Easter VI : Acts 15:1-2, 22-29; Rv 21:10-14, 22-23; Jn 14: 23-29

St. Francis of Assisi was an ardent advocate of the doctrine of the indwelling of God in man. It enabled him to love everyone equally whatever his status in life. One day he met a fellow who had no love for God. As they walked along they met a man who was blind and paralyzed. St. Francis asked the sightless cripple: “Tell me if I were to restore your eyesight and the use of your limbs, would you love me?” “Ah,” replied the beggar, “I would not only love you but I would be your slave for the rest of my life.” “See,” said Francis to the man who maintained that he could not love God, “this man would love me if I gave him his sight and his health. Why don’t you love God Who created you with eyesight and strong limbs?” That is what Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel. If we love him because of the countless blessings he has given us by “keeping his words” he will start dwelling within us in the company of his Father and the Holy Spirit, making us the temples of the Triune God.

The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, tells us how the Holy Spirit, dwelling in the Church, helped the apostles to solve a major doctrinal problem, which shook the very foundation of the early Church. The first major controversy in the infant Church was about "what one needs to do to be saved."  For the first 15 to 20 years of the Christian era, all Jesus’ followers were Jewish.  During that period, any Gentiles who wanted to become Jesus’ disciples were expected first to become Jews. They had to attend Sabbath synagogue services and keep the 613 Torah laws.  This situation began to change when a few “liberal” Christian communities like the newly founded Church of the Gentiles in Antioch, began to admit Gentiles into their number without demanding that they first be converted to Judaism.  Some of the Judeo-Christians from Judea and Jerusalem argued that the new Gentile converts must observe the Mosaic Law of circumcision, dietary regulations, purification rituals, etc.  The issue couldn't be settled on a local level, although Paul and Barnabas tried that at first.  Hence, they had to go to Jerusalem to consult the apostles.  The apostles convened the first synod at Jerusalem and, with the clear leading of the Holy Spirit, decided that the Gentiles need not become Jews first, to be saved as Christians.  The decision was momentous for two reasons.  First, it marked a significant break of Christianity with Judaism. Second, it put the burden of salvation on God rather than on man.  In other words, it is God’s love that saves us -- not prayers, sacrifices or keeping of the Law, which are only expressions of our gratitude to God.  Thus the Holy Spirit was able to solve the cause of dissention by inspiring the leaders of the Church.

 Jesus is quite forthright in today's Gospel as he speaks to the disciples at the Last Supper. He tells them he is to die, he has to leave them. He does not deny the hard facts of the case. But even as he describes their condition without him, he is assuring them it is only temporary. "I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you." Another, Advocate, the Holy Spirit will come to you and he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.

The role of the Holy Spirit is twofold: a) to "teach" the disciples and b) to “remind" them of what Jesus has already taught them” (v. 26).  Jesus affirms that even though He will no longer be visible with them, he will continue to be present among them through the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit of truth will continue teaching them and helping them to understand and to build on what Jesus has already taught them.  The Advocate will bring no new revelation because God has already revealed Himself in Jesus.  But the Advocate will deepen their understanding of the revelation given by Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is the abiding love of God available to us, enabling us to accept the friendship of Jesus, while imitating Him, the Master.   Then he gives us His peace to strengthen us against fear in the face of trouble. Here "peace" is not just the absence of conflict, but also the far wider concept of shalom, the total well-being of the person and community. 

Jesus says that the peace He offers is different from the one that the world gives. When the Christian community remains united like Jesus is united with his father the gift of peace will pervade in our communities too. The peace of Jesus comes to us when we obediently submit ourselves to God’s Divine Will through the authority of the Church. Then we are blessed with Divine peace; we are no longer troubled or afraid.

We must deepen our relationship with Jesus, learn to get in touch with him, and sincerely love him.  When we listen to the Holy Spirit, we will   know His plan for our life and His solutions to whatever problems we face.   The Holy Spirit teaches us through the Scriptures and preaching during the Holy Mass as well as in our prayer and our private reading of Scripture.

In these last days of Easter let us open up to the Holy Spirit; whom we received when we were baptized and confirmed, so that he may share with us the peace of Christ which Jesus left for us before he went up to heaven.

