26-Sep-2014 Dear Friend, Whenever we don't do thethings we are supposed to do we always have our excuses to justify our actions,to support our point of view, to hold on to whatever we are busy with andresist change. While these excuses may get us out of tight situations they canalso hinder us from growing and becoming the people we are called to be. In ourfaith commitment, while we know that God is infinitely patient, we cannot makeexcuses for our conversion; we have to respond to His call or be left behind.Have a joy-filled weekend! -Fr. Jude Sunday Ref: 28th Sun. “Youare invited, so you are worthy! Come, celebrate!” 12-Oct-2014Readings: Isaiah 25: 6-10; Phillip. 4: 12-14, 19-20; Mt. 22: 1-14; In the first reading,Isaiah proclaims the goodness of God, who is preparing a banquet for all hispeople on the holy mountain. The banquet symbolizes God's closeness, hisconcern and the celebration of final victory over sin, suffering and death.This feast is not exclusively for the Israelites but for all people. Goddesires to invite all people to his kingdom with no one excluded. The Lordcomes to bring consolation to those who are sorrowing, to bring solace to thosewho are hurting and to give new sight to those blinded by the disasters thatafflict them. The call of the Christian is the call to hope in the Lord, who isconcerned about everything that affects us, and will lead us to new joy andhope that comes from being with the Lord. WipingAway TearsThevenerable servant of God, Canon Cotolengo, when but a boy of five years, wasmeasuring with a cord one room after another. His mother rather confused, askedhim what he was trying to do. “Dear mother,” was the reply, “I want to see howmany beds can be placed in this house; when I grow up I should like to fill thewhole house with sick people.” A tear of emotion glistened in his mother’seyes. In 1832 he founded in Turin the ‘Little Asylum of Divine Providence’. Andtoday it is world famous. It shelters 5000 men and embraces within itsprecincts a church, a number of houses, terraces and courtyards. – God invitesus to get caught up with his desire for humanity and work with him to wipe awaytears from cheeks and to take away people’s shame. Like Canon Cotolengo, thereare some who respond to God’s call with passion and reach out to others torealize God’s vision for the human race.VimaDasan in ‘His Word Lives’ The Gospel parable tellsus that a king desires to celebrate the marriage feast for his son and so hesends out his messengers to summon all the guests. Those invited refuse tocome, thus insulting the king. The king is still patient with the guests andsends a second reminder but again those invited scorn the invitation and theymaltreat and kill the servants, which incenses the king who destroys them.Since the banquet is all set, the king now sends his messengers to inviteanyone whom they can find. And the servants went out into the streets andgathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the banquet hall was filledwith guests. What is the point the Evangelist is trying to make through thisparable? Firstly salvation is centered in Christ; it is always God who takesthe initiative for salvation. We cannot do anything to start the process, faithis always a gift and it is through our faith that we are invited, as it were,to a royal banquet. If a VIP invited us to a very special occasion would wereject the invitation? Would we not think we were privileged ones to beinvited? Yet, when it is Jesus who invites us, we are indifferent to His call,and busy ourselves with other matters which we believe are more important.Secondly, the parable reminds us of the patience of God, who does not give upon us. The servants in the parable stand not only for the prophets but also forthe apostles and special messengers whom God sends into our lives to remind usof his call. God can call us through His word, through prayer, he can call usthrough the preaching, teaching and witnessing. He can call us through theleast expected of people. What is important is to heed his call when it comesand not to make excuses. He sent his only son and even when he was rejected and killed Goddid not abandon His people. God’s response to man’s infidelity and ingratitudeis unconditional love! How can I live withoutmy excuses?A middle-aged woman wentto a distant monastery for her first weekend retreat in many years. When shearrived at the guest house, one of the monks approached her and surprised herwith a brusque question. "Why not?" "That was the first thing hesaid," she relates. "He had never seen me before. I hadn't even saida word. “Why not?” he questioned. I knew he had me. After all he was theretreat master." I brought up excuses: "It was a long trip.... I'mtired... the kids... the people I work with... not enough time... I guess it'smy temperament." The retreat master took a long sword off the wall andgave it to the woman. "Here, with this sword, you can cut through anybarriers you have." She took it and slipped away without saying a word.Back in her room, alone, she sat down and kept looking at the sword. She knewthat what he said was true. But the next day she returned the sword. Shemuttered, "How can I live without my excuses?"Brian Cavanaugh in‘Tales of a Magic Monastery’ Tea Time With GodAt the turn of thecentury, a man wrote in his diary the story of a young newsboy he met in thestreet near his home in London. It was well known in the neighbourhood that theboy was an orphan. His father had abandoned the family when the boy was a baby,and his mother had died shortly after he began selling newspapers. All attemptsto place the boy either in an institution or foster home were thwarted, becausethe boy refused each offer of help and ran away when attempts were made toconfine him. "I can take care o' myself just fine, thank ye!" hewould say kindly to the old ladies, who questioned whether he had his porridgethat day. Indeed he never looked hungry and his persistence in selling papers,load after load, gave the impression