Where Were You?

We can’t discount the horribleness of the evil that is happening around us especially when it hits us really close to home. When you are the one affected or somebody close to you. Especially when we don’t find any meaning or sense in the pain, loss and/or suffering. Sometimes, it is easier to accept when tragedy happens to other people especially the “bad” people and we will just say “karma.”

If we come to think of it, we are always double standard. We are easy to judge who is “bad” or not and who is deserving. We probably don’t realize that our self defined standard of morality is broken because of our own sins. This is the reason why people when confronted with this reality resist the message. Because of sin, our eyes are calloused and our hearings are selective. The scriptures speak of this not only once but on several occasions across many generations - Isaiah 6:10: Jeremiah 5:21: Ezekiel 12:2: Matthew 13:15: Acts 28:27 ... “you have eyes and ears but fail to see and hear.”

Like Job, the easiest way out to unburden once self is put the blame on God. If God is good, why does he allow pain and suffering happen to good people? Why in the sense he seems to not care? As we see, this issue of pain and suffering has been asked since time immemorial. What is fascinating is how God answered Job in his questions – Job 38 4-7:

“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone—while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?”

If I am to tear the pages of the bible in Luke chapters 22 and 23 and hand it over to somebody who has not read any single paragraph of the bible lest, not know the Christian God, what would he say? If the highlights of our lives are just zeroed in on our own misery, pain and suffering, are we not missing to tell the whole story here? How about the joy you have brought to your parents when your born, you had your first step? How about the people in your life which you have shown kindness and are grateful that have met you? Are those to be taken for granted? Are those joy and beauty experienced by others and in your own experience of joy and beauty that others brought to your life inferior and subservient to the pain and suffering you have now? Has the beauty of your life stopped because of your pain?

We are a generation of confused people. Our biggest problem is we listen to the lies of the devil and we are easily deceived. There are even some from among our ranks, promising to ease our pain. This is the reason why we don’t know the value of sacrifice and sacrificial offering. We have been deceived that pain is all bad and we forgot that it is a gift from God. This is the reason why those who have colon cancer, 97% of the time when it is discovered they are already terminally ill. Why because you don’t feel any pain. If you don’t feel the pain of appendicitis, you will die too.

Pain is a gift, sometimes it is temporary to wake us up and tell us there is something wrong. I need to repair my relationship with my spouse, children, neighbor… and sometimes it is permanent and God given. I don’t have an explanation how he chooses the bearer and I don’t want to attempt to know. The only thing I know is that it is meant to bring glory to His name. The only attitude necessary here then is to thank God for trusting you to give him this glory.

Our life with its joy and pain are all beautiful. It should shout joy and glory to God and let us all be thankful. The Israelites didn’t reach the promised land until they are done wandering in the desert for 40 years (time of completion). We too, when God deemed our life completed here on earth, we will enter the promised land where sin, death, pain and suffering have no more sting – eternally!

Religious and Spiritual

One of the greatest tragedies of modern Catholicism is that as Catholics we are no longer considered a spiritual people (Matthew Kelly – Rediscovering Catholicism). There are some who agree with the famous meme in you tube some years ago about being spiritual and not religious. That being spiritual can be achieved and that is the ultimate goal of our life's journey. I believe that we can't be spiritual without being religious, while I agree that we can be religious but not spiritual, another tragedy in the modern day faith

Many of us have forgotten that we are a communion of body and soul. That as the soul yearns for God, the body finds a way to express that yearning and that is expressed by our reverence and awe of what is beautiful, true and good, the love of the sacraments and the exercise of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy which now make us “religious.”

Modern man has always tried to find new ways and means to improve our living. We have advanced in science and technology by leaps and bounds and they are all good. This is a fulfilment of God’s mandate to man when He says to Adam "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth." Gen. 1:28.

