Twelfth Sunday of Orddinary Time (A)

 

Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time (A) [Mt 10:26-33]

21.06.2026

Confessing and Denying Christ

Readings: (1) Jer 20:10-13 (2) Rom 5:12-15

1.    Theme in brief

Confessing Christ or denying him in spite of fear

2.    Focus Statement 

We should not be afraid of professing our faith in Christ before the people who oppose him or his values, and be convinced of God’s care and protection even in persecution.

3.    Explanation of the text

Today’s Gospel text is about the instructions given by Jesus to his disciples as he sends them on his mission.  He tells them to be prepared to face opposition, rejection and persecution as they preach and teach. In such situations, his message to his disciples – repeated three times in today’s gospel – is, not to fear or panic (10:26, 28, 31).

First reason not to be afraid is found in his assurance that their opponents will not succeed in their evil designs since God will expose their hidden motives or designs and bring to light all their evil deeds (10:26). Or it could mean, their persecutors will not be ale to hide their evil designs and deeds on the Judgement Day. Or it could also mean, in their missionary preaching and witness they will uncover all the hidden values of the Kingdom of God that are not made known openly till now (10:26). He asks them to proclaim in the light and from housetops what he has told them privately till now (10:27). Their only fear should be to lose courage to confess Jesus before the world.

Second reason for not fearing is the consideration that the power of world’s rulers is limited to killing only the body and not the soul (10:28). Here Jesus hints at the highest type of fear they may have to face, namely, the danger or threat of death for proclaiming the gospel or for living the gospel-values. Though he admits that the world’s authorities do have such powers, they need not fear them as if they were gods. They should rather fear God alone who has the power to kill both the body and the soul (10:28).  

Third reason for not fearing the world’s authorities is God’s providential care and protection even in persecution. Jesus reassures his disciples that God is not like the world’s rulers. If he cares for sparrows that that are sold two for a penny, how is that he will not care for them who are “of more value than many sparrows” (10:20-31). He has so intimate knowledge of them that even the hairs of their head are counted (10:30). If so, they should put their total trust is such a caring God and use it as an antidote for natural fears.

Finally, Jesus calls for total loyalty to him and his gospel from his disciples. Acknowledging and confessing him before the people of the world will lead to his acknowledgement of them before the Father, and denying him before people will have the consequence of denying them before the Father on the Judgement Day (10:32-33).

4.    Application to life

Fear is so much inherent in human nature from the time of birth. There are so many fears in us – both real and imaginary. The following fear often haunt the conscious and subconscious mind of many of us – fear of being robbed, of being attacked by an enemy, of remaining unemployed, of losing a job, of being killed in a bomb blast or accident, of ridicule/ criticism/ negative remarks by others, of public speaking, of dreadful sicknesses like cancer and heart attack, of being left alone in old age, of losing one’s dignity and reputation, of breakage of relationships, of our children getting into deviant or criminal behaviour, of natural or man-made calamities (like accidents, floods, earthquakes, cyclones), of untimely or unprepared death, etc. Besides these natural fears, today’s gospel speaks about the fear of opposition, rejection and persecution that we may have to face when we preach and teach the message of Christ, or when we try to uphold and live by his values. We have also fears of what others may think of us or say to us, especially when we try to behave a little different from the general trends in our society.

The imaginary or unrealistic (baseless) fears are our worst masters who control or drive us to wrong directions such as depression, disappointment, meaninglessness, emptiness, etc. Fears are the driving force behind all blunders, wrong decisions, misrule. misdeeds, injustice or even dictatorships of our opponents in the family, neighbourhood, political and administrative circles or the business world. Just as Jesus warned his disciples about the inevitability of threats to their life, persecution and opposition in their mission, today he reminds us also about this reality when we stand firm on his gospel-values. Witnessing to Christ and confessing him before others may result in persecution, opposition, mockery and intimidation for us. Living Christian values in a radical manner in a world that promotes contrary values may bring a lot of troubles and discomfort to us.  

Even today, the message of the gospel brings to light all the evil designs and crooked motives of the powerful, especially when they make use of their power to exploit the poor and the defenceless. If the Church is really a witnessing Church, it may become a suffering Church. Our Christian life is either a witness to Christ or a counter-witness, and a confession or a denial of Christ. Whenever we live a life different from the general trend of the world and do not conform to its standards, people ask the reasons for behaving differently. They do so in our workplaces, neighbourhood and social events. That is an opportunity for us to confess Christ directly or indirectly. Do we become cowards or shy about confessing Christ at those moments?

Though sometimes we may keep our Christian identity a secret where there is life-threatening situation, it is not a secret to be hidden at all times. We are called to confess Christ both with our lips and deeds. Sometimes our actions speak louder than our words. We need to question today whether our actions are Christlike. Jesus tells us bluntly, if we deny him before others he will also deny us before the Father on the Judgement Day. The way we live our Christian life, will either witness to Christ or deny him. Sometimes by keeping silence at injustice, dishonesty and immorality around us, we deny Christ. We also deny him by living a life quite contrary to what we profess. Today’s text asks us the question whether we are willing to suffer for our faith. Out of fear sometimes we may hide our faith rather than bring it to light and proclaim it from the housetop, as Jesus tells us in today’s gospel.