Easter V [C] Acts 14: 21-27; Rv 21: 1-5a; Jn 13:31-33a, 34-35

In 1921, Lewis Lawes became the warden at Sing Sing Prison in New York state. No prison was tougher than Sing Sing during that time. But when Warden Lawes retired some 20 years later, that prison had become a humanitarian institution. Those who studied the system said credit for the change belonged to Lawes. But when he was asked about the transformation, here's what he said: "I owe it all to my wonderful wife, Catherine, who is buried outside the prison walls." Catherine Lawes was a young mother with three small children when her husband became the warden. Everybody warned her from the beginning that she should never set foot inside the prison walls, but that didn't stop Catherine! When the first prison basketball game was held, she went ... walking into the gym with her three beautiful kids, and she sat in the stands with the inmates. Her attitude was: "My husband and I are going to take care of these men and I believe they will take care of me! I don't have to worry." She insisted on getting acquainted with them and their records. She discovered one convicted murderer was blind so she paid him a visit. Holding his hand in hers she said, "Do you read Braille?" "What's Braille?" he asked. Then she taught him how to read. Years later he would weep in love for her. Later, Catherine found a deaf-mute in prison. She went to school to learn how to use sign language. Many said that Catherine Lawes was the body of Jesus that came alive again in Sing Sing from 1921 to 1937. Then, she was killed in a car accident. The next morning Lewis Lawes didn't come to work, so the acting warden took his place. It seemed almost instantly that the prison knew something was wrong. The following day, her body was resting in a casket in her home, three-quarters of a mile from the prison. As the acting warden took his early morning walk he was shocked to see a large crowd of the toughest, hardest-looking criminals gathered like a herd of animals at the main gate. He came closer and noted tears of grief and sadness. He knew how much they loved Catherine. He turned and faced the men, "All right, men, you can go. Just be sure and check in tonight!" Then he opened the gate and a parade of criminals walked, without a guard, the three-quarters of a mile to stand in line to pay their final respects to Catherine Lawes. And every one of them checked back in. Every one! They learned the commandment of love as practiced by Catherine.

Today’s Gospel passage gives us the secret of Christian renewal as the faithful practice of Jesus’ new commandment:  “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13: 35). Jesus has added a new element to the Old Testament command of love by telling us that the true test of discipleship is to love other people in the same way that he has loved us. The basis of the new law was his own life. The love that Jesus showed was different from the one that they had experienced. His love was sacrificial. Love becomes meaningful only when its demands for sacrifice are accepted.

Edwards VIII ascended the throne of the British Empire after the death of his father. But his proposal to marry Wallis Simpson, a divorced American Socialite, led to a constitutional crisis in British Empire. Religious, legal, political and moral objections were raised. Mrs Simpson was perceived to be an unsuitable consort to him. But King Edward was not ready to give up his love for the throne. The conservative leaders and people were unwilling for any compromise. Edward abdicated his throne for the realization of his love.

Jesus’ love for the humanity is characterized by great sacrifices. He left his immortal and radiant form and assumed mortal body and came down to earth. On earth he experienced rejection and persecution. He accepted even crucifixion to show his love for his people. And Jesus told his disciples “love one another as I have loved you.”

When Jesus tells us “love one another as I have loved you” our love too should be ready to accept sacrifices for the sake of our love. We should be able to sacrifice our ego. We should be able to sacrifice our comforts. We should be willing to sacrifice our likes and dislikes. We should be able to sacrifice our choices.

Secondly, Jesus’ love is full of understanding. He knew his disciples through and through. He knew that the disciples would flee at the moment of his trial. He knew that they would disperse after his death. But he understood the circumstances which made them react in such a manner. The understanding that was seen in the early Christian communities made them unique. Tertullian, a great Christian writer and leader from North Africa in the second century, gave an account of a mass turning to Christ.  What prompted them to do it was the life of the early Christian communities.  Unlike their hate-dominated clubs and societies they saw the emergence of a strikingly different community with unusual love and understanding. This experience attracted them to accept Christian life.

Thirdly, Jesus’ love is forgiving. He told Peter that he would deny him three times before the cock crew. But Jesus was ready to forgive Peter. When the people brought the woman caught in adultery to be stoned, she felt secure before the forgiving eyes of Jesus. She felt reassured of God’s love and forgiveness. Even on the cross Jesus promised paradise to the repentant thief and prayed for those who crucified him. Never has there been a concrete realization of such a forgiving love. When Jesus gave the new commandment of love to his disciples, he expects the same forgiving love from each one of us.

In the Eucharist we see how practical Christ’s love for us is. He laid down his life for us in an outpouring of love, and he gives us the strength to follow his example.

