The Catholic Faith: The one-word-religion

The Catholic Faith

THE ONE-WORD-RELIGION

 Our religion is the one Word, Jesus. Our religion is a Person, not an organisation nor a theory nor a moral code.  It is to know a Person, to love a Person and life is to please a Person. The Person is Jesus. Jesus has died for us. He has risen for us and he is with us now even more than when he walked the roads of Palestine. “Do not be afraid, I am with you”.- “till the end of time”. “Through him all good things come” (Mass prayer).

Our religion is to know Jesus: to know him personally as an intimate friend. “I do not call you servants, but my friends”. Without this friendship there is no religion. He welcomes all, saint and sinner, rich and poor, learned and illiterate, the well and the ill. His friendship will change us radically – to our very roots.

Our religion is not learning but experiencing – experiencing Jesus.

We need him;

We need to be loved: “he loved his own in the world and to the end”

We need peace of mind: “my peace I give you”

We need to be free from anxiety: “let not your hearts be troubled”

We need to relax: “come to me, I will give you rest”

We need to be free from fear: “Do not be afraid”

We need forgiveness: “her sins, her many sins, are forgiven her”.

We need joy in our life: “I say these things that your joy may be complete”. 

We need to live life to the full: “I have come that you may have life and to the full”.

“You believe in God, believe also in me”

These gifts can be ours to the full: “he who asks will receive, he who seeks will find and he who knocks will have the door opened”

We are lost in the maze of life: “I have come to seek and search for the lost”

We are slaves of sin: “The Spirit is upon me: to liberate captives”

We don’t know where to turn; “I am the Good Shepherd”.

We are in the dark: “I am the light of the world”

We are weak: “I am the bread of life”.

We thirst for we know not what: “All those who thirst come to me and drink”.

We have a fruitless life: “I am the vine, you the branches – you will bear much fruit”

We have no prospect of eternal life as humans: “I am the Resurrection and life”

We find no meaning in life: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life”

We have no way into eternal bliss: “I am the door”..

Jesus waits for each of us: ”I stand at the door and knock”

To know him is to love him. To love him is to keep his commandments. To keep his commandments wins the vision of Jesus: “I will show myself to him”

Is it possible? “Without me you can do nothing”.

THE CHURCH

The Church is the gathering of those who believe in Jesus. They are centred on him. They love him and as they love him, they love one another. “This is the sign by which everyone will know you are my disciples”. “Love one another as I have loved you”.

This is the Church Jesus founded and it will last for ever. It is not the structures that we see. With so many believers in the world today it is necessary to have structures – Popes, Roman Curia, Dioceses, Bishops, parish priests, Canon Law, Rules, Liturgy, Sacraments, even the Bible. They are necessary now, but not to be confused with the Church. They can be and will be one day swept away. The Church has only one law, one tradition, one heart: it is to love Jesus and all who believe. Jesus and those who love him are for ever. They constitute his Church.

“Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, I will be there with them”.

 “You have only one teacher, the Christ. You are all brothers and sisters”.

“He who believes in me, even though he dies, will live”.

9th Week of Ordinary Time

Meeting Jesus through the Gospel

1. Sit quietly, recollect yourself. Concentrate on Jesus. Call on the Holy Spirit. Take your time. There is no rush and there is no fixed rule to follow. Be free in the Spirit.

2. Be aware that Jesus is with you. Use a mantra if you like, e.g. ‘Jesus, Jesus, Jesus ..’

3. Read the passage with Jesus who was there and in the Holy Spirit who inspired it.

4. Note the words and sentences that strike you.

5. Pray about these and ask the Lord to speak to you through his Spirit.

6. Keep a journal of the inspirations you are given for your life. Jesus is present to you and he is speaking to you.

7. If the passage is a ‘dramatic’ one try and live the passage in your imagination. Remember it is not just imagination because Jesus is present now with you. Put yourself in the scene.  It is the Holy Spirit who makes Jesus real.

 

31^st May Monday.

