Beloved friends, when we think of children, our first thoughts are of how much trouble they give, how petty and naïve they appear. Think of how bothersome their noise could be around you when you are on an important phone call. Think of the anger when in their innocence they scratch lines on your car. Watch a pack of them yapping, running and jumping, bouncing aimlessly, kicking one another or breaking down a door. Yet in our gospel text of today, Jesus insists that if we must see God, we must look to children. But how are we to understand this? Of course, despite their pettiness, children are highly dependent, trusting, innocent and simple with no sense of self-importance. In which case, to belong to the kingdom of God, we must recognize our dependence and nothingness and yield ourselves to receive the kingdom as a gift of God.
Brethren, let us first know about the Saint of the day, St Matthew, also known as Levi, the evangelist and an Apostle. He was born in Capernaum. He was a tax collector, and his profession was probably the most corrupted and despised by everyone because tax collectors worked for Romans who were oppressing many the Jews and also made themselves wealthy by over-charging and threatening people if they did not hand over their money to them; for this reason, they were regarded as sinners and traitors to their people for the sake of personal gains. Nevertheless, he was called to discipleship by the Lord as he was sitting at his customs office. Tradition holds that he wrote a collection of sayings of Jesus in Aramaic and inspired the Gospel which bears his name. The Gospel of Matthew is addressed to a Jewish community and presents Jesus as the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah. Matthew is said to have preached the faith in the East.
Today's Gospel presents to us the role played by women in the mission of Jesus Christ. We see many women including Mary Magdalene from whom Jesus has chased out seven demons, Joanna, wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna and many others following Jesus. What is interesting to note is that these women not only were following Jesus as true disciples, but they were also providing for him and His Apostles. We credit them for their discipleship and generosity.
In today's Gospel we see mainly two aspects: devotion and repentance, and the welcome of sinners by Jesus. On the side of Jesus, Luke always tries to portray Jesus as the friend of sinners in most of his parables. We see Jesus being invited by a Pharisee to his house and the woman with a bad name and reputation in the whole city came and started bathing the feet of Jesus with her tears, wiping them with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the most expensive ointment. It surprised the Pharisees that Jesus whom people regarded as a prophet could not recognise how sinful that woman was. It is not that Jesus did not know how sinful that woman was, but he showed his mercy to the woman and welcomed her as a sinner for Jesus came for sinners not for righteousness. Today reflect on how willing you are to come to Jesus who is ready to welcome everyone especially sinners who return to him. On the side of the woman who had a bad name probably of a prostitute (the western church regard her as Mary Magdalene) we see extraordinary devotion and repentance guided by two important virtues: faith and Love.
Jesus looks at his generation and calls it a childish generation which acts indifferently. They have become depraved and perverse. They reject that which is sane and good and embrace that which is evil. They call evil good and tag good evil. They spurn God’s love and become obstinate in their rejection of God’s goodness. John came and lived an austere life, they named him a mad eccentric and put his head on a platter of gold. Jesus came, ate, drank and socialized, and they tagged him a drunkard and dragged him to a cross. Our generation seems similar to that of Jesus in its indifference. We complain of lack of time, but we waste time gossiping, watching pornography, we pray for the fruit of the womb and also fight for the right to abort. We cry to God for protection, and we reject his laws about the use of freedom. The words of Saint Paul should stir us: “When I was a child I spoke like a child and reasoned like a child but now that I am old, I leave my childish ways” (first reading). We are people who have failed to respond appropriately to God and what he instructs us.
Brethren, in a number of places, the Gospel records that Jesus was "moved to the depths of his heart" when he met with individuals and with groups of people. Our modern use of the word "compassion" doesn't fully convey the deeper meaning of the original Hebrew word which expresses heart-felt "sympathy" if not "empathy" and personal identification with the suffering person's grief and physical condition. Today, we see the only miracle which Jesus performs without the response to anyone’s faith within a city called Nain. As Jesus was going to Nain (which means green pastures), he was moved with mercy and compassion because of the widow who had lost his only son and was being carried to the tomb for burial. This woman had nothing left with her because she had earlier lost a husband and now the only son. The only secure means of welfare in biblical times was one's family. This woman had lost not only her loved ones, but her future security and livelihood as well. Jesus having this in mind, his compassion made him help her son by bringing her back to life by mere words, "Young man, I tell you, arise!" Where do we want Jesus to raise us up? In our own sorrow or grief, we are reminded, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6).