Bolstered with Jesus’ very strength in Holy Communion, let's make our first priority every day to "love one another as Christ has loved us." Let’s beg him to set our hearts on fire with love, and to give us the strength to love others as he has loved us: to the end. 

EASTER IV: Acts 13:14, 43-52; Rv 7:9, 14b-17; Jn 10:27-30

One Sunday morning, following the church service, a layman accosted the pastor and said, “Tom, this church has been insulting me for years, and I did not know it until this week.” The stunned pastor replied, “What on earth do you mean?” “Well,” said the layman, every Sunday morning the call to worship in this church ends with the words, ‘We are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.’ And I have heard ministers over the years call the congregation, God’s flock.’ Then this past week I visited the Chicago stockyards. There I discovered that sheep are just about the dumbest animals God ever created. They are so stupid that they even follow one another docilely into the slaughterhouse. Even pigs are smarter than sheep, and I would certainly be angry if my church called me a pig’ every Sunday morning. So I’m not at all sure I want to come to church and be called a sheep’ any longer...even God’s sheep’.”

The man had a point. But whether we like it or not, that is the language of the Bible: both the Old and New Testaments. We are called “God’s sheep.” The favorite psalm of many people is the 23rd, and it begins by saying, “The Lord is my shepherd...” And if “the Lord is my shepherd,” then I am one of the Lord’s sheep. Centuries before Christ, the prophet Isaiah said to his people: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6) From the Bible, we have taken this pastoral imagery over into the Church. One of the symbols of the office of bishop across the centuries has been the shepherd’s crook, that long staff with a hook on the end…

The fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday, and it is the “World Day of Prayer for Vocations.”   Each year on this Sunday, we reflect on the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd who devotedly and kindly takes care of his flock.  Introducing himself as the Good Shepherd of his flock, Jesus makes a few claims in today’s Gospel.   

He knows his sheep and his sheep hear his voice: Just as the Palestinian shepherds knew each sheep of their flock by name, and the sheep knew their shepherd and his voice, so Jesus knows each one of us, our needs, our merits and our faults.  He loves us as we are, with all our limitations, and he expects us to return his love by keeping his words.  Jesus manifests to us God the Father and his loving care for us. Outside of Jesus Christ we simply don’t know very much about God. But with Him, we know that God is love. We know that he is the gateway into the heart of a loving God. Jesus speaks to us at every Mass, through the Bible, through our pastors, through our parents, through our friends and through the events of our lives. C.S.Lewis says: "God whispers to us in our pleasures, He speaks to us in our consciences, and He shouts to us in our pain!"

In chapter ten of John’s Gospel, Jesus adds two more roles to those of the Good Shepherd.  He goes in search of stray lambs and heals the sick ones.  Jesus dies for his sheep:  Just as the shepherds of ancient days protected their sheep from wild animals and thieves by risking their own lives, so Jesus died in expiation for the sins of all people.

The story is told of a farmer who had just rescued a lost sheep. When asked how the sheep got lost, the farmer replied, "They just nibble themselves lost. They go from one tuft of grass to another, until at last they've lost their way." That's what happens in our life. We nibble away at life with little purpose or direction, until it's gone and we have no idea where it went.

In a world that’s increasingly more scattered and scared, our task as Christ’s Church is to translate and transmit the voice of the Good Shepherd to all those who are lost, hurting, and alone. It’s also about following Jesus’ example and welcoming everyone into the fold.

Every one of us plays the roles of sheep and shepherd at different times in our lives. Everyone who is entrusted with the care of others is a shepherd.  Hence, pastors, parents, teachers, doctors, nurses, government officials, etc. are all shepherds.  We become good shepherds by loving those entrusted to us, praying for them, spending our time and talents for their welfare, and guarding them from physical and spiritual dangers.  Parents must be especially careful of their duties, thus giving their children good example through the way they live their Christian lives. 

This weekend is the DPAA commitment weekend. Last week we heard the message of Bishop and other beneficiaries of the DPAA. You also heard from one of the members of the DPAA committee in our parish.

Unlike last year this year we are not too far behind on our budget, because you helped generously with the DPAA last year and we were able to get back some $15,000.00  from the diocese as over the goal amount. As you were told last week we are exempt from assessing that amount of money we get from the DPAA. So we save an additional 10% on the money we make over the goal of DPAA. You may also know that if we don’t make our goal, we have to give it from the parish general account.

