With great tribulations come great blessings, and when we respond with the best of ourselves, the Lord responds with the best of His blessings.
The better part comes with the heat, the haze, the inconvenience, and it is troublesome and unexpected.
But when we choose it, the Lord will bless us abundantly, blessings that will not be taken from us.
Saturday, July 13, 2019
15th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 14.07.2019
Deuteronomy 30:10-14 / Colossians 1:15-20 / Luke 10:25-37
We have heard of this phrase “the road less travelled”. Actually it is part of a longer sentence that goes like this: Two roads diverged into the woods, and I – I took the one less travelled. And that has made all the difference.
That is the last sentence of a poem by Robert Frost. And that sentence summarizes what the poem is about. It is about the choices in life, and essentially it is about the two choices.
One is the well-travelled wide road which is an attractive choice. The other is hardly a trail and obviously more difficult and less appealing.
The human inclination would be to go for the wide and easy road. After all that is the obvious choice and most have chosen to go that way.
The road less travelled obviously means difficulty. But the road less travelled has this message: Life is difficult.
Yes, life is difficult. But that is a great truth, in fact one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it.
When we truly know that life is difficult, when we truly understand and accept it, then life is no longer difficult because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer really matters.
Of course that won’t make life any easier, but when we accept and are prepared that life is going to be difficult, then choosing the road less travelled will make all the difference.
In the gospel, Jesus told a parable of a man on his way from Jerusalem to Jericho. That man was travelling alone. He seemed to have taken the road less travelled, because others would have travelled in groups, and probably taken a safer longer road.
And it was on that road that the man fell into the hands of brigands, they took all he had, beat him up and then made off, leaving him half-dead.
And then on that same road, came along a priest, and then a Levite. Both were religious persons, but both chose to pass by the wounded man, for whatever reasons.
Then came along this Samaritan traveler, a non-Jew, and as we may know, Jews and Samaritans want to have nothing to do with each other because they were enemies.
So this Samaritan traveler, a rather unexpected character in the parable, did the rather unexpected thing. He was moved with compassion, he went to help the wounded man, bandaged his wounds, carried him on his mount to the inn and told the inn-keeper to look after him and paid for the expenses.
So it was on that road from Jerusalem to Jericho, probably a road less travelled, that the lawyer, who tried to disconcert Jesus, had his question addressed.
He had asked Jesus “Who is my neighbour?” and Jesus let the parable address his question.
And then Jesus had a question for him too – Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands’ hands?
The lawyer’s answer says it all – The one who took pity on him.
So the lawyer’s question of “Who is my neighbour?” was addressed by his own answer.
And his own answer also addressed what a true neighbour is. A true neighbour is one who has pity and compassion on someone who is in need.
This parable is often called the parable of the Good Samaritan.
The term “Good Samaritan” has come to stand for those who want to help others in need.
Yes, Good Samaritans are those who take the road less travelled, in that where others pass by those in need, they go and reach out and help, like how the Samaritan helped the wounded man in the parable.
So we understand the term “Good Samaritan”. And like the Samaritan in the parable, we also have taken the road less travelled.
We have taken the way of Christianity, which is no doubt, a difficult way.
And in walking this way, others will know us as Christians. But will they call us “Good Christians”, just as we call that Samaritan in the parable, the “Good Samaritan”?
To be a Christian is to make the choice of walking the way of Christianity, which is already the road less travelled. So we will be called Christian.
But to be a “Good Christian”, that would mean that we embark on a more challenging way – the way of love and compassion.
And religion is about love and compassion, without which then religion is hollow and Christianity would just be a name without a meaning.
So we are not just a Christian or a Catholic. We must be a “Good Christian” and a “Good Catholic”, who will be a neighbour of love and compassion to those in need.
The way of love and compassion is a difficult way and a road less travelled. But we walk that road because we are following Jesus, our “Good Shepherd” who is love and compassion, and He want us to follow Him and to be a neighbour of love and compassion to those in need.
We have heard of this phrase “the road less travelled”. Actually it is part of a longer sentence that goes like this: Two roads diverged into the woods, and I – I took the one less travelled. And that has made all the difference.
That is the last sentence of a poem by Robert Frost. And that sentence summarizes what the poem is about. It is about the choices in life, and essentially it is about the two choices.
One is the well-travelled wide road which is an attractive choice. The other is hardly a trail and obviously more difficult and less appealing.
The human inclination would be to go for the wide and easy road. After all that is the obvious choice and most have chosen to go that way.
