XXVIII O.T. Is 25:6-10a; Phil 4:12-14, 19-20; Mt 22:1-14 

An older couple was being married. Both had lost their spouses to death and had grown children. The combined children sent out this wedding invitation in their behalf: “Phil, Richard, Karen and Allison, and John, Matt and Steve request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their Mother and Father. Because they are combining two households, they already have at least two of everything.  So please, no presents! Reception and garage sale immediately following the ceremony.”

There is no more hopeful event on earth than a wedding . . . at any age.  Jesus loved weddings. His first miracle was at a wedding. On one occasion he referred to himself as a bridegroom. So it is not surprising that at least one of his parables should feature a wedding.

In this parable one man showed himself not in the right clothes. Everyone else wore tuxes and evening clothes and he was in jeans. Does wearing the right clothes matter?

In his book, David Brinkley, A Memoir, Brinkley tells about coming to work for NBC in the 1940s. At that time, NBC considered itself the elegant network. The rule was that after 6:00 p. m., radio newscasters were required to read the news wearing tuxedos. Can you imagine that? Their radio audience couldn’t see the newscasters, but NBC management believed their attitude and presentation skills improved dramatically when they were properly attired.

 No wonder then why the church asks us not to come to church with beach clothes on. Because that would not make us properly disposed for the sacred mysteries.

In this parable the man came without proper dress not because he could not afford wedding clothes. Scholars tell us it was the custom in Jesus’ time for the host to provide free garments for all the guests. There was no excuse for this guest to be dressed inappropriately except for either ignorance or obstinacy. The attitude of the king indicates that it was the latter. His silence also provides added proof to this. The king didn’t cut him any slack: He said to his attendants, “Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

 This is a shocking text for many people. In fact, it is not about clothes at all. This text implies that there are certain qualifications for those who follow Jesus.  Many people today have heard the message of grace: “Jesus loves me, Jesus accepts me just as I am.  I’m saved. I’m headed to the Promised Land.” But that is only a part of the Gospel message. British bishop N.T. Wright comments: “We want to hear a nice story about God’s throwing the party open to everyone.  We don’t want to know about judgment on the wicked, or about demanding standards of holiness, or about weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

 He goes on to say, “[Jesus’] love reached [those who were invited to the feast] where they were, but his love refused to let them stay as they were. Love wants the best for the beloved.”

  “Actually,” he continues, “nobody really believes that God wants everyone to stay exactly as they are. God loves serial killers and child molesters; God loves ruthless and arrogant businessmen. But the point of God’s love is that he wants them to change. He hates what they’re doing and the effects it has on everyone else and on themselves too. Ultimately, if he’s a good God, he cannot allow that sort of behavior, and that sort of person, if they don’t change, to remain forever in the party he’s throwing for his son .

          “The point of the story is,” continues Bishop Wright, “that . . . God’s kingdom is a kingdom in which love and justice and truth and mercy and holiness reign unhindered. They are the clothes you need to wear for the wedding. And if you refuse to put them on, you are saying, you don’t want to stay at the party . . . .” . God loves us as we are, but God expects us to clothe ourselves with the character of Jesus Christ. 

 Just like the man who showed disrespect to the host by coming in inappropriate garments, the invitees who did not show up at all were offensive and culpable.

We may sometimes find ourselves in either of these camps.

When we don’t show up or don’t come prepared to meet the Lord, then we are like those who turned down his invitation to the wedding feast. Our excuses may run like this: We need our Sunday recreational times. We have to work. Sunday is the only time we have to spend with our family (and apparently we don’t want to spend it in worship). Sunday is the only day we have to sleep in. I would get up early to pray, but I have a busy day ahead and need my rest.  My spouse is not supportive of my faith.  I know I should read the Bible, but television is more entertaining. I can’t serve the Lord because my kids are active; I have to take them to ball game practice; and I want to share all these times with my kids, perhaps when they are older.

When faith becomes a compartment of life instead of life's vibrant center, when we are squeezing God in between everything else- we miss the party, or poorly dressed.

