God - My Inheritance Forever

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Year C - June 26, 2022

Readings: 1 Kings 19:16–21; Psalm 16:1–2, 5, 7–11; Galatians 5:1, 13–18; Luke 9:51–62

(Jesus with his disciples passing through Samaria)
To listen to my audio-video reflections via YouTube, please click on this link: https://youtu.be/2hsAbLsUXQs

Often we want to do magnificent and incredible things, but there is something else which does not allow us to do. The pulls are everywhere. We live with these kinds of struggles. Sometimes these chronic struggles may tire us and make us disinterested to do even those things which we are called to do because of our job or the role that we have taken up. The liturgical readings of this Sunday enlighten us over this aspect of "to do and not to do," "to be and not to be." In fact, having celebrated two important feasts in this week, the Nativity of St John the Baptist and the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, perhaps the righteousness and courage of Saint John the Baptist and the unending and enduring love of our Lord Jesus should encourage us in our path of Christian life of holiness.

1. Chosen from the Ordinary

We have an awesome vocation story of Prophet Elisha who was chosen by God to succeed Prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:16–21). It all happens in the field while ploughing it.  The young Elisha was chosen while he was doing ordinary work on agricultural land. God recognizes his ability because he was following other ploughers. Perhaps Elisha had the genius of following the path trodden by others in an orderly and disciplined manner. In fact, that is what desired of the ploughers. Prophet Elijah recognizes in Elisha his successor, who would instruct his people to follow in the righteous of God. As a symbol of anointing, Prophet Elijah threw his cloak over young Elisha while ploughing. In fact, there was no time for waiting, discussion, consultation, seeking time and coming to an agreement. When God wants someone for his work, He does not wait. For there is no room for waiting. He chooses things to happen as he wishes and of course quickly and rightly. 

Corpus Christi - Enlarging our Hearts unto Him

 The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body & Blood of Christ: June 19, 2022

Readings: Genesis 14:18–20; Psalm 110:1–4; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26; Luke 9:11–17

To listen to my audio-video reflections via YouTube, please click on this link: https://youtu.be/HC1KOcZ5a5E

The month of June is blessed with a number of feasts either connected to the person of Jesus or to saints who followed him. Today we commemorate the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, traditionally called in its Latin version Corpus Christi. Having celebrated the feast of the Holy Trinity just a week ago, we are at the right time to celebrate this great feast which elevates us to the heavenly reality of our Lord. Every Eucharist is the feast of the body and blood of Christ. It is the gift of our Lord to nourish us, strengthen us and guide our Christian living.  However, by giving special emphasis to this feast we are once again invited to reflect and meditate on what Jesus' sacrifice means to us. The Corpus Christi feast is the sum of what we confess and celebrate at every paschal meal of our Lord. 

1. Whatever we have, it is of God

Food is one of the physiological needs. With Jesus' celebration of the paschal meal on the Holy Thursday, he gave us a heavenly meal which would satisfy our spiritual hunger.  He blesses, breaks and gives away (Lk 9:16). There is no other so precious a gift Jesus could give to us than his own body and blood. This heavenly reality is made to manifest in its earthly existence in a beautiful setting by Jesus. A gift that is given to his disciples is still commemorated in every nook and corner of the world. It is a mystery of our faith which continues to enthrall and surprise us. There is no opposition or negligence from those who have been accepted into the Church because they do not understand its meaning and significance. The institution of the Eucharist which happened two thousand years ago continues to be celebrated in the same manner with those same words uttered by Jesus.  

Holy Trinity - Hope of the Glory of God

 The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity Sunday: June 12, 2022

Readings: Proverbs 8:22–31; Psalms 8:4–9; Romans 5:1–5; John 16:12–15

(Holy Trinity in the Imagination of Andrei Rublev)
To listen to my audio-video reflections via YouTube, please click on this link: https://youtu.be/shLbPLdaxAM

During Easter and after the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ the focus of our attention is more on the divinity of the person of Jesus Christ than his humanity. We have been celebrating one solemnity over the other in these Sunday liturgies, Ascension, Pentecost and today the Holy Trinity. One thing that is very common in these great feasts is how we look at the heavenly or divine things with our human reason, logic and faith. Perhaps when we celebrate on this Sunday the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity what we must inculcate within ourselves is a sense of wonder and awe as well as complete trust and confidence in our Lord. Because we might fail to understand or grasp the mystery of the Holy Trinity with our heads. Therefore, we must reach this mystery with our hearts. The liturgical readings of this Sunday help us immensely in this promising pursuit. 

1. We are little less than the angels and yet crowned with glory and honour.

The readings from the book Wisdom and Psalm which we read today are commonly called sapiential writings give us ample resources to understand who we are and what is our place here on earth. The famous existential assertion in theology which is profounded by many theologians how can know God if we do not know ourselves first could be the foundation in understanding God and ourselves. Unless and until we know ourselves we would not be able to understand divine things. Therefore, we must understand the human person as a whole, its relationality, cognitive reality and so on. 

Pentecost: Working of the Holy Spirit through Spiritual Gifts

Solemnity of the Pentecost Sunday: June 05, 2022

Readings: Acts 2:1–11; Psalm 104:1, 24, 29–31, 34; 1 Corinthians 12:3–7, 12–13; John 20:19–23

(Coming of the Holy Spirit on Mary and Apostles)
To listen to my audio-video reflections via YouTube, please click on this link: https://youtu.be/Yon8r-K4zvc

Veni Sancte Spiritus, tui amoris ignem accende, means "Holy Spirit, come to us, kindle in us the fire of your love." This "Come Holy Spirit" hymn is a sacred composition presumably written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Vienna in 1768 at the age of 12. Today on this Pentecost Sunday, once again the hymn Come, Holy Spirit resounds in our Churches and our homes. It is a vibrant feast which makes us feel upbeat about our faith life and our life in the Spirit. The promise of our Lord Jesus is fulfilled with the outpouring of the Spirit on Mary and the Apostles (Acts 1:14). The liturgical readings of the day invite us to be fully consumed by the Spirit of God just as the apostles experienced two thousand years ago.

1. Holy Spirit accompanies us always with various gifts

St Luke the author of the Acts of the Apostles records so beautifully the day when the Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples of our Lord who were holed up in the house due to the fear of the Jews. There was a sudden noise  with a great wind from the sky which"appeared to them (disciples) tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them" (Acts 2:3). This dramatic but fearful situation turned out to be something different. The disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages. This astonishing experience changed the disciples entirely. Instead of fear, boldness filled them, instead of ignorance, intelligence engulfed them, instead of knowledge, wisdom came out of their mouths, instead of denial, the trust made a home in them, and instead of running away, the disciples would remain and defend themselves and what they believed in. The change in the lives of disciples was enormous and inexpressable.