Mark 12:1-12

¹ Jesus went on to speak to them in parables, 'A man planted a vineyard; he fenced it round, dug out a trough for the winepress and built a tower; then he leased it to tenants and went abroad. ² When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard. ³ But they seized the man, thrashed him and sent him away empty handed. ⁴ Next he sent another servant to them; him they beat about the head and treated shamefully. ⁵ And he sent another and him they killed; then a number of others, and they thrashed some and killed the rest. ⁶ He had still someone left: his beloved son. He sent him to them last of all, thinking, "They will respect my son." ⁷ But those tenants said to each other, "This is the heir. Come on, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours." ⁸ So they seized him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. ⁹ Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and make an end of the tenants and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Have you not read this text of scripture: The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; ¹¹ this is the Lord's doing, and we marvel at it ?' ¹² And they would have liked to arrest him, because they realised that the parable was aimed at them, but they were afraid of the crowds. So they left him alone and went away.

Jesus condemns the Jewish priests for their continued obstinacy. The vineyard was the people of Israel, described by Isaiah in his parable of the vineyard of Yahweh. Through this parable Jesus is also saying that he is the Messiah and indeed the Son of God. He foretells his ignominious end at the hands of the priests. God does not destroy his vineyard but hands it over to new tenants. Those who accept ‘the Son’ become the vineyard and the tenants the priests of the new Covenant. In the parable the owner does not interfere in the day to day running of the vineyard yet he expects his fruits in due time. Likewise God gives his Church freedom but looks for the fruits. Everyone with any form of responsibility for others will have to yield the fruit. Each of us must ask: I am producing the fruit pleasing to the Lord?

Tuesday June 1^st 2010

Mk 12:13-17

³ Next they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to catch him out in what he said. ¹⁴ These came and said to him, 'Master, we know that you are an honest man, that you are not afraid of anyone, because human rank means nothing to you, and that you teach the way of God in all honesty. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or not?' ¹⁵ Recognising their hypocrisy he said to them, 'Why are you putting me to the test? Hand me a denarius and let me see it.' ¹⁶ They handed him one and he said to them, 'Whose portrait is this? Whose title?' They said to him, 'Caesar's.' ¹⁷ Jesus said to them, 'Pay Caesar what belongs to Caesar -- and God what belongs to God.' And they were amazed at him.

The heart of the matter is not the paying of taxes. His enemies hated Jesus. They wanted him destroyed and so proposed this trick question. The Pharisees, strict observers of the Law, compromised. Their conscience said paying tax to Caesar was wrong but could they face the consequences of not paying? They grudgingly paid. Could a prophet of God compromise? He must say yes or no. They didn’t believe a word of what they said, in fact the opposite, but Jesus, so they thought, must come out straight. No trick question deserves a straight answer. Before the crowds he shows them to be hypocrites. They have the hated coin issued by Caesar and so his property. They thereby acknowledge his authority. You have his coin. Give it back. Jesus doesn’t have it. How do you stand before Jesus? Do you stand transparent before him or try to justify your compromises?

Wednesday 2^nd June 2010 

Mk 12:18-27

¹⁸ Then some Sadducees -- who deny that there is a resurrection -- came to him and they put this question to him, ¹⁹ 'Master, Moses prescribed for us that if a man's brother dies leaving a wife but no child, the man must marry the widow to raise up children for his brother. ²⁰ Now there were seven brothers; the first married a wife and then died leaving no children. ²¹ The second married the widow, and he too died leaving no children; with the third it was the same, ²² and none of the seven left any children. Last of all the woman herself died. ²³ Now at the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be, since she had been married to all seven?' ²⁴ Jesus said to them, 'Surely the reason why you are wrong is that you understand neither the scriptures nor the power of God. ²⁵ For when they rise from the dead, men and women do not marry; no, they are like the angels in heaven. ²⁶ 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? ²⁷ He is God, not of the dead, but of the living. You are very much mistaken.'