A legend tells the story of a fisherman called Aaron. Aaron lived on the banks of a river. Walking home with his eyes half-closed one evening after a hard day's work, he was dreaming of what he could do if he were rich. As he walked his foot struck against a leather pouch filled with what seemed to him to be small stones. Absentmindedly he picked up the pouch and began throwing the pebbles into the water. "When I am a rich man," he said to himself, "I'll have a large house". And he threw another pebble into the river. He threw another one and thought, "My wife and I will have servants and rich food, and many fine things". And this went on until just one stone was left. As Aaron held it in his hand, a ray of light caught it and made it sparkle. He was not throwing ordinary stones but valuable gems, throwing away the real riches in his hand, while he dreamed of unreal riches in the future." This legend summarizes our situation. The value of the Kingdom of God is before us if we will but realize.

XXVII. O.T. Is 5:1-7; Phil 4:6-9; Mt 21:33-43 

The common theme of today’s readings is the necessity of bearing fruit in the Christian life and the consequent punishment for spiritual sterility, ingratitude and wickedness.  The parable of the wicked tenants is a theological summary of the entire history of the ingratitude, infidelity and hard-heartedness of the Chosen People.   Its importance is shown by its appearance in all the three Synoptic gospels.

Jesus describes the mysterious absence, the seeming distance of God, in terms of a landowner who goes away on a long journey, leaving his vineyard in the care of others. The servants fail the tests: they forget that they are stewards, not owners. The stewards reject even the owners’ son which was a terrible mistake, leading to their damnation.

There is a legend about a simple man who was lifted from the gutter and magically granted three wishes. First he wished for material goods and forthwith became very rich. Then he wished for understanding and soon became very wise. At last he used his third wish to express his desire to become as God, and immediately he found himself back in the gutter.
So it was with the wicked tenants. Dissatisfied with their role as stewards and not owners, they eventually lost the very vineyard which supported them. The tenants of the vineyard are most to be pitied.

Jesus quoted the words of the Psalmist to open their eyes to the mistake the Jewish leaders were doing: "The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head stone or the corner stone." The cornerstone is the keystone or capstone completing the arch and supporting the entire structure. There was a legend that was well known in New Testament times that in the building of the temple of Solomon most of the stones were of the same size and shape. One stone arrived, however, that was different from the others. The builders took one look at it and said, "This will not do," and sent it rolling down into the valley of Kedron below. Then years passed and the great temple was nearing completion, and the builders sent a message to the stonecutters to send the chief cornerstone that the structure might be complete. The cutters replied that they had sent the stone years before. Then someone remembered the stone that was different than all the rest that somehow did not seem to belong. They realized that they had thrown away the cornerstone. They hurried into the valley to retrieve it. Finally under vines and debris they recovered it and with great effort rolled it up the hill and put it in place so that the great temple would be complete. The stone that had been rejected had become the chief cornerstone. Jesus, who had been rejected now reigns at the right hand of the Father. From rejection to rejoicing.

October is Pro-Life month. Abortion and the culture of death are far from conquered. It is the worm killing the grapes in the vineyard, and spoiling the garden. There is an axiom in law which states that the greater the person offended, the greater the offense itself. Since God Himself was the victim in today's parable, the offense against Him was beyond measure. Jesus directed the story at the Pharisees. Who does He direct it to in today's society?
Parables are never only past; they are also present. How do we treat the prophets and truth tellers of our day? How do we care for the earth, which God has put into our care? Do we welcome truth even when it sounds harsh to our ears? Do we act like owners or like stewards whose master is on the way?

Recognizing that we have to honor the contract we made at the baptism with God, the owner of the vineyard, let us ask ourselves these questions.

What kind of grapes do we as a parish community produce?  Are they sweet or sour?  What is our attitude toward everything God has given to us?  Are we grateful for everything God has given to us, or are we like the ungrateful tenants who acted as if they owned everything God had given them?   Do we measure the quality of our parish by what happens during Mass, or on what happens when we leave Church?  How do people see us? By what we do on Sunday, or by what we do on Monday as well?

Let’s pray that we may be good stewards in God’s vineyards by producing good fruit and being responsible with our Christian duties?.