William Barclay in his Daily Study Bible says that we can deny Christ in three ways: with our words, by our silence and by our actions. Sometimes we need to show in our words that as Christians we cannot conform to all the values of the world and are called to live a life different from the world. Sometimes we are afraid to speak anything against evil and fail to take a stand for Christ’s standards. To be safe, we just keep silence in the face of evil. For instance, our vocation is to uphold the sanctity or sacredness of life in a world where is denied due to countless misdeeds against human life. When human life is threatened from womb to tomb we are not to remain silent spectators. Or, take for example, the value of equality of all humans. When this is denied by racial or caste prejudices, discrimination, inhuman treatments, hatred, etc., we are not to remain silent. Jesus tells us not fear those who have power only to kill the body, but rather fear God who has power to destroy both the body and soul. The question today’s gospel places before us is: whom do we fear: God, or worldly powers?

Robin Sharma rightly says: "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. The real tragedy of life is when an adult is afraid of the light.” Jesus says in today’s gospel that we should not be afraid to speak in the light, or proclaim the truth from housetops what we hear from him in the secret of our hearts, in prayer and reflection on his Word. Quite often we are afraid of saying and doing what is right. The light of the Risen Lord can free us from the chains of fears (especially, imaginary or baseless ones), if we really believe in the power of his resurrection. If the Risen Lord is with us and for us, who or what can be against us (Rom 8:31-39)? When our fears (whether real or imaginary) take control of us and rule over our minds, they keep us chained and locked within the narrow space of our own souls. Instead of the Lord directing our lives, these fears become an independent force driving us where we may not like to go. Just as Jesus advised his disciples not to let their fears rule over them or win a mastery over them, he tells us the same. When we allow our fears to be our masters, we stop professing our faith in Christ before the people who oppose his values. Then they will enslave us and hinder our witnessing role or doing our mission.

In today’s gospel, Jesus assures us of God’s providential care and protection even in times of threats, opposition and persecution. Jesus reassures us that God is not like the world’s rulers. First of all, if he takes care of sparrows and other creatures of the earth so wonderfully, why will he not take care of us? Are we not of more value than these creatures? Whenever we are dismayed by fears, let us tune in the popular song in our minds: “Be not dismayed whatever betide, God will take care of you. Beneath his wings of love abide, God will take care of you.” Jesus invites us to put our total trust in a caring God and entrust our fears into his hands. Armed with a firm faith, we need to admit our powerlessness to change the things we cannot, and surrender our lives into the hands of the living Lord. After all, as Jesus says, the powers of the world can destroy only the body and not the soul. Since God has power over both, our reverential fear or total devotion should be rendered to God alone. Our outer security may come from walled compounds, grill-gates, locks, bodyguards, bullet-proof vests, masks, protective parents and companions; but our inner security comes from the power of the Risen Lord and his gift of peace – inner harmony. With his power we can overcome fear of hardship, distress, danger, persecution, peril and death. Let us place the bundle of fears before the living Lord and ask him to liberate us from all imaginary fears and give us the grace to face realistic fears with courage.

5.    Response to God's Word

What are the real and imaginary fears that prevent us from confessing Christ before the world? What are ways we deny Christ in words, by silence and by our actions? Do we allow our fears to be our masters and drive us? Do we trust in God’s care and protection when we face opposition, rejection and persecution for the sake of the gospel?

6.    A Prayer

Lord Jesus, whenever we take a firm stand on your values, the world may oppose, reject, persecute or intimidate us. Give us the courage to remain firm in our proclamation of your values and not to look always for approval of the world. Amen.

 

Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ (A)

 

The Body and Blood of Christ (A) [Jn 6:51-58]

07.06.2026

Jesus Gives His Flesh to Eat and Blood to Drink

Readings: (1) Deut 8:2-3.14-16 (2) 1 Cor 10:16-17

1.    Theme in brief:

The reality of the Eucharist

2.    Focus Statement:   

Jesus is really and truly present in the Eucharist in his entire Person (flesh and blood); through it he truly becomes our spiritual food and drink; because it is his flesh given up (sacrificed) to sustain our spiritual life.

3.    Explanation of the text

In today’s gospel, Jesus speaks about more powerful bread than the manna eaten by the ancestors of the Jews in the desert (6:58). He says that those who eat this particular bread become sharers of God's own divine life (technically called ‘eternal life’ in John’s gospel), and live for ever in spirit even after their physical death (6:58). This bread is his “flesh,” that is, his entire self, which he would give up or sacrifice on the cross in order to give God’s own divine life to people of the world (6:51). In other words, in order to give divine life to the world, Jesus gives up his physical life as a sacrificial offering.

Jesus says that eating the flesh and drinking the blood of the “Son of Man” is not something optional for the believers, but absolutely needed to nourish their faith and the gift of divine life given to them. If they will fail to do so, they will have no divine life in them (6:53). In other words, divine life in them will dry up; hence that situation will lead them to a spiritual death gradually. The words “flesh and blood of the Son of man” instead of “my flesh and blood” indicate that we are not asked to eat literally the physical flesh (or meat) and blood of earthly Jesus (that is, Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus of history). That would amount to cannibalism and would sound sacrilegious not only to Jews of those days (who were strictly forbidden to drink or eat blood of animals in any form), but also to people of our times. 