The Sadducees were the aristocracy having a religion of convenience to further their political ends. They only accepted the Pentateuch in which there is no explicit mention of resurrection.  They try to show the stupidity of the idea. Jesus tells them they do not understand the Scriptures. Every page of the Bible talks of a God who loves mankind. Is he a God who lives in his own glory while caring nothing for his friends and lets them fall into nothingness at death? They know nothing of the power of God. Nor do we. Before God we are not even as ants before us. If you had never seen the beauty of flowers and the majesty of trees what would you imagine by looking at some colourless and lifeless seeds in your hand. We live in a hopeful expectation which is fully grounded in God’s infinite love for us.

Thursday 3^rd June 2010

Mark 12:28-34

²⁸ One of the scribes who had listened to them debating appreciated that Jesus had given a good answer and put a further question to him, 'Which is the first of all the commandments?' ²⁹ Jesus replied, 'This is the first: Listen, Israel, the Lord our God is the one, only Lord, ³⁰ and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. ³¹ The second is this: You must love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.' ³² The scribe said to him, 'Well spoken, Master; what you have said is true, that he is one and there is no other. ³³ 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 burnt offering or sacrifice.' ³⁴ Jesus, seeing how wisely he had spoken, said, 'You are not far from the kingdom of God.' And after that no one dared to question him any more.

Like the Jews we may have heard this from childhood with the familiarity which makes us pass it by. But Jesus takes our minds off individual laws and casuistry. He focuses us on what life is all about. Everything we have including the very breath we breathe is a gift from God. He gives us freely everything we see around us, the whole universe. We are preserved in being by his constant loving thought. Our existence is to be a response of love for him. There is no room for anything else. Then how often we fail and need to repent. All our dealings with our neighbour are to be an expression of love. We do not love them as we love God but as we love ourselves. We must then love ourselves, see ourselves as precious to God and love others in the same way. How often we fail.

Friday 4^th June

Mark 12.35-37).

³⁵ While teaching in the Temple, Jesus said, 'How can the scribes maintain that the Christ is the son of David? ³⁶ David himself, moved by the Holy Spirit, said: The Lord declared to my Lord, take your seat at my right hand till I have made your enemies your footstool. ³⁷ David himself calls him Lord; in what way then can he be his son?' And the great crowd listened to him with delight.

His enemies have tried to belittle Jesus in the eyes of the crowds by asking trick questions about taxes and the resurrection and a scribe admiring his answers had asked publicly about the most important commandment in the Law. Jesus had answered them all to their amazement. Now he asks a question to make them and us think more deeply. The Messiah is the son of David. But how could he be son and so inferior if David himself calls him Lord and has God say that he will sit at his right hand. He is making the Messiah equal with God. It is a veiled way of speaking but Jesus wants them to reflect. In the historical situation no one guessed that Jesus was truly God. We know that.. How does that change your perception of Jesus present to you now? Your Friend and Saviour is God.

Saturday 5^th June

Mark 12:28-44

³⁸ In his teaching Jesus said, 'Beware of the scribes who like to walk about in long robes, to be greeted respectfully in the market squares, ³⁹ to take the front seats in the synagogues and the places of honour at banquets; ⁴⁰ these are the men who devour the property of widows and for show offer long prayers. The more severe will be the sentence they receive.' ⁴¹ He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the treasury, and many of the rich put in a great deal. ⁴² A poor widow came and put in two small coins, the equivalent of a penny. ⁴³ Then he called his disciples and said to them, 'In truth I tell you, this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury; ⁴⁴ for they have all put in money they could spare, but she in her poverty has put in everything she possessed, all she had to live on.'

Jesus is contrasting two kinds of devotees. On the one hand those scribes who are full of self. They wear distinctive religious clothing, desire to be honoured and respected in public while having no love of God in their hearts. In daily life they satisfy their greed while giving the opposite impression. We find this type everywhere. On the other hand is a woman who has very little but out of love for God offers everything she has to His Temple. She lives for God. Where am I? Do I belong to Christ? Do I use all his gifts, many or few, for him alone or do I use them for myself? What kind of a devotee are you? We cannot compartmentalise our life. We either use all our gifts for him alone or we hold back and keep things for ourselves. Jesus accepts my ‘treasure’.