This year our goal is 24200.00 and whatever excess we contribute will come back to us to broaden the road coming up to the Church. Every morning during school hours I see a traffic bottle neck in front of the Church as only one car can really pass that way at a time. Most of the times, the cars that go down usually need to stop on top of the hill waiting for the upcoming cars to climb up the hill before they can go down. So, there is a need to broaden the road for easy traffic.

Last year we made some extra money by volunteering to  work at the Bangles game. This year we did not have enough volunteers signing up and so we do not get to make that money this year. Therefore we will have to be a little more extra generous with the donations and if it is done with DPAA that is even better.

We have made every possible cut in the parish and school expenses and I believe it is going in good direction with your cooperation. So, I invite you to take your pledge card and make the pledges if you have prayed about it. If you have not and need more time to think take the card with you and you can bring it back next week or reach the parish office any time during the week.

EASTER II [C] (DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY)

Acts 5:12-16; Rev 1:9-1, 12-13,17-19; Jn 20:19-31                                                        

On October 6, 2006, an armed man entered an Amish schoolhouse in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. He chased out the little boys and lined up the 10 little girls in front of the blackboard. He shot all of them and then killed himself. Five of the girls died. After the medics and police left, the families of the fallen came and carried their slain children home. They removed their bloody clothes and washed the bodies. They sat for a time and mourned their beloved children. After a while they walked to the home of the man who killed their children. They told his widow they forgave her husband for what he had done, and they consoled her for the loss of her spouse. They buried their anger before they buried their children. They believe in a real sense that God’s forgiveness of themselves depends on their extending forgiveness to other people. That’s what the mercy of God is all about. Today on the second Sunday of Easter we celebrate the Feast of Divine Mercy.

At the canonization of St. Faustina, Pope St. John Paul II said: “The cross, even after the Resurrection of the Son of God, speaks, and never ceases to speak, of God the Father, Who is absolutely faithful to His eternal love for man. .. Believing in this love means believing in mercy."  “The Lord of Divine Mercy,” a drawing of Jesus based on the vision given to St. Faustina, shows Jesus raising his right hand in a gesture of blessing, with  his left hand on his heart from which gush forth two rays, one red and one white.  The picture contains the message, "Jesus, I trust in You!".  The rays streaming out have symbolic meaning: red for the Blood of Jesus, which is the life of souls and white for the Baptismal water which justifies souls.  The whole image is symbolic of the mercy, forgiveness and love of God. You may have a picture of divine Mercy in your homes by now, if not yours is lying at the back of the Church with your name on it. Keep the picture in an honorable place and look at it and pray every day for God’s mercy on you and your family.

The readings for this Sunday are about mercy, trust and the forgiveness of sins.   In the Responsorial Psalm, we repeat several times, "His mercy endures forever" (Ps 118).  Besides mentioning the word, our readings illustrate mercy in action. How does God reveal His mercy?  He does so, first and foremost, by sending His only-begotten Son to become our Savior and Lord by his suffering, death and Resurrection. When Jesus appears to the disciples, he shows them his hands and his side. He shows them the wounds of his crucifixion. His wounds are his identity card. They shout out to us that God’s mercy is more powerful than death.   

Divine Mercy is given to us in the celebration of the Sacraments.  The first reading explains how the Risen Lord continued to show His Divine Mercy to the sick through the healing and preaching ministry of His apostles in the early Church. 

The Risen Lord gives the apostles the authority to forgive sins in His Name.  "Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained" (Jn 20-23).  He gives the apostles the power of imparting God’s mercy to the sinner, the gift of forgiving sins from God’s treasury of mercy.   In the liturgy, the Church has proclaimed the mercy of God for centuries through the Word of God and the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ.  The Gospel text also reminds us that the clearest way of expressing our belief in the presence of the Risen Jesus among us is through our own forgiveness of others. We can’t form a lasting Christian community without such forgiveness.  Unless we forgive others, our celebration of the Eucharist is just an exercise in liturgical rubrics.

One way the Church celebrates God’s mercy throughout the year is through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  Finding time for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is another good way to receive Divine Mercy.  The Gospel command, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful," demands that we show mercy to our fellow human beings always and everywhere.  We radiate God's mercy to others by our actions, our words, and our prayers.  It is mainly through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy that we practice mercy in our daily lives and become eligible for God’s merciful judgment. Mercy is when’s God love meets our brokenness. As Pope Francis, paraphrasing Pope Benedict XVI, once said, “The name of God is mercy.” And the wounds of Christ, visible for all eternity, are the vivid reminder of God’s mercy.

