25th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B: Mk 9: 30-37

³³ Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the way?" ³⁴ But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. ³⁵ He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." ³⁶ Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷ "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me."

It is an interesting text with lots of practical implication. The reflection is a little long. If you are interested, read on.

"Jesus was in the house"

We do not know whose house it was. However, we do know that there was an infant (ref. v. 36). If there is an infant then naturally its parents are also in the house. Therefore, the setting is clearly set in a family/community life situation, not on the road.

Jesus did not correct the disciples on the way. In fact, that was not his earlier style (ref. Mk 8: 34, Jesus teaches them on the way). It shows Jesus began to treat his disciples more mature way. Jesus asked them about a quarrel/ argument that took place on the way but he did not talked about it then. When in the house he asked. They did not answer.

He sat down, called the twelve"

Note the style of Jesus' teaching. A crisis took place, discord and disunity erupted but Jesus did not put those inner matters to the public. He rather chose a different approach. He sat down: showing his calmness and control over the situation. He called the twelve. Then the teaching came. "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." Most probably, the disciples did not understand the teaching. So Jesus goes for a demonstration. The next verse indicates that.

"Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them,"

This verse shows that Jesus not only taught with parables and narration but also demonstrated the teaching in real life situations.

What did he demonstrate?

We need to look at an earlier text. The call of the first disciples, in Mk 1: 16-20. In the context of catching fish, he called them saying, "follow me I will teach you how to catch people. In an earlier occasion I have posted a blog, "I will teach how to catch people". In which I have said that many of us have learned many things, perhaps too many things but did not learn to catch people. Our basic problem in living together is the result of failure of not knowing how to catch people.

Is it not true? Just reflect upon any of the events in which you have quarrelled, separated, failed, got angry, that could not win them over whether children, spouse, boss, somebody in authority, the list is endless. The underlining reason is that all those situations has something similar, indirectly or directly, there was some tension regarding "who is the greatest."

Jesus demonstrates how to catch people?

Jesus takes an infant. The Greek word used is paidion - means infant. Now use your imagination to rebuild the situation, Jesus is seated, the disciples around him. Jesus takes the infant. (Note that the episode takes place in a house, see verse. 33). What might have been the reaction of the child? It might have cried. Jesus signaled the disciples to handle the child. The just looked at him not knowing what to do. Then Jesus takes the infant. "Note the phrase, "taking it in his arms, he said to them". He said to receive the other like that.

This text had taken many meditations of mine. I used to ask and look at the commentaries to know the significance of this demonstration.

The meaning came to me one day in a parish set up. Those days I had started preaching ministry. I used to gather suitable quotations from the bible to threaten, cajole, or frighten the audience with fires of hell. I seldom smiled during the preaching. Later, I had realized that those retreats were an ordeal to the participants. Many who attended the retreats told me that those were very powerful. They never give you a real feedback, is not.

Once I went for a retreat. On the second day, the parish priest had some other assignment and he told me about a baptism after the morning mass. I agreed to do it. After the baptism, I was standing and chatting with the people. The mother of the infant told me to hold her child. She was a tribal girl may be of seventeen or eighteen. The infant looked so small. I just refused to hold the child citing that it is not the custom. She went on insisting and soon other mothers joined with her. I could not refuse any longer so I agreed to hold the child. The moment I held the infant in my hand, it let off a horrible cry. Though looked small it had very loud noise. I was taken aback. I told the mother with little irritation to take the child back. Instead of taking the child back she just looked at me and laughed saying, you only know to shout in the church, you do not even know how to catch a child. It was a like a sudden blow on the face. The child kept on crying. I began to sweat. The mothers also looked at me with smile. Here I am, the preacher who teaches people to live in harmony and peace does not even know how to hold a child. Seeing my misery the mother of the infant told me, father that is only a little child, be patient.

I tried to be patient, note my expression, I tried. But my patience did not yield any fruit, the child kept on yelling, then the mother told me, father, be gentle, if you become restless the child will cry more. Suddenly the bible passage came to my mind: the demonstration of Jesus. I tried to patient, and gentle. It did not work. My agony was increasing, the mother told me, father, you only command, you have to be loving, talk to it in a nice way.

