A little child, during a forest expedition, was asked by his father to get across a letter urgently to the village.

The father pointed over a trail, over which the boy had never gone.

“But Father” protested the child, “I have never been through this way.

I do not even see the path that will reach our village.

Will it be reasonable for me to travel along this path? ”

“Do you see the trail” replied the father, “as far as that big tree down there?”

The boy replied, “Oh, yes, I do see that far”

“Well” continued the father, “when you get there by the tree, you will see the trail a little further ahead; and so on, until you get within sight of the houses of our village.

Just have faith in me and obey my words!”

This is the journey of our Christian life…

… where the element of faith has to take over the aspect of seeing!

… where the element of obedience has to take over the aspect of rationality!

The Gospel of the Day is a beautiful exposition into these insights, which are highly essential for our life as a Disciple of Christ and a Missionary of His Kingdom.

The Gospel passage under consideration is the healing of the two blind men in the Gospel of St Matthew (Mt 9: 27-31)

One of the strange aspects that we could notice in this incident is what happens after the healing has taken place.

St Matthew says that, after their eyes were opened, “Jesus sternly charged them, ‘See that no one knows it'” (Mt 9:30)

>> He forbids the two men from making his fame known to others.

The Greek word that is used here for “sternly charged” is very interesting and revealing.

St Mathew uses the word, “embrimaomai”.

>> “Embri-mao-mai” literally means to snort with anger/displeasure (like a horse)!

In other words, Jesus “roared with rage” when He ordered the men to not proclaim about Him.

Why did Jesus adopt such an “angry stance”?

The Jewish people were longing for a Messiah who would save them from the pagan Roman Rulers.

>> Their understanding of the Messiah was purely from a temporal perspective – a prince who would wage a war and destroy the Roman enemies

If it was known outside that the Messiah, the much-awaited King had arrived, many Jews would undoubtedly seek to enthrone Him.

>> They would make efforts to usher in a physical kingdom with a violent expulsion of the Roman rulers!

We see such a tendency on many occasions in the Gospels, but more explicitly after the multiplication of the loaves in the Gospel of St John

>> “Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry Him off to make Him King, He withdrew to the mountain alone” (Jn 6:15)

But, such a move would have jeopardized the Mission of the Lord!

>> He came not to be a king as any other king…

… rather He, the King of kings, came to reign over the hearts and lives of people!

>> He came not to be someone who would merely rescue from material oppression…

… rather, He came to be the Saviour who would free the world from sin and every bondage!

It is also to be seen that the two blind men addressed Jesus as “the Son of David” (Mt 9:27b)

>> This was the first time, in the Gospel of St Matthew, that Jesus was proclaimed by someone as “Son of David”

“Son of David” clearly pointed that Jesus was the Messiah.

>> The two blind men were confessing that Jesus is the Messiah!

Therefore, if the two men, excited and overjoyed as they were, with their miraculous healing, had gone around proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah…

… there was a grave danger, that the people would be instigated to a rebellion against the Romans

(Such an explanation is also supported by the fact that while healing or performing wonders among the Gentiles, Jesus did not forbid them.

>> The Gentiles, unlike the Jews, did not have any Messianic expectation as such.

For eg: After healing the Gerasene demoniac, Jesus tells him, “Go home to your family and announce to them, all that the Lord in His pity has done for you” –  Mk 5:19)

There is also another point of consideration…

Jesus was the Perfect Physician.

He knew that the blind, when healed, cannot be exposed to the light, all on a sudden.

>> The exposure to the Light has to be gradual.

Jesus, the doctor-par-excellance and the Light of the World (Jn 9:5) knew, that there was great danger, if these spiritually blind would try to immediately go and spread about their experience with the Light

>> The Light would only end up harming them and also those to whom they preached!

And therefore, “Jesus sternly charged them, ‘See that no one knows it'” (Mt 9:30)

What do these things entail for us?

A very important principle as Missionary of Christ and His Kingdom is implied here:

>> “Go only when we are sent to and to whom we are sent to”

This is one of the important basics of any publicly ministry of the Kingdom!