What Jesus says is that we should have an intimate communion with his spiritual flesh and blood after he will rise from the dead and will be glorified. As glorified Lord he is identified with the "Son of Man" – a title that points to his exalted and glorified state and recalls the figure described in Daniel 7:13 as "one like a son of man," who receives dominion and glory from God. What Jesus actually means is that by receiving him through the sacramental sign of bread and wine the believers take him entirely into them, along with his divinity. This intimate communion sustains the eternal (divine) life infused in believers at baptism. Therefore, the phrase “flesh and blood” does not mean physical flesh and real blood from human body, but a union with Jesus’ whole being or entire life in its mortal and fragile condition as well as in its glorified and divine state.

When Jesus says that his flesh is true food and blood is true drink (6:55), he means to say that this food and drink do to the spiritual life of believers what food and drink do to their physical life; that is, they nourish their spirit. In other words, Jesus claims that he is truly and really present in the Eucharist; hence, it is really a spiritual food and drink for believers.

The believers’ union with Jesus enables them to share his life, just as Jesus’ union with the Father enables him to share his life (6:57).The reception of the Eucharist has threefold effect on them: (1) nourishment of eternal life (6:54, 58), (2) abiding in Jesus or mutual indwelling (6:56) and (3) a pledge of final resurrection, given with the assurance: “I will raise them up on the last day” (6:54).

4.    Application to life                     

Today, as we celebrate the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, we firmly affirm and proclaim our faith that the Risen Lord Jesus is truly and really present in the Eucharist, because, as he claims in today’s gospel, his flesh is true food and blood is true drink (6:55). We raise our hearts and minds in thanksgiving to Our Lord in a special way for giving us the Eucharist as real spiritual food and drink to nourish our faith as well as our drooping spirit. What thanks can we render him for making a wonderful plan for our spiritual nourishment and growth? Again, today’s feast is such an act of thanksgiving, honour and praise to him.

Today’s gospel emphasizes two aspects of the Eucharist very much: sacrifice and shared life. All true life is sacrificial and sacrifices made out of genuine love for others always give life to them. Jesus sacrificed (gave up) his entire life or entire person (technically called his “flesh and blood” in today’s gospel) on the cross in order to give us God’s own life or divine life (called eternal life in John’s gospel). Now the same Lord becomes our Bread of Life in the Eucharist to nourish that divine life continually. We should never forget that the Eucharist is Jesus’ flesh or entire self given up (sacrificed) in order to go on feeding us with his divine life. This feast calls us to examine ourselves and see whether our entire life is spent only in pursuit of wealth and power, or in sharing our resources with the needy also, and whether we willingly make sacrifices for this kind of sharing.

Our common meals and banquets hosted on occasions like weddings are not meant only for filling our stomachs. If it were so, we could send some money to our relatives and friends and request them to have a nice meal in our name at their own homes on the occasion of wedding at our homes. When people gather at our invitation and share the banquet, it fosters love, communion, togetherness, fellowship and unity among all of us who share the same food. These banquets unite us and strengthen our relationships by coming together and socializing with one another. Similarly, the Eucharist also is a spiritual meal that gathers us together and results in an intimate relationship with Jesus as well as with one another. Unless we make the Eucharist as the source and summit of our life, we cannot grow in divine life. As mentioned in the explanation of the text, it is not optional.

Nowadays we are given a lot of health tips about the type of food we must eat and the type of food we must avoid in order to remain healthy. We are told to avoid “junk food” or “fast food” to maintain good health. The same thing is true about our spiritual health. If we do not bother to take care of our spiritual wellbeing by feeding our minds and spirit with spiritual food such as the Word of God and the Eucharist, sooner or later we are going to lose our spiritual health. We are constantly fed with all kinds of “junk food” or biased and fake news by a section of the mass media or social media. They feed us with a craving for possessions, positions, money, power, corruption, sex. We need a strong antidote to counter their negative influence on our minds and attitudes, because, ultimately we become what we eat – not only physically but also mentally and spiritually. Therefore, the question today’s feast wants us to consider is this: “Do you eat the spiritual food (Body and Blood of Christ) to resist negative and secular influences on your mind and grow spiritually?”

In today’s gospel, Jesus points to three effects or fruits of the reception of the Eucharist:

(1) Nourishing and sustaining the eternal life infused into us at baptism: As per John’s theology, eternal life, which begins at our baptism, is continually sustained and nourished by the Eucharist. Through the Holy Communion we take Jesus into us, and through him get into communion with God. Otherwise we shall suffer from under-nourishment or spiritual anaemia. We need to question ourselves whether we feed our hungry spirit for love and happiness with this spiritual food (Eucharist), or with pleasures, power, money, possessions and addictive behaviour.

