Tag Archives: sin

26 July, Friday – Don’t Give The Enemy A Seat At Your Table

Memorials, Ordinary Time, , ,

Jul 26 – Memorial of Sts. Joachim and Anne, parents of the Virgin Mary

By tradition, Joachim and Anne are considered to be the names of the parents of Mary, the Mother of God. We have no historical evidence, however, of any elements of their lives, including their names. Any stories about Mary’s father and mother come to us through legend and tradition. It was the parents of Mary who nurtured Mary, taught her, brought her up to be a worthy Mother of God. It was their teaching that led her to respond to God’s request with faith, “Let it be done to me as you will.” It was their example of parenting that Mary must have followed as she brought up her own son, Jesus. It was their faith that laid the foundation of courage and strength that allowed her to stand by the cross as her son was crucified and still believe. Such parents can be examples and models for all parents.

– http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=22

_________________

Exodus 20:1-17

God spoke all these words. He said, ‘I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

‘You shall have no gods except me.

‘You shall not make yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything in heaven or on earth beneath or in the waters under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God and I punish the father’s fault in the sons, the grandsons, and the great-grandsons of those who hate me; but I show kindness to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

‘You shall not utter the name of the Lord your God to misuse it, for the Lord will not leave unpunished the man who utters his name to misuse it.

‘Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. For six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath for the Lord your God. You shall do no work that day, neither you nor your son nor your daughter nor your servants, men or women, nor your animals nor the stranger who lives with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that these hold, but on the seventh day he rested; that is why the Lord has blessed the sabbath day and made it sacred.

‘Honour your father and your mother so that you may have a long life in the land that the Lord your God has given to you.

‘You shall not kill.

‘You shall not commit adultery.

‘You shall not steal.

‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

‘You shall not covet your neighbour’s house. You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or his servant, man or woman, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is his.’

___________________

Matthew 13:18-23

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘You are to hear the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom without understanding, the evil one comes and carries off what was sown in his heart: this is the man who received the seed on the edge of the path. The one who received it on patches of rock is the man who hears the word and welcomes it at once with joy. But he has no root in him, he does not last; let some trial come, or some persecution on account of the word, and he falls away at once. The one who received the seed in thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this world and the lure of riches choke the word and so he produces nothing. And the one who received the seed in rich soil is the man who hears the word and understands it; he is the one who yields a harvest and produces now a hundredfold, now sixty, now thirty.’

____________________

You shall not… 

Today, we celebrate the feast of the parents of our blessed Mother. I have often wondered how obedient she would have been as a child, especially since she was destined to become the mother of our Lord. I’m pretty sure St Joachim and St Anne would have had an easy time raising the young Mary, who epitomises obedience. Not being a parent myself, I look around at my friends who have multiple children and marvel at their energy, stamina and, most of all, their self-sacrificing love for their offspring (no matter how disobedient they become).

I reckon many of my vintage were brought up with quite strict parents – disciplinarians who had low tolerance for anything ‘out of the norm’. I recall many occasions when I was forced to practice my violin late in the night (and miss ‘Six Million Dollar Man’, ‘CHiPS’ or ‘Spencer For Hire’) because I had lied to my parents or decided to ‘play truant’ from my violin practice. I remember even coming up with crazy excuses (being held back in school etc) to skip piano lessons so that I could cycle freely within our huge estate for an hour. Of course, the best-laid plans always get unravelled whenever a well-meaning teacher phones up our parents to ‘check on us’ (imagine if we had mobile phones back then!).

Brothers and sisters, our God loves us too much to be such a disciplinarian. In fact, He lets us do what we choose to do because He already knows how things are going to pan out, good or bad. So even when we sin (yes, WHEN!), He is ever ready to bring us back into the fold, as long as we are sincere in our contrition. The first reading and the parable of the sower paint two different paths to salvation that reflect the spirit of the times. Just as how parents these days have to be tolerant and more understanding of their children and the pressures they face, Jesus came to offer us salvation through Him, knowing that this new generation of believers would close their ears and hearts to words that were not pleasing (such as “you shalt not…”).

Rather, He now tells us not to give the devil a chance to enter into our lives through sin. Someone I know has had to deal with an illness to her young son and has spent the better part of more than a year just refusing to believe and allow that cancer to take hold of her son. Today, he is in remission and is finally able to go out and interact with other children. She can also finally go out and spend time with her friends without having to worry too much. In refusing to allow the negativity and all its consequent feelings to take root, she conquered the illness through faith and prayer.

