Celebration of the Gospel

We have been listening to Jesus about welcoming the kingdom of God into our lives. We can imagine ourselves being with Jesus and his disciples where disciples were plucking and eating the grain in the field on a sabbath day. It had invited criticism from the Pharisees which we see in the beginning of chapter 12 of the Gospel according to Matthew. Chapter 13 told the parables of the Sower, weeds among wheat, mustard seed, yeast, treasure, pearl, and the net. All these speak of the value of the kingdom, our growth, and of course about our choice for or against it.

Growing of the kingdom in our lives producing a rich harvest, or the finding the precious pearl even at the cost of everything else, is a joyous experience. In growth there is already a fulfilment, and a harvest makes that joy complete. The first reading speaks of the solemn festivals of the Jews. At Passover everything that is old is discarded and we pass over to the new time. Then there are Pentecost and the feast of the tabernacle, thanksgiving and celebration of the harvest. So there is remembering, gathering thanking, giving, rejoicing.

Do we see the kingdom growing in us gradually, slowly, day by day, moment by moment? Can we see the grace at work when we toil in our daily lives with different duties, responsibilities? Are we able to see more of a Jesus quality in our words and attitudes? Rejoice! Are there temptations and trials? That is fine. If Christ is growing in us there will be encouraging voice within us. We too can be confident because we trust in God. If that trust is lacking we will be worried about what we can do to please God. This botheration can disrupt our joy in the growth of the kingdom. We can pay, we can please and expect what we want. So, there is no joy of the harvest that we can raise in thanksgiving. We are familiar with performances before God and others. Many of us suffer inside because what we live is not the truth of what we are.

Dear friends, the harvest, the joy is because of the truth of the Gospel, truth about God and truth about ourselves. We are the children of God who cares for us. God sets a home for us in Christ where we gather as brothers and sisters. Perhaps this God was not palatable because it challenges us for true love for God and others. True love includes the true self of ourselves that we can offer before God and before one another.

Jesus being carpenter’s son was not the reason that he was rejected, the problem was that he said the righteous and those condemned to be sinners, both were worthy of having the treasure of God’s kingdom in their heart and deserve to be at the joyous celebration.  The Gospel asks us to move to a new time of freedom of the children of God, freed from prejudices and fears, freed from the favourable masks we created for God. The Gospel growing in us generates a great sense of gratitude. The Gospel directs our actions, relationships, visions, and convictions that we can gather the harvest with joy. The Gospel is a celebration, gathering our fruits along with the pain, trials and suffering gone behind it. We share it joyfully too.

Leviticus 23:1,4-11,15-16,27,34-37, Matthew 13:54-58

Let us give them bread to eat

God does not make bread out of stone in a moment, nor does God shower food from the sky. Bread is a graceful miracle that God does in the soil. “You give them something to eat” should also meet the whole question of “why are they hungry?” If we cannot participate in ensuring the right answer in some way, we have no part in the Eucharistic banquet. Since bread became a money maker, we store food, make consumption increase, and waste what is excess. World’s people are hungry not because food is insufficient, but because over consumption and wastage. Around the world, more than enough food is produced to feed the global population—but as many as 811 million people still go hungry each night. From 2019 to 2020, the number of undernourished people grew by as many as 161 million, a crisis driven largely by conflict, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Somehow we are fooling ourselves being at the luxury of the altar expecting God to do magic and end poverty, end conflicts and establish peace. We are simply to enjoy the entertainment. We are, in fact, wasting the grace that works within us. Stone to become bread is a temptation. Bread and fruits are outcome of a big process of generosity and sacrifice. From the soil, the earthworms, the farmer to the baker it is a graciousness. What we hear from the servant of Elisha (2 Kings 4:43) and the disciples of Jesus (Jn 6:7) is the same, “We don’t have enough to serve the needs of the hungry.” The servant of Elisha does not ask what are we to do with the twenty loaves and fresh grain for themselves. 