Eternal life in John’s gospel is a present reality that can be experienced in this life itself to some extent. But it has a future fulfilment of total union with God in heaven (after death). The present experience of eternal life means a special and new quality of existence for those who believe in Jesus. It refers to a change in the quality of life, which a believer must live. Because of our faith in Christ our quality of life must be different from others. We have to re-think about our attitude towards the reception of the Eucharist and see whether it is only a routine, or whether it affects the quality of our life. How real is the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist for those of us who believe in his real presence in it? How does it affect us? Do we make a decision of the mind to improve the quality of our life as we silently bow down our heads and pray after receiving the Holy Communion? We ourselves become the centre of Christ’s real presence in the world if we live a life of self-sacrificing love and impart life to lifeless situations.

(2) A believer’s abiding in Jesus and Jesus’ abiding in him/her: This is called mutual indwelling. “Abiding” in Jesus or remaining with him refers to a personal and intimate relationship with him. It connotes an intimate union that takes place between Jesus and the one who feeds on him by faith. When we eat food, it becomes a part of our body and gets converted into energy. Similarly, when we feed on Christ we become more and more like him and grow into this intimacy.

This intimate union of the believer with the Risen Christ results in bearing fruits of love, fellowship and unity within our community more than the social banquets. Do we realize that it is one and the same Lord who comes into the hearts of friends and foes, the rich and the poor, Christians of this and that tribe/ caste/ race/ nationality, and of this and that language? Jesus invites us to make Eucharist the centre and source of our life, and feed our hungry minds and souls with this Bread of Life, especially when we are discouraged and in despair. Each time we receive the Eucharist, we are acknowledging and confessing that Jesus is our Bread of Life; we receive the One who alone can satisfy our deepest hunger and thirst for love, peace, justice…. With what disposition do we receive the Eucharist? The intimate union (abiding) with Jesus (called “Holy Communion”) should lead us to a life of communion (fellowship) with others. Since God so loved the world through the person of Jesus, a person who abides in him through the Eucharist should love the world as God loves. Reception of the Eucharist puts on us the responsibility to build up communities of love and unity, and build bridges of harmony. It motivates us to join programmes and groups that are involved in community building and human promotion.

 (3) A pledge of our final resurrection, an eternal abiding with Jesus in heaven. The joy of this final resurrection is compared to an eternal banquet. The Eucharist is an anticipation of the eternal banquet, a foretaste of it! To put it in human language, the Eucharist becomes a pledge of hope to ‘sit’ with the Lord for an eternal banquet on the last day. Therefore, when we receive the Eucharist, sometimes we should remind ourselves of the hope of the life that is awaiting us. We should remind ourselves that the purpose of our life is not only to create an earthly legacy for ourselves – a name, fame, reputation and wealth. When we think of the impermanence of life, we realize our foolishness to put full trust in things of this world – as if we would enjoy them for ever!

5.    Response to God's Word

Does the regular reception of the Eucharist lead us to a deeper communion with Jesus and our community? Do we feed our hungry spirit with this spiritual food (Eucharist), or with pleasures, power, money, or with only tensions of work and problems? Jesus gives his entire person (= flesh and blood) in sacrifice in order to give us his divine life in the Eucharist. Is our life given in service for the underprivileged so that we can give them life? Do we try to build up our community or become causes for its division? Do we participate in programmes of community building, sharing and teamwork? Does Eucharist generate in us this hope or a reminder of the life that is awaiting us? Does this hope sustain and support us when we face suffering and crises?

6.    A Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, you gave your Church an admirable Sacrament as the abiding memorial of your sacrificial love. Grant that the redeeming power flowing from this Blessed Sacrament may sanctify us, nourish the divine life us, deepen our union with you, lead us to go out of ourselves in sacrificial service and increase in us the hope of being raised on the last day, where you live for ever.  Amen.

Feast of the Most Holy Trinity (A)

 

Most Holy Trinity [Jn 3:16-18]

31.05.2026

God’s Boundless, Life-giving and Saving Love

Readings: (1) Ex 34:4b-6.8-9 (2) 2 Cor 13:11-13

1.    Theme in brief

Holy Trinity is a model for self-giving and self-communication

2.    Focus Statement

The Trinitarian God loves the whole of humanity so intensely and so universally that he goes out of himself in total self-giving, life-giving, self-communicating and saving love.

3.    Explanation of the text

“God so loved the world that he gave his only Son…..” (3:16). Since the Church prescribes this widely quoted and most famous statement in John’s gospel for the feast of Holy Trinity, we need to understand its meaning in the context of this feast. From the NT as a whole, we understand that our God, though one, is a community of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Hence, when we read the above-mentioned statement in John’s gospel we are to read it from this angle: it is the Trinitarian God who loved the world so much. How much? Of course, to the extent of giving his only Son as a gift to the world deprived of his genuine love, and to the extent of giving him up as a sacrificial offering on the cross. [Note: Biblical experts say that the word “gave” has both the meanings of giving a gift and giving up or sacrificing somebody]. God so loved the world means, he loved people of the world precisely in this manner and so intensely. The Holy Trinity is therefore another expression of John’s briefest definition of God mentioned in his Letter, "God is Love" (1 Jn 4:8). The basic nature of love is self-giving. Love needs somebody with whom it is shared, to whom it is given and from whom it is received. If God were not love, he could have been a solitary God; he need not be a community of Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. The Triune God himself becomes the best model of this nature of love within the Divine Community of three Persons.