Mercy of God on the estranged human race brought peace and reconciliation to the world. “Peace” is the first word that came from the lips of Jesus on meeting his Apostles. “Peace be with you. (Jn 20:19). Then Jesus gave them the power to forgive sins. As sin destroys internal peace Jesus strictly commanded his disciples to love their enemies, and to return good for evil (Mt 5:44). Jesus ratified his teaching with his own example as he hung on the cross. He prayed, “Father forgive them” (Lk 23:24).

Today the risen Lord stands in our midst and greets us too, “Peace be with You.” Let’s translate this message into action and pass on to our brothers and sisters. When you take initiative in patching up an estranged relationship with your friend, when you forgive a dishonest act of your friend, when you show kindness to someone, when you appease the anger of your friend, when you find time to re-establish a broken relationship, when you persuade someone to give up some evil habits you are giving the message, “Peace be with you”. And the peace that you radiate will come back to you manifold.

EASTER-2016 (Do not look for the living among the dead).

Eric Butterworth tells about a young soldier who lost his legs in battle. Something died within this young man when he found he would never walk again. He lay in his hospital bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. He refused to talk to anyone who tried to help him. He refused to cooperate with doctors or nurses who wanted to help him to adjust.

One day another inmate of the hospital strolled in and sat down on a chair near the bed. He drew a harmonica from his pocket and began to play softly. The patient looked at him for a second, then back to the ceiling. That was all for that day. Next day the player came again. For several days he continued to come and to play quietly. One day he said, "Does my playing annoy you?" The patient said, "No, I guess I like it." They talked a little more each day.

One day the harmonica player was in a jovial mood. He played a sprightly tune and began to do a tap dance. The soldier looked on but was apparently unimpressed. "Hey, why don't you smile once and let the world know you're alive!" the dancer said with a friendly smile. But the legless soldier said, "I might as well be dead as in the fix I'm in." "Okay," answered his happy friend, "so you're dead. But you're not as dead as a fellow who was crucified two thousand years ago, and He came out of it all right." "Oh, it's easy for you to preach," replied the patient, "but if you were in my fix, you'd sing a different tune." With this the dancer stood up and said, "I know a two-thousand-year-old resurrection is pretty far in the dim past. So maybe an up-to-date example will help you to believe it can be done." With that he pulled up his trouser legs and the young man in the bed looked and saw two artificial limbs. The tap-dancing fellow with the harmonica was not simply a Pollyanna. He once lay where that young soldier now lay. He himself had known the power of a resurrection. He had learned to live life abundantly--even without his legs. Needless to say, the young soldier's own resurrection began that moment.

Easter isn't just about dying. It's about the power of belief in a world of lost hope. It is about knowing that no situation is beyond God's redeeming power. The soldier had no hope but his first hand witness of another man’s resurrection gave him hope of his own resurrection.

Human life comes to an end with death. All the tombs, except the one owned by Joseph of Arimethea which he loaned to Jesus of Nazareth are occupied and someone sleeping in them still.

Among the vast array of humanity's greatest heroes, only about Jesus Christ can we say: "He rose again on the third day, in fulfillment of the scriptures." Only in Christ's resurrection does love prove that it is stronger than death. In Christ and in his resurrection, a new - a wildly new - hope dawns for all mankind, the hope that if we stay united to him through faith and grace, we will rise with him, rise from our very tombs, and live with him forever in the never-ending adventure of heaven. No one else offers such a hope, because no one else has risen from the dead to be able to offer it - only the Lord.

Only the reality of the Resurrection can explain the reality of the history of the Church: A few, weak, non-influential, and uneducated fishermen from Galilee, frightened out of their wits when Jesus was arrested and executed, suddenly become world travelers, phenomenally successful preachers, and valiant martyrs. And the Church they spread continues to spread after they die, holding fast to the exact same doctrine they preached, century after century, in nation after nation. Only the abiding presence of the Lord can explain this, and only the resurrection explains the abiding presence of the Lord.

Jesus’ resurrection proclaims that as he died in our place we will not die eternally. Death has no power over us anymore.

Corrie Ten Boom puts it like this: "In the forest fire, there is always one place where the fire cannot reach. It is the place where the fire has already burned itself out. Calvary is the place where the fire of God's judgment against sin burned itself out completely. It is there that we are safe." So, we are completely safe under the cross of Christ.