I recently attended the Hillsong Conference in Sydney and one of the enduring phrases was preached by Pastor Louie Giglio at his amazing session. He said, ‘Don’t give the enemy a seat at your table’ — 9 words he says changed his life during a period of turbulence and desolation. And he demonstrated it so vividly by managing to squeeze in between a married couple in the audience just by asking, “Can you just give me a bit of room here”; and then he got to work.

Brothers and sisters, let us NOT allow the enemy in through the cracks and fissures of our lives that are present in the workplace, in family, in ministry, in our emotions, in our dealings with others. Rather, let us allow God to smooth over these areas by praying constantly and going for the Sacrament of Reconciliation regularly so that we can become watertight in our faith. This will enable God to work His miracles in our lives and empower us to conquer anything that life throws at us, even serious illnesses such as leukaemia.

(Today’s Oxygen by Desmond Soon)

Prayer: Heavenly Father, keep us faithful and focussed on the road ahead through our daily prayers and help us to see your guiding hand in all that we do.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord, for always being there for us in our times of desolation.

19 May, Sunday – We are Renewed

Easter, ,

19 May 2019

________________

Acts 14:21-27

Paul and Barnabas went back through Lystra and Iconium to Antioch. They put fresh heart into the disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. ‘We all have to experience many hardships’ they said ‘before we enter the kingdom of God.’ In each of these churches they appointed elders, and with prayer and fasting they commended them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.

They passed through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia. Then after proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia and from there sailed for Antioch, where they had originally been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.
On their arrival they assembled the church and gave an account of all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the pagans.

_________________________

Apocalypse 21:1-5
 
I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the first earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her husband. Then I heard a loud voice call from the throne, ‘You see this city? Here God lives among men. He will make his home among them; they shall be his people, and he will be their God; his name is God-with-them. He will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there will be no more death, and no more mourning or sadness. The world of the past has gone.’

Then the One sitting on the throne spoke: ‘Now I am making the whole of creation new.’
_________________________
John 13:31-33,34-35
 
When Judas had gone Jesus said:

‘Now has the Son of Man been glorified,
and in him God has been glorified.
If God has been glorified in him,
God will in turn glorify him in himself,
and will glorify him very soon.

‘My little children,
I shall not be with you much longer.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another;
just as I have loved you,
you also must love one another.
By this love you have for one another,
everyone will know that you are my disciples.’
__________________________
Now I am making the whole of creation new

One of my favorites quotes is from G.K. Chesterton: “There are two ways of getting home; and one of them is to stay there. The other is to walk round the whole world till we come back to the same place.”

I think after we’ve walked away from home, we might find that the place has become ‘new’, and discover that it was what we have been looking for all this time.

How is that connected to today’s reflection? Well, thinking of how new the creation would be, I thought of whether ‘new’ means having an overhaul, like the old will no longer be there. Or will it be more of a renewal?

Currently, I am in a journey towards discovering myself – who am I that God made me to be? I was hoping to uncover something different. The more I searched for myself, I realized that I kept on discovering just me – the ‘me’ that I’ve known all along but that was covered with wounds, and sins. It’s like looking for something that has always been in front of your eyes.

It made me then think of how the whole of creation would be made new. Because from the beginning of time, God has made us to be at peace and communion with him, and it was because of original sin that we are suffering from our wounded nature, perhaps God will finally remove the effects of the original sin in us. We become new, but not really new. It’s like finally coming home to the place we were once in.

What does it mean for our lives? I think it will be different for different people. I think some of us who feel that we need to discover ourselves should be delighted that we are discovering ourself – the one who has been with us all along – we don’t have to look too far. Maybe, for those of us who are struggling with sin, we can rest assured that we were created good, and that being in sin is our unnatural state – we don’t have to be so difficult with ourselves.

I think that to all of us who are struggling to find a new self, I believe that the ‘self’ God made us to be is already very good. God never abandoned the old: As St Augustine said “New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.” Maybe this is how we are made to be a new creation.

It is indeed a great paradox! Just like our faith.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Stephanie Villa)

Prayer: Dearest Lord God, You who make everything new, please help me allow you to transform me, so that I will finally find the me that was hidden.

Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for loving all of me, even if I am yet to be renewed.

17 April, Wednesday – The Betrayal

Holy Week, ,

17 April 2019

_______________________

Isaiah 50:4-9

The Lord has given me
a disciple’s tongue.
So that I may know how to reply to the wearied
he provides me with speech.
Each morning he wakes me to hear,
to listen like a disciple.
The Lord has opened my ear.