The Holy Trinity C

The Holy Trinity Sunday C

Proverbs:8:22-31. Ps 8:4-9. Rv.2. Rom. 5:1-5. John 16:12-15.

Wisdom ever at play in his presence and delighting to be with the sons of men.

You have made man little less than a god.

The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit

All the Father has is mine. All the Spirit tells you will be taken from what is mine.

John 16:12-15

I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you to bear now. ¹³ However, when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking of his own accord, but will say only what he has been told; and he will reveal to you the things to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me, since all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine. ¹⁵ Everything the Father has is mine; that is why I said: all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine.

A loving Dad in heaven

            We have all heard of shamrock and the Trinity, a triangle and the three persons but one God. The mind boggles. If we try to get the Trinity into our head then it splits. It’s like an ant trying to understand us. In fact that is easy compared to us  trying to understand God. Then why did Jesus reveal this mystery? It was for our happiness and salvation. Many parents and teachers have unwittingly often caused great harm. Many taught us that God is a God who punishes sinners, that he has put us in a straitjacket with his commandments and forbids us to do the very things we want to, that he always says ‘no’ and throws a wet blanket over everything, almost that he likes to see us suffer and doesn’t seem to bother about our pain and lets the wicked escape. How many have thought, “Anyway he will throw me into hell, I may as well enjoy myself now” Those who reject God, reject a God who doesn’t exist. Those who walk away, walk away from a God they have never met. God is nothing like what even saints imagine.

            No one has ever seen God. The Scriptures say further, no one can see God. As a result no human being can say anything about God. Whatever they say is as valuable as the description of the elephant given by the six blind men. Only the Son who dwells in the bosom of the Father knows him. Only Jesus can teach about the Father because he is the visible image of the Father. Jesus is the invisible God translated into human form. Look at Jesus and you look at the Father. Listen to Jesus and you listen to God the Father.

            Far from condemning sinners Jesus welcomed them – the tax collectors, the sinful woman in the house of Simon, the woman taken in adultery, the paralytic, Zachaeus the swindler par excellence, Peter after his threefold denial, and so many others till in his last moment the thief on the cross – the only person guaranteed a place in heaven. He had fellowship with them without preconditions. He simply loved them and hoped that his love would be contagious. In this he confirmed the Word: God takes delight in forgiving sins.

            Most of all he revealed God as Abba – our heavenly Dad who loves to take his children in his arms and bless them (Hosea11:3). He is Abba who longs for his children to come to him even if they have ruined their lives and hit rock bottom. He embraces them and gives them the best robe and ring and makes a feast for all the angels and saints.

            What is your image of God? Do you see God as Jesus did or as people speak of him?  How does Jesus speak of his Father to you?

Father, grant that we may bring you joy by calling you Abba from our hearts.

8th Week of Ordinary Time

Meeting Jesus through the Gospel

1. Sit quietly, recollect yourself. Concentrate on Jesus. Call on the Holy Spirit. Take your time. There is no rush and there is no fixed rule to follow. Be free in the Spirit.

2. Be aware that Jesus is with you. Use a mantra if you like, e.g. ‘Jesus, Jesus, Jesus ..’

3. Read the passage with Jesus who was there and in the Holy Spirit who inspired it.

4. Note the words and sentences that strike you.

5. Pray about these and ask the Lord to speak to you through his Spirit.

6. Keep a journal of the inspirations you are given for your life. Jesus is present to you and he is speaking to you.

7. If the passage is a ‘dramatic’ one try and live the passage in your imagination. Remember it is not just imagination because Jesus is present now with you. Put yourself in the scene.  It is the Holy Spirit who makes Jesus real

Monday 24^th May 2010

8^th Week of Ordinary Time

Mk 10:17-27

He was setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him, 'Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?' ¹⁸ Jesus said to him, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: You shall not kill; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not give false witness; You shall not defraud; Honour your father and mother.' ²⁰ And he said to him, 'Master, I have kept all these since my earliest days.' ²¹ Jesus looked steadily at him and he was filled with love for him, and he said, 'You need to do one thing more. Go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.' ²² But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth. ²³ Jesus looked round and said to his disciples, 'How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!' ²⁴ The disciples were astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted, 'My children,' he said to them, 'how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for someone rich to enter the kingdom of God.' ²⁶ They were more astonished than ever, saying to one another, 'In that case, who can be saved?' ²⁷ Jesus gazed at them and said, 'By human resources it is impossible, but not for God: because for God everything is possible.'

