A message delivered
to God's people recently. Jotting it down so that its not forgotten and
sharing it hoping it benefits someone.
------------------------------------
A happy time : what makes us happy?
----------------------------------
If we look around our world at this time of the year, there is no doubt that this is a wonderful time of the year to be in. Lights all around, decorations, people giving gifts, sharing -- everyone seems to be in a festive mood. Everyone seems so happy! What is the reason for the happiness? Why is everyone so happy?
Different people have different reasons for being happy. If we look at it in an economic sense, the CEOs of companies are happy because this is the greatest time for business. The surge in sales that they orchestrated on Black Friday is reaching its climax during the Christmas season, all their adverstisements and marketting are bearing results in profits -- so they are happy. But as Christians, what makes us so happy during this time of the year?
We are people who go to homes to sing carols. One message we give during the carols through our songs is -- "The child is born!"
Where is the child born? In Bethlehem.
When was the child born? 2000 years ago.
So -- for a child born, not anywhere near you and me, but in far away Bethlehem -- Bethlehem which is today what we know as Middle East -- when we hear some of the happenings in the Middle East today, a chill goes down our spine, in such a land -- if a child is born -- why does it make you and me happy here? And he was born, not anytime recently, but 2000 years ago. For a child born in some far away land, many centuries ago -- why should that make us happy here and now?
Then again someone says --"The King of the Jews is born!" (It was the King of the Jews that the wise men from the East came searching for) But if the Jews get a new king, what is that to us? Why should it make you and me happy?
Christ must be born within us
-----------------------------
What I am trying to say is -- Christ must be born -- not for someone else, not in a far away land, not in a bygone time -- Christ must be born within each of us individually today.
Only then will all of our services, our prayers, our offerings in the Church become meaningful.Christ must be born in us and He must be born now!
It is this that we see in Galatians 4:19 -- a completely devoted St. Paul who is persevering in all trials and pain "as in childbirth" for the sake of his spiritual children, so that Christ is born in them. This is what the Church works diligently each moment for -- that Christ is born within us.
Where within us?
----------------
So if he has to be born within us -- where within us must He be born? Is Christ born in the palace? We all know of the experience of the palace within us. We all like to remember those moments of the palace -- times when we are being honored or recognized,or our children have done something that made us proud -- all those are experiences of the palace within us, and we love to bring them back again and again to memory and relive them --
But Christ is not born in palaces -- where is He born then? there are places within us which we do not want to remember -- those lonely, long moments that drag us down -- maybe because of illnesses, maybe times of weaknesses of old age, maybe times of despair at the loss of a spouse, a child, a parent -- those humble moments of our life -- in that crib that the world does not know -- there Christ should be born within us.
To make it a bit clearer -- even though we traditionally think of the crib or manger where Christ is born, the Bible only shows us that the babe was kept in the manger where the others saw him, not that He was born there. On the other hand, if we focused on the songs we sang today -- we have a strong tradition in our Liturgy -- that He was born in a cave, a den -- so such places in ourselves which are as humble and as lonely like the cave -- which no one knows -- there Christ must be born within us. Will you allow room for the Mother of God and Joseph into those parts of your life which are your most vulnerable, which you want to keep hidden from everybody -- will you allow room for Christ, who is the ever present hope for the most hopeless, in there today?
Another thing about the cave is -- it is dark -- no semblance of light is there --> there are such dark corners within us -- which we ourselves do not realize -- of hurt and vengeance -- due to past relationships and experiences -- things which we are unable to forgive or let go -- into those dark corners of our lives -- will you allow the light of Christ to be born today?
What will this give us?
----------------------
When we allow Christ to be born into the dark and lonely caves within us -- what do we gain? To understand this let us dwell a bit into the depth of our faith -- if we noticed the songs we sang today during the Christmas service, we would have noticed -- the lyrics were all of the great joy that has come upon us -- yet the tone used, the tunes -- reminded us of something else -- a melancholy note -- several of them reminded us of the Holy Week, the Great Lent and of Good Friday! Did you notice that? Why? It used to confuse me earlier -- why this sad tone on a happy occasion? It is because -- the Church is as always -- teaching us through these -- teaching us an important lesson that -- the Miracle of the Incarnation of the Lord cannot be separated from the Mystery of the Cross.
We all were never meant to die, we were created in Adam to live eternally. Only one person was ever born who was born to die -- our Lord Jesus Christ -- the miracle of His incarnation cannot be separated from the mystery of His passion and His glorious Resurrection.
So when the Christ born in our dark and lonely caves, He will lead us on His journey to the Cross. That is what the Church does - till today she was preparing us for Christ to be born within us, and from now on, the Church will lead us on a journey with Christ to the Cross -- and what this will give us is -- sacrificial love -- as we see on the Cross -- the ability to suffer and sacrifice for others, the ability to love when unjustly condemned -- this ability to love in sacrifice -- this He will give us.
The larger cause
-----------------
When each individual thus allows Christ to be born within you, within us -- that is when we grow as a parish. That is when the society around us, with whom we engage daily, grows in Christ; that is when the land becomes "Christ-like". Every activity of the parish is (supposed to be) a mission, every work a ministry. May the Christ that is born in you individually, grow your parish and through your parish -- the society around you that you serve, the society around you that you are called to serve -- and may you and through you, them -- be able to walk in the way of the Cross with the Christ born in you today. All prayers and good wishes for a Merry Christmas to you.
