“Daring to know the Lord more and to help each other more!”

(Based on Isaiah 25:6-10a and Mt 15:29-37 – Feast of Saint Francis Xavier, Patron Saint of Missions)

Some people change the world not by doing extraordinary things…
… but by choosing to love in extraordinary ways!

One such man was Francis Xavier…
… a young priest who found greatness not in fame, but in compassion.

When he reached the shores of India in 1542, he was offered comfort, honour, and a place among the elite.

But holiness never chooses the comfortable seat.

He walked past the luxury…
… and went straight to the poorest fishermen, the sick, the forgotten.

He lived with them, ate with them, cried with them.
He didn’t just speak about Jesus…
… he showed the Lord, by sharing life.

The Gospel of the Day is this invitation of Jesus…
… to be fed, to be healed and to find joy in His presence

A ‘holy picnic’ where every heart is welcomed and satisfied.
… A picnic with Jesus.

A picnic basically has some essential elements…

A nice location
Joyful interactions
Good food
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.

Prophet Isaiah foretold: “On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples, a feast of rich food…
… then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth!” (Cf. Is 25:6-8)

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

To go to the mountain of prayer and intimacy
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.

This is what was epitomized by St Francis Xavier, whose feast we celebrate today.
… and displayed a contagious enthusiasm of giving Christ to all.

The following quotes of this dynamic ‘Patron Saint of Missions’ is also an inspiration for all of us…

“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!

As we continue to nourish our spiritual lives in this Season of Advent, 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.

Happy Feast of St Francis Xavier!

God Bless! Live Jesus!