Back in Ordinary Time we follow Jesus along his way. We will see everything and listen to everything just as his disciples did. A man comes and kneels before him. Who is he? Maybe he’s you. He calls Jesus ‘good’. Jesus directs him to the Father. Jesus’ life is doing his Father’s will. It must be ours too. Jesus repeats the Old Testament. The man justifies himself. But has he never defrauded his labourers? Jesus loves him and invites him to be a disciple. There is a condition however. Go and sell everything you have. Don’t give the money to the Temple but to the poor. Relieve their hardship. Then come as you are. He cannot do it. He is a rich man. He cannot give up his wealth. ’Where his treasure is, there is his heart’ and what about you? Jesus demands everything.  What are you clinging to?

Tuesday 25^th May 2010

8^th week of Ordinary Time

Mk 10:28-31

Peter took this up. 'Look,' he said to him, 'we have left everything and followed you.' ²⁹ Jesus said, 'In truth I tell you, there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children or land for my sake and for the sake of the gospel ³⁰ who will not receive a hundred times as much, houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and land -- and persecutions too -- now in this present time and, in the world to come, eternal life. ³¹ Many who are first will be last, and the last, first.'

Peter left his nets and so did the others. But did they leave everything? Did they leave their longing for power, position and the first places in the Kingdom? We will see that they had not. Did they understand that Jesus must suffer and they also? God wants to be generous. When we give up our ‘possessions’ for Jesus’ sake then God can abundantly bless us even if others persecute us. He gives us contentment of mind and the happiness of friends. Life becomes a joy. This is not a ‘reward’. God owes us nothing. It is his love for us. Have we the courage to make Jesus the centre of our life, to surrender our desires to him so that having only what we need, we long only to do his will? Do you daily surrender to him and listen to what he wants you to do?

Wednesday 26^th May 2010

8^th Week of Orinary Time

Mk 10:32-45

³² They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem; Jesus was walking on ahead of them; they were in a daze, and those who followed were apprehensive. Once more taking the Twelve aside he began to tell them what was going to happen to him, ³³ 'Now we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man is about to be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the gentiles, ³⁴ who will mock him and spit at him and scourge him and put him to death; and after three days he will rise again.' ³⁵ James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached him. 'Master,' they said to him, 'We want you to do us a favour.' ³⁶ He said to them, 'What is it you want me to do for you?' ³⁷ They said to him, 'Allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory.' ³⁸ But Jesus said to them, 'You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I shall drink, or be baptised with the baptism with which I shall be baptised?' ³⁹ They replied, 'We can.' Jesus said to them, 'The cup that I shall drink you shall drink, and with the baptism with which I shall be baptised you shall be baptised, ⁴⁰ but as for seats at my right hand or my left, these are not mine to grant; they belong to those to whom they have been allotted.' ⁴¹ When the other ten heard this they began to feel indignant with James and John, ⁴² so Jesus called them to him and said to them, 'You know that among the gentiles those they call their rulers lord it over them, and their great men make their authority felt. ⁴³ Among you this is not to happen. No; anyone who wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave to all. ⁴⁵ For the Son of man himself came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'

How little the disciples understood and how frustrating for Jesus, yet he remains patient with these slow learners.  He has just told them in the clearest of terms that humiliation and death await him in Jerusalem. As if they have heard nothing, James and John ask Jesus if they can be second in command when he achieves glory. The others are angry that they asked first. We humans see and hear everything with our own mindset. Jesus tries again to teach them that he is establishing a new kind of community, one not built on power but a community in which each of us humbly serves the other out of love. Jesus himself is the great model. He came to serve and give his life for others? For whom are you giving your life? Would those who know you, think you their loving servant?