------------------------------------
A happy time : what makes us happy?
----------------------------------
If we look around our world at this time of the year, there is no doubt that this is a wonderful time of the year to be in. Lights all around, decorations, people giving gifts, sharing -- everyone seems to be in a festive mood. Everyone seems so happy! What is the reason for the happiness? Why is everyone so happy?
Different people have different reasons for being happy. If we look at it in an economic sense, the CEOs of companies are happy because this is the greatest time for business. The surge in sales that they orchestrated on Black Friday is reaching its climax during the Christmas season, all their adverstisements and marketting are bearing results in profits -- so they are happy. But as Christians, what makes us so happy during this time of the year?
We are people who go to homes to sing carols. One message we give during the carols through our songs is -- "The child is born!"
Where is the child born? In Bethlehem.
When was the child born? 2000 years ago.
So -- for a child born, not anywhere near you and me, but in far away Bethlehem -- Bethlehem which is today what we know as Middle East -- when we hear some of the happenings in the Middle East today, a chill goes down our spine, in such a land -- if a child is born -- why does it make you and me happy here? And he was born, not anytime recently, but 2000 years ago. For a child born in some far away land, many centuries ago -- why should that make us happy here and now?
Then again someone says --"The King of the Jews is born!" (It was the King of the Jews that the wise men from the East came searching for) But if the Jews get a new king, what is that to us? Why should it make you and me happy?
Christ must be born within us
-----------------------------
What I am trying to say is -- Christ must be born -- not for someone else, not in a far away land, not in a bygone time -- Christ must be born within each of us individually today.
Only then will all of our services, our prayers, our offerings in the Church become meaningful.Christ must be born in us and He must be born now!
It is this that we see in Galatians 4:19 -- a completely devoted St. Paul who is persevering in all trials and pain "as in childbirth" for the sake of his spiritual children, so that Christ is born in them. This is what the Church works diligently each moment for -- that Christ is born within us.
Where within us?
----------------
So if he has to be born within us -- where within us must He be born? Is Christ born in the palace? We all know of the experience of the palace within us. We all like to remember those moments of the palace -- times when we are being honored or recognized,or our children have done something that made us proud -- all those are experiences of the palace within us, and we love to bring them back again and again to memory and relive them --
But Christ is not born in palaces -- where is He born then? there are places within us which we do not want to remember -- those lonely, long moments that drag us down -- maybe because of illnesses, maybe times of weaknesses of old age, maybe times of despair at the loss of a spouse, a child, a parent -- those humble moments of our life -- in that crib that the world does not know -- there Christ should be born within us.
To make it a bit clearer -- even though we traditionally think of the crib or manger where Christ is born, the Bible only shows us that the babe was kept in the manger where the others saw him, not that He was born there. On the other hand, if we focused on the songs we sang today -- we have a strong tradition in our Liturgy -- that He was born in a cave, a den -- so such places in ourselves which are as humble and as lonely like the cave -- which no one knows -- there Christ must be born within us. Will you allow room for the Mother of God and Joseph into those parts of your life which are your most vulnerable, which you want to keep hidden from everybody -- will you allow room for Christ, who is the ever present hope for the most hopeless, in there today?
Another thing about the cave is -- it is dark -- no semblance of light is there --> there are such dark corners within us -- which we ourselves do not realize -- of hurt and vengeance -- due to past relationships and experiences -- things which we are unable to forgive or let go -- into those dark corners of our lives -- will you allow the light of Christ to be born today?
What will this give us?
----------------------
When we allow Christ to be born into the dark and lonely caves within us -- what do we gain? To understand this let us dwell a bit into the depth of our faith -- if we noticed the songs we sang today during the Christmas service, we would have noticed -- the lyrics were all of the great joy that has come upon us -- yet the tone used, the tunes -- reminded us of something else -- a melancholy note -- several of them reminded us of the Holy Week, the Great Lent and of Good Friday! Did you notice that? Why? It used to confuse me earlier -- why this sad tone on a happy occasion? It is because -- the Church is as always -- teaching us through these -- teaching us an important lesson that -- the Miracle of the Incarnation of the Lord cannot be separated from the Mystery of the Cross.
We all were never meant to die, we were created in Adam to live eternally. Only one person was ever born who was born to die -- our Lord Jesus Christ -- the miracle of His incarnation cannot be separated from the mystery of His passion and His glorious Resurrection.
So when the Christ born in our dark and lonely caves, He will lead us on His journey to the Cross. That is what the Church does - till today she was preparing us for Christ to be born within us, and from now on, the Church will lead us on a journey with Christ to the Cross -- and what this will give us is -- sacrificial love -- as we see on the Cross -- the ability to suffer and sacrifice for others, the ability to love when unjustly condemned -- this ability to love in sacrifice -- this He will give us.
The larger cause
-----------------
When each individual thus allows Christ to be born within you, within us -- that is when we grow as a parish. That is when the society around us, with whom we engage daily, grows in Christ; that is when the land becomes "Christ-like". Every activity of the parish is (supposed to be) a mission, every work a ministry. May the Christ that is born in you individually, grow your parish and through your parish -- the society around you that you serve, the society around you that you are called to serve -- and may you and through you, them -- be able to walk in the way of the Cross with the Christ born in you today. All prayers and good wishes for a Merry Christmas to you.
No comments:
Post a Comment