When Jesus says, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son….,” it implies quite a few things: (1) saving people is fully God’s initiative; (2) the motive behind such an action is his pure love; (3) that his love is so intense (he “so” loved…); and (4) that his love is universal because the word “world” as John uses in the present context means all the people of the world – Jews and Gentiles, virtuous and sinners, or nationals and foreigners. In the context of today’s feast, we understand that the Father loves humans so intensely, purely, selflessly and universally that he gives them the greatest of gifts, namely his Son; the Son also loves in a similar manner and out of love lays down (sacrifices) his life on the cross; and the Holy Spirit too loves humans similarly by becoming a permanent Advocate – a constant companion at their side at all times.

The second nature of love is self-communication. Jesus says in today’s gospel that the self-communication of God to the world through him was an act of purest love (3:16). Just as we communicate our thoughts, intentions, love and desires through our words, so God communicates and reveals his love and designs for humankind through his Word who is his Son himself.  Hence, Jesus is called the Word or Mind or Thought of the Father. Through Jesus we come to know that God’s thoughts are thoughts of self-giving love and this love is nurtured by communication or self-disclosure.

Though God’s love is a universal gift, that is, given to everyone who believes (3:16), in order to be effective, one must be well disposed to receive it. The sad fact is that people have the power to reject this gift! Hence, Jesus puts a condition for God’s love to be effective: the receiver must believe in the Son (Jesus). ‘To believe’ in John’s gospel does not mean intellectual assent given to the truths of faith, but a decision to entrust oneself to Christ or to put one’s trust in him or to be personally attached to him by faith.

What is the purpose of God’s boundless love for the world? The first purpose behind Trinitarian God’s boundless love for the world is to share his own divine life (also called eternal life) with human beings through Christ and in the Holy Spirit who is the giver of life (or spring of living water, Jn. 4:14; 7:37-39), so that they do not perish eternally (3:16). The second purpose is to save humans rather than condemn them (3:17). We find a definition about the first purpose of God’s giving his only Son, namely to give eternal life to all believers. In 17:3 Jesus defines eternal life thus: “That they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent”. This word “to know" is used throughout the Scripture to describe the most intimate and personal relationship that one can have. So, eternal life is a personal relationship with Jesus, or a loving communion of life with him and through him with the Father. It is through Jesus we can have an intimacy with God. The Holy Spirit who dwells in our hearts is the fire which keeps this loving communion ever burring.

4.    Application to life                     

The Old Testament reveals to us the strictly monotheistic faith of Israelites. But from the New Testament we come to know that our God, though one, does not exist alone, in isolation or seclusion. He is neither a loner nor recluse; neither unrelated nor disconnected. He is a community of three inter-related persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – where love is shared through self-gift and self-communication. When we reflect on the inner life the Holy Trinity, we come to know that the love relationship which exists among the three persons flows into the world. Since we are baptized in the name of the Holy trinity, we are inserted into the Divine Family by baptism. Therefore, by baptism itself we are called to reflect the life of the Trinity. How?

First of all, we are called to imitate the self-giving love of the Holy Trinity. If God’s love for everyone in the world is so intensive, generous, selfless, self-giving, boundless, universal and sacrificial, what about our love? God's love is surprising, undeserved and unconditional. When we are confronted with this kind of love, our response should be either to submit to God's love or run away from it; nobody can remain neutral to it. Today’s feast calls on Christian families and religious communities to reflect on how they can love one another better by generously giving their  time, energy, knowledge, talents and gifts out of love for one another. They need to examine whether their love is selfless and generous, or selfish and business type; whether it is intensive, or just superficial; whether it is sacrificial, or seeking one’s own advantage and comfort; and whether it is universal, or exclusively confined to loving one’s own group (ethnic/ racial/ tribal/ caste/ linguistic), or only those who are good, obedient, submissive and well behaved.

Secondly, the Holy Trinity is the model for perfect love-relationship among us.. The essence of this heavenly community is the personal relationship of love among the three Divine Persons. Christian communities, especially the communities of Religious among us, are called to be rooted and grounded in love. The Triune God loves the world so intensely that he goes out in self-communication to all of humanity through his Son and continues to do so through the life-giving Spirit. Communication is a process in which one reveals something of oneself by way of self-disclosure. The very fact that God has revealed to us his own Trinitarian character is itself a proof that he loves us boundlessly. Nobody reveals or discloses oneself to those whom one does not love. Hence, this feast of the Holy Trinity invites us to imitate God’s own Trinitarian nature of self-communication or self-disclosure. Unless we disclose something of what is going on inside of us, how can we grow in each other’s love?

 Nobody will know what is going on inside of me, unless I decide to share it with others. Jesus shares with his disciples all that he heard from his Father on equal footing and in total transparency (15:15). None of the Divine Persons hold back or hide form each other what is theirs but share it fully with others (16:14-15). Jesus says that he has many more things to tell us (16:12-15) about the mystery of God’s love. He has given us the Holy Spirit to guide us in our discovery of God’s love as well as each other’s love in daily life. We are called to imitate the qualities of sharing, communication and transparency that exist within the Divine Community in our families and religious communities. Communication involves a sharing of our likes, dislikes, doubts, hopes, fears, faith and experiences. By this we discover who the other person is and each other’s love. The uncontrolled use of TV, mobile phones, computer and the internet has brought down the level of communication in our families and religious communities so much that it tends to be more superficial and not deeper. Further, tendencies of individualism make us more isolated and selfish. If we follow the unwritten principle of, “I do my work; you do your work” and “I mind my business; you mind your business,” faith in the Holy Trinity becomes meaningless!