The storers have power, and power creates further conflicts. In 2020, conflict was the primary driver of hunger for 99.1 million people in 23 countries. So, the saying of Jesus, “You give them something to eat” is very significant to our context. Mt 14: 16 Mk 6:37. We too can ask, “what do we have to meet the world hunger?” 

First step to do is to feel the hunger, know that there are hungry people around just as Jesus saw and had compassion on them. Even if we take the theological presentation in St John as Jesus offering pointing to himself as the bread of life, it calls us in a deeper way to be conscious of how we function as the bread of life if we are part of his body. Feeding the hungry is to offer life. It involves sacrifice and death. Hunger relates to many other factors like safe stay, general health, water and sanitation … If we are thinking of the kingdom of God sincerely the doors are here.

Then the Lord God said: “Let us give them bread to eat.” The earth community gathered, the soil, water, earthworm, fallen leaves, ash … “what can we do for these many people?” they asked. “For one grain a thousand measure,” so generously let us produce if we stand together. Grains were in abundance and fruits were plenty.

Seed for eternal harvest

The life-giving word is not written in letters, it is given to us in love. Through the Holy spirit the love of God is poured into our hearts (Rom 5:5). Living Word the person of Christ not only lives in our hearts, but transforms us into His image (2 Cor 3:18). It is Christ who is sown into our hearts. Perhaps we have understood the Word as the words and letters that we read and have become like soil that could not produce a rich harvest.

 In explaining the parable of the sower, Jesus considers the first category as those who hear the word of the kingdom without understanding (Mt 13: 18). For them the words are for ‘using’ against their fears and insecurities, not for living and growing based on trust in God. They find special power in certain verses, and use them for miracles and wish fulfilment.  Some take it as a political text using selective portions with a fixed view in mind. Naturally the words are scattered, and simply taken away from them.

 The second category (Mt 13: 20, 21) has a ‘wow’ feeling of the word due to the eloquence, ​​the dramatics​, ​​​or​ ​narrative styles, stirring of their emotions. The word does not enter their hearts because they do not want to let it sprout and take root. They just enjoy it without integrating into their own personal life. It is all the more dangerous for us today because we are not able to distinguish between a spiritual nourishment and a spiritual entertainment. Ultimately the rocky ground can do only a performance of initial enthusiasm.

The third category Jesus mentioned ​included those who hear the word, but cannot produce anything because the worry of the world and the lure of riches choke the word (Mt 13: 22). Worries of the world are not only about so called ‘worldly’ things. Worries and lures are dominant in our lives even in so called ‘spiritual’ matters. Often worries become motive, and benefits called as blessings becomes the aim. On many occasions we are worried which prayer to be said and how many times it has to be said, which prayer to what blessing … We have ‘powerful’ prayers, powerful verses to make certain effects. Faith, devotion, and prayer are thus reduced into some ‘performance’ under the disguise of committed prayerfulness and spiritual life. Gradually this external cover gets thicker and harder and begins to hurt others due to our demands and judgments. Something to be noted here is that the soil equally grew the thorny bush or even more happily. Have we sufficiently attended to the jealousy, hatred, revengeful attitudes ...growing within us that cannot allow the grace to grow in us? and we are very pious and religious persons, aren't we?

The seed sown in rich soil (Mt 13: 23) is someone who hears the word and understands it as the living word that transforms one into children of God, one who receives the love of God and the power of the spirit into one’s daily life, struggles, and joys, hardships and temptations, relationships and social responsibilities, one who finds peace and contentment in God because he is sincere and able to trust God wholeheartedly.

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Law of the Lord

Before the law was given Moses had prepared the people, sanctified them. There was large cloud, thundering and lightening, and among the people great trembling when God appeared. The author of the book of Exodus narrates the giving of the law stretching from chapter 20 till 31: 18. However, what we see immediately is the making of the Golden calf. This context must evoke in us a sense of rejected bond of a loving heart. When the book of Deuteronomy reflects about the giving of the law for the second time what is needed is the circumcision of the heart (Dt 10: 16) what Joel speaks similarly later about the tearing of heart instead of the gestures of tearing garments Joel 2:13.

