FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT

XXVI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - 1 Timothy 6:11-16

We can easily fall into two traps: we may think that salvation is a fruit of our endeavour, and that our holy life deserves to be rewarded by God; or we may go in the opposite direction, waiting for God to save us anyhow, without our effort and our contribution. 

We may ask: Do we have a right to enter the kingdom of God? Even though we dream of heaven, we are earthly beings, who cannot reach to heaven. It is God in his loving mercy who adopts us as his children in Jesus Christ. Our right to heaven is God’s gift, and we cannot claim it as a birth right. And God will not force us into heaven. Like the prodigal son, we must accept our weakness and realise the foolishness of our sin, and decide to go back to the Father. We must get up and do the journey. 

God takes the initiative, loving us, being merciful to us and calling us to his household; then, it is up to us to recognise and accept his love. It is up to us to live like his children. Already in the Old Testament, God had ordered the people of Israel to be holy, because he is holy (Lev 19:2), and Jesus, repeating the same command, invites us to “be perfect as the Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). Paul reminds us that to achieve that we must train hard and practice, as those who practice sports do (1 Cor 9:24,26). It is a hard struggle; it is a fight, even though we are sure of winning, if Jesus Christ is by our side fighting with us. In his letter to Timothy, Paul reminds him of that:

“As a man dedicated to God, you must aim to be saintly and religious”.

To achieve that,

“Fight the good fight of the faith and win for yourself the eternal life to which you were called”.

We should not delude ourselves thinking that no matter what we are saved. Faith and deeds go together, and do not exist one without the other. Faith alone, without the works of love and mercy, is empty and meaningless talk. Jesus himself had warned his disciples saying: “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” (Lk 13:24). Eternal life must be won through a struggle, in which we work hard to do better and to become more like Jesus Christ. Paul advises Timothy: be “filled with faith and love, patient and gentle.” Without works of mercy and love, our faith is dead and the gates of heaven will not be open for us. This struggle is not violent; we are not fighting our fellow human beings; on the contrary, we must learn self-control, being “patient and gentle”. We must work hard in order to be faithful: 

“I put to you the duty of doing all that you have been told, with no faults or failures, until the Appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ”.

This Sunday’s gospel tells the parable of the rich man and the poor Lazarus. No matter how rich we are, our wealth will not buy our salvation. God can never be bribed. Without works of love and mercy, the gates of heaven will remain closed for us. Both the wealthy man and the destitute Lazarus died, and in death their situation was inverted. The rich man could not carry all his money with him, and he could not buy his way out.  He arrived empty handed. As for the poor Lazarus, he had suffered enough at the hands of the rich, and he found peace and rest from his sufferings.

We will be judged by our actions, mainly by what we did or failed to do towards the poor, the suffering and the oppressed living among us.

MONEY AND WEALTH CANNOT BECOME OUR GOD

XXV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Luke 16:1-13

More than ever, money has become the ruler of the world, and those with money are the ones who set the policies that establish order in the world. We live in a world dominated by the money lords, be it millionaires or big multinationals. There is even a new theology, the wealth theology, which considers wealth a blessing bestowed on those who truly believe.

In this Sunday’s gospel, Jesus gives a stern warning about allowing money to become our main concern, transforming it into our god:

“You cannot serve God and wealth.” (Lk 16:13)

Does it mean that we do not need money? All of us know that without money, our society would come to a stand still. We must produce wealth, or people will suffer and starve to death; in the end, people will become slaves of the lords of the world.

In most cases, when they come to power, socialist governments improve the conditions of the poor, putting in place policies for the distribution of wealth. However, as time passes by, their economies collapse, because they do not know how to produce wealth.

Jesus was not against money and wealth. He had one of his apostles put in charge of the money (Jn 13:29) received from well wishers and supporters. However, he was well aware of the dangers that go with money. Wealth is always a temptation. In the desert, it was the great temptation of wealth and power. To accept it was the same as to worship the devil (Mt 4:8-9). Money, wealth and power go together and they become an idol very easily. That’s why Jesus always said very strong words about money. We cannot worship God and money at the same time. The god of money and wealth is a false god, that will enslave us, and when we become slaves of money, we will enslave everybody who comes in touch with us. We will transform the others into tools at our service. We will have no heart for the needs of the others; instead, we will concentrate all our efforts in increasing our wealth. Profit will be our only concern, and the bigger the better. We will trample on the rights of the others, mainly the poor, and throw justice away, putting in its place injustice and oppression.

The first reading, from Amos 8:4-7, speaks of that:

“Listen to this, you who trample on the needy

and try to suppress the poor people of the country,

…

we can buy up the poor for money,

and the needy for a pair of sandals,

and get a price even for the sweepings of the wheat.’

The Lord swears it by the pride of Jacob,

‘Never will I forget a single thing you have done.”