Thursday 27th  May 2010

Mark 10:46-52

They reached Jericho; and as he left Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus -- that is, the son of Timaeus -- a blind beggar, was sitting at the side of the road. ⁴⁷ When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout and cry out, 'Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me.' ⁴⁸ And many of them scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he only shouted all the louder, 'Son of David, have pity on me.' ⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him here.' So they called the blind man over. 'Courage,' they said, 'get up; he is calling you.' ⁵⁰ So throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and went to Jesus. ⁵¹ Then Jesus spoke, 'What do you want me to do for you?' The blind man said to him, 'Rabbuni, let me see again.' ⁵² Jesus said to him, 'Go; your faith has saved you.' And at once his sight returned and he followed him along the road.

The disciples are blind. Bartimaeus represents them. But Mark writes for the blind in his community and are we not blind? Once we could see – when baptized, when we had a conversion experience or entered on a special state of life such as religious life or priesthood. But then we sank into blindness again. We could no longer follow Jesus but sat helpless by the side of the road. Bartimaeus represents us all. He knows that only Jesus can give him sight. Only Jesus can open our eyes too. He is desperate to get to Jesus and overcomes the opposition of the crowd. Are we as anxious to meet Jesus? Jesus sends others to call him. It is in the community now that we will meet Jesus. Bartimaeus throws off his cloak. He leaves everything to get to Jesus. Do you? Have you met Jesus? Has he cured your blindness?

Friday 28^th May 2010

Mark 11:11-26

Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple; and when he had surveyed it all, as it was late by now, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve. ¹² Next day as they were leaving Bethany, he felt hungry. ¹³ Seeing a fig tree in leaf some distance away, he went to see if he could find any fruit on it, but when he came up to it he found nothing but leaves; for it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴ And he addressed the fig tree, 'May no one ever eat fruit from you again.' And his disciples heard him say this. ¹⁵ So they reached Jerusalem and he went into the Temple and began driving out the men selling and buying there; he upset the tables of the money changers and the seats of the dove sellers. ¹⁶ Nor would he allow anyone to carry anything through the Temple. ¹⁷ And he taught them and said, 'Does not scripture say: My house will be called a house of prayer for all peoples? But you have turned it into a bandits' den.' ¹⁸ This came to the ears of the chief priests and the scribes, and they tried to find some way of doing away with him; they were afraid of him because the people were carried away by his teaching. ¹⁹ And when evening came he went out of the city. ²⁰ Next morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree withered to the roots. ²¹ Peter remembered. 'Look, Rabbi,' he said to Jesus, 'the fig tree that you cursed has withered away.' ²² Jesus answered, 'Have faith in God. ²³ In truth I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, "Be pulled up and thrown into the sea," with no doubt in his heart, but believing that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. ²⁴ I tell you, therefore, everything you ask and pray for, believe that you have it already, and it will be yours. ²⁵ And when you stand in prayer, forgive whatever you have against anybody, so your Father in heaven may forgive your failings too.' ^{26 27} They came to Jerusalem again, and as Jesus was walking in the Temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him,

Jesus goes to the fig tree. It looks very good, full of foliage but there is no fruit. Jesus is bitterly disappointed. He curses the tree and by evening it will wither away. He then goes to the Temple and what he sees fills him with anger. You have made the house of prayer a den of thieves. This too will wither when the Romans destroy it in 70A.D. Jesus condemns a religion which has plenty of external practices, rules and regulations but little or nothing else. The heart of religion is our love for God in Jesus. Without this personal love for Jesus our religion is just a fig tree full of foliage but without fruit. Sacrifices and prayers were forever being made in the Temple, but Jesus was not impressed. Is he impressed with your way of life? Do you have deep and personal relationship with him?