Thirdly, we are called to live a life of unity in spite of so much diversity among us. We come to know from the NT that within the Divine Family of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, there is perfect unity of purpose in spite of diverse roles or functions. Creation is attributed to the Father or the Creator of heaven and earth, redemption to the Son who laid down his life on the cross for our salvation, and sanctification to the Holy Spirit who dwells in our hearts. Each Person is unique and all share in the divine nature in perfect unity. Similarly, each one of us is unique but as humans and as Christians we share a common origin, common nature and a common destiny. All the three Persons fulfil their roles for one purpose: universal salvation of humankind. Therefore, if we want to love the world as God loves (as today’s gospel tells us), we need to work out unity among us in spite of differences of race or caste, language, ethnicity, culture, opinions, faith tradition (religion), and other social affiliations. This requires respect for others’ differences, accepting them as they are, appreciating whatever is good and noble in them and sacrificing our own prejudices, judgements and wrong attitudes. Do we try to work out unity by respecting diversity among people, or look for unity with uniformity, that is, by forcing everybody else to be like us? Our God is a God of pluriformity and not uniformity; all differences are like seven colours and all are needed to make a ‘rainbow.’

Fourthly, this feast invites us to make our love more universal and inclusive. Our faith is a response to God’s universal love. Do we love the people of “our world” (our human society) as God loved and loves the world? This feast motivates us to fight against evil forces which block the universality of love such as prejudices, narrow-mindedness, groupism, racism, jealousies and individualism. It motivates us to respect and accept the differences among us and work for unity in spite of our diversity of ethnicity or race, culture, language, religion, opinion and ideology. It also inspires us to question our ghetto-mentality and appreciate something good in everything and everybody, or to collaborate with any people of good will who work in the line of gospel-values.

Fifthly, this feast motivates us not be judgmental and become ‘experts’ in always condemning others who are weak or do wrong. Since the Trinitarian God wants that nobody should perish, but all be saved, and showers his mercy and salvation on sinners, we too need to imitate these attitudes. We have to examine whether our love is merciful and saving like that of the Holy Trinity.

5.    Response to God's Word

Do we love the world (our civil society, neighbourhood, village community) as God does? Is it selfless and generous, or selfish and business type; intensive, or just superficial; sacrificial, or seeking one’s own advantage and comfort? Is our love universal or selective? Is there genuine and deeper communication in our family or religious community? What should we do to overcome superficial communication among us? Do we fight against evil forces which block the universality of God’s love such as racism, ethnic loyalties, religious and national prejudices? How often have we offended the Trinitarian God by wishing terrible things including death to our opponents and enemies? Is our love merciful and saving, like that of the Trinity?

6.    A Prayer.

Most Holy Trinity, we adore you as a community of three Divine Persons who reveal boundless love to us through total self-giving and self-communication. Grant our love may be selfless, generous, deeper, sacrificial and universal like yours. Grant that we may discover each other’s love in our family (community) more and more, deeper and deeper through regular communication. Give us the grace to overcome our prejudices, narrow-mindedness, groupism, racism, jealousies and individualism. May our love be merciful and saving like yours rather than condemning? Amen. 

PENTECOST SUNDAY (A)

 

Pentecost Sunday (A) [Jn 20:19-23]

24.05.2026

Jesus Breathes His Spirit in the Apostles

Readings: (1) Acts 2:1-11 (2) 1 Cor 12:3-7.12-13

1.    Theme in brief:

Gift of new life and mission of peace and reconciliation

2.    Focus Statement:  

The Risen Lord breathes his Spirit upon us and sends us to carry forward his mission of peace, forgiveness and reconciliation with a new zeal and vigour.

3.    Explanation of the text

According to today’s gospel text, on the evening of “the first day of the week” (20:19), that is, on first Easter Sunday, Jesus fulfils his promise of giving his disciples “another Advocate” besides himself (14:16) by breathing on them his life-giving Spirit (19:22). The symbolism of “breathing” on them indicates that the Holy Spirit is the Risen Lord’s own breath or life. Just as God had breathed into the nostrils of the first man (Adam) the breath of life, and he had become a living being (Gen 2:7), so also Jesus breathes on his disciples in a similar fashion and says: “Receive the Holy Spirit” (20:22). By giving them the gift of the Holy Spirit in the form of breath, he makes them a new creation or imparts new life (zeal and vigour) to them. This new creation also symbolizes the creation or birth of a new community of believers, i.e. the Church.

