Monday, May 31, 2021
Bible Reflections I 01.06.2021 I FEAST OF ST. JUSTIN
Ordinary Time - Week 9
Readings: I - Tobit 2:9-14
II - Mk. 12:13-17
THE QUESTION ABOUT PAYING TAXES
In today’s Gospel some Pharisees and Herodians precisely try to trap Jesus asking, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor or not?” If he says ‘yes’ he would be against the religion and if ‘no’ he would be against the Romans and their nation. In either cases he would be a traitor. The simple fact is that they wanted to get rid of Jesus though they were convinced that He was sincere, impartial and showed difference to no one. They wanted to get rid of Jesus precisely because He was not fitting into the frame that they had for nation, religion and people.
It so happens in our lives too that we discriminate and estrange people when they don’t fit into our mental frame that is set already. In our pride, arrogance, anger, hatred and jealousy we suppress, neglect or evade others. We wish to get rid of those people no matter how good they are by false branding, negative comments, misrepresentation, untrue accusations, delusive remarks and fabricated gossips. May our emotions towards Jesus, Pharisees and Herodians in this passage help us to examine and align our lives in the path of truth and transformation.
Sunday, May 30, 2021
VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY English Bible Reflections I 31.05.2021I
Readings: I - Zeph. 3:14-18
II - Luke. 1:39-56
VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY - Feast
Humility is the mother of all virtues. It is in being humble that our love becomes more genuine, expressed in selfless service and ardent worship. Today the Church celebrates the feast of the Visitation of our Blessed Mother Mary to St. Elizabeth.
Mary did not sink in the glory of the greetings and the Good News of the angel Gabriel. Instead the highly favoured one, full of grace and the mother of the Lord, as the scripture says, “went with haste” to help her cousin Elizabeth who was with a child in her old age. This is selfless service.
Elizabeth praises Mother Mary calling her “Blessed among all women” and “the Mother of the Lord”. Mary was unperturbed by her praises instead attributed them all by magnifying the marvelous deeds of the Mighty God. This is ardent worship.
Today we run after subscribers, likes, friends, fans and followers for every click and post aspiring to become familiar, popular, successful, recognised and in short we wish to become someone great even at the cost of basic humanness. The feast of the day teaches us that we become great in our selfless service and ardent worship. Like our Mother Mary if we learn to humble ourselves before the lord, we will realise that we are His followers and not masters designing our own way. May we in our selfless service to the humanity express our ardent worship to the Lord in all humility and charity.
Saturday, May 29, 2021
Sunday Bible Reflections I 30.05.2021
Readings
I - Deu. 4: 32-34,39-40
II - Rom. 8: 14-17
III - Mt. 28: 16-20
MOST HOLY TRINITY - SOLEMNITY
God chooses Israel to send the Promised One, His Son, Jesus; Jesus chooses the disciples to make everyone His disciples and the Holy Spirit chooses these disciples to help them choose God and God alone. This is the crux of all three readings today.
Choosing God demands love to hatred, forgiveness to revenge, selflessness to selfishness, humility to pride and meekness to arrogance. If we choose God, we precisely choose to boycott the allurements of the standards of the world. We will be suppressed, mocked, scoffed, humiliated and jeered by everyone who belong to the world.
Therefore choosing God is a challenge. Courage! The Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, the promised one of our Lord is with us to help us conquer the world with all its glitter and glamour and to tread in the path of our Lord Jesus Christ by choosing God again and again.
As the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, May our hearts recite this prayer throughout the day:
Thank you Father for choosing me
Thank you Jesus for sanctifying me
Thank you Holy Spirit for guiding me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen.
Friday, May 28, 2021
Indraya Manna IDaily English Bible Reflections I May, 29,2021, Saturday I
Ordinary Time - Week 8
Readings: I - Sir. 51:12 - 20
II - Mk. 11:27 - 33
JESUS’ AUTHORITY IS QUESTIONED
In today’s Gospel the chief priests, the scribes and the elders interrogate about the authority of Jesus asking, “By what authority are you doing these things?” ‘These things’ here means the cleansing of the temple in particular. Jesus consents to answer posing a conditional query to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin? Answer me”.
Jesus counter questioned them because he was not speaking to the ordinary people but to the chosen and the privileged, the learned and the cleaver; and the elite and the spiritual who were on their finger tips about the law and the prophets. They were of course waiting for the fulfillment of the prophesy in the coming of the Messiah which is mentioned in the book of Prophet Malachi.