The road less travelled obviously means difficulty. But the road less travelled has this message: Life is difficult.
Yes, life is difficult. But that is a great truth, in fact one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it.
When we truly know that life is difficult, when we truly understand and accept it, then life is no longer difficult because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer really matters.
Of course that won’t make life any easier, but when we accept and are prepared that life is going to be difficult, then choosing the road less travelled will make all the difference.
In the gospel, Jesus told a parable of a man on his way from Jerusalem to Jericho. That man was travelling alone. He seemed to have taken the road less travelled, because others would have travelled in groups, and probably taken a safer longer road.
And it was on that road that the man fell into the hands of brigands, they took all he had, beat him up and then made off, leaving him half-dead.
And then on that same road, came along a priest, and then a Levite. Both were religious persons, but both chose to pass by the wounded man, for whatever reasons.
Then came along this Samaritan traveler, a non-Jew, and as we may know, Jews and Samaritans want to have nothing to do with each other because they were enemies.
So this Samaritan traveler, a rather unexpected character in the parable, did the rather unexpected thing. He was moved with compassion, he went to help the wounded man, bandaged his wounds, carried him on his mount to the inn and told the inn-keeper to look after him and paid for the expenses.
So it was on that road from Jerusalem to Jericho, probably a road less travelled, that the lawyer, who tried to disconcert Jesus, had his question addressed.
He had asked Jesus “Who is my neighbour?” and Jesus let the parable address his question.
And then Jesus had a question for him too – Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands’ hands?
The lawyer’s answer says it all – The one who took pity on him.
So the lawyer’s question of “Who is my neighbour?” was addressed by his own answer.
And his own answer also addressed what a true neighbour is. A true neighbour is one who has pity and compassion on someone who is in need.
This parable is often called the parable of the Good Samaritan.
The term “Good Samaritan” has come to stand for those who want to help others in need.
Yes, Good Samaritans are those who take the road less travelled, in that where others pass by those in need, they go and reach out and help, like how the Samaritan helped the wounded man in the parable.
So we understand the term “Good Samaritan”. And like the Samaritan in the parable, we also have taken the road less travelled.
We have taken the way of Christianity, which is no doubt, a difficult way.
And in walking this way, others will know us as Christians. But will they call us “Good Christians”, just as we call that Samaritan in the parable, the “Good Samaritan”?
To be a Christian is to make the choice of walking the way of Christianity, which is already the road less travelled. So we will be called Christian.
But to be a “Good Christian”, that would mean that we embark on a more challenging way – the way of love and compassion.
And religion is about love and compassion, without which then religion is hollow and Christianity would just be a name without a meaning.
So we are not just a Christian or a Catholic. We must be a “Good Christian” and a “Good Catholic”, who will be a neighbour of love and compassion to those in need.
The way of love and compassion is a difficult way and a road less travelled. But we walk that road because we are following Jesus, our “Good Shepherd” who is love and compassion, and He want us to follow Him and to be a neighbour of love and compassion to those in need.
Saturday, July 6, 2019
14th Ordinary Sunday, Year C, 07.07.2019
Isaiah 66:10-14 / Galatians 6:14-18 / Luke 10:1-12, 17-20
It is said that if we want to have peace, then we must prepare for war.
That is the battle cry of mankind from the earliest times when man used sticks and stones against each other, to nations lifting swords and spears in confrontation, to modern weapons of mass destruction and annihilation.
But from the countless wars that have been fought, the one lesson that never seems to be learnt is that war does not prove who is right, but only who is left. And by then, not much is left.
All this is because there are assumptions that the world makes and they have become like “operational principles”.
For example, loud is strong and quiet is weak. So we shout down our opponents.
Size and numbers are the measure of strength and might. So, the bigger the better.
Punishment and humiliation are necessary for law and order. So pain and shame is the call of the day.
These are assumptions that the world has recourse to in order to solve a difficult situation.
But history has shown over and over again that these assumptions and the presumed solutions have not worked for the better.
Hence as much as the world yearns for peace, at the same time it prepares for war, because in the end, war is still the preferred choice to solve a problem.
So what does Christianity has to offer in the midst of all these loud and aggressive assumptions?
In the gospel, Jesus talked about a rich harvest, yet the labourers are few.
This rich harvest can be seen as a harvest of peace and salvation. Yet the labourers for this harvest are few, because most of the labourers prefer a quick harvest of violence and aggression.
And Jesus knows fully well the dangers of sending workers to harvest peace and salvation.