he spoke the truth. But the streets are alonely place for a child to live, and the man's diary reflects a conversationhe had with the child about his living arrangements. As he stopped to buy hispaper one day, the man bought a little extra time by fishing around in hispocket for coins and asked the boy where he lived. He replied that he lived inan impoverished district of the city near the river bank. This was something ofa surprise to the man. With more interest, he inquired, "Well, who liveswith you?" The boy answered. "Only Jim. Jim is crippled and can't dono work. He's my pal." Now clearly astounded that the child appeared to besupporting not only himself but also someone who was unable to contribute anyincome, the man noted, "You'd be better off without Jim, wouldn't you? Theanswer came with not a little scorn - a sermon in a nutshell: "No sir, Icouldn't spare Jim. I wouldn't have nobody to go home to. And say, Mister, Iwouldn't want to live and work with nobody to divide with, would you?"Alice Grey in ‘Storiesfrom a Kindred Heart’ Excuses,excuses, excuses!Oncethere was a tailor who mended the clothes of everybody in town, yet he himselfwent about with his coat in tatters. And to the embarrassment of everybody heappeared like that in Church on Sundays. One Sunday a friend said to him, “It’sa disgrace that you, a respectable tailor, should go around in a tattered coat.Shame on you for coming here dressed like that.” “But what can I do? I’m a poorman and I have to work all week to make a living.” the tailor replied. “Wheream I going to find the time to mend my own clothes?” “Look,” said the friend.“Here’s £20. Think of me as one of your customers. I’m paying you to mend yourown coat. “I’ll agree to that,” cried the tailor as he took the money. However,when he came to Church the following Sunday the friend noticed that once againhe was dressed in his old tattered coat. Extremely annoyed, the friend said tohim, “Now there is no excuse for this kind of behaviour. Didn’t I give you £20last Sunday to mend your coat? Yet I can see that you never even touched it.”“What can I do?” said the tailor apologetically. “When I went home last Sundayand examined my coat, I realized that I’d be losing money on the job if I didit for £20!” A man like that will always find excuses! Film–‘Chocolat’Thismovie takes place in a small town in France in 1959. The town has alwaysexpressed their community life using the word “tranquilite” (tranquility). Youknew what was expected of you, you knew what your place was. And if youhappened to forget, someone would remind you. They trusted the wisdom of agespast, lived with the values of tradition, family, and morality. Into this towncomes Vianne. She does not go to church, has a daughter without a fatherpresent, and has the gall to open a Chocolaterie right in the middle of Lent!As she opens and conducts her business, it becomes clear that she is anythingbut traditional. Vianne does nothing by the book. She does nothing out ofobligation, but everything out of love. It is her encouragement that bringsJosephine out of her abusive marriage. It is her encouragement that bringsArmande together with her grandson. It is her encouragement that brings a widowof 30-some-years out of mourning and into a new relationship. The town istransformed by her Chocolaterie and her grace!CarlaThompson Powell WrongChoices -Opportunities Lost!In1923 a meeting took place in Chicago. Attending it were the presidents of thelargest steel company, the largest gas company, the New York Stock Exchange,the Bank of International Settlements, the greatest wheat speculator, thegreatest bear on Wall Street, the head of the world’s greatest monopoly, and amember of President Harding’s cabinet. Twenty-five years later the president ofthe steel company, Charles Schwab, had died bankrupt; the president of theutility, Samuel Insull, had died bankrupt; the president of the gas company,Howard Hobson, had gone insane; the president of the Stock Exchange, RichardWhitney, had just been released from prison; the bank president, Leon Fraser,had died a suicide; the wheat speculator, Arthur Cutten, had died bankrupt; thebear Jesse Livermore, had died a suicide; the monopoly head, Ivan Kruegar, haddied a suicide; the member of the cabinet, Albert Fall, had just been pardonedfrom prison to die at home. -What lesson can we draw from this true story? Whyis this such a hard lesson to grasp? Perhaps everyone of these wealthy men hadan opportunity to make the right choice and accept God’s invitation butpreferred to choose life that ended in emptiness and death.MarkLink in ‘Decision’ AcceptingHis Invitation –Doing His WillAwoman was touring a piano factory. First the guide showed her a large warehousewhere workers were shaping wood. Next, the guide took the woman into a roomwhere workers were building frames. Then, the guide took the visitor into aroom where people, wearing face masks, were carefully sanding and varnishingthe piano frames. Next, the woman visited a room where a few skilledtechnicians were assembling metal strings and ivory keys into the frames.Finally, the guide led the woman into a showroom, where a musician was seatedat a piano playing incredibly beautiful music. Afterwards the woman thought toherself: The difference between what I saw in the warehouse room and theshowroom is the difference between an acorn and a tree. It’s the differencebetween doing my thing and letting God do what he wants to me. The differencebetween what I am now and what God intends that I become.MarkLink in ‘Challenge’ Maywe respond with a resounding ‘YES’ to God’s invitation to us always! Fr. Jude botelhobotelhoj...@gmail.com Fr. Jude Botelho botelhoj...@gmail.com PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections. These reflections are also available on my Web site www.NetForLife.net Thank you.
[Goanet] [JudeSundayReflections] 28th Sunday of the Year
Jude Botelho judesundayreflecti...@yahoo.co.in [JudeSundayReflections] Mon, 06 Oct 2014 00:38:32 -0700