For my part, I made no resistance,
neither did I turn away.
I offered my back to those who struck me,
my cheeks to those who tore at my beard;
I did not cover my face
against insult and spittle.

The Lord comes to my help,
so that I am untouched by the insults.
So, too, I set my face like flint;
I know I shall not be shamed.

My vindicator is here at hand. Does anyone start proceedings against me?
Then let us go to court together.
Who thinks he has a case against me?
Let him approach me.

The Lord is coming to my help,
who will dare to condemn me?

_______________________

Matthew 26:14-25

One of the Twelve, the man called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‘What are you prepared to give me if I hand him over to you?’ They paid him thirty silver pieces, and from that moment he looked for an opportunity to betray him.

Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus to say, ‘Where do you want us to make the preparations for you to eat the passover?’ ‘Go to so-and-so in the city’ he replied ‘and say to him, “The Master says: My time is near. It is at your house that I am keeping Passover with my disciples.”’ The disciples did what Jesus told them and prepared the Passover.

When evening came he was at table with the twelve disciples. And while they were eating he said ‘I tell you solemnly, one of you is about to betray me.’ They were greatly distressed and started asking him in turn, ‘Not I, Lord, surely?’ He answered, ‘Someone who has dipped his hand into the dish with me, will betray me. The Son of Man is going to his fate, as the scriptures say he will, but alas for that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! Better for that man if he had never been born!’ Judas, who was to betray him; asked in his turn, ‘Not I, Rabbi, surely?’ ‘They are your own words’ answered Jesus.

______________________

Judas, who betrayed him, said, “Surely not I, Rabbi?” He replied, “You have said so.”

I wonder how Judas must have been feeling when he said “Surely not I, Rabbi?”, and to think that Jesus wouldn’t already know?

I think the many times that I’ve sinned, sometimes maybe I’m more willing to sin because I haven’t faced the consequences or may have forgotten what it means to go against Christ. Such times are filled with guilt, remorse, regret, where I can’t be myself, where I’m not at peace with myself, where I’m not free. I add on to my burdens and it weighs down on my shoulders to know that I’m such a person and, deep down in my heart, I know that I’ve turned away from the person that Christ desires for me to be. It affects me and, in turn, affects the people around me.

I wonder whether Judas, Peter or anyone who has turned their backs against Christ may and probably would have experienced these feelings as well. We are not able to change what we have done but what we are able to do is to repent and return to Christ. This is usually the season where the church is packed, suddenly there is no space to sit or even to stand on services like Good Friday or Easter Vigil.

The challenge is for us not to make it an adhoc experience but a call to conversion. A betrayal would occur because we choose one thing over another, in this case, Judas chose the thirty pieces of silver over Jesus. And like the many times that we sin, it’s because we also choose something over Jesus, whether pleasure, work, friends, parties, money or fame. This conversion requires us to realign our mission and purpose to make Jesus the centre of our lives, to allow all that we do and say to flow from and through Him.

Just as the betrayal, though led to the death of Christ, it also led to His resurrection and hence our salvation. The betrayal isn’t the end — we do not need to condemn ourselves or always live in shame, for Christ is ever ready to forgive us, as long as we first learn to forgive ourselves and others, to embrace all that we’ve done wrong to ensure we do not repeat our mistakes. There is hope and light at the end of the tunnel. We just need to look ahead instead of behind, we need to move towards the light instead of remaining in darkness, we need to reclaim our identity instead of allowing the world to decide for us. We need courage and faith instead of money and freedom. We need to live instead of survive.

We need Jesus. Amen.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Benjamin Mao)

Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray that we may have your strength to resist and fight temptations. Help us to always turn and look to you. Help us not be distracted by what is seemingly good and pleasurable. Help us to not just focus on the worldly but the eternal. Help us in our conversion, that our hearts may be like yours.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord, for this hope that you give, to know that there is salvation. Thank you for your love. Amen.

13 April, Saturday – All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing

Lent, , ,

13 April 2019

_______________________

Ezekiel 37:21-28 

The Lord says this: ‘I am going to take the sons of Israel from the nations where they have gone. I shall gather them together from everywhere and bring them home to their own soil. I shall make them into one nation in my own land and on the mountains of Israel, and one king is to be king of them all; they will no longer form two nations, nor be two separate kingdoms. They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and their filthy practices and all their sins. I shall rescue them from all the betrayals they have been guilty of; I shall cleanse them; they shall be my people and I will be their God. My servant David will reign over them, one shepherd for all; they will follow my observances, respect my laws and practise them. They will live in the land that I gave my servant Jacob, the land in which your ancestors lived. They will live in it, they, their children, their children’s children, for ever. David my servant is to be their prince for ever. I shall make a covenant of peace with them, an eternal covenant with them. I shall resettle them and increase them; I shall settle my sanctuary among them for ever. I shall make my home above them; I will be their God, they shall be my people. And the nations will learn that I am the Lord, the sanctifier of Israel, when my sanctuary is with them for ever.’