We need to know and realize…

>> The Mission belongs not to me… the Mission belongs to the Lord

>> The works and ministry are not my initiatives… they are solely entrusted to me by the Lord

It is His Work… It is His Ministry… it is His Mission!

>> We are to be His active instruments… We are to be His lively tools… We are to be His dynamic channels!

This realization is highly essential for an effective and faithful Missionary life.

Such a realization, therefore,  directly implies the necessity of Faith and Obedience!

Yes, our life as a missionary ought to be one..

… where the element of faith has to take over the aspect of seeing!

… where the element of obedience has to take over the aspect of rationality!

May our Blessed Lord touch and open our eyes, to “see the trail” that is on ahead of us, in our journey of faith…

… and may hearken to His Words, “Just have Faith in Me and Obey My words!”

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Quotable-quote-a-day-with-St Francis de Sales (SFS) – “Don’t get upset with your imperfections. >> Surrender to the Power of God’s Love…

… which is greater than our weakness!”

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A Christian who was converted from Judaism was sharing his testimony.

As he shared his views on various preachers whom he had met during the course of conversion, he made a comment:

“The sermons of some preachers used to be magnificent…

…  but their life would be so inconsistent and incompatible to what they spoke from the pulpit!

This would make me think about these preachers in my mind in the following way:

‘When they were at the pulpit, I wished they would never leave it!

>> But when they were out of the pulpit, I wished they would never enter it again!”

That’s why, when I decided to become a Christian, I took a resolution:

‘My Halakah (Jewish term to describe one’s way of “walking”) should always follow my Haggadah (Jewish term to describe ‘the teaching”)!

What about us?

>> “Does our Halakah follow our Haggadah?”

Life judges us, on the basis of how well does our preaching and practicing co-ordinate & complement each other.

>> Life challenges us to bridge the gap between the two essentials of life – one’s talking and one’s walking the talk!

The Gospel of the Day is an invitation to reflect on the words of Jesus:

“Not everyone who calls me Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom of heaven, but he who does the Will of My Father, Who is in heaven” (Mt 7:21)

Our Christian Life is often an experience…

… where we find many professing the faith, but failing to practise!

How often does this situation arise in our own lives and situations too…

We pledge ourselves at trendy events, for the cause of the poor…but we fail to help…

>> Many other people remain quite unnoticed…but become forerunners for the cause of the poor!

We make a big show and be popular as a helpful person…but we fail in some genuine needs..

>> Many other people remain quite unnoticed…but are present with their full force to render help!

We make many resolutions on new year days or birthdays…but fail to materialize them…

>> Many other people remain quite unnoticed…but are able to make many amendments and changes!

We make many promises to the Lord during feast days or novena times…but fail to live up…

>> Many other people remain quite unnoticed…but render much love to the Lord through the year!

We all experience this “I will do”…but “I did not do” experiences in life.

>> Am I also part of this category of “Nominal” Christians?

On the personal Faith Level, this trend is seen more distinctly and vividly…

>> People claim themselves to be Catholics…

… but appear in church only on grand feast days!

>> People appreciate the Catholic teaching…

… but support moral laws which go directly against!

>> People assert having dedicated their lives to God…

… but fail to find time for God and prayer!

>> People declare loving God above all…

… but fail to reject pleasures which hurts and pains Him!

>> People profess and make vows to God…

… but neglect to even try to keep up those promises!

But the Lord clearly declares, on Who will enter the Kingdom of Heaven: “he does the Will of my Father“

Therefore, the proposition is clear:

>> It is not pompous words that will grant life, but carrying out the Will of the Father!

>> It is not fancy talk that will confer true happiness, but practising the Will of the Father!

>> It is not flowery language that will accord blessings, but fulfilling the Will of the Father!

How are we to observe the Will of the Father?

St. Paul explains how we should set about trying to do the Father’s will:

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 2:5)

Like Christ…

… when we dare to be merciful and compassionate, we can do the Father’s Will

… when we prioritize other’s interests over selfish ones, we can do the Father’s Will

… when we empty ourselves and became obedient, we can do the Father’s Will

It is not only good news “proclaimed” but good news “practiced”…

… that will win others  to the glorious freedom of forgiveness of sins!

