Thursday of Week 9 Year 1

As Christians, we sometimes miss the point of what the commandments of God really mean. Some of us say that we love God "with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength." But some of us seem to forget that there is more to God's commandments than just loving God. Loving God appears to be the easy part, but is that it? No. There is a second part and that is to "love your neighbour as yourself." Are we aware of this and if so, are we really, truly and consistently loving God and neighbour?

In today's Gospel, the scribe was quite impressed with Jesus' reply and said: "'Well spoken, Master; what you have said is true: that he is one and there is no other. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and strength, and to love your neighbour as yourself, this is far more important than any holocaust or sacrifice." That is what the commandments are all about: loving God and loving neighbour. We cannot pick and choose, as we are required to love both God and neighbour completely. If we say that we love God, and have arguments or problems with our neighbour, then we are actually not really loving, since loving God and neighbour cannot be separated. After all, we are reminded in Genesis 1:26-27 that we are made in the image of God. This does not mean that we are gods, but that we are godlike or connected to God. So, if we say we love God, then we must love others, since loving others means we are loving God too. See the connection? That is why it is not so easy to love, since love involves both God and neighbour. Are we really loving then? Or have we been loving only when it is easy, beneficial or convenient to us?

Wednesday of Week 9 Year 1

Is this life on earth all there is? Or do some of us believe that life continues as usual even after life here on earth has ended? It seems that there are people who believe that this life is all there is and they would try to maximise their pleasure and enjoyment of this life as much as possible, because they think that death is the end, they cease to exist, there is nothing else after that, life is finished, they are history, finito. On the other hand, some people believe they would continue the ways of this life when death comes. We have seen how the pharoahs of ancient Egypt were buried with their possessions, wealth and even personnel, as they thought that they would continue living life as usual after death, but as we have seen, the tombs of the pharoahs have been looted, their wealth and possessions sold, and some of their mummified bodies can now be seen in museums in some part of the world. But what sort of life do we Christians believe in?

In today's Gospel, we come across the Sadducees (an older padre once remarked that the Sadducees are also known as "Sad U see") who did not believe in life after death or the resurrection. Because of their way of thinking, they became preoccupied with living only life on earth and were convinced that should there be life after this life on earth, there would be confusion and chaos, as mentioned concerning the woman and her seven husbands. But Jesus replied: "Is not the reason why you go wrong, that you understand neither the scriptures nor the power of God? For when they rise from the dead, men and women do not marry; no, they are like the angels in heaven. Now about the dead rising again, have you never read in the Book of Moses, in the passage about the Bush, how God spoke to him and said: I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob? He is God, not of the dead, but of the living. You are very much mistaken."

Jesus was basically saying: wake up, there is more to life than here on earth, and our life is ultimately to be with God. Life with God is not merely a continuation of life on earth, since life with God is far better and far more satisfying than anything here on earth. That is why we need to make every effort to be in good relationship with God, so that we would later be with Him in eternity. Are we making effort today to grow in our relationship with God?

Tuesday of Week 9 Year 1

In some ways, we really need to hand it to the scribes, Pharisees and chief priests, because their immense jealousy and hatred towards Jesus simply shows how we humans can sometimes degrade ourselves into committing all sorts of despicable and foolish acts. Pride and ego can colour our vision, and blind us from what is true, what is proper and just, what is truly holy and what is fair; just because we want to win at all costs, and we want to save face. At the end of the day, does it really matter? Actually, no. But some do not see it this way and stubbornly and vehemently insist in keeping to their ways and protecting their interests. But this is where some fail to realise that everything that we do, and everything that we have, be it wealth, fame, titles, recognition or whatever, is merely temporary and cannot be brought with us when we die.

In today's Gospel, we see a classic example of how silly the scribes, Pharisees and the chief priests were behaving. Already they had tensions and serious disagreements with the Herodians, but when it comes to a common so called enemy (Jesus, in this case), they are willing to forgo their principles just to find a solution to get rid of Jesus. Their hypocrisy showed quite clearly when they asked the question: "Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay, yes or no?" These people asked not because they wanted to know, but because their intention (or in Bahasa Malaysia, "niat") was merely to trap Jesus. Jesus answer: 'Give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar - and to God what belongs to God.' took them completely by surprise. But if we look deeper into Jesus' reply, we can discover that Jesus was actually making fun of these folks. Does anything really belong to Caesar? No! Ultimately, everything actually belongs to God, whether we are willing to admit it or not. So the question these folks had asked was actually a non-question, but their jealousy and hatred towards Jesus blinded them to what is evidently truth.

When we look at our lives, have we become more like the scribes, Pharisees and the chief priests or even the Herodians, in the way we conduct ourselves and the way we treat others? Have we forgotten who we are? Let us be mindful and check ourselves from falling into the abyss of hypocrisy, lest we lose ourselves and lost sight of our eternal goal.

Monday of Week 9 Year 1

Most of us would not have experienced major persecution or face danger to our lives. Most of us have some freedom to practise our faith and share our faith with others. During such times, we may sometimes become complacent and used to the peace and prosperity. But let us consider for a moment, if we were living in exile in some strange land, constantly facing danger of being caught and executed for our faith, what would we do? Would we stay strong to our faith, come what may? Or would we abandon our faith to save our skin?