_______________________

John 11:45-56

Many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what Jesus did believed in him, but some of them went to tell the Pharisees what Jesus had done. Then the chief priests and Pharisees called a meeting. ‘Here is this man working all these signs’ they said ‘and what action are we taking? If we let him go on in this way everybody will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy the Holy Place and our nation.’ One of them, Caiaphas, the high priest that year, said, ‘You do not seem to have grasped the situation at all; you fail to see that it is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to be destroyed.’ He did not speak in his own person, it was as high priest that he made this prophecy that Jesus was to die for the nation – and not for the nation only, but to gather together in unity the scattered children of God. From that day they were determined to kill him. So Jesus no longer went about openly among the Jews, but left the district for a town called Ephraim, in the country bordering on the desert, and stayed there with his disciples.

The Jewish Passover drew near, and many of the country people who had gone up to Jerusalem to purify themselves looked out for Jesus, saying to one another as they stood about in the Temple, ‘What do you think? Will he come to the festival or not?’

______________________

What action are we taking?

There was an interesting story related by Scott Hahn at one of his talks, which I caught on youtube. It tells of how when at the Pearly Gates, Scott managed to get into heaven. However, a friend of his from high school, let’s call him John, did not. At the Pearly Gates, when St Peter showed John the path to the other door, John desperately pleaded for mercy, kicking and ranting. John caught sight of Scott at the other door and asked him how come he got into heaven. Scott replied because he had come to know and to love Jesus who redeemed and saved him. John then asked Scott why he did not tell him about this Jesus all these years that they had been friends. Scott’s reply was, “Well, I did not think it would have been ecumenically and politically correct, I did not want to impose myself on you, I felt I should mind my own business and you did not seem very open to it and I did not want to jeopardize our friendship or make you feel awkward.” And as the gates to the underworld slowly closed on John, he screamed out his last desperate curses at Scott, “Damn you Scott, damn you … you could at least have tried!”.

There is a saying — “All it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing” — a phrase which may be familiar to some of you. I especially find this quote very provoking yet very empowering. Many of us may have experienced the frustrations of encountering apathetic individuals who, when faced with situations where affirmative action was needed, simply chose to look away, turn a blind eye, shrug a shoulder. Perhaps some of these situations may be familiar to us …

…a ‘friend’ whom we have not seen for some time, suddenly connects and seeks financial help in order to provide for his critically ill child and we do all we can to pretend we never knew him;

…when we spot a beggar from a distance and we change the route we walk to avoid him;

…when the frequent company of buddies over a few pints makes for more exciting and extended evenings, knowing a spouse or elderly parent or a child sits alone and lonely at home, hoping for your return to talk to and spend time with them;

…when self-righteousness and arrogance come before desperate calls for help from the Church for parishioners to step forward to help in the many areas which sorely lacked laborers in His vineyard;

…when this world’s pleasures come before silent adoration before Almighty God;

… when we refuse to forgive a spouse, a friend, a child when we are hurt by them and continue to treat them coldly and harshly in retribution, often leaving behind scars that would never heal.

Let us reflect on how easy and insidious our own journey towards self-deception, self-righteousness and self-indulgence is. Selfishness, pride and apathy are the roots of the sins of omission that strangle our Christian virtue but the ones that they choke are often those around us whom we failed to love, to help and to serve. These situations are indeed very familiar to me. I think you know why.

Let me end by drawing on another story which brings us to the gates of hell. The parable of ‘The Rich Man and Lazarus’ in Luke 16:19-27 is a poignant reminder. Whilst the rich man was too busy maxing out on the indulgences of life, he was totally blind and indifferent to Lazarus who was at his gates, starving and with dogs licking his open sores. But Lazarus’ plight was not blind to God. God was the silent witness to all that was happening (and not happening). Precious in the eyes of God was the suffering of Lazarus. So much so that when Lazarus died, God sent angels to carry him tenderly into the bosom of Abraham. In life, Lazarus was a ‘nobody’, but he mattered to God. When the rich man died, he was just buried. No angels came for him. It would seem that the many sins of omission committed by the rich man against Lazarus made him the real nobody in the eyes of God. He remained a nameless, rich man who lived only for himself, died, was buried and was sent to Hell. God, it seemed, had long since turned his gaze away from him and focused his eyes on Lazarus instead, with a heart overflowing with mercy, compassion and love for him.