Let us examine sincerely in this Season of Advent…

… and wherever needed, amend our lives

May we have the courage to take and practise the resolution:

‘My Halakah (one’s way of “walking”) should always follow my Haggadah (“the teaching”)

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Quotable-quote-a-day-with-St Francis de Sales (SFS) – “Grace is never wanting.

>> God always gives sufficient Grace to whoever is willing to receive it!”

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Picnics are a time of great fun and enjoyment.

>> They enrich relationships, nurture relaxation and foster a spirit of joy and peace.

Most of us have been part of picnics…

… either from schools/parishes / as a family / as a community / as a group of friends.

A picnic becomes an occasion to share… to care…

… and to also dare to know each other more.

The Gospel of the Day is a lovely occasion of a Picnic…

… A picnic with Jesus.

A picnic basically has some essential elements…

1. A nice location

2. Joyful interactions

3. Good food

4. A sense of satisfaction and contentment

Our picnic with Jesus in today’s Gospel passage has all these elements.

Come…let’s join Jesus…

… in this wonderful time of a picnic.

1. A nice location:

The mood of a picnic is very often regulated by the choice of the place we make.

>> It should be something exciting, something scenic and something to involve ourselves in.

The location that Jesus chooses for this picnic is a Mountain (Mt 15:29)

A mountain is certainly an exciting place…

… a scenic location and moves our hearts to get involved in its beauty.

The mountain was one of the favourite places of the Lord.

>> This high altitude place was where Jesus could strengthen His attitude towards His mission.

>> He would spend hours of the night in communion with His Father on the mountains.

And so, He invites us to join with Him on the mountains…

… To relax in His love and to experience the coolness of His presence.

… To raise our thoughts to higher levels and overcome the worldly concerns.

2. Joyful interactions:

Great crowds came to Him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute and many others. They placed them at His feet and He cured them (Mt 15:30)

The picnic with Jesus, on the mountain, becomes an occasion of cure and restoration.

On the mountain, Jesus becomes a fountain of healing and the source of joy.

3. Good food

Food is one of the best parts of a picnic.

>> And the Lord lavishes abundant food to all those who were there with Him on the mountain.

Then, He took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks, broke the loaves and gave them to His disciples, who in turn, gave them to the crowds  (Mt 15:36)

It seemed to be a situation of starvation and hunger.

>> But the Lord converts this grim situation into an occasion of contentment and blessing.

His compassionate love overflows into a lavish multiplication of the loaves and the fish!

4. A sense of satisfaction and contentment:

Every picnic ideally should end on a note of great fulfilment and bliss.

The picnic with Jesus on the mountain, where He healed a lot of people, spoke His Life-giving words and blessed them with abundant food, becomes moments of happiness.

“They all ate and were satisfied…” (Lk 15:37)

It had been a lovely time for the people in this picnic with the Lord.

>> They had the picnic…

… in a nice scenic location of the mountain

… with many joyful interactions with Jesus, who healed and cured many.

… with good food, in lavishness, provided by the Lord Himself.

… with a great sense of satisfaction and deep fulfilment.

The Lord invites us to join with Him in a picnic with Him…

> To go to the mountain of prayer and intimacy with the Lord.

> To have joyful interactions with Him and receive His spiritual, emotional and physical healings.

> To be blessed with the good food of His Holy Eucharist and His nourishing Word.

> To have a great satisfaction in being filled with immense peace and serenity.

Let us enjoy the picnic with the Lord & make our lives a beautiful one…

… to share… to care

>> And to also dare to know the Lord more and to help each other more.

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Quotable-quote-a-day-with-St Francis de Sales (SFS) – “Oppose vigorously any tendency to sadness. You must persevere.

>> By means of sorrow the enemy tries to make us weary of good works.

But if he sees that we don’t give them up…

… and that being done in spite of his opposition they have become very meritorious

… he will stop troubling us!”