He tells His disciples this: Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
How more graphic and vivid can Jesus describe what the dangers of working for peace and salvation can be?
Being like lambs among wolves is like a suicide mission, there is zero survival chance. Nothing is going to be achieved and all is going to be futile.
And here is where we have to listen to Jesus – be like lambs among wolves.
In other words, as disciples of Jesus, we are not going to fight fire with fire. We are not going to follow the ways and the assumptions of the world.
In the face of violence and aggression, and surrounded by fierce wolves, we are called to be meek and gentle lambs and offer peace.
So we don’t let people tear us into pieces; rather we draw them into our peace.
Let us remember that peace is not the absence of conflict, but it the ability to resolve conflict by peaceful means.
Only when the power of love overcomes the love for power, then there will be peace. Because where there is love, there will be peace.
So in order to have peace, we must prepare for love. Peace is the only battle worth fighting for.
It is a battle that we can win only when we listen to the voice of our Good Shepherd and to be the labourers and the channels of peace.
We must let the peace of Jesus heal our violent and aggressive inclinations, so that what He says to us, we too can say to others, and that is “Peace be with you.”
Jesus has given us the power to tread underfoot the serpents and scorpions and the whole strength of the enemy.
And because Jesus is our Good Shepherd, we must be His lambs of peace and not become wolves of war.
And so to Jesus we pray the well-known and profound prayer:
Make me a channel of Your peace
Where there is hatred let me bring Your love
Where there is injury, Your pardon Lord
And where there's doubt, true faith in You
Where there's despair in life let me bring hope
Where there is darkness, only light
And where there's sadness ever joy
It is said that if we want to have peace, then we must prepare for war.
That is the battle cry of mankind from the earliest times when man used sticks and stones against each other, to nations lifting swords and spears in confrontation, to modern weapons of mass destruction and annihilation.
But from the countless wars that have been fought, the one lesson that never seems to be learnt is that war does not prove who is right, but only who is left. And by then, not much is left.
All this is because there are assumptions that the world makes and they have become like “operational principles”.
For example, loud is strong and quiet is weak. So we shout down our opponents.
Size and numbers are the measure of strength and might. So, the bigger the better.
Punishment and humiliation are necessary for law and order. So pain and shame is the call of the day.
These are assumptions that the world has recourse to in order to solve a difficult situation.
But history has shown over and over again that these assumptions and the presumed solutions have not worked for the better.
Hence as much as the world yearns for peace, at the same time it prepares for war, because in the end, war is still the preferred choice to solve a problem.
So what does Christianity has to offer in the midst of all these loud and aggressive assumptions?
In the gospel, Jesus talked about a rich harvest, yet the labourers are few.
This rich harvest can be seen as a harvest of peace and salvation. Yet the labourers for this harvest are few, because most of the labourers prefer a quick harvest of violence and aggression.
And Jesus knows fully well the dangers of sending workers to harvest peace and salvation.
He tells His disciples this: Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
How more graphic and vivid can Jesus describe what the dangers of working for peace and salvation can be?
Being like lambs among wolves is like a suicide mission, there is zero survival chance. Nothing is going to be achieved and all is going to be futile.
And here is where we have to listen to Jesus – be like lambs among wolves.
In other words, as disciples of Jesus, we are not going to fight fire with fire. We are not going to follow the ways and the assumptions of the world.
In the face of violence and aggression, and surrounded by fierce wolves, we are called to be meek and gentle lambs and offer peace.
So we don’t let people tear us into pieces; rather we draw them into our peace.
Let us remember that peace is not the absence of conflict, but it the ability to resolve conflict by peaceful means.
Only when the power of love overcomes the love for power, then there will be peace. Because where there is love, there will be peace.
So in order to have peace, we must prepare for love. Peace is the only battle worth fighting for.
It is a battle that we can win only when we listen to the voice of our Good Shepherd and to be the labourers and the channels of peace.
We must let the peace of Jesus heal our violent and aggressive inclinations, so that what He says to us, we too can say to others, and that is “Peace be with you.”
Jesus has given us the power to tread underfoot the serpents and scorpions and the whole strength of the enemy.
And because Jesus is our Good Shepherd, we must be His lambs of peace and not become wolves of war.
And so to Jesus we pray the well-known and profound prayer:
Make me a channel of Your peace
Where there is hatred let me bring Your love
Where there is injury, Your pardon Lord
And where there's doubt, true faith in You
Where there's despair in life let me bring hope
Where there is darkness, only light
And where there's sadness ever joy
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