Since there is no way to escape, I began to look at the child. In fact, I was not looking at it. I just held the child comfortably, tried to be soft in my expressions then with all love I had in my heart I began to talk to the child, slowly touching on its cheeks, gently shaking its stomach. I held the child with utmost care. To my surprise, the infant stopped crying and began to smile.

What a relief! I learned how to catch a person. In the process I also knew how to be a servant.

I was suddenly led to understand the phrase "taking it in his arms he said, welcome others or catch others like this. Be patient, be gentle, and be loving (then you will be the greatest of all).

In fact, there is a child in everyone's inside. All what they ask is a bit more patience, gentleness, and love. And definitely, we will win them over. What do you say?

I was so happy. So I held that baby in my chest. In a moment, it pissed all over my cassock. Giving the child back to the mother, I told, see, this is why, I do not take them, she has pissed all over my cassock. The innocent tribal mother gave a hilarious laughter and gave me a lesson, which I never forget. She said, father the baby is free with you that is why it pissed. If it is tensed, it won't piss.

I never knew that, when others, pissed on me, scolded me, shouted and did much other harm, I thought that they were angry with me. On the contrary, they were free with me that is why they could do that.

Later looking at the cross, I knew its meaning. When others spit on him, mocked and spoke all types of ill against him he could remain calm. He could even say, forgive them they do not know what they do. He became more patience, gentle, and loving even on the cross. He was teaching us how to catch people.

Just reflect on occasions where you felt that you could not catch the other and ended up in separations, hostility, divorce, enmity and continued remain so. There was lack of patience, gentleness and love. Is not?

Jesus never wishes our failure that keeps us in the last. He wants us to be the first, greatest of all. The means are different. It is not arguing, lording over but service. We become servants who are patient, gentle and loving to one another. 

Friends, meditate on the demonstration of Jesus, see the gentleness in his eyes, and then apply those principles to your life. To a great extent you will learn to how to catch people.

Rejoinder, after that incident I had changed the way I preach. I brought lots of laughter, gentleness and love into the ministry. After all, every preaching is an art of catching people. Not only preaching but also every sharing, conversation, and interaction are an art of catching people. This art is based on simple principle: be patient, be gentle and be loving.

22nd Sunday, Ordinary Time, Year B: Mk 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23

‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’ goes an old saying. The formation of children usually begins with teaching them about personal cleanliness and hygiene. Washing hands before eating is a common and universally accepted practice. Did the Lord go against such practices? Then it would be very difficult to all the mothers who want to teach their children to be clean and wash hands before they eat. Definitely, the Lord is not interfering with such healthy practices. He is cynic about the unhealthy practices that do not affect life but hinders. Those are empty practices creating false ego in those who practice thereby making them into higher and lower classes, castes, touchable and untouchables, etc.

Jesus comments on the source of cleanliness, a pure heart. It is the inner cleanliness that makes a person transparent.

Jesus makes sharp observation on the human character and attitude. How human get defiled and become dirty. He/she brings out from his/her "evil intentions". The list is self evident. They do defile a person. If one can carry and bring out such evilness from one's heart then there is no meaning in his/her external cleaning practices. They are all empty, vain, and sheer hypocrisy.

The teachings of Jesus always posed challenge for those who make divisions that label the humanity into lower/untouchable and consider them as less clean than the self proclaimed pure ones. Political maneuvres in the name of clean/pure v/s unclean/impure are master plans of those who go any extent to keep and remain in power. "The evil intentions" are all product of manipulations to grab power. The lack of cleanliness in the heart is not only affects the individual life but it become cradles of corruption. It has far reaching consequences even in planning earth summit. Who contaminate the rivers, earth, and forest? Those who wash their hands and remain clean but in their hearts they compile polices and rules and regulations that destroy everything. Jesus who preached about a society based on love and equality consider that the greatest cleanliness and purity comes about through the purity of heart.

How do you consider yourself pure? Is it because of your birth, positions, wealth, and environment? How do you look at the people tribal, Dalit, Harijans, those live in the slums, villages, in brothels, prisons, leper's colony, etc? Do you think that those people are less pure than you? Do you think that the external cleanliness is always a sign of internal cleanliness? Jesus has taught us that it need not be always the case. That is why he reached out to the lepers, prostitutes, sinners, tax collectors, preached good news to the prisoners, lepers.