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A story is told of a blind boy who was flying a kite.

He enjoyed this pastime along with others of his own age.

A passer-by, knowing him and wanting to mildly tease the blind-fellow, said:

“Hey, boy! Do you know where is your kite?

You don’t know whether it is on the ground or up in the sky, do you?”

“Oh yes,” said the blind lad, “I do know! It is now quite a fair height up in the air.”

“How do you know that?” asked the passer-by, “you surely can’t see it.”

The boy replied, “I can’t see it, it is true, but I can feel the tug of the string!”

The ‘tug’ of the string help the boy to realise the presence of the kite and to sense its height in the air!

The awareness of the presence of the Divine power in our lives, is such…

>> One may not be able to always see the presence of the Divine, but the believer can surely experience its power and strength!

This experience of “the Divine tug of the string” keeps the life of the believer moving forward and helps to depend on the Divine Presence for strength in life.

The Gospel of the Day is an invitation by Jesus to grow deeper in this “awareness and dependence” on Jesus in our life as a missionary of the Kingdom of God.

After having summoned and authorized the disciples, Jesus sends them ahead of Him, to the places of mission.

In the Gospel of Matthew, the same passage beings with the statement, “Preach, as you go…” (Mt 10:7)

Some other translations would read as “As you go, make a proclamation…”

This is such wonderfully practical, and yet at the same time, a phrase that is often overlooked: “Preach, as you go….” / “As you go… make a proclamation”

Preaching or Proclamation in our times, is often picturized with a limited understanding.

Preaching or proclamation is often understood as that which takes place…

… only from the pulpit or during a service in Church

… only in the form of speaking and explaining the Word of God

But the words of the Lord are worth noting:

“Preach, as you go….” / “As you go… make a proclamation”

Preach, as you go about doing your daily duties and activities

>> As you go about your responsibilities and works, make a proclamation

Preach as you go around meeting different people by sharing His love and joy to all

>> As you go about engaging in numerous actions, make a proclamation by sharing His presence

The act of preaching and proclamation of the Kingdom of God is to be reflected in our every action and movement…

… Whatever we do, may it become an act of proclaiming God’s abundant blessings!

… Whatever work we take up, may it become a moment of preaching God’s amazing providence!

Such an act of Preaching and Proclamation makes it mandatory that one grows deeper in the “awareness and dependence” on Jesus in the life as a missionary of the Kingdom of God.

>>The act of proclamation needs the “awareness” that I am continuing the Great Mission work that has Jesus as the “Initiator”, the “Sustainer” and the “Finale”!

>> The act of preaching needs the “dependency” on the Lord to realise that the Lord alone can provide all the graces, strength and courage for the mission!

This is what was epitomized by St Francis Xavier, whose feast we celebrate today.

>> This Patron of the Missions was filled with a tremendous zeal for salvation of souls and contained in him a contagious enthusiasm of giving Christ to all.

One of his testimonial statement, while undertaking missionary activity in Japan, goes thus: “Sometimes I have lost my voice and strength altogether with repeating again and again the Credo and the other forms.”

May we give heed to the words of the Dynamic Missionary Saint…

>> “It is not the actual physical exertion that counts towards a one’s progress, nor the nature of the task, but by the spirit of faith with which it is undertaken”

>> “It is impossible to find a saint who did not take the two P’s seriously: prayer and penance”

… and seek to grow deeper in our missionary commitment!

Yes, one needs to feel the “tug and the pull of the Divine Lord”…when one goes through

… hardships and difficulties in being a missionary of the Kingdom, in hostile situations

… problems and challenges as we seek to live a true Christian life in the modern world

… meaninglessness or emptiness as we go through the ‘deserts’ and ‘darkness’ in life

And it is this experience of “the Divine tug of the string” that keeps the life of the believer moving forward and to depend on the Divine Presence for strength in life!

Happy Feast of St Francis Xavier!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Quotable-quote-a-day-with-St Francis de Sales (SFS) – “By turning your eyes on God in meditation…

… your whole soul will be filled with God.