The sick and the sinners; the poor and the marginalized; and the lost and the least were able to discover the Messiah in Jesus while the so called spirituals were stubborn to accept the truth that they were already in the days of the long awaited Messiah because he was not compromising rather he was a sign of conflict and contradiction to them. It was because of the prejudice, jealousy and hatred they had towards Him.
Even today truth is accepted only when it is convincing to our whims and fancies, compromising to our thought patterns and not contradicting our life style. Let us not discriminate, alienate or exclude people and search for the truth only in the people appealing to us. Truth can be hidden anywhere and in any person. Let no prejudice or sordid mind prevent us from discovering it. Let us with an open mind and courage go beyond, walk an extra mile to discover the truth even if it hurts us for God is truth. Those who discover truth discover God Himself.
Thursday, May 27, 2021
Indraya Manna - 28.05.2021 - Friday
May 28, 2021 Friday
Ordinary Time - Week 8
Readings: I - Sir. 44:1, 8-13
II - Mk. 11: 11-25
THE CURSING OF FIG TREE AND THE CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE
Today’s Gospel says that Jesus from a distance sees a ‘fig tree in leaf’ which means that the fig tree is supposed to be with the fruits. But to the disappointment of Jesus he finds no fruit and curses the fig tree. The temple is supposed to be a place of prayer and worship. But it was made a business centre and a place of money making. The fruitless fig tree and the temple that targeted only business, provoked the anger of Jesus because they were deceptive and lost their purpose. They appeared to be what they were not.
We are the temples of God and are called to chant the praises and glory of God and this of course is a purposeful and fruitful living. Often at times we appear to be fruitful in our deceptive gestures, impressing words, pretention and falsehood forgetting that we are the temple of God. We can easily deceive people but not God who knows even the most secret thoughts of our hearts. We sadden and disappoint God with our dishonest and disintegrated living. Let us take up our lives as it comes and live to the best trusting in the grace and mercy of God. Let us resolve to be sincere to ourselves, to God and to our neighbours so that God may be pleased to have his throne in our hearts and that our lives may become purposeful and fruitful glorifying the Lord.
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
27.05.2021 Gospel Reflection
THE HEALING OF BLIND BARTIMAEUS (Mk. 10:46-52)
Today’s Gospel reading is about the healing of the blind beggar Bartimaeus. When the blind beggar Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was passing by he began to shout and say, “Jesus, Son of David have mercy on me”. Many ordered him sternly to be quite, and the Bible says that he cried out even more louder. The more the people tried to make him silent, the more louder he cried out to Jesus for help.
This Gospel contains encouraging, consoling and inspiring message to each one of us. The situation we are living in today may be trying our faith and trust in God. The pandemic and its effects, unemployment, poverty, misery, debts, misunderstanding, confusion, helplessness, hopelessness, fear, anxiety, depression and all the drudgeries of life may tend to weigh us down from faith and prayer life.
Itt is here in such situations we are encouraged by the blind Bartimaeus, to call for God’s help even more louder and definitely Jesus will come to our rescue as healer and saviour. With this trust and confidence in God let us carry on our life gracefully with all its problems and worries placing all our hope in the Lord alone.
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
26.05.2021 - Wednesday.
26.05.2021 - Wednesday
Indraya Manna - Gospel Reflection
Mark 10: 32-35 (26.05.2021)
Jesus rules out the values proposed by the world to the subservient values of Christian living that enable one to take pride in calling oneself ‘a follower of Jesus’.
In today’s Gospel according St. Mark, Chapter 10, verses 32 to 45, Jesus is focused about His mission and walks ahead of His disciples and followers, towards Jerusalem to endure suffering, passion and death, for the salvation of the humankind.
The sons of Zebedee, Andrew, and John are keen about getting a place at the right and left hand of Jesus that would give them power and prestige, pomp and glory, reverence and recognition.
Jesus gathers His disciples enlightens and empowers them on the topsy turvy principles of the Kingdom of God. To be a leader is to be a servant; to be the first is to be the last and this is the strategy to inherit a place in the Heavenly Kingdom. During this time of the pandemic, how are we going to serve humanity? Am I going to be a volunteer at the service of the affected? Can I offer material help to the poor who are deprived of their livelihood? Will I offer my prayers in solidarity with the suffering humanity? Or will I ostracize my own family members and neighbors in the name of a pandemic? Let us strive our best to serve in our own little ways and inherit a place in the eternal place in the Kingdom of God.
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