Unrepentance for grievous sins we commit will send us to hell one day; but so too will sins of not doing good when we could have and should have. Just ask the rich man, if you are ever unfortunate enough to go to the same place he ended up in.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Justus Teo)

Prayer: Father help us. We have sinned for all the chances we have missed, for all the graces we resist, for all the evil we have done and for all the good we have failed to do.

Thanksgiving: Father, for all the chances we have missed, for all the graces we resist, for all the evil we have done and for all the good we have failed to do, thank you for the mercy you give us through the Eucharist of your Son and through the sanctifying merits and graces of our Blessed Mother. For by these, you have redeemed us.

30 October, Monday – Giving Life

Ordinary Time, ,

30 October 2017

____________________

Romans 8:12-17

My brothers, there is no necessity for us to obey our unspiritual selves or to live unspiritual lives. If you do live in that way, you are doomed to die; but if by the Spirit you put an end to the misdeeds of the body you will live.

Everyone moved by the Spirit is a son of God. The spirit you received is not the spirit of slaves bringing fear into your lives again; it is the spirit of sons, and it makes us cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’ 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.

___________________

Luke 13:10-17

One sabbath day Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who for eighteen years had been possessed by a spirit that left her enfeebled; she was bent double and quite unable to stand upright. When Jesus saw her he called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are rid of your infirmity’ and he laid his hands on her. And at once she straightened up, and she glorified God.

But the synagogue official was indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, and he addressed the people present. ‘There are six days’ he said ‘when work is to be done. Come and be healed on one of those days and not on the sabbath.’ But the Lord answered him. ‘Hypocrites!’ he said ‘Is there one of you who does not untie his ox or his donkey from the manger on the sabbath and take it out for watering? And this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan has held bound these eighteen years – was it not right to untie her bonds on the sabbath day?’ When he said this, all his adversaries were covered with confusion, and all the people were overjoyed at all the wonders he worked.

____________________

“The Spirit Himself joins with our spirit to bear witness that we are children of God. … provided that we share his suffering, so as to share in his glory”

Building from the Gospel reading yesterday, today we read in the Gospel how Jesus was again put to the ‘test’ of healing a crippled woman on the Sabbath.

I think that many times in our lives, we are so caught up with what we need to do, what we need to plan for — the future, all the possible uncertainties and the need to have a solution/answer for everything — that we overlook why we do it in the first place. Example, could we remember clearly, when was the first time we fell in love with God, that we experienced Him tangibly? How then did respond to Him? Why are we not responding now?

For most of us, even myself, we have experienced many instances where we are simply caught up in a routine. So much so that we lose the passion we once had, the love of Christ that we once had, all being reduced to simply following instructions/rules and keeping to a structure or routine of work. We fail to serve with love. We fail to respond with love. We don’t feel loved or, quite simply, we haven’t opened up our hearts to receive His love.

What Christ is trying to tell us today is not that the commandments/observances of our faith is secondary to love, but rather, they both go hand in hand. In love, we should be able to carry out all those ‘requirements’ or ‘expectations’, which should eventually help us to love better. These too can help us to live our own lives to the fullest and in that, we realise we can also give life to others. While it may be a reverse for some, where in giving life to others, we find that we too are able to live ours to the fullest.

For Christ, it was not just about keeping to the observances of our faith, but really understanding our faith and who God is and who we are all created to be.

Maybe, instead of continuing to struggle with sin, we can also understand our sins and why we fall. Hence, it may be more possible to overcome them when temptations arise again in the future. Let it not be because it is what God says, but may it be because we have chosen to love the people around us, that we have chosen to love God and that we realise how sin prevents us from living our lives to the fullest.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Benjamin Mao)

Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray that we see our faith as more than a subject or a course but our very nature, your very nature. For our faith not to be reduced to a burden or load, but a blessing, and one that can allow us to live our lives to the full. We pray for perseverance, courage to overcome sin and to love all. Amen.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord, for your spirit, our constant empowerment, hope and refuge. Thank you for accepting us and loving us as we are. Thank you for your wisdom and grace.

9 October, Monday – On The Road That Leads Away From God

Memorials, Ordinary Time,

Oct 9 – Memorial for Sts. Denis, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs; Memorial for St. John Leonardi, Priest

Denis (d. 258) was a missionary to Paris, and its first bishop. His success roused the ire of local pagans, and he was imprisoned by the Roman governor. He was martyred in the persecutions of Valerius with Sts. Eleutherius and Rusticus. Legends have grown up around his torture and death including one that has his body carrying his severed head some distance from his execution site. St. Genevieve built a basilica over his grave. His feast was added to the Roman calendar in 1568 by Pope St. Pius V, though it has been celebrated since 800.