>> Begin all your prayers in the presence of God!”

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A young man – new in town – was visiting a nearby church.

As he looked at the various art works, paintings and statues…

… his eyes chanced upon a stained-glass window.

The glass had a phrase written on it: “Glory to God in the Highest.”

However, the man also noticed…

… the part of the glass window that had the letter “E” in the word HIGHEST was broken and so missing.

Thus the phrase read instead: “Glory to God in the High st!”

When he saw that phrase, something greatly stuck him…

… High St was the name of the place where he was living – High Street!

And he nurtured this feeling within him:

“This is a clear message from the Lord to me, as I come to this new town

>> I need to Give Glory to God in the HIGH ST…

… the place where I am living – HIGH STREET – is where the Name of God needs to be glorified!”

The man realized that the way to Glorify God would be to Glorify Him in the place where he was…

… Glorify God – with Deep Faith and Trust – wherever we live, work and move about!

The Gospel of the Day is a beautiful account of a man who “Glorified God – with Deep Faith and Trust – by translation his faith into living and concrete action …

… and Jesus expressing His admiration for the person of Faith!

We have today the incident of the healing of the Centurion’s servant.

Jesus lavishes His appreciations and admirations for a wonderful display of faith.

Here is the story an unusual faith found in an unusual man who displayed his faith in an unusual way.

1. The Centurion was an unusual person…

As the name suggests, a Centurion was a person with a hundred soldiers.

>> They worked for the Roman Empire and were Gentiles.

This Centurion however, was unusual, because of the fact, that he was very much concerned of his slave.

This was rare indeed.

In the Roman Empire, slaves had no rights.

>> They could be mistreated and even put to death.

It was said that “when your animals are old, you throw them out to die. You do the same with your slaves.”

So this is the unusual thing about this unusual Centurion – He cared very much about his slave!

2. The centurion showed an unusual faith…

The Centurion came to Jesus asking and pleading for help.

>> But when Jesus said that He would come to his house and heal him, the centurion was quick to answer him, ” I am not worthy to have you under my roof” ( Mt 8:8)

The spirit of a military man is clearly exhibited by the centurion..

A soldier’s way of thinking is extremely logical and to the point:

>> When an order is given, instant obedience is expected.

>> My commanding power goes beyond the realms of space

>> My presence or absence is no excuse for my soldiers to disobey.

The Centurion fully believed that Jesus was a mighty commander with all powers subjected to Him.

>> And so a word was enough for the healing to take place…

>> An expression of approval was good enough for the miracle to happen…

3. The Centurion received an unusual response

This tremendous expression of faith was enough for Jesus to admire and appreciate Him.

>> Jesus was astonished by this wonderful demonstration of confidence and belief: ” Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel, have I found such faith” (Mt 8: 10)

We have seen many instances of people praising and appreciating the works and wonders of Jesus.

But, it’s one of those rare occasions, when Jesus publicly acknowledges and asserts the glorious faith of the one seeking for help.

>> The Lord gives a wonderful ovation and applause for this wonderful presentation of faith.

This Gospel is a wonderful challenge for each of us to examine our life of faith…

In a situation…

… when we are surrounded by sicknesses of negativity and discouragement,

… when life-threatening moments of crushing-failures and despair encircle us,

… when we get depressed by the various day to day problems of life,

>> Can we also boldly say, ” Only say a word, Lord…and I will be healed!”

As a famous saying goes, “It is easy to praise the Lord…

… But it really is a challenge to receive praises from the Lord!”

>> When we stand firm in our faith in God, we receive appreciations from Him

>> When we have confidence in our love for God, we receive admiration from Him

>> When we remain strong in our Hope in God, we receive approval from Him.

May we realize that that the way to Glorify God would be to Glorify Him in the place where we are and in the situation we are in…

… Glorify God – with Deep Faith and Trust – wherever we live, work and move about!

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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Quotable-quote-a-day-with-St Francis de Sales (SFS) – “One single day of devotion is worth more than a thousand years of worldly life!”

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