XXV. O.T. Is 55: 6-9; Phil 1: 20c-24, 27a; Mt 20:1-16a 

A Jewish "farmer lived in Poland whose family had been very poor for generations. One night he was awakened by an angel of the Lord, who said: "You have found favor in the eyes of your Maker. He wants to do for you what he did for your ancestor Abraham. He wants to bless you. Therefore, make any three requests to God, and he will be pleased to give them to you. There is only one condition: your neighbor will get a double portion of everything that is bequeathed to you."

The farmer was startled by this revelation and woke up his wife to tell her all about it. She suggested that they put the whole thing to a test. So they prayed. "Oh, God, if we could just have a herd of a thousand cattle, that would enable us to break out of the poverty in which we have lived for generations." No sooner had they said these words than they heard the sound of animal noises outside. Lo and behold, all around the house were a thousand magnificent animals!

During the next two days, the farmer's feet hardly touched the ground. He divided his time between praising God for such great generosity and beginning to make practical provisions for his newly acquired affluence. On the third afternoon, he was up on a hill behind his house trying to decide where to build a new barn when he looked across at his neighbor's field, and there standing on the green hillside were two thousand magnificent cattle. For the first time since the angel of the Lord had appeared, the joy within him evaporated and a scowl of envy took its place. He went home that evening in a foul mood, refused to eat supper, and went to bed in an absolute rage. He could not fall asleep because every time he closed his eyes, all he could see were his neighbor's two thousand cattle.

Deep in the night, however, he remembered that the angel had said he could make three wishes. With that, he shifted his focus away from his neighbor and back to his own situation, and the old joy quickly returned. Digging deep into his own heart to find out what else he really wanted, he began to realize that in addition to some kind of material security, he always wanted descendants to carry his name into the future. So he prayed a second time: "Gracious God, if it pleases thee, give me a child that I may have descendants." With that, he and his wife made love, and because of his experience with the cattle, he was not too surprised shortly thereafter to learn that she was expecting.

The next months were passed in unbroken joy. The farmer was busy assimilating his newly acquired affluence and looking forward to the great grace of becoming a parent. On the night his first child was born, he was absolutely overjoyed. The next day was the Sabbath. He went to the synagogue, and at the time of the prayers of the people, he stood up and shared with the gathered community his great good fortune: now at last a child had been born into their home. He had hardly sat down, however, when his neighbor got up and said, "God has indeed been gracious to our little community. I had twin sons born last night. Thanks be to God." On hearing that, the farmer went home in an utterly different mood than the one in which he came. Instead of being joyful once again he was filled with the canker of jealousy.

This time, however, his envy did not abate. Late that evening, he made his third request of God: "Please, gouge out my right eye."

No sooner had he said these words than the angel who had initiated the whole process appeared again and asked, "Why, son of Abraham, have you turned to such vengeful desirings?" With pent-up rage, the farmer replied, "I cannot stand to see my neighbor prosper. I'll gladly sacrifice half of my vision for the satisfaction of knowing that he will never be able to look on what he has."

Those words were followed by a long silence, and as the farmer looked, he saw tears forming in the eyes of the angel. "Why, O son of Abraham, have you turned an occasion for blessing into a time of hurting? Your third request will not be granted, not because the Lord lacks integrity, but because God is full of mercy. However, know this, O foolish one, you have brought sadness not only to yourself, but to the very heart of God."

St Thomas Aquinas described envy as “sorrow at another’s good fortune”. It has been described as the only one of the seven deadly sins that gives the sinner no pleasure - however illusory or transitory - at all. It only eats away at us and destroys relationships.

The parable of the vineyard workers offends our sense of fairness. Why should everyone get equal pay for unequal work? This parable goes against the business mentality that dominates our lives. We have always been taught: You get out of something directly in proportion to that which you put in it. Yet, that is not what happened in Jesus’ story. In our way of thinking, the laborers who came to the field late got something for nothing. This parable challenges us not to look upon the Kingdom of God, or the church, as a business community. We live in a world of tenure and seniority and it goes against our grain when we hear Jesus say: The first shall be last and the last shall be first. God's grace is not based upon what is fair, but rather what helps. His love is unique that he loves us evenly even if he gives more or less graces different people.

One time a Sunday school superintendent was registering two new sisters in Sunday School. When she asked them how old they were one replied, “We’re both seven. My birthday is April 8th and my sister’s is April 20th.” That superintendent replied, "That’s impossible girls." The other sister then spoke up and said, "No it’s true, one of us is adopted."