In today's reading, we come across Tobit who said: "I, Tobit, have walked in paths of truth and in good works all the days of my life. I have given much in alms to my brothers and fellow countrymen, exiled like me to Nineveh in the country of Assyria." Even though Tobit was in exile in Nineveh, and even though the environment in Nineveh was hostile to Tobit and people of the same faith as him, Tobit was not afraid to practise his faith and be charitable to others. Upon discovering that a fellow countryman had been murdered and left at the market place, Tobit was willing to show solidarity with his brothers and fellow countrymen by taking away and burying the murdered countryman. Some of his neigbours even laughed and said, 'See! He is not afraid any more.' But Tobit was not affected by their taunts and went about doing charity to ensure that the murdered brother be given a decent burial.

Tobit was willing to take risks and put his life on the line, to show his faith. What about us? Are we willing to do the same, even in the midst of severe persecution? It is easy to say that we have faith and keep to ourselves, but as James reminds us in his Epistle: "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works (James 2:14-18). Are we saying that we have faith only in mere words and nothing more? Or are we making effort to show our faith fearlessly?

Trinity Sunday

The mystery of the Trinity: God is Father; God is Son; God is Holy Spirit. How do we understand this? Humanly speaking, we cannot fully explain the Trinity, since the Trinity is a mystery as the Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it: "The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the "hierarchy of the truths of faith". The whole history of salvation is identical with the history of the way and the means by which the one true God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, reveals himself to men "and reconciles and unites with himself those who turn away from sin". (CCC 234)" Moreover, "The Trinity is a mystery of faith in the strict sense, one of the "mysteries that are hidden in God, which can never be known unless they are revealed by God". To be sure, God has left traces of his Trinitarian being in his work of creation and in his Revelation throughout the Old Testament. But his inmost Being as Holy Trinity is a mystery that is inaccessible to reason alone or even to Israel's faith before the Incarnation of God's Son and the sending of the Holy Spirit. (CCC237)"

Many of us often think of God as a distant and unapproachable God and not a person we can relate with. But the mystery of the Trinity gives us an opportunity to relate with God in three ways, because there are three persons united in one God. We are children of God the Father, as St. Paul in the second reading tells us: "The Spirit himself and our spirit bear united witness that we are children of God. And if we are children we are heirs as well: heirs of God and coheirs with Christ, sharing his sufferings so as to share his glory." We have Jesus, the Son of God, as our brother, and as our Saviour. Jesus is both God and man, and He gave up his own life on the cross to save us. Before Jesus left this world, He promised His disciples that He would send the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that dwells within us at our baptism and makes present the life of the Trinity in each person. God resides in each of us through the Holy Spirit.

And so we have the Trinity which is a very important mystery for us. Even though we may not fully understand this mystery, that is ok, since mysteries are not always easy to comprehend. It takes much time, faith and prayer to understand the mysteries of God, since our minds are limited. The Trinity is an example of perfect communion which we should learn to follow. By loving in a community, we would then be witnesses to others, that God is with us as a Trinity.

Housekeeping - Pentecost & Week 8 Year 1

For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

24 May 2015 - Pentecost - Mass of the Day
25 May 2015 - Monday of Week 8 Year 1
26 May 2015 - Tuesday of Week 8 Year 1
27 May 2015 - Wednesday of Week 8 Year 1
28 May 2015 - Thursday of Week 8 Year 1
29 May 2015 - Friday of Week 8 Year 1

Friday of Week 8 Year 1

Every once in a while, we come across people who claim that they are disciples or followers of Christ. But the fact is, are such people Christian only in name or are they really living fruitful lives as Christians? We can tell whether a person is really a Christian or not by the kind of fruits the person produces, since a person who is a Christian only in name would more often than not be living a life quite contrary to the values of the Gospel and the ways of Christ. We call such persons hypocrites, since they do not practice what they preach (or neglect or ignore what they learned about the Christian faith) and they do things only for show. Could some of us be guilty in this way?

In the Gospel, we come across Jesus cursing a fig tree which had no figs on it. Some of us may initially wonder whether Jesus was acting irrationally or weird, since the Gospel tells us that Jesus felt hungry and seemed annoyed that He could not find any figs, only leaves, since it was not the season for figs. However, if we look carefully at the text, we would discover that Jesus was actually using symbolic language to mean Israel, especially the scribes and Pharisees, who had so stubbornly held to their ways of doing things and their self-righteous behaviour and attitude, instead of repenting and returning to God's ways. This point was further reinforced when Jesus "went into the Temple and began driving out those who were selling and buying there; he upset the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling pigeons. Nor would he allow anyone to carry anything through the Temple. And he taught them and said, 'Does not scripture say: My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples? But you have turned it into a robbers' den.'" Instead of changing their ways, the scribes and Pharisees began to plot to get rid of Jesus, because to them, their traditions and customs were more important to them than following God's commandments. The Temple had become a place of profiteering and cheating, since buying and selling was being done there and many of those conducting such acts were more interested in making money, and not treating the Temple with proper reverence as the House of God. To make matters worse, the scribes, chief priests and Pharisees had no qualms about allowing such activities to continue and flourish in the Temple.

If we look at ourselves, have we in some way become like the scribes and Pharisees? Have we begun to stick only to our traditions and customs which we have formulated and followed, and set aside God's commandments, which is to love God and love neighbour? What sort of fruits have we really been producing? Have we been like the fig tree, which produces fruit only according to season, and at other times we can behave and do as we please? Let us be mindful, lest we end up like the fig tree, withered to the roots; because of our pride, prejudice, selfishness, lack of forgiveness, and stubbornness; as well as our refusal to truly, consistently and wholeheartedly do all things for the glory of God.