The gesture of breathing on them may also refer to prophet Ezekiel’s vision of a valley full of dry bones. The Lord asked the prophet to prophesy to those dry bones that he would cause breath to enter in them and they would live (37:1-14). The apostles were now like dry bones – lifeless and locked up for fear of the Jewish authorities (20:19). Like Prophet Ezekiel, Jesus caused his breath or life (Holy Spirit) to enter into the lifeless dry bones and they began to live (Ez 37:9, 14). The Holy Spirit regenerates or rejuvenates them in such a way that they emerge from their hideouts to become courageous witnesses of the Lord. 

4.    The Risen Lord’s twice repeated salutation of peace (20:19, 21) is also a gift that is closely associated with the Holy Spirit. He gives his Spirit to remain in the Church for ever so that he might motivate her for her mission to build up peace and harmony in the world. Peace in this context does not mean quietness or mere absence of war; it involves all-round well-being, wholeness, harmony and building up of human relationships. In the OT, peace is closely associated with the blessing of God and salvation to be brought by the Messiah. Here probably John wants to tell his readers, with the outpouring of the Risen Lord’s Spirit, the messianic hopes are fulfilled.

Thus, the Holy Spirit also is closely associated with the mission of Christ. By breathing his Spirit on them, he empowers them to come out of their locked doors and fears so that they can carry out his mission. Just as the Father had sent Jesus (20:21), he sends them to continue his work. They were locked in, now they are sent out. The mission of the Father is the mission of the Son, which is also the mission of the Church. Though the concept of mission is common in all the gospels, since today’s passage is from John, we have to understand this mission in terms of John’s main themes – to share God’s (divine or eternal) life, light and truth with others; to dispel darkness of sin and death; and to lay down our lives in humble service for others. 

      A further aspect of the mission of the Church is emphasized in today’s text – to forgive sins of any so that she may proclaim the forgiving love of God and carry forward his ministry of reconciliation (20:23).

5.    Application to life                      

Today we celebrate the great feast of Pentecost [in Greek ‘fiftieth’ day after Easter] on which the Spirit of the Living God descended on Mary and the twelve apostles in the form of a mighty wind and tongues of fire according to the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:1-4). But according to John’s gospel prescribed for today’s feast, the Risen Lord, who himself was filled with the Spirit, imparted the first fruit of the Holy Spirit to the apostles on the evening of Resurrection Day itself by breathing on them with these words: “Receive the Holy Sprit” (20:22). The Holy Spirit is the breath of God (or Jesus) who breathes new life or fullness of life into us, making us a new creation, so that we may share that life with others. The Risen Lord continues to breathe his Spirit into us even today. He empowers us with the same Spirit to come out of our locked doors and fears (as the apostles came out of their hideouts) so that we could be sent out for a mission – a mission of peace, forgiveness, liberation and reconciliation.

Many of us have a poor understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit in our personal life. He is mostly presented to us in an impersonal manner through biblical symbols such as dove, fire, water, breath or wind. In my pastoral field here, when I ask children (teenagers) preparing for the sacrament of Confirmation whether the Holy Spirit is really a dove, that is, a bird, all of them firmly say: “Yes”. When I ask them whether he has wings and feathers exactly like a bird, they answer with great gusto: “Yes”. When I ask them whether we can kill that dove and prepare a nice dish or curry, they just keep quiet and stare at me in utter confusion. We are not taught from childhood to develop a personal devotion to the Holy Spirit and consider him as another intimate friend (besides Jesus) who is always at our side to guide, defend and renew/ re-create/ regenerate us. We are taught to sing, “What a friend we have in Jesus,” but never taught to sing or pray: “What a friend we have in the Holy Spirit.” In spite of the efforts of Charismatic Retreats, he still remains an Unknown God to be remembered only when we begin a meeting/ retreat/ seminar/ novena, and when we celebrate feasts like this one, Pentecost. Yes, the Holy Spirit, though an invisible power, can be experienced as an intimate friend if we develop sensitivity to his presence and consciously cultivate a close friendship with him and increase it through a passion for him. But it does not happen automatically because you have heard about the Holy Spirit in catechism and sermons or undergone a theological course on him.

Based on today’s gospel, how can we develop a friendship with the Holy Spirit? His role as the Breath or Life of God (or Jesus) is presented to us symbolically in today’s Gospel in terms of one of the most common but absolutely essential activities of human body, that is, breathing. Hence the Spirit of God is in every breath we take. The activity of breathing takes place in us even when we are not conscious of it. To become aware of it, we need to quietly sit in a place and breathe in and breathe out as we concentrate on the tip of our nose. Similarly, we need to become conscious of the Spirit’s presence by invoking him as we breathe in and breathe out: “Come, Holy Spirit; you are the Giver of New Life; you are the Giver of God’s own life; you are the Giver of Divine Life. Infuse that life into me and renew me; re-create me; regenerate me.” (In fact, this is what the symbol of breath implies.) Regeneration in this context means imparting a new nature, God's own nature or divine nature. All of us are born with a nature perverted by sin. The Spirit gives us the power to rise above our natural inclination to evil, selfishness, negativity, narrow-mindedness and despair. We need his power not to cling to present status quo always by strongly resisting any change, and slip into a life of routine and lethargy.