Saturday 29^th May 2010

Mark 11:27-33

 They came to Jerusalem again, and as Jesus was walking in the Temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, ²⁸ and they said to him, 'What authority have you for acting like this? Or who gave you authority to act like this?' ²⁹ Jesus said to them, 'And I will ask you a question, just one; answer me and I will tell you my authority for acting like this. ³⁰ John's baptism, what was its origin, heavenly or human? Answer me that.' ³¹ And they argued this way among themselves, 'If we say heavenly, he will say, "Then why did you refuse to believe him?" ³² But dare we say human?' -- they had the people to fear, for everyone held that John had been a real prophet. ³³ So their reply to Jesus was, 'We do not know.'And Jesus said to them, 'Nor will I tell you my authority for acting like this.' 

The Jewish Leaders are not interested in the truth. Hence though they claim it, they have no authority. They are politicians through and through. They want to get Jesus off the scene. But Jesus is their match. They ask him a question about his authority. Jesus counters by asking about the authority of John the Baptist. To accept John is to accept Jesus.  And so  they refuse to answer, saying they do not know.  Jesus refuses to answer their question. He will say to Pilate that those only who love the truth listen to his words. The truth will make them free. The Jewish Leaders were blind and bound by their own prejudices. Is there some area of life were you too are blind and refuse to listen to Lord’s voice because you cannot face the truth? In Jesus’ hands the truth will make you free.

 

The Feast of Pentecost C

Pentecost Sunday C

Acts 2:1-11. Psalm 103: 1, 24. 29-31. 34.Rv. 30. Romans 8:8-17. John 14: 15-16. 23-26

We hear them preaching in our own language about the marvels of God.

May my thoughts be pleasing to him. I find my joy in the Lord

The Spirit of God has made his home in you.

We shall come to him and make our home with him

  

John 14:15-16, 23-26

If you love me you will keep my commandments. ¹⁶ I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete to be with you for ever, ¹⁷ the Spirit of truth whom the world can never accept since it neither sees nor knows him; but you know him, because he is with you, he is in you.

Jesus replied: Anyone who loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we shall come to him and make a home in him. ²⁴ Anyone who does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not my own: it is the word of the Father who sent me. ²⁵ I have said these things to you while still with you; ²⁶ but the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you.

Take his help

            People affect us in different ways. Some people make us believe we are lost. Their attitude and their words depress us. The result is we feel inadequate. Other people have the opposite effect. When they are around we feel enthusiastic and ready to give ourselves for the cause in hand. Churchill during the Second World War galvanized a nation and gave it the power to sacrifice and defeat its enemy. He actually didn’t give it anything but brought out what the nation already had. Psychologists tell us that we use only a fraction of our ability. We all have great potential but it sleeps. We don’t believe in ourselves, consider ourselves failures even before we begin and so are paralyzed. We need someone to get us going and then we are amazed at what we can do.

            Jesus had been with the disciples for two years. They had seen him at work and listened to him preaching. He was their Master and Guru. Now he was going away. They felt lost. They were dependent on him. But he told them, “It is better for you that I go away... If I go away it is to send the Helper to you” (John 16:7). Jesus will send the Holy Spirit. What Jesus was in the foundation of the Church the Holy Spirit will be during the life of the Church. Jesus handed his mission of Salvation to us and sent the Holy Spirit to assist us in this work. But the work is ours. If we welcome the Spirit he will put new life and enthusiasm into us. He will galvanize us more than any leader can galvanize a nation. People who are filled with the Spirit will experience powers they never thought they had. He will give them courage and fortitude. He will bring out from the recesses of their minds what Jesus had taught but they had forgotten. They will be the same people but now on fire with enthusiasm, boldness and wisdom. The Spirit is the great Animator. He encourages us to love, bring peace and justice and develop all the other qualities we call the fruits of the Spirit.

            Jesus was a man like us in all things but sin. He was a quiet man going about his business in Nazareth. Then at the Jordan River he welcomed the Spirit in a new way. He enjoyed the fellowship of the Spirit (2 Cor.13:13). The Spirit ever with him set him on fire with a mission, encouraged him to have great faith and trust and love for his Father. Combined with a consuming love for men and women he could heal their sicknesses and give them the Word of life.

            This Pentecost let us welcome the Spirit into our lives and we will blossom in ways we never dreamt of.  

Father, may I experience a new Pentecost in my life and be transformed.