Whenever we cheat, oppress and do injustice to the weak, the poor and the downtrodden, God will stand up against us, siding with the poor. Throughout the Bible, God takes the side of the poor, and we should never forget that.

Jesus advises us to learn from the parable of the crooked administrator, not to become crooks like him, but to be clever enough to use our money and our wealth to gain friends in heaven, so that they will welcome us. If we arrive alone at the gates of heaven, the gates will remain closed for us. We must arrive there with a big crowd - all those with whom we shared our wealth. They will speak for us. Christ himself will recognise us and speak for us, saying: Come in, take you place, because you took good care of me, when I was poor, sick, abandoned, despised, oppressed.

Wealth exists for the benefit of the community and not to be at the service of individuals, who ignore the suffering of the others.

THE MERCIFUL FATHER

XXIV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Luke 15:1-32

Apostasy - the great sin of the people

In this Sunday’s first reading, we are presented with the sin of the people - apostasy. In the desert, after experiencing God’s merciful love, which set them free, liberating them from slavery, the people abandoned God and betrayed him, the living God; they were ready to substitute him for an image made with their own hands.  With their action, they provoked God, causing his jealousy and anger to arise. In his anger, God told Moses: “I can see how headstrong these people are! Leave me, now, my wrath shall blaze out against them and devour them.” (Ex 32:9).

Yahweh, the God of Israel, is a jealous God, who will not accept anything or anybody taking his place. Only he is God, and there is no other. If we try to play god, we will discover soon the result of our own folly. Moses had to  plead with God and intercede for the people, until God relented. We are not different from the people of Israel; we may be even worse, setting ourselves as gods in the place of God. And we are in need of intercessors, like Moses. This passage teaches us that God cannot be taken for granted; we cannot behave as if he does not matter or as if he will allow everything to pass and turn a blind eye on everything we do. We should never provoke God.

The thirteen attributes of God

However, we should remember that we have an intercessor far bigger and greater than Moses, Jesus Christ who is our intercessor, and he shed his blood for us.

Many times, in the Old Testament, we may remain with the feeling that God is a fierce god, always ready to punish, as if his retribution was not different from revenge. But it is not so. In fact, time and again, we discover that God is a patient God, always ready to wait for our conversion. After the people’s apostasy, God revealed himself to Moses as the merciful God:

“The Lord, the Lord,

a God merciful and gracious,

slow to anger,

and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation,

forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,

yet by no means clearing the guilty,

but visiting the iniquity of the parents

upon the children

and the children’s children,

to the third and the fourth generation.” (Ex 34:6-7) 

According to Judaic religion, this text presents the thirteen attributes of God

1 יְהוָה Adonai — compassion before a person sins;

2 יְהוָה Adonai — compassion after a person has sinned;

3 אֵל El — mighty in compassion to give all creatures according to their need;

4 רַחוּם Rachum — merciful, that humankind may not be distressed;

5 וְחַנּוּן VeChanun — and gracious if humankind is already in distress;

6 אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם Erech appayim — slow to anger;

7 וְרַב-חֶסֶד VeRav chesed — and plenteous in kindness;

8 וֶאֱמֶת VeEmet — and truth;

9 נֹצֵר חֶסֶד לָאֲלָפִים Notzer chesed laalafim — keeping kindness unto thousands;

10 נֹשֵׂא עָוֹן Noseh avon — forgiving iniquity;

11 וָפֶשַׁע VaFeshah — and transgression;

12 וְחַטָּאָה VeChata'ah — and sin;

13 וְנַקֵּה VeNakeh — and pardoning.

(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirteen_Attributes_of_Mercy)

Jesus is God with us in his merciful love and he never got tired of revealing God’s mercy. He is always waiting for us and always ready to welcome us with open arms.

The parable of the merciful Father

In this Sunday’s gospel, we are presented with one of the jewels of the New Testament: the parable of the merciful father, also know as the parable of the prodigal son. Many times, we reflect mainly upon the son who demanded his share and abandoned his father’s house, in order to lead his own life. Other times, we may reflect upon the older son, a man hard with himself and with the others, who tried to judge everybody else by the standards that he set for himself. He had a very high idea of himself, presenting himself as the righteous one, while all the others were not worthy of spending time with them; in his self-righteousness, he was bold enough to accuse his father and to find him unjust. 

However, if we hear the parable attentively, we can notice immediately that the father comes forward as the first and most important figure of the parable. He was ignored, abandoned, accused and despised by his children, even though he had done nothing to deserve that. He did not impose himself on them; he allowed them freedom to choose their own way. When the youngest son run away, he remained hoping against all hope that one day he would come back. He did not get tired of waiting for his child, and when he spotted him still far away, he run to embrace him. In his joy, he did not care about all the explanations and excuses that the son had prepared to present. Without delay, he asked new clothes for his son and ordered a big feast to celebrate his coming back.