Though the Holy Spirit is an invisible power, his presence and action can be experienced by the result of his work, just like wind or storm can be felt by the shaking of trees, flying of dust, its blowing sound, etc. To recognize his work or action we need to look at what happens to us, to others, to the world around us with the eyes of faith. Suppose we observe people who take a lot of initiatives to bring about a change in themselves, in others, in their surroundings or society; show a lot of creativity in their work; are able to overcome their lethargy; show a burning zeal for the mission of Christ; then in faith we must ask, from where does this come? For a firm believer in the re-creative and re-generative power of the Holy Spirit, it is sign of his powerful presence and action. Because it is written here, the Holy Spirit will not re-create us automatically. We need to consciously invoke him, call him to our side as a friend and request him to make us more creative and enthusiastic in service and promotion of life. We experience the ‘breath’ of the Spirit blowing in us whenever we hunger for real life and move from coldness, indifference and mere physical existence, to lively and proactive approach to life. Whenever we have a passion (= a strong feeling/ sense/ commitment) for life and its meaning/value, we begin to promote the fullness of life under the influence of the Life-Giver (Holy Spirit).

We have a tendency within us to go through all the religious practices such as daily prayers, Holy Mass, novenas, and rituals without allowing our faith to bring about change in our attitudes, prejudices, life-style, and the way we imitate the corrupt practices of the world. Is this not a sign of living a lifeless life? We have to invoke the power of the Holy Spirit today to mould us and melt our stubborn resistance to his power to shake us up. At baptism, we too received the breath of the Risen Lord, that is, his Spirit that made us a new creation. In spite of that we become like dry bones (of Ezekiel’s prophecy) lacking zeal, vitality and creativity in our Christian commitment. Suppose we ‘faithfully’ and blindly carry on what is handed down or bequeathed to us by our ancestors or predecessors without showing any creativity and vitality in our service to the family or society, how can we say that the Holy Spirit is active in us? When we shut our minds against new ideas and avenues, we block the Spirit of new creation. When we are unwilling to read the signs of the times and resist any renewal and adaptation of our faith to the changed conditions, we just shut out the Holy Spirit or block his entry into our hearts. Today we must open our hearts to the Risen Lord and beg him to breathe his Spirit into us and renew and re-create us, so that like Adam we may become really LIVING BEINGS.

Just as the gift of the Spirit was given to the disciples to empower them for their mission, the Lord continues to send us today with the empowerment of his Spirit to continue his mission – to share his peace where it is broken, to reconcile where there is disharmony, to breathe a fresh life where there is no life (where people sit in the shadow of death), to dispel the darkness of sin and to spend our life in humble service for others. Peace is both a gift and a task. We are given this gift by the Risen Lord not only to experience it in our hearts but also to engage in a peace-building mission – a mission that makes whole what is broken into pieces. Forgiveness of others’ sins is the key to peace-building mission. There is a link between peace and ‘not retaining the sins’ (20:23) of others in our hearts. When we retain the sins of others instead of forgiving them, we grieve the Holy Spirit dwelling in our hearts. Retaining or holding on the sins of others in our hearts is like allowing a wound or a sore to remain untreated. Healing takes place only when we let go, instead of holding on to the hurts caused by others. In a world which is so much wounded by hatred, violence and divisions, forgiveness and reconciliation – and through them building up peace – is a mission which the Church cannot afford to forget for the sake of her own relevance in the world. Let us ask ourselves whether in our families, neighbourhood and communities we are known as peacemakers or peace-breakers.

Peace and reconciliation are very much related to building unity in the midst of diversity, plurality and multiplicity prevalent in our globalized world. By overemphasizing those things which make us different from others and never relishing or highlighting what is common among us, we bring division and fragmentation; thus grieve the Spirit of Unity. Unity is not uniformity – forcing and expecting everybody else to think/ act/ behave like us and to follow our cultural pattern. When we allow ourselves to be led by the Spirit, we begin to appreciate the richness of variety and diversity among people. They are not a source of conflict, but various colours that are moulded into a single rainbow. The Holy Spirit inspires and energizes us to develop this kind of ‘rainbow spirituality’ in multi-religious and multi-cultural situations in our globalized world today.

6.    Response to God's Word

Are we satisfied with mere physical existence or do we hunger for real life? What makes us lively and what makes us cold? Do so many people have to please us? Am I a difficult person to please? What are the signs of indifference and coldness in me? Do we grieve the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:30) by spreading hatred, bitterness, division and unforgiving attitudes? Do we quench the Spirit (1 Thess 5:19) by not yielding to his inspiration; and resist the Spirit (Acts 7:51) by stubbornly holding on to our own ways and blocking any change? Is there creativity and zeal in our service? Are we known as peacemakers or peace-breakers? What are the ideas and attitudes we do not want to change, though outdated?

7.    A Prayer

Come O Creator Spirit blest. O Fount of Life and Fire of Love, blow into us the breath of new and fresh life. Unlock the doors of our minds and hearts to go out of ourselves to build bridges of forgiveness and reconciliation. Stir us up from coldness and indifference so that we can serve with creativity and zeal. Our world and the Church are wounded by divisions. Transform us to work for reconciliation and forgiveness, thus breaking down the walls of division. Blow, blow, blow where you will and bend what is stiff in us. Amen.