“I am the Lord your God” is the very reason of the law. Even the continuing phrase “there shall be no other god besides me” is because “I am the Lord your God.” From Is 54: 5 we have "I am your Lord, the maker, your husband." No following of rules, no ritual performance and sacrifice, no images can substitute for entering into intimacy with God in knowing who he is to us. That is why we emphasise that it is a covenant, a personal relationship. We cannot worship concepts, nor any of our convictions can grant us grace.

This shows the danger if law itself becomes God. We may be mistaken and move in a belief system based on certain regulations, not rooted in faith. Thus we lose ourselves and misguide others. In our rigidity and hardness, we want to see the victory of that belief system, bang others with ‘that truth’ which has unknowingly become an ideology but still thought to be faith and morals. Unfortunately, when law becomes God it serves those who have the power to interpret and manipulate the law. So when the law itself becomes the Golden calf it is my own desire for power is being worshiped in disguise.

So the New Covenant is not a set of laws, it is the person of Christ. We cannot dupe Christ. Whatever he is, we are enabled to be through the power of the Holy Spirit. His attitudes and behaviour is the new law we follow. Through him, with him, and in him we have the following of the Law and the living of the covenant.

What I want is mercy, not sacrifice!

What I want is mercy, not sacrifice!

What is easier? Of course, it is sacrifice, even if it is costly or painful. We are ready to anything that does not touch our convenience and comfort. We can perform sacrifices and easily escape from what really can transform us.

The nature of relationship to God changes if we place god in a retributive system. It will be of numbers and measures. We perform a number of offerings, sacrifices, fasting, and then God ought to give blessings that we ask. It is a consumerist transaction in nature. God's blessings are not like salary to the things that we do or perform. God does not want to play a child who is pleased and happy when it is given some chocolate, or something 'very nice' is told about the child. Nor does god want to be a sympathizer who approaches us in favour when we take up some pain for God.

We often act well as if we are very faithful to god only to create an expectation of wonder and miracle, and miss the presence of God constantly among us. After all what is the use of a god who does not do what we want?
Such things are offering of abomination to God, a burden to God, says Isiah. not because they were not lawful, but because they were heartless.
Instead of such vain oblation what God desires is this: "cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow." Is 1: 13, 14, 17 Even the kind of fasting God wants is something similar: " to loose the chains of injustice and release the oppressed, sharing
food with the hungry, sheltering the homeless, and clothing the naked." Is 58: 6, 7
Ps 50 says, "Let thanksgiving be your sacrifice to God" Ps 50: 14
God will not reject a humble spirit and contrite heart. Psalm 51:17 Daniel 3:39-42

Worship happens only when God is known as someone worth, not when god is found useful. Our loyalty to god and devotion is based on the love of God, and God's constant presence with us. There is a bond of love and trust. If we can understand this, the loyal devotion will be generated in our relationship with others too in words, gestures and attitudes. We can be kind and merciful both to the living and the dead. It must be gratitude and love that motivate us to pray for them, not because of any fear that something might happen to us otherwise.

Just like what we heard about the sacrifice offered to God, we get to know the meaning of our relationship to them in gratitude, charity and trust. There we can experience and express not only the mercy and kindness of God, but the true power of God also.

What I want is mercy, not sacrifice! If you have understood the meaning of this you would not have condemned the blameless.

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We do have repetitive prayers and patterns of prayers. that is not the problem here. the problem lies when the prayers are thought as if they 'produce' or cause grace. No prayer produces healing, forgiveness, victory... They are from God. "This blessing for this being said for this number of times," "try this and know what happens" ... are patterns of YouTube devotions. Sharing, giving Likes for holy pictures, repetition of Bible verses, writing sections or whole of Bible ... are extension of it. 

Those who find shelter in devotions are often unaware what they are trying to escape from. It might end up in failure emotionally, in life patterns and even in faith. 

It is really unhealthy and dangerous when we are not ready for transformations that are essential. It might worsen the situation when one relies only on miraculous praying over by someone. even though it is effortful to practice discipline, patience, industriousness, prudence ... it is not proper to expect conversion and a standing renewal without these sincere efforts. 

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