Wednesday, August 16, 2023 - Homily

 

Wednesday, August 16, 2023 - There is no such thing as “individual sin”. All sin is both individual and communitarian.

To read the texts click on the texts: Deut 34:1-12; Mt 18:15-20

Though Matthew means that the one who sins against another is a member of the Church, he also means that that person is a brother or sister. One needs to avoid scandal or embarrassment as far as possible and so the matter must first be sought to be settled between the offended and the offending party with the offended taking the initiative. If this does not work, then two or three must be taken to the offending party to work for the reconciliation. If this too does not work, then the local church will have to intervene to set things right. If the offending party will not listen even to the members of the Church who might be the leaders or some members of the congregation, then the person concerned must be expelled. Though this may sound harsh and does not seem to fit in with Jesus’ command to forgive innumerable times (18,22), the point seems to be that it is possible that at times the best way to make a person see sense is to resort to harsh measures. Also, the good of the entire community is in view.

Jesus himself will ratify the decision of the community and assures them of his presence when they are gathered together in his name. He also gives them an assurance of their prayers being answered when there is a unity of minds and hearts in the community.

There are some people who are incorrigible. Even with these, however, every attempt must be made to win them over and regard them as part of the community. After everything possible has been done and they still refuse, then they can be left to their own designs.

Tuesday, August 15, 2023 - The Assumption of Mary and Independence day

 

Tuesday, August 15, 2022 - The Assumption of Mary into heaven and Independence Day

To read the texts click on the texts: Rev11:19; 12:1-6,10; 1 Cor15:20-26; Lk1:39-56

Today we celebrate two significant and related events. These are The Assumption of our Blessed Mother and Independence Day. Both are celebrated on the same date: August 15.

The reason why these events are related is because they are both about Freedom. Independence is celebrated as freedom from foreign rule and domination to self-rule and governance and the Assumption may be seen as a freedom from this limited and incomplete life to the bliss of eternal and perpetual life.

The verses which make up the Gospel text of today are commonly known as “The Magnificat” or Mary’s hymn of praise. It seems to have been modelled on the prayer of Samuel’s mother, Hannah, in 1 Sam 2:1-10 and contains many Old Testament concepts and phrases. It communicates a picture of Mary as someone quite steeped in scripture. It reveals God primarily as a God of the poor. God is the one who will vindicate the poor by removing the rich and mighty from their positions and raising the lowly.

The hymn may be seen to be divided into four parts. The first part consists of praise to God for what he has done in and for Mary; the second part speaks of God’s power, holiness and mercy; the third part shows God acting as a Sovereign in reversing social conditions in favor of the poor and downtrodden; and the fourth and final part recalls God’s mercy and promises to Israel.

The hymn speaks of the effects of the Lord’s coming for all of God’s people. It begins on a note of salvation as Mary acknowledges her dependence on God. It was the grace of God that sustained and brought her to the position in which she finds herself. She has not achieved anything on her own, it is all a gift of God and thus, Mary acknowledges her humble state, referring to herself as God’s servant. She is to be called “blessed’ because God, in his mercy and goodness, had raised her to this level.

God has shown this mercy and goodness to the poor by showing the strength of his arm, by scattering the proud, and deposing the powerful. The poor, on the other hand, have been raised, and the hungry have been filled. God remembers not only those of old but also the present generation. He is a God not only of the past, but also a God of the present, the now.

The stress on God as a God primarily of the poor stands out in Mary’s hymn of praise. In a world where the rich seem to be getting richer and the poor, poorer, one wonders whether the Magnificat is a hymn that can make sense to the poor, to those of low degree. Yet, it is important to remember that God’s ways are not our ways and so, the poor must, in confidence, sing this song as their song. The confidence with which Mary sings this song runs through the entire hymn. She uses past tense to denote God’s future actions, thus expressing that God will indeed accomplish his will, and the poor will be vindicated. What is important for the poor to realize is that they, like Mary, need to continue to open themselves to all that God wants to do in them. They need to continue to acknowledge their dependence on God by doing all that is required of them and then, leaving the rest in his capable and strong hands.

Even as we do celebrate these events, we need to ask ourselves serious questions both as Indians and Christians. Can we be really free when caste distinctions result in murder and rape? Can we be really free when freedom to speak the truth is met with physical violence and threat to life?  Can we be free when the incidence of female foeticide is so high in our country and where in many places the girl child is seen as a liability and burden rather than a blessing? Can we be really free when we are so intent on destroying our natural resources for selfish ends and then have to wonder whether we will have enough rain to see us through the year? Can we call ourselves Christians when we will not do anything about these atrocities and continue with our lives as if it does not concern us?

Are we really free? Are we truly Christian?

Let the celebrations of Independence Day and the Assumption of our Blessed Mother be wake-up calls for us to rouse ourselves from our slumber and do something tangible to right the wrongs.

Monday, August 14, 2023 - Homily

 

Monday, August 14, 2023 - Is your “freedom” an end in itself? Does it sometimes result in the “bondage” of others?

To read the texts click on the texts:Deut 10:12-22; Mt 17:22-27

The text of today contains the second Passion and Resurrection Prediction in the Gospel of Matthew. In this one, however, it is clearer that God will deliver up the Son of Man., but it is human hands into which he will be delivered. God will also vindicate Son of Man. Since Matthew tries to avoid scenes in Mark, which speak of the disciples’ inability to understand, here too, the response of the disciples is to be “greatly distressed”.