"Oh," the superintendent said, "Which one?" The two sisters looked at each other and one said, "We asked Dad that question a while ago, but he just looked at us and said that he loved us both equally, so much so that he couldn’t remember which one of us was adopted."
That is a wonderful analogy of the love of God. God loves us all, equally. We are loved, not because we have earned God’s love or deserve it, but because of God’s grace.

We all tend to think that love is like a pie. The more people that came to share it, the smaller the slices had to be. But love is not that way. If you had two children, you are not taking your love for one child and sharing it with the second. No, you may be sharing the first one’s things with the second, but not the love. Your love for the second one generates completely new. Your love for the second may not sometimes be as much as the first one, but it is not because you have one child already before. But it is because certain things prompt you to hold some from the second one due to some reason.  

St Augustine once pointed out that whereas material things diminish when they are shared out - if I share out my food there is less for me - this is not true in the case of spiritual goods. If I love my neighbour and can rejoice in his good fortune, I do not lessen the charity within me, but, in fact, only increase it.

God wants all his children to enjoy the complete fullness of eternal life. No true child of God wants it any other way. Jesus Christ is extraordinarily generous; the history of salvation is the story of his boundless giving.  Just as the landowner gave the laborers real work to do in his vineyard, even if the reward far outweighed the work, Christ too allows us to make a real contribution to the eternal happiness of ourselves through prayer, self-sacrifice, and service. But the salvation itself is his pure gracious gift. As we continue with this sacrifice where Jesus completely and generously gives himself to us, let us ask him for the grace to be generous as He is generous and not to be ever jealous of others blessings.

FEAST OF EXALTATION OF THE CROSS 

(Numbers 21: 4-9; Philippians 2:6-11; John 3:13-17)

We celebrate this feast of the Exaltation of the Cross for two reasons: (1) to understand the history of the discovery of the True Cross and (2) to appreciate better the importance of the symbol and reality of Christ’s sacrificial love, namely, the cross in the daily life of every Christian.

According to a reliable legend, when the Body of Jesus and those of the two thieves were removed from their crosses, the disciples buried the body of Jesus in the tomb donated by Nicodemus. As it was customary, the crosses of Jesus and the two thieves were buried in a pit dug close to the tomb. They remained there unnoticed till the fourth century. In AD 312, while the pagan commander Constantine the Great was in combat with Maxentius for the throne of the Roman Empire, some of his Christian soldiers suggested that he pray to the God of the Christians to help him in his battle. In answer to his prayer, the sign of a luminous cross appeared in the sky with the words “IN THIS SIGN YOU WILL CONQUER" inscribed on it. Following this, Constantine won the battle over Maxentius. Indebted to the God of Christians for his victory at the Milvian Bridge, Constantine became a Christian catechumen. The Emperor issued the Edict of Milan (in 313), guaranteeing Christians religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire. He declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire and commanded that the sign of the cross be placed on all the Roman standards and on the shields of all the soldiers. On September 14, AD 327, a team of excavators, led by Constantine’s mother St. Helena, found below the temple of Venus at Calvary the True Cross on which Jesus had been crucified. The cross of Christ was identified by the miraculous healing given to a terminally sick lady when touched by the cross of Jesus. In 355, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was established in Jerusalem to commemorate St. Helena’s discovery of the true cross of Jesus.

A cross is a symbol of suffering and shame. Yet God turned that cross into the means by which you and I may find our salvation.  Jesus did not die as a hero or a martyr. His death was a total failure on the cross. His executioners rejoiced at his death and they celebrated his death.  Yet Christianity had, and still has, at its center this most awful symbol of death and disgrace. On the feast of Exaltation of the Holy Cross, then, we must learn to appreciate the real message of the cross in our Christian life. 

The cross in itself was a total failure for Jesus. But we honor the cross because on the cross he saved us. It is through the cross of Calvary that God is fully revealed. It is through the cross of Calvary that we come to know of God's love.

The crucifix is the symbol of God's loving and sacrificial offering of Himself in a humble, total self-emptying love for all of us, that we might have everlasting life with Him. The cross is a symbolic summary of the Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ -- all in one image.