When we pray, "Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof but only say a word and my soul shall be healed," in every mass before receiving Holy Communion, do we understand where these words really come from and what they really mean? Or we just pray for sake and routine? These words are expressed by a centurion in the gospels as he pleaded Jesus to heal his servant who was seriously sick. But since the centurion that he was a sinful man, he felt unworthy of receiving a holy man like Jesus, "Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof. Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed." Self-knowledge is always the beginning of spiritual growth, personal growth and a big reason to continue living. Also, this statement only shows the unworthiness of the centurion for Jesus' mercy but also a strong sense of humility and faith. The high sense of humility of this statement has won it a place in the mass in our prayer of humility immediately before communion. When you pray this prayer, do pray it consciously with the humility and faith hidden it or just for sake? The centurion sets for us a perfect example to emulate in the following ways:
In everything we do, and if we want to grow in our spiritual life always, humility is a sure way to follow. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) notes that the centurion regarded himself as unworthy to receive the Lord into his house: "Humility was the door through which the Lord entered to take full possession of one whom he already possessed." Most times we think that humility is for the weak, but this is not the case. We have to be humble before God whether we are honorable people, or a person with authority, or an elder, or the young and everyone. Recognizing that we are human beings, and that we sometimes make mistakes and that we need to kneel before God and say that we are not worthy even to reach this day, is an act of inner strength which brings us healing and strengthens our relationship with God. Otherwise, if we remain with our pride, we are going to lose the kingdom of God and will not experience the love, mercy, kindness and all the gifts that God gives his children always.
Secondly, we all have no right to God's grace and mercy. Too often in our life of prayer we pray as if we have a right to God’s grace and even sometimes blame God for not doing the way we wanted. Little we do we know that even the mere fact of talking to God like that is already underserved act of mercy which God has given to us. This is a profound mistake. We must seek to follow this centurion’s example by understanding that we do not have a right to anything from our Lord. This humble acknowledgment is the necessary foundation for the reception of the abundant mercy of God. Mercy is a gift, not a right. But the good news is that God’s heart burns with a desire to pour forth that gift and the key to unleash that mercy in our lives is easy: a contrite and a humble heart. May we all pray to become like this centurion. We may not think to be sinful as a centurion, a person in authority was, but we do many unholy things of which do not merge with God. Let us imitate this centurion.
Our invitation today, is to put our trust in Jesus who can do all things by His power of the Word. The centurion knew that even if Jesus goes to his house or not, He will heal his servant by a mere word if Jesus wills. This is great trust the centurion had in Jesus. This great trust should be an inspiration for us Christians, to put more trust in Jesus than we put to any other. It is this trust that will make us have the faith that moves mountains which in Jesus' name we shall perform the same works he performed.
Reflect today on the humility, trust and faith of the centurion. Can someone say to you: 'In the whole of your place, he has never seen a person of faith like you? Can you be able to pray a prayer of the centurion with the same faith, humility and trust? Pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide you as you examine yourself.
Let us Pray
Lord, I am really not worthy for everything you have done in my life; it is only by your grace. I thank you for always coming to me though I am not worthy. May you always guide me as I strive to make myself worthy before you my God and King. Amen.
While some try to avoid this question, and others try to tiptoe closer, this is Jesus' question that we all must answer. Not who your parents, spouse, priests, pastors, teachers, or friends say Jesus is, but who you say He is. It is a question that must be answered at the level of a personal encounter with Jesus. He wants us to be clear about his identity and the more we discover who he is, the more we place him at the center of our lives, we make him our Lord and personal savior and thus have a deep relationship with him.
Today we celebrate the Feast of the exaltation of the Holy Cross of Jesus. If it was not by the cross of Jesus, we would all be dying in our sins but through his humility, though he was God (Philippians 2:6-11), he accepted the cross, died on it so that we are all forgiven of all our sins and the doors of heaven to be opened for us. What a great feast it is today! We are celebrating a feast of our victory not just victory over simple enemies but over our greatest enemy: death and sin.
According to the Franciscan Media, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross commemorates the Holy Cross on which our Lord, Savior, and King, Jesus Christ, was crucified. The history of this feast is explained, “Early in the fourth century, St. Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ’s life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior’s tomb, and her son built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman.
The cross immediately became an object of veneration. At a Good Friday celebration in Jerusalem toward the end of the fourth century, according to an eyewitness, the wood was taken out of its silver container and placed on a table together with the inscription Pilate ordered placed above Jesus’ head: Then “all the people pass through one by one; all of them bow down, touching the cross and the inscription, first with their foreheads, then with their eyes; and, after kissing the cross, they move on.”
To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica’s dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off in 614, fifteen years earlier. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself, but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim
In today's gospel-reading we are listening-in to a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, a Pharisee who came to Jesus by night (presumably because he did not want his colleagues to know. Do you mind your colleagues knowing that you are a Christian?). Jesus is talking about an incident during the Exodus journey, when the Israelites were struck by a plague of snakes which we see in the first reading. Moses hoisted a bronze snake on a pole as a recovery-totem. It sounds superstitious, but presumably to depend on it was an expression of trust in God. Jesus now says that this snake is to be seen as a promise of the salvation to be won by trusting in his Cross. The Cross remains our sign of victory. To wear it and welcome it is increasingly, in this increasingly materialistic world, a statement of where our heart and our confidence lies. However, the Cross is not complete in itself. Some people find it ‘morbid’ or ‘morose’, but to Christians it also contains the victory and reassurance of the Resurrection. The Cross makes sense not by the crumpled figure on the wood, but by God’s acceptance of that obedience. The triumph of the resurrection is too glorious to be represented by anything visible.