May the Word of God create in us enough cleanliness to look the vast mission out there to bring the Goodnews of Jesus Christ that cleanses all sin.

Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion, Year B

A note on the triumphal procession of Christ as King

The blessing of the palms and the procession to the church is one of the unforgettable memories of my childhood. We waited eagerly for the palm leaves to be distributed. The moment we got them, we tore them and folded to make crosses. Others made other shapes as well. Later, I used to wonder that the simple activity symbolically depicted the inner meaning of the Palm Sunday. How the triumphal entry ends with the way of the cross! Was it the same people who ushered Jesus into the city led him him to the Calvary. Was it the same people who shouted "Hosanna, Hosanna" also shouted in the courtyard, "crucify him, crucify him"?

There is a spontaneous Joy in the presence of the Lord. People moved with wonder and a sense of joy beyond words; they began to express their joy through a spontaneous procession. They sang, danced, praised, and waved the palms in jubilation. Yes, that is the state of the spirit of a true devotee. The spirit rejoices in the presence of Lord. There are difficulties, problems, yet the soul rejoices in the presence of its Master. Let us also partake in this procession with joyful hearts. Let us walk in the victory of the Lord. Moreover, believe that we walk to relive the experience of the victory of Christ in our life today.

Reflection on the Sunday of the Lord's Passion

At the onset of the Holy Week, we read the passion narration. The Sunday itself is called as the Sunday of the Lord's Passion. As we begin to meditate and enact the paschal mysteries, we need to see ourselves not as outsiders but as insiders – as the Lord’s people, a sacred community.

Four dimensions of religion

Every religion has a fourfold dimension commonly phrased as; creed, cult, code and community. Every religion tries to communicate their God encounter. The persons involved in such an encounter try to write them down so that they can transmit and teach about it to the succeeding generations. In the attempt to transmit it, they formulate sacred creed. In the later years, the people tires to relive the creed, then they get sacred cult. Cult is ritual, symbolic enactment of the primordial encounter. Through the cult, they can surmount the distance of space and time. The cult is controlled by sacred code. Code does not have an existence expect through the practicing community. Therefore, there is a sacred community.

The Holy week is very important religious phase of every believer. In this week, we very intensely relive all these four dimensions of our religion. We collectively relive the primordial God experience of the early Christians, the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus,. We, through different rituals, try to relive them today through the Catholic traditions handed over to us by our ancestors. In the process, we become a renewed, revitalized holy community who stand firm on the vision and mission of Christ.

Please do meditate, discuss to gain more awareness of these dimensions. Know more about the creed, cult, code and community. By making enquiry into them, you will know more about you, your faith and of course about Jesus who loved you and gave his life for you.

Note on Holy Triduum

The reliving the religious experience of passion is not an outside-of-oneself experience. In the passion, we see the human agony, our agony. We see politics, betrayals, handing over, the stirring the ignorant for one's vested interest, helplessness, deserting, etc. Then the finished works of the Cross will emerge for us as a redemptive event that delivers us from all the bondages.

The Palm Sunday opens the door to interiority. Therefore, give some quietness to all activities of this week. Take time to observe you and your actions. Is it prejudiced, stirred up, motivated, controlled by fear, moved by compassion, and compelled by the necessity?

The Triduum can be seen as reliving the vision, mission and goal of Jesus

The vision (serving community)

The vision is that 'they all may be one'. It is building a community living together by serving one another. It is the life of service. The Maundy Thursday rituals enact this great value of our religion. Jesus' washing the feet of the disciples is enacted and the teaching is relived. "You call me Teacher and Lord -- and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet" (Jn 13: 13-14). We are fast loosing this fundamental experience of our religion in individual, family and communitarian life. We need to relive this to be His community.

The mission (redemption through the death on the cross)

The mission is to defeat death, the fear of death (Heb 2: 14-15); to bring peace with God (Rom 5: 1); destroy the hostility (Eph 2: 14). The Good Friday we enact the death of Jesus. He carried our sins. He died for us. The redemption is accomplished on the cross is now available to all those who believe in him. There is great deliverance in the finished works of the cross. We also relive teachings of Our Lord on Good Friday, like;

“unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (Jn 12: 24).

“Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. It is in losing one's life that he gains” (Jn 12: 25).

Our mission is also to let go to gain, that by dying with him we can also raise with him (cf. Rom 6: 4-11).

The Goal (Resurrection and life in the Spirit)

The goal of the resurrection is to gives us life in the Spirit as the children of God. The resurrection experience relived brings new life to the believer. It gives him/her the capacity to look at the world with renewed perceptive.

Come; let us prayerfully and with great faith enter into the religious experiences of our religion. Let us relive them to live a life of witnessing Christ.

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion, Year A

5th Sunday, Lent, Year B: Jn 12: 20-33

We are entering into the 5th week of the Lent. Hope you are serious and working sincerely to observe the Lenten activities (fasting, prayer, almsgiving) for the personal and collective purification of self. This Sunday brings a gospel text that recapitulates the Lenten spirituality. It is presented as an expression of a wish and its answer.

"Sir, we wish to see Jesus?"

"Sir, we wish to see Jesus". The Greeks expressed their desire to be his disciples. Symbolically this question is part of the common God-search of the humanity. The Lenten season definitely is an occasion to raise such question personally as well as collectively. We definitely wish to see Jesus. The fasting, prayer, almsgiving and other prayer rituals and spiritual activities express our deep wish to see Jesus.

The wish is not just limited to see the appearance of Jesus. "To see Jesus" can mean also to follow him or to know his teaching with an intention to be his disciples (cf. Lk 19: 1-9 the Zacchaeus episode). The pure in heart sees God. Remember the teaching of the Lord, "blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Mt 5: 9). Answering to those wished to see him; Jesus speaks about the demands of discipleship. The answers also contain the spirituality of lent. Those teachings point to the secrets of seeing God.

''Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (v. 24)

The Gospel verse brings out the best meaning of the spiritual expression - unconditional surrender. You may name it as renunciation, consecration, set apart, detachment etc, but it all means the same; encounter with God demands the surrender our entire self. It is through dying with him that we rise with him. The wheat grain symbolism makes much sense during the Lent season. Do reflect upon it. When we are disturbed with the lack of fruitfulness we often forget the fact that we remained 'just a single grain'. The selfishness cries out so loudly, 'I will not let go, my ego, pride, all that I thought as mine'. It is when we abandon our self and abide in him that we bring out fruit that last (Jn 15:1, 8, 16).

Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life (v. 25).

From the imagery of the wheat grain Jesus goes to a philosophical principle. It is not easily understood but if we look at the principle from the perceptive of the question, "wish to see Jesus", it opens up fresh understanding into God and man relationship. God encounter demands the cessation of self, the Aham- the illusion that 'I am". The realization that I am not the author of my life makes us relieved. Lenten season calls us to see this from the perceptive of holding our possession (physical possessions like the unjust wealth, apart from that the grudges, prejudices, anger, revenge, jealousy, perversions, habits etc.) If we think that we can hold them then gradually all that we hold slip away from our life. Miserably and painfully we realize that we just cannot hold life. If we realize that like Zacchaeus, then we gain life. Attaining the eternal life must be the sole purpose to "see Jesus" because salvation means knowing Jesus (cf. Jn 17: 3).

Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour (v. 26).

Encounter with Jesus invites to participate in the same vision of Jesus. Jesus clearly speaks about the mission of such encounter. "Whoever serves me must follow me". This is every much applicable to all of us who renew ourselves to celebrate the paschal mysteries. If we longed to see him, consecrate ourselves to serve him then are are called to follow: his teaching, vision and mission in our life and to teach others to do the same. If the encounter with Jesus is to use his association for subtle forms of commercialization then he pities such activity. Whoever severs Jesus must also follow him, that is to say, they become the visible presence of the resurrected Jesus on earth.

The promise. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour: The Lenten season is not only a season of repentance and tears. It is also a season of honour. When we wish to see Jesus, the actual encounter increases our honour as the children of God (cf. Jn 1:12).

Few question for your meditation.

• Do you wish to see Jesus? To whom do you express this wish?
• What does the imagery of wheat grain teach us during this lent? Are you ready to die to bring out a new life?
• Do you see a dichotomy in your profession of faith and the actual living? If you are serving Jesus, you must also follow him. What do you say?