We have become, as God has designed it: pro-creators. When you read the creation story, from Genesis chapter 1 up to a few verses of chapter 2, you will realize that God has created everything from nothing. Things and beings come into existence with God just saying “let there be…..” However, as pro-creators, we can also create something but only coming from what God has already created. Chairs come from trees that God has caused into being. We can also notice that other living creatures can create same as man. The difference is that they don’t evolve. Birds 10,000 years ago still build their nest the same way they build their nests now. While the materials maybe different but the technology has remained the same. Unlike man (“people” as Justin T would correct me if he reads this), we have improved our level of sophistication in creating things. Buildings become taller and taller, aircrafts becoming more sophisticated, medicines are discovered to cure where 100 years ago can’t be cured. And yet we still create from something what God has blessed us with.

The good news is, when we pursue our side of getting or being spiritual, we can turn to all proven ancient practices. We don’t need to “re-invent the wheel” so we can find that right expression of our love for God. Early Christians and modern day saints have one common denominator, their love of the sacraments and the sacramentals. The Eucharist, regular confession and praying the rosary and devotion to Blessed Mary. We can also grow by leaps and bounds in our spirituality and reach that perfection and greatness God has called and destined all of us.

To God be the Glory!

The True Meaning of Worship

This 2^nd week of Lent we are treated to the story of Abraham and Isaac on Mt. Moriah on the first reading and the Gospel with the story of Jesus and three disciples on the mount of Transfiguration. The Abraham and Isaac story is very famous. It is not only a child story, make believe story we would like to repeat and re-tell but to really ponder upon.

I think it was 5 years ago when this same story hit me really hard. The shorter version of the reading did not really give us the complete image of how it happened but imagine Isaac carrying the wood but not seeing any lamb needed for the sacrifice. Isaac, to be able to carry the wood must be some kind of a teenager and while he might have no knowledge of what is going to happen as his father assured him the Lord will provide the lamb for burnt offering, he did not resist with his youthful strength and agility when his father bound him. At this time, he knew what is happening and he has willingly submitted himself to his father.

In the ancient world, the true meaning of worship is not about raising your hands and shouting from the top of your voices how much you love God and your willingness to offer your self to Him. God deserves everything because He has given us everything. So ancient peoples instinctively knew that authentic worship is about offering a sacrifice to their gods that is big and precious enough to represent their entire lives. That’s why human sacrifice was so prevalent in ancient times–the offering of the firstborn was seen as the only adequate worship.

In Genesis 22, God stops Abraham before he slays his son. The command to sacrifice Isaac was a test to see if Abraham was truly devoted to God in faith, obedience, and gratitude. God does not want Isaac’s blood, only Abraham’s heart and this is still true today - “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams." 1 Sam. 15:22

In contrast, Jesus did carry the wood on his back that will be used for his sacrifice in obedience to His Father up not to mount Moriah but to mount Golgotha. The ram caught by its horn in a thicket is not a substitute and the sacrifice did not really happen on mount Moriah. Jesus who was crowned with thorns was nailed and died on the cross as the perfect and final sacrifice. The only sacrifice acceptable to the Father to redeem us all from our sins.

Although it is we who owe everything to God, it is he who sacrificed everything for us. This is the whole story of the Gospel. This is what Jesus means every time he says – behold, the time is now, repent for the kingdom of God has come.

Only a few weeks ago, we celebrated the Word who became flesh and dwelt amongst us. In the next few weeks, we will again witness and hopefully experience the same God whose love for us surpasses all the love we know and we can ever experience.

Remember, Jesus did not want to stay in the mount of Transfiguration as the three apostles suggested. He wanted us to wake up and realize that when we said yes to Him – it means we will have to deny our selves, carry our crosses and take the footsteps where He had trodden.

As we enter deeply into the Lenten season, let us renew and deepen our dedication to Him by expressing to Him a sacrifice that is truly meaningful and lasting. Let us graduate from sacrificing something just during Lent, but something big enough that will last our lifetime.