In secular sense, the cross means nothing other than shame and a punishment of the greatest criminals. Jesus, however, changes the meaning of this cross by accepting it willingly, though he was without sin nor a criminal, as a means of saving us. So, when we see the cross, we see our victory and the more we venerate it, the more put it on and wear it in our necks, or hung in our houses, offices, cars, and everywhere we are the more we triumph over Satan and the spiritual death as well as physical death. Brethren, do you know the power that is in the cross of Jesus? Do you know how redeeming it is? Jesus tells us in the Gospel that whoever believes in him, the crucified Christ, will have eternal life and have it in abundance. Let us revere and exalt the cross always and be redeemed.
On and by his Cross, Jesus:
• Opened the heaven gates for us to enter. The splitting of the veil of the temple as he died on the cross (Mt 27:57) symbolizes the opening of the heavenly sanctuary for everyone to enter. Remember only the high priest would enter into the sanctuary/ Holy of Holies once a year (Hebrews 9:7) but Jesus opens it for everyone.
• shed His blood to redeem us, wash away our sins (Eph 1:7), and deliver us from a futile way of life (1 Pt 1:18-19),
• made it possible for us to become children of God (Gal 6:15) and share in the divine nature (2 Pt 1:4),
• made the purest act of unconditional love and poured out infinite mercy,
• humbled Himself and obeyed His Father (Phil 2:8),
• forgave us and taught us to forgive others (see Lk 23:34),
• drew all people to Himself (Jn 12:32),
• gave us the opportunity to believe in Him so as to have eternal life (Jn 3:14-15),
• made “peace through the blood of His cross” (Col 1:20),
• gave His Spirit (see Jn 19:30), and
• gave us Mary to be our mother (Jn 19:26-27).
During the few hours Jesus hanging on the cross, He did more to transform the human race than has been or will be done in all the hours in the history of the world. Let us live to worship Jesus and tell as many people as possible about the triumph of His cross.
Let us Pray.
Lord Jesus, you came to set us free from the tyranny of sinful pride, fear, and rebellion. Take my heart captive to your merciful love and truth and set me free to love and serve you always with joy and trust in the power of your saving Cross. May your love grow in me that I may always seek to love and serve others generously for their sake just as you have generously laid down your life for my sake. Amen
Beloved brethren, we live in a hyper-judgmental culture. We tag others and label them monsters: “he is a thief”, “he is too arrogant”, “she is too rigid”, “they are too poor for your level”, “you can’t afford me”, “she lives in a ghetto”, “he can’t speak good English.” These and more such assertions often sound simple and harmless; yet, they have tremendously poisoned love and harmony. Nobody wants to be around someone who constantly condemns them or others. To find fault is easy but to live better may be difficult. Jesus’ teaching in the gospel of today provides a practical guide to spiritual growth. He says it is a sign of hypocrisy to tag others as evil while we paint saintly pictures of ourselves. The only path to peace is to reduce the amount of judgement in our lives and gradually seal our lips when tempted to utter judgement about others.
Jesus chose his twelve Apostles as we see in today's Gospel after a whole night prayer alone. This he did not necessarily for his own advantage but specially to teach us a very important lesson: praying before we act or make any decision. One may wonder why Jesus who was God would pray, but we see him praying especially in the gospel of Luke where we see a hymn of prayer through the whole gospel. What can we learn from Jesus' prayerfulness for our spiritual growth?
Beloved brethren, it is clearly stated in Exodus 20:8; and Deuteronomy 5:12 that keep the Sabbath Holy, and also to the tradition of the Jews, no single work would be done on this day, perhaps, even if it is saving someone's life (exaggerated for emphasis). But in the Gospel today Jesus shows that the law is made for man, and man is made for God. When the law stands in the way of salvation, the Lord dispenses with the law and reaches out with love and compassion.
Jesus goes to the Decapolis, meaning ‘ten cities’ where he met a deaf and mute man. The people asked Jesus to ‘lay his hand upon him’, that is the traditional way of invoking the power of God. Jesus, nonetheless, took the man aside, “put his fingers into the man’s ears and touched his tongue with spittle, then, looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, ‘Be opened’. The dumb man’s ears were opened, and his tongue was loosened and he began to speak clearly. Joyously, the people spread the news, even when Jesus forbade them. The fact is that it is difficult to withhold good news.
"The Son of man is the Lord of Sabbath," says Jesus. Today's Gospel presents to us Jesus giving the true meaning of Sabbath. After the Apostles had picked the ears of corn and ate them on Sabbath, some Pharisees blamed them for working on Sabbath for it was prohibited to do any work on Sabbath. Recall the Third Commandment given through Moses: “Remember the sabbath day—keep it holy. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God. You shall not do any work…” (Exodus 20:8–10). From this Commandment, the Pharisees had developed a complex commentary which went into great detail about what kind of work was forbidden on the Sabbath in their view. One such regulation was to pick and mill grain. Thus, they judged that this was what the disciples were doing and were, therefore, violating the Third Commandment. However, Jesus' response, arguing from the scriptures, is very clear, the Son of Man is the Lord of the Sabbath. What does this really mean?