– Patron Saint Index

John Leonardi (1541–1609) was the founder of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca. He was born in Lucca, Tuscany in 1541 and ordained a priest in 1572. He first dedicated himself to the Christian formation of young people in his parish of Lucca. Then he founded the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine.

In 1574, he founded a community charged to deepen faith and devotion; this foundation occurred as part of the movement known as the Counter-Reformation. He worked with this community to spread the devotion to the Virgin Mary, to the Forty Hours and to frequent Communion.

This foundation received approval from Pope Paul V in 1614. He took his work to Rome where he became friends with St. Philip Neri who held him in high regard for his qualities of firmness and judgement and entrusted him to delicate works such as the reform of the Benedictan congregation of Montevergine.

He then founded with J. Vives the seminary of the Propagation of the Faith. He died in 1609, dedicating himself to his brothers suffering from the influenza epidemic that was raging in Rome at that time.

The final Rule of his community was published in 1851. Two houses of the Clerks of the Mother of God were opened when he died; three others were opened during the 17th century. He was beatified in 1861 and canonised in 1938.

– Patron Saint Index, Wikipedia

____________________

Jonah 1:1-2:1, 11

The word of the Lord was addressed to Jonah son of Amittai:

‘Up!’ he said ‘Go to Nineveh, the great city, and inform them that their wickedness has become known to me.’ Jonah decided to run away from the Lord, and to go to Tarshish. He went down to Joppa and found a ship bound for Tarshish; he paid his fare and went aboard, to go with them to Tarshish, to get away from the Lord. But the Lord unleashed a violent wind on the sea, and there was such a great storm at sea that the ship threatened to break up. The sailors took fright, and each of them called on his own god, and to lighten the ship they threw the cargo overboard. Jonah, however, had gone below and lain down in the hold and fallen fast asleep. The boatswain came upon him and said, ‘What do you mean by sleeping? Get up! Call on your god! Perhaps he will spare us a thought, and not leave us to die.’ Then they said to each other, ‘Come on, let us draw lots to find out who is responsible for bringing this evil on us.’ So they cast lots, and the lot fell to Jonah. Then they said to him, ‘Tell us, what is your business? Where do you come from? What is your country? What is your nationality?’ He replied, ‘I am a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.’ The sailors were seized with terror at this and said, ‘What have you done?’ They knew that he was trying to escape from the Lord, because he had told them so. They then said, ‘What are we to do with you, to make the sea grow calm for us?’ For the sea was growing rougher and rougher. He replied, ‘Take me and throw me into the sea, and then it will grow calm for you. For I can see it is my fault this violent storm has happened to you.’ The sailors rowed hard in an effort to reach the shore, but in vain, since the sea grew still rougher for them. They then called on the Lord and said, ‘O the Lord, do not let us perish for taking this man’s life; do not hold us guilty of innocent blood; for you, the Lord, have acted as you have thought right.’ And taking hold of Jonah they threw him into the sea; and the sea grew calm again. At this the men were seized with dread of the Lord; they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows.

The Lord had arranged that a great fish should be there to swallow Jonah; and Jonah remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. The Lord spoke to the fish, which then vomited Jonah on to the shore.

___________________

Luke 10:25-37

There was a lawyer who, to disconcert Jesus, stood up and said to him, ‘Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the Law? What do you read there?’ He replied, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.’ ‘You have answered right,’ said Jesus ‘do this and life is yours.’

But the man was anxious to justify himself and said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was once on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of brigands; they took all he had, beat him and then made off, leaving him half dead. Now a priest happened to be travelling down the same road, but when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. In the same way a Levite who came to the place saw him, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan traveller who came upon him was moved with compassion when he saw him. He went up and bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them. He then lifted him on to his own mount, carried him to the inn and looked after him. Next day, he took out two denarii and handed them to the innkeeper. “Look after him,” he said “and on my way back I will make good any extra expense you have.” Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands‘ hands?’ ‘The one who took pity on him’ he replied. Jesus said to him, ‘Go, and do the same yourself.’