 The cross of Jesus Christ is the place where atonement happened; where Jesus became a substitute for man. Christ died where man should have been, so that man may be where God is.

The cross is the work of God for salvation. Jesus disclosed this as being necessary because the disciples needed to understand the place of the cross in the economy of God's redemptive purposes. "The Son of Man must suffer” Jesus said: It is the key to the self-disclosure of Jesus and to the plan of God for salvation for sinners.

A pattern of self denial should be present in the life of the believer to be part of Jesus’ salvation. The cross can be the pain we undergo in our lives or the pain we suffer for others. It is the sanctifying pain involved in sharing our blessings sacrificially with others. It is the pain involved in controlling our evil tendencies in an attempt to attain a higher degree of holiness.  It is also the pain involved in standing with Jesus and gladly following him even if that means scorn and humiliation from the rest of the world. St.Paul identified himself fully with the cross of Christ and so he said: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (Gal.2:20).When we have fully identified ourselves with the cross of Christ, we should be reminding ourselves of its implications by signing ourselves always with the cross. As soon as we wake the first thing we should do be signing ourselves with cross and ensuring that the rest of the day is going to be sanctified. Before we start driving or cooking do that again and remind ourselves that we are redeemed by Christ’s cross and so nothing is going to defeat me. Of course sometimes we may be ashamed to do it before others. But then remember the message of Paul again: For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (1 Cor.1:18). For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength (1 Cor.1:25).

As we continue with the celebration of this Mass, let us ask for the grace to be reminded of the price Jesus paid for our salvation on the cross and our call to share in the sufferings of Christ when we wear or sign ourselves with the cross. And may the cross of Christ always be our protection from all the evil influence and evil thoughts and habits in our everyday life. Amen.

XXIII.O.T. Ez 33: 7-9; Rom 13: 8-10; Mt 18: 15-20 

The common theme of today’s readings is our responsibility towards the salvation of others in our community because they are God’s children and our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are, therefore, the “keepers” of our brothers and sisters, for each one of us is important to all others in our Faith community. In the first reading, God tells Ezekiel that he is a "watchman for the house of Israel,” obliged to warn Israel of moral dangers.  If Ezekiel should refrain from speaking God’s word intended to convert the wicked, God will hold Ezekiel responsible for the death of the wicked.  Prophet Jonah was sent to preach conversion to the Ninevehites and he refused to go to Nineveh and went to the opposite direction. We know what happened to him. God stirred a storm in the sea and he was cast into the sea and was swallowed by a large fish. This may be a lesson for those who refuse to preach repentance to sinners. In the second reading, St. Paul points out that the love we should have for one another should be our only reason for admonishing the sinner.  Love seeks the good of the one who is loved. Therefore, we should admonish one another so that we all may repent and grow in holiness.

We are afraid to discipline sin in the church because of popular verses that are taken out of context and improperly interpreted. "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone." "Judge not that you may not be judged." Indeed, we surmise, how can a sinner correct a sinner? The result is, there is precious little discipline in the typical church today. People do as they please. Folks can get away with anything, and we have an unholy anarchy of gossip, sexual immorality, inattendance, false teaching, and lies. None of this glorifies Jesus Christ!

The Gospel lays down 4 steps to correction.

 1) Confrontation:  The worst thing that we can do about a wrong done to us is to brood about it. Brooding can poison our whole mind and life, until we can think of nothing else but our sense of personal injury. We mustn’t gossip either.  Hence, the first step proposed by Jesus to the one who has been wronged is that he should go to meet the offender in person, and point out lovingly, but in all seriousness, the harm he has done.  This first stage is designed to let the two people concerned solve the issue between them. If it works out at that level, that is the ideal situation. "You have won back your brother." 

2) Negotiation:  Suppose the first step does not resolve the situation and the person refuses to admit wrong, continuing in a behavior bad for him or her as well as for the one he has injured. This creates a problem; for example, among the young where a friend steals or shoplifts, uses drugs or drinks excessively, hangs around with a bad crowd, plans to run away, contemplates suicide or abortion, or just "goofs off" in school. Here, the second step is to take one or two other members of the Church along with the wronged person to speak to the wrongdoer and to act as confirming witnesses. The taking of the witnesses is not meant to be a way of proving to a man that he has committed an offence. It is meant to assist the process of reconciliation by emphasizing and explaining calmly the gravity of the situation. Nowadays, we call that an “intervention” and the group may also include a qualified third party - counselor, teacher, priest or physician.