The pericope about the “Temple Tax” (17:24-27), which follows, is exclusive to Matthew. The point being made is about freedom and concern for others. Just as the Son of Man gives his life for others and freely, so too the members of his community live lives of freedom but concern for others and not wanting to be a cause for their stumbling will result in a foregoing of that freedom.

There are times when we do things more to avoid scandal than because they are important and need to be done. 

Sunday, August 13, 2023 - Homily

 

Sunday, August 13, 2023 - Nineteenth Sunday of the Year - He is with us in the boat

To read the texts click on the texts: 1 Kgs. 19:9a, 11-13a; Rom 9:1-5; Mt 14:22-33

Visitors to the Holy Land like to take a boat ride across the Sea of Galilee, the sea on which Jesus walked. A certain tourist wanted such a ride and the boatman told him the fare was 100 dollars. “One hundred dollars!” exclaimed the tourist, “No wonder Jesus walked!”

As in both Mark and John, the miracle of Jesus walking on the water occurs in Matthew immediately after the feeding of the five thousand. The effect of these successive narratives is powerful. They portray Jesus as the one who can provide for the needs of all peoples and one who has control over the elements of nature and even over all demons and evil itself.

There are some who interpret the walking on the water to mean walking by the water. To do so would be to miss the point that Matthew wants to make. Matthew does not intend to portray Jesus as defying the law of gravity. By showing Jesus walking on the water, he reveals a Jesus who has power over the sea: he walks upon the deep as God alone does, and the sea respects his wishes. If the Israelites regarded the sea as the domain of evil powers, then the terrifying experience of a storm at sea in the dead of  night becomes even more symbolic of the human experience of evil. The fear of the disciples is like the fear of all who are threatened by insecurity in the face of the unknown. But when Jesus appears to those in extreme need and in the darkest part of the night, it is as one who has sovereign power, not only over the forces of nature but over evil itself. Thus the words of Jesus, “Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid” are not empty or meaningless. Fear is unwarranted where Jesus is present. The very presence of Jesus banishes all fear. In Jesus, the great “I AM” has come to dwell with us and for us, whether we are tossed about on the seas or hungry on the hillside, whether we are in the boat or out of the boat. The point is not to emphasize God’s supernatural powers but to show that his blessed presence gives us calm in the midst of our stormy world. It is to help us realize that we too might face the storms of life with God’s help.

In fact, like Peter, when we recognize God present in our world, we are commanded to go out into the water, knowing that the storms of this life cannot hurt us, even when we are outside of the safety and comfort of the Church. Peter’s lack of faith is caused by a failure of concentration: he is distracted by the fierce wind. He removes his gaze from Jesus. His mind becomes more affected by the circumstances than by faith in the power of Jesus, and once again he is filled with fear. This is why he begins to sink and cries out in desperation: ”Lord, save me.” Peter realizes that in the moment of most dire human need, there is but one cry, just as there is but one source of salvation.

We too will surely falter. We too will feel that we are drowning in the depths of our world’s darkness. We too will surely feel that the chaotic waters of life are too treacherous for our tentative footsteps. We too will sink. That is real. Only fools pretend otherwise.

Then we will see, with Peter that Jesus’ hand reaches out to us. We discover, at times to our relief and at times to our chagrin that we are not the heroes of this story. We also discover that our doubts and fears, while the cause for a rebuke from our Lord, do not take us outside of his care and concern. This is important. For even when we are back inside the boat of the Church, when the waters about us appear to be calm, we find that we are still in the midst of a storm. We have to cast aside any fear that there might be limits to the abundance of God’s grace, and that with his grace given freely we cannot achieve the impossible, or that we can’t change the world. Who would have though it possible to walk on water, or to discern the voice of God as Elijah does? He does so – not in the strong wind or earthquake or raging fire – but in “a sound of sheer silence”. Faith is not merely being able to walk on the water but daring to believe in spite of everything that God is with us in the boat, this community of faith as it makes its way through the storm, battered by the waves.

The Jesus who multiplied the loaves and fish and who appeared to the disciples walking on the water and who saved Peter from sinking, this same Jesus is the Lord of the Church. He has brought salvation and stands similarly prepared to save his people, even when they may doubt, from the evils that beset them. This Jesus who rules over nature and even the realm of evil is rightly worshipped as “truly the Son of God.”

Saturday, August 12, 2023 - Homily

 

Saturday, August 12, 2023 - On a scale of 1 to 10 where would you mark your faith? Why?

To read the texts click on the texts: Deut 6:4-13; Mt 17:14-20

This miracle story of the healing of an epileptic boy is found also in Mark (9,14-29), but Matthew has shortened it considerably by omitting many of the details found in Mark. This also results in a change in the focus of the story. In Matthew, the exorcism proper is narrated so briefly that it is clear that the exorcism is subordinated to the pronouncement on faith. The inability of the disciples to exorcise is because of their little faith. The father of the boy addresses Jesus as “Lord” which is an indication that he is a believer and thus Matthew omits the dialogue between the father and Jesus in Mark 9,21-24, where the father expresses doubt in Jesus’ ability to cure his child.

Each of us has been given the power to heal and make whole. We can do this by a kind word or a loving gesture. However, on the one hand we are not convinced that we possess this power and so are loathe to use it, and on the other hand we think that a miracle is only something extra-ordinary or stupendous, and so we are not capable of it.