10-Sept-2018 Dear Friend, Someone has said, “In life it is not what we take up, but what we give up, that makes us rich.” We can go through life trying to get as much as possible, or we can take every opportunity to give as much as we can. The spirit of self-denial and self-sacrifice marks the life truly great. What we believe in and the values that we profess are tested and revealed only through our actions. Words are empty unless we back them with deeds! Let’s have a grace-filled weekend asking for the strength to reveal our faith in action! -Fr. Jude Sun. Refl. 24th Sun. “Letting God be the God of my life, no matter the cost! 16-Sept- 2018Isaiah 50: 5-9; James 2: 14-18; Mark 8: 27-35;
In the first reading Isaiah puts before us the picture of the suffering servant; that just man who is made to suffer though innocent. In the face of suffering he still believes in God. Isaiah puts before us the dilemma that often we are faced with: To live a life of faith accepting the price or to live a worldly life having a good time. We often ask: why do bad things happen to good people? Why does not God make life easy for them? We can accept the fact that a wrong doer should be punished, but that the innocent should suffer seems alien to our way of thinking. Only the person who puts his total faith in God is certain that God will vindicate him. Readiness to face deathWhen the Birkenhead sank, Alexander Russell, a young officer aged seventeen, was ordered to command one of the boats which carried women and children. As they were pushing off, a sailor who was drowning clasped the side of the boat, but there was no room for even one more. A woman on the boat cried: “Save him! He is my husband.” Russell rose, jumped clear of the boat, and amidst a chorus of “God bless you!” he sank in the water, which was full of sharks and was seen no more, the sailor being pulled in to take his place.Anthony Castle in ‘More Quotes and Anecdotes’ In the Gospel Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” Why did Jesus ask the question? From his life we see that Jesus was never interested in what people thought about him, nor swayed by public opinion. What Jesus is concerned about is what the disciples believe him to be. Do they know him? Peter on behalf of the disciples volunteers the answer: “You are the Christ!” This Peter knows not because of his intelligence but because it is revealed to him. Faith does not come from reasoning; it is a gift of God given freely to those whom God chooses to reveal himself. Immediately after Peter acknowledges that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, Jesus speaks of his passion and death. Jesus, as it were, is completing the picture of who He is. Yes, He is the Christ, but He is also the servant of Yahweh. He has come to do the will of the Father and if it is His Father’s will that he should suffer and die, so be it! Jesus rebukes Peter, “Get thee behind me, Satan! Because the way you think is not God’s way but man’s.” This passage reveals to us that though Peter had received the gift of faith to acknowledge Jesus as God, he did not fully understand its implications nor was he ready to accept the consequences of his faith commitment. To let God be GOD is to let Him be what he wants, and do what he wants with my life. Only when we are touched by God’s grace can we say He is my Lord and my God! ‘Losing my life’ to follow Him A twenty-seven year old woman recently made a serious life altering decision. Though she had been raised by nominal Catholic parents and rarely went to church while in high school, at a State university she started attending Sunday mass attracted by the dynamic pastoral team she met there, a priest, sister and lay minister. She loved the music and the preaching touched her. In her sophomore year she went with the pastoral team and 30 other students on a weekend retreat. That retreat was a turning point and it became the core experience out of which some important future decisions were made. After her graduation she got a job in a city far from home. First thing she did was to seek out a local church. Soon she became a volunteer religion teacher for the 4th Grade. The more she taught, the more she learned and the deeper became her commitment to faith and the parish community. She had been dating a young man for about a year and though he had many features she admired, she realized his ambitions were contrary to her values and he did not share her belief in Jesus and her faith commitment. She decided to end the relationship; she said she wanted more in a potential life partner. She was planning this Sunday's religion class and the Gospel was to be the focus of her class. "I see this Gospel as an expression of my life. I have had to make a very painful decision. I had to deny myself a possible husband and a comfortable life. In some ways, I am 'losing my life' to follow Christ. But I really believe I will gain in the long run, not just in the after-life but in this life as well.” Jude Siciliano in ‘First Impressions’ Double LivesG. K. Chesterton has a story about a popular philanthropist. The main reason for his popularity was his unfailing good humor. No one bothered to ask how he managed to be always happy. They assumed he was born an optimist. But then one day he was found dead in mysterious circumstances. Foul play was immediately suspected. However, the case completely baffled the police. Eventually it was Chesterton’s unlikely detective, Fr Browne, who solved the case. His verdict – the man committed suicide. At first the people refused to accept Fr Browne’s verdict. The man who made others laugh was in fact a deeply depressed man. The man had two lives. One was open, seen and known by all, the other, secret and known only to himself. In public he was the man who smiled at everyone. But in private he was wounded and desperate. He felt he had to live up to people’s expectations in return for their attention and esteem. He was never able to be himself. Finally, he realized that his whole life was based on a lie. The strain of trying to maintain the public image became so great that he could no longer cope with it. So he committed suicide.Flor McCarthy in ‘Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies’ What do we believe we are? What will we be?There were three young trees growing together in the forest. They were young, healthy, and ambitious. They compared their dreams. One wanted to be part of the structure of a castle or a palace, so it would be a spectator in the lives of the high and the mighty of society. The second wanted to end up as the mast in one of the tall ships, sailing around the world with a great sense of adventure. The third hoped to end up as part of some public monument, where the public would stop, admire, and take photographs. Years passed by, and all three were cut down. The first was chopped up, and parts of it were put together to form a manger for a stable in Bethlehem. The second was cut down, and the trunk was scooped out to form a boat, which was launched on the Sea of Galilee. The third was cut into sections, two of which were put together, to form a cross on Calvary. Each had a unique and special part to play in the one great story of redemption.Jack McArdle in ‘And that’s the Gospel truth!’ “Send me Lord”…Mrs. O’ Reilly received the news that one of her neighbors was seriously ill. She said to the person who gave her the news, ‘Tell her that I’ll remember her in my prayers, and that I hope she’ll soon be feeling better.’ And she was as good as she promised. She prayed very sincerely and fervently for her neighbor. She said to God, ‘Lord, I want to commend my neighbor to you. She’s very seriously ill. She needs a lot of help, a lot of support.’ When she finished her prayers, she felt better. And yet, something was bothering her. She sat down to think about it. Then she fell into a dream-like state in which she heard God saying to her, ‘I can see that you’re very concerned about your neighbor.’ ‘Yes, Lord, I really am,’ she replied with no little pride. ‘And I understand that your neighbor is in great need of help,’ said God. ‘So I’ve been told,’ said Mrs. O’Reilly. ‘You know, what she most needs is someone to spend a little time with her,’ said the Lord. ‘You’re absolutely right Lord. I was thinking the same myself,’ Mrs. O’Reilly answered. ‘Now when you asked me to help her, you weren’t expecting me to come down from heaven to visit her, were you?’ ‘No, Lord, I wouldn’t expect you to do that. Nor would my neighbor expect it either. In fact, I think the shock of it might kill her.’ ‘But she does need someone to call on her?’ ‘She does, Lord.’ ‘Who can I send?’ After a long pause, Mrs. O’Reilly said, ‘Send me, Lord.’ When she woke up from her dream, she knew exactly what she had to do. Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sundays and Holy Day Liturgies’ May our deeds, not our empty words, reveal that we are followers of the Master! 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.