3) Adjudication: If the negotiation step does not resolve the situation either, the third step is to have the whole Church or community of believers confront the wrongdoer. The case is brought to the Christian fellowship because troubles are never amicably settled by going to a civil court of law. Further, the Church provides an atmosphere of Christian prayer, Christian love and Christian fellowship in which personal relationships may be righted in the light of love and of the Gospel. Finally, in matters of honor and shame, the community is the final arbiter, for the community as a whole suffers from the wrong. 

4) Excommunication: If the offender chooses to disregard the believing community's judgment, the consequence is “excommunication.” This means that if none of the three steps has brought a resolution of the situation, then the wrongdoer should be treated like "a Gentile or a tax collector."  That is, the wrongdoer should be put out of the Church with the hope that temporary alienation alone may bring the erring person to repentance and change. The sinner is expelled because every obvious case of unrepented sin denies the Gospel's power and the Church's mission of reconciling sinners to God and to the community. But the excommunication should be carried out with genuine grief (1 Cor 5:2), not vindictive glee over another's "fall" or self-righteous pride. 

Modern believers tend to think that they have no right to intervene in the private lives of their fellow believers. Others evade the issue saying, “As a sinner, I don’t have the moral courage or the right to correct anyone.” But Jesus emphatically affirms that we are our brothers' keepers, and we have the serious obligation to correct others. When we tolerate someone to drink and get behind the wheel, we cannot guarantee that the only thing that he will hit is a roadside tree or the road dividers. If we tolerate it we or our kids may be dead; or his kids and dependents may be left orphan whom the community may have the responsibility to look after. So, it is our business to correct our dear ones, and anyone who does mistakes. Very often we hesitate to correct others because of the fear to lose the friendship.

Let’s ask the Lord for the strength and the wisdom to have the courage to correct the erring brothers and sisters and bring them back to the right track and bring glory to God and the Church.

Labor Day.2014

There is an old story about a man named Smith. He died and then regained consciousness in the next world. He looked out over a vast expanse of pleasant country. After resting comfortably for a while in a delightful spot, he called out, "Is anybody around here?" An attendant, dressed in white, appeared and said gravely, "What do you want?" Smith asked, "What can I have?" The attendant replied, "You can have anything you want." Smith named some of his favorite foods. They were presented immediately on a tray and were delicious.

Next, he called for some games. They were brought on command and he had fun. Next, Smith called from some of the great books that he had never had time to read before. He read and napped, napped and read. But finally boredom began to catch up with him. He shouted, "I want something to do!"

The attendant appeared and said, "I am sorry, but that is the only thing we cannot give you here." By this time, Smith was frantic. In frustration, he cried out, " But I'm miserable without something to do! I'd rather go to hell!" "But, sir," said the attendant, "I thought you knew. That's where you are!"

You may be probably thinking...If that's really what hell is like, I think I could handle it for a few weeks, anyway. Most of us regard work as a mixed blessing.

Work  was not assigned to Adam as a punishment for sin. Human beings were put to work before they sinned. Genesis 2:15 tells us that "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to till it and keep it. After Adam and Eve sinned, work became more difficult. Thorns and thistles frustrated Adam's farming. His work required more sweat and toil. But work itself is no punishment from sin. It is a positive good. St. Paul's standing rule in the early churches was this: anyone unwilling to work should not eat. That is for lazy bodies.

But there are people who really would like to work but can’t find work. Though some unemployed people feel worthless without work, our worth is not based on what we do, but who we are. Work does not give any intrinsic value to us.
Ephesians 2:8, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God-not the results of works, so that no one may boast." One of the messages of that verse is that our worth before God would be exactly the same even if we were to be unemployed. Our value was secured by what Jesus Christ did on a cross; it is not affected by how much or how little we do. Unemployment and under employment are some of the issues facing most countries today, which forces people to move to different places leaving their families and dear ones behind. Those who have work close to their own families should really deem it as a blessing from God. Finding satisfaction in the work one does is also another factor which most people find in their life.