This father of the parable is the Father, full of mercy and compassion - the Lord of mercy, as he presented himself to Moses. Indeed, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (Jn 3:16).

There are people, like the eldest son, who cannot accept God’s mercy and who may accuse God of being unfair and unjust, as if he has deprived them of something, forgetting that God’s abundance can never be exhausted. God will always be able to satisfy and fulfil all our needs. We do not need to be jealous and envious of others. Instead, all of us should participate in the feast and rejoice in God’s merciful love.

THE EVIL OF SLAVERY

XXIII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Philemon 1:9-10,12-17

We might think that slavery was a thing of the past, but it is not so. There are still slaves in many countries, and we have heard time and again how the Islamic state  take slaves; and in doing that, they are walking on the footsteps of Muhammad, who owned slaves, and allowed his soldiers to use the women caught in war to be used as sexual slaves for the satisfaction of their lust. And for that purpose, they can be as young as nine or ten years old.

Speaking of slavery, we cannot forget the europeans nations were the perpetrators of the slave trade that took millions to the Americas. However for that, they cannot justify themselves appealing to the example and teaching of Jesus Christ, or even to the example of the first centuries of Christianity. 

There are some who are ready to blame Paul for not abolishing slavery. Maybe they forget that Paul had no political power and no political influence. In fact, the emerging Church was no more than a marginal religious movement in the Roman society, which was persecuted, with thousand of Christians being tortured and killed at the hands of the Roman authorities. 

In this Sunday’s liturgy, we read the letter that Paul wrote to Philemon about his slave Onesimus, who run away from him and took refuge with Paul. A run-away slave, once caught, could be condemned to death and it was a crime to hide him or to give him refuge. By allowing Onesimus to stay with him, Paul put his own life at great risk. During his stay with Paul, Onesimus converted and was baptised.  And then Paul convinced him to go back to his master, Philemon, carrying a letter from Paul, pleading for Onesimus. The whole affair was very risky both for Paul and for Onesimus; however, in his letter, Paul expresses his confidence in Philemon that he would receive Onesimus and treat him as a brother:

I know you have been deprived of Onesimus for a time, but it was only so that you could have him back for ever, not as a slave any more, but something much better than a slave, a dear brother; especially dear to me, but how much more to you, as a blood-brother as well as a brother in the Lord. (Philemon, vv 15-16)

Paul’s thought expressed in the appeal that he made to Philemon is radical, and it was not so out of convenience, because he wrote in a similar manner to the Galatians:

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal 3:28)

All of us have the same dignity - be it slave or free, man or woman. We are all one in Christ Jesus.

In the past and in our own times, slaves are seen as the scum of the earth. They are treated as nobodies. However, for the followers of Jesus Christ, they are children of God like everybody else, and they deserve to be recognised, protected, respected and loved like everybody else.

CANONISATION OF MOTHER TERESA

This Sunday, Mother Teresa of Calcutta will be declared a saint. She was touched by the suffering of people abandoned to die on the streets; and like the Good Samaritan, she could not pass by as if she saw nothing. She abandoned her comfortable life as teacher of the rich in a covent school to dedicate her whole life to the poor and the suffering.

By declaring her a saint, the Church is reminding us that all of us are called to be saints; and it will be easier to do so, if we look at her as our role model.

Some quotations of Madre Teresa:

One of the greatest diseases is to be nobody to anybody.

Mother Teresa

Love to be real, it must cost—it must hurt—it must empty us of self.

― Mother Teresa

If we pray, we will believe; If we believe, we will love; If we love, we will serve.

― Mother Teresa

I am not sure exactly what heaven will be like, but I know that when we die and it comes time for God to judge us, he will not ask, ‘How many good things have you done in your life?’ rather he will ask, ‘How much love did you put into what you did?

― Mother Teresa

People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.

If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

― Mother Teresa

When a poor person dies of hunger it has not happened because God did not take care of him or her. It has happened because neither you nor I wanted to give that person what he or she needed.

― Mother Teresa

There’s nothing more calming in difficult moments that knowing there’s some one fighting with you.

― Mother Teresa

A life not lived for others is not a life.

― Mother Teresa

Our life of contemplation shall retain the following characteristics:

—missionary: by going out physically or in spirit in search of souls all over the universe.

—contemplative: by gathering the whole universe at the very center of our hearts where the Lord of the universe abides, and allowing the pure water of divine grace to flow plentifully and unceasingly from the source itself, on the whole of his creation.

—universal: by praying and contemplating with all and for all, especially with and for the spiritually poorest of the poor.”

― Mother Teresa, In the Heart of the World: Thoughts, Stories and Prayers

You can see more quotes in:

http://www.verybestquotes.com/150-mother-teresa-quotes/