____________________

But Jonah made ready to flee to Tarshish away from the Lord

The concept of sin causing us to run away from God has been evident since Adam and Eve hid from God in the Garden of Eden. In today’s readings, we see people from different walks of life running from God – Jonah fleeing to Tarshish to get away from the Lord; the Priest who crossed to the other side of the street rather than confront the man lying half-dead in front of him; the Levite who did the same; the symbol of the sinner, the man on the road who had left the safety of Jerusalem for the dysfunction of Jericho, only to be robbed by vagabonds.

So why do we turn from God? And how do we end up on the road that leads away from Him in the first place? At the heart of our flight is the knowledge that we have fallen short. It is easier to walk away than to confront our shortcomings. In Jonah’s case, it was because he did not want to see God’s mercy extend to the Assyrians. In the time of Jonah, Nineveh was the capital of Assyria. The Assyrians were a wicked, ruthless people, sworn enemies of the Jews of Israel. The idea of having to preach repentance to them was too much for Jonah. Jonah felt that the Assyrians were undeserving of God’s forgiveness. He didn’t care if he was being unforgiving, that his hard heartedness was causing him to sin. What about the Priest and the Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan? Why were they on the road leading away from God? The Priest and the Levite in the parable are symbolic of the religious institutions of that time, who Jesus felt, had been tarnished by sin. Religion is depicted in the Parable of the Samaritan, as having no power to save and redeem; rather Religion is on the same road leading away from God.

Who else is on the road leading away from God? We see Jesus, in the guise of the Good Samaritan, filled with compassion and love for the fallen sinner. The Son himself, is on the road leading away from God, having been sent to seek, to save and redeem all who have lost their way. No matter how far we have fallen from Him, God finds us and offers us the chance to restore ourselves through Jesus Christ. The great truth at the heart of the Bible is God’s faith in us, His love for us, despite ourselves. The prophet Jeremiah sums it up beautifully – “‘Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord’” (Jeremiah 23:24) Even on the road leading away from Him, there waits God, ready to meet us in our sin. What a picture of grace and forgiveness that is!

(Today’s Oxygen by Sharon Soo)

Prayer: We pray for those who are true life Samaritans, who seek, who heal, who redeem and restore all who have been stripped of their dignity through sin.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for all the times God has found us and saved us while we languished on the road, bowed down by sin.

5 December, Monday – Faith

Advent, , , ,

5 December 2016

__________________

Isaiah 35:1-10

Let the wilderness and the dry-lands exult,
let the wasteland rejoice and bloom,
let it bring forth flowers like the jonquil,
let it rejoice and sing for joy.

The glory of Lebanon is bestowed on it,
the splendour of Carmel and Sharon;
they shall see the glory of the Lord,
the splendour of our God.

Strengthen all weary hands,
steady all trembling knees
and say to all faint hearts,
‘Courage! Do not be afraid.

‘Look, your God is coming,
vengeance is coming,
the retribution of God;
he is coming to save you.’

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
the ears of the deaf unsealed,
then the lame shall leap like a deer
and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy;

for water gushes in the desert,
streams in the wasteland,
the scorched earth becomes a lake,
the parched land springs of water.

The lairs where the jackals used to live
become thickets of reed and papyrus…

And through it will run a highway undefiled
which shall be called the Sacred Way;
the unclean may not travel by it,
nor fools stray along it.

No lion will be there
nor any fierce beast roam about it,
but the redeemed will walk there,
for those the Lord has ransomed shall return.

They will come to Zion shouting for joy,
everlasting joy on their faces;
joy and gladness will go with them
and sorrow and lament be ended.

_______________

Luke 5:17-26

Jesus was teaching one day, and among the audience there were Pharisees and doctors of the Law who had come from every village in Galilee, from Judaea and from Jerusalem. And the Power of the Lord was behind his works of healing. Then some men appeared, carrying on a bed a paralysed man whom they were trying to bring in and lay down in front of him. But as the crowd made it impossible to find a way of getting him in, they went up on to the flat roof and lowered him and his stretcher down through the tiles into the middle of the gathering, in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith he said, ‘My friend, your sins are forgiven you.’ The scribes and the Pharisees began to think this over. ‘Who is this man talking blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?’ But Jesus, aware of their thoughts, made them this reply, ‘What are these thoughts you have in your hearts? Which of these is easier: to say, “Your sins are forgiven you” or to say, “Get up and walk”? But to prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,’ – he said to the paralysed man – ‘I order you: get up, and pick up your stretcher and go home.’ And immediately before their very eyes he got up, picked up what he had been lying on and went home praising God.

They were all astounded and praised God, and were filled with awe, saying, ‘We have seen strange things today.’

_______________

“Your sins are forgiven you.”