OUR WORK IS AN ADVERTISEMENT FOR OUR LORD.
St. Paul expressed this truth in his letter to the Colossians: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for your bosses." (Colossians 3: 23) If we can wax a floor well, the shine on that floor declares the glory of God. So, with any other work, when done with perfection it will tell the glory of God manifested through human labor.

Jesus was a carpenter and known as a Carpenter’s son. As we remember the workers today, let’s pray that people without work may find work to help feed themselves and their families and find means to express themselves through their works.

XXII. O.T. Jer. 20:7-9; Rom 12:1-2; Mt. 16:21-28

A church wanted to improve attendance at their major worship services, so they hired a powerful advertising agency to come in, study their situation, and make recommendations. The ad agency did their research... and then suggested to the church that they should get rid of all the crosses in the church... because the crosses might send a negative message to prospective young worshippers! 

Well, there are several non-Catholic churches that have taken away the crucifixes in their churches. Some prosperity preachers never mention about the Cross. All they say is that God is going to bless you abundantly with riches and wealth; all you need to do for that is just give them donations, and God will return to them manifold.

The readings for this Sunday remind us that Christian discipleship demands three conditions: Deny oneself , “take up your cross”,  follow him . So, we cannot get rid of the cross, because it is the powerful reminder of God's sacrificial and redemptive love for us. And the cross is the constant signal to us of how God wants us to live and love today.

Jesus realized that, although he had predicted his suffering and death three times, his disciples were still thinking in terms of a conquering Messiah, a warrior king, who would sweep the Romans from Palestine and lead Israel to power. That is why Peter could not bear the idea of a suffering Messiah. Correcting Peter for dissuading him, Jesus calls Peter Satan remembering the temptation he had in the desert where Satan tried to persuade Jesus to an easy, comfortable way of life. Jesus tells: Get behind me Satan. Origen suggests that Jesus was saying to Peter: "Peter, your place is behind me, not in front of me. It's your job to follow me in the way I choose, not to try to lead me in the way YOU would like me to go."   Like Peter, the Church is often tempted to judge the success or failure of her ministry by the world’s standards. But Jesus teaches that worldly success is not always the Christian way. German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote "When Christ calls a man to follow him, he calls him to die." In Baptism a Christian dies with Christ.

History is full of noble souls who risked their lives for the sake of others. If certain scientists had not been prepared to take risks, many a medical cure would not exist.  If mothers were not prepared to take risks, no child would ever be born.

When a bud goes through the pain of bursting, it is transformed into a beautiful flower.  When a pupa struggles out of a cocoon, it is transformed into a charming butterfly. When a chicken breaks the shell and comes out it becomes a lovely bird.  When a seed bursts the pod and falls to the ground it begins to grow as a plant. So, the nature itself calls us to understand that the way to perfection and greatness is through suffering.

The man who risks everything for Christ finds life.  On the other hand, the man who abandons his faith for safety or security may live, but he is actually dying. Think of all the Christians who were martyred or are being martyred because of their faith in Jesus in Syria and Iraq. Did they lose their lives? If we believe Jesus’ words, they are all living compared to those who compromised their faith for safeguarding their physical lives.

When we undergo the suffering and pain of life we get strengthened.  St Paul wrote:  “Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope (Romans 5:3-4).”  A clay pot sitting in the sun will always be a clay pot. It has to go through the white heat of the furnace to become porcelain. Suffering is not the last thing in life. It leads us to something greater as long as we are ready to accept its challenges.  “A bend in the road is not the end of the road... unless you fail to make the turn.”  

So, how shall we be responding to the invitation of Jesus to take up the cross? Sacrifice a little time and pleasure to do something greater. Give up extravagant comfort of modern appliances which will help us strengthen the spirit of endurance. Ignore the pride of replacing the present decent TV with the latest available one.  Accept the pain of donating a little blood to save a life. Like this we can find hundreds of ways to make our life meaningful and worthwhile. Again God does not ordain but allows sufferings in our lives, so that we can glorify him by our becoming more identical with His Son. Let’s pray that the Father may help us to become more like His son Jesus who said: “whoever wishes to keep his life safe, will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, will find it.” Amen