In today’s Gospel, we see the great faith towards the power of Christ, where it almost seems like no obstacle is too hard for the men to overcome, as long as they are able to bring the paralysed man to Christ. Did those men actually consider, what if the paralysed man couldn’t be healed? What if Jesus decided not to heal? What if, after everything, nothing could actually be done?

I’m sure these questions could have possibly been in the minds of those men, and many times in ours too. What if life after death isn’t as what we expect? What if we don’t make it to heaven? What if we’ve invested all our time and money in this faith but there are no returns? Are all these worth it?

Christ being aware, asks us, “Which of these is easier: to say, “Your sins are forgiven you” or to say “Get up and walk”? What are we actually living for? What actually matters?

The men had faith not because of what Jesus was going to do, but because of what He has done. We should not live our lives today, in order that God will love us more or for us to go to heaven, but that all our Father has, is already ours. Are we overly focused on the pleasures of the world that we want our share of the property because we feel we know we can do better with our lives, or are we able to trust in our Father’s plan?

As in the first reading and the psalms, “he is coming to save you”, “Look, our God is coming to save us”. God has already made a gift of Himself to us through Jesus Christ but still empowers us with the Holy Spirit and assures us of His second coming, where we will all be one and united in Him. The only thing separating us from God is not our disabilities, weaknesses, lack of financial, intellectual, emotional or pastoral capacity but it is sin. Sin is hence the opposite of faith, where we doubt and question.

Let us prepare ourselves for His coming by removing sin from our lives, in order that we may fully encounter God in a deeper way. To not focus solely on the gifts/miracles but on the giver, our saviour. Amen

(Today’s OXYGEN by Benjamin Mao)

Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray that our faith will continue to grow stronger day by day, in that we will be able to overcome the challenges and struggles that life throws at us. To focus on what is truly important — love, peace, joy and hope — not just for ourselves, but to share with all.

Thanksgiving: Thank you Lord for your mercy, kindness and compassion.

20 April, Wednesday – Walking the Talk

Easter, , , ,

20 April

_____________________

Acts 12:24-13:5

The word of God continued to spread and to gain followers. Barnabas and Saul completed their task and came back from Jerusalem, bringing John Mark with them.

In the church at Antioch the following were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. One day while they were offering worship to the Lord and keeping a fast, the Holy Spirit said, ‘I want Barnabas and Saul set apart for the work to which I have called them.’ So it was that after fasting and prayer they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

So these two, sent on their mission by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. They landed at Salamis and proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews; John acted as their assistant.

_____________________

John 12:44-50

Jesus declared publicly:

‘Whoever believes in me
believes not in me
but in the one who sent me,
and whoever sees me,
sees the one who sent me.
I, the light, have come into the world,
so that whoever believes in me
need not stay in the dark any more.
If anyone hears my words and does not keep them faithfully,
it is not I who shall condemn him,
since I have come not to condemn the world,
but to save the world.
He who rejects me and refuses my words has his judge already:
the word itself that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day.
For what I have spoken does not come from myself;
no, what I was to say,
what I had to speak,
was commanded by the Father who sent me,
and I know that his commands mean eternal life.
And therefore what the Father has told me
is what I speak.’

_____________________

“…what I have spoken does not come from myself”

When I first started working some 25 years ago, there were the “5Cs” that was used to describe the list of material items “desired” by many, including: Cash, Credit Card, Condominium, Car and Country Club. I would like to focus on the last item – the Country Club.

The Country Club was seen as a status symbol, namely because membership is expensive and is exclusive. Being part of a club allowed one to use its facilities such as the restaurants, pools, gyms, tennis courts, etc. Members are simply entitled to use these for a club fee!

In today’s gospel, Jesus does warn us against having a “country-club” mentality. One does not automatically earn the right to enter heaven just because one professed to believe in Jesus. Instead, in addition to hearing His words, one had to “keep them faithfully”. One had to live the life of a Christian and not just be heard to speak like one.

We are also reminded of the intimacy between God the Father and Jesus; that the only way to the Father was through His son Jesus. In a fallen world (through Adam), we are reminded that our relationship with the Father can be made perfect through His Son, Jesus. We gain eternal life through Jesus!

(Today’s Oxygen by Paul Wee)

Prayer – Father God, we pray that we will remember that we should not just “talk the talk”, but instead “walk the talk”. We pray that we will grow in intimacy with You as we walk daily towards You.

Thanksgiving – We are grateful that You have sent Your Son Jesus to bring us back to You. We thank you for loving us despite our sinful nature. Thanks you for all that You teach us through your Jesus and for showing us how to rebuild our broken relationship with You Father.