A new pastor was visiting one of his church members who was in the hospital. The pastor was a young man, fresh out of seminary. He was visiting this elderly man named Joe, and Joe was extremely ill. He wanted to talk to his pastor about his funeral service and the pastor wanted to talk about anything else – the weather, football, politics, or anything else he could think of.

Finally, the pastor asked, "Joe, doesn't it bother you? Aren't you frightened?" Joe smiled and said, "Preacher, I know I'm not going to make it, but I'm not afraid. I have a confession to make. I've taken a peek at the back of the book."

"What do you mean?" the minister asked.

Joe said, "You didn't know me 10 years ago when I had my first heart attack. They called it cardiac arrest. I can remember the medical team thinking I was dead. I can also remember the tremendous feeling of being surrounded by God's love. I was revived by the doctors, but ever since that day I have been unafraid to die. I've been there and it doesn't frighten me. I know that one day soon I am going to go to sleep and I believe that when I am waken, I will, once again, be surrounded by God's love."

This is the message of the first Easter and every Easter since. The tomb is empty. Christ is risen. Jesus is alive. And because of this, we too, shall live!

The way we live should tell the world that we believe in Christ risen or Christ dead. As we celebrate Easter today, let’s remember we are called to live as Easter people all our life and not expected to seek the risen Christ among the dead.

GOOD FRIDAY-2016

This year Good Friday falls on March 25th, the day upon which we usually celebrate the Annunciation. There are nine months to Dec.25th the birthday of Jesus. It may seem odd that the same day is linked with Christ’s conception and his death. But in the gospels the new-born child is from the beginning seen as the one who will die for us. The magi bring him myrrh, which is used in the anointing of the dead. Herod wanted to kill him right at birth. Thus the cradle foreshadowed the cross.

Crucifixion was the crudest instrument of torture used by the Romans to punish rebels and criminals, and the slow death by hanging on the cross was the most excruciating experience of pain in the world. The nails were driven through the nerve bundles between the wrist and the palm of the hand, so every time the criminal moved - which he had to do if he wanted to keep breathing - the nails rubbed against the raw nerves.

We find 3 crosses on Calvary. The Cross of Jesus was that of an innocent sufferer. On his cross hung the salvation of the world.  The second cross was of the good thief. His cross and his repentance saved himself. The third cross was of the unrepentant thief who suffered because of his fault, but his suffering did not do him any good. His cross was not redemptive suffering. We find these three types of crosses or sufferings in the world all the time. People who suffer for others, for themselves, and those who waste their sufferings.

Our crosses are intersections of wills.  When our natural preferences contradict what God asks or permits, we are faced with a personal cross. For example, God permits a sickness to come upon me. My initial reaction, my natural preference, is that I would rather be healthy. But God has permitted me to become sick. That is an intersection of wills - God's will is going in one direction, and mine is going in another direction. Every cross is a chance to exercise our trust in God and thereby to rebuild the relationship that sin has ruptured. This is why God sends and permits crosses in our lives. 

"People who have not suffered, what do they know?" said Henry Suso, a man who suffered more than most in 14^th century. His statement was: "There is nothing more painful than suffering, and nothing more joyful than to have suffered. Suffering is short pain and long joy. Suffering has this effect on the one to whom suffering is suffering, that it ceases to be suffering…. Suffering makes a wise and practiced person. People who have not suffered, what do they know...? Jesus saved us through suffering, not from suffering. All the saints are the cup-bearers of a suffering person, for they have all tasted it once themselves, and they cry out with one voice that it is free from poison and a wholesome drink." People who have not suffered would have no depth, no growth, no awareness; they would be absolutely juvenile.

As St Ignatius of Loyola puts it, "There is no wood more useful for kindling and feeding the fire of divine love than the wood of the cross."

Jesus asks us to take up our crosses and follow him. Those who refuse to take up their crosses will lose their life. He said, not to take up his cross, but our cross. That is why he said to weeping women of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but for you and your children. Because he was not suffering for himself, but for others.  On good Friday Jesus does not need our sympathy, because he chose this suffering for out of love for us. He has the same message for us today, weep for your sins, not for him. Our sins caused this for him.

The cross of Calvary challenges us today to remember the gravity of our sins and our need to repent and return to God. Although it is not pleasant to have our sins and faults pointed out to us, the cross does this. We are living in a world which has lost the sense of sin and which ignores the price Jesus paid for it.  The prophet Jeremiah lamented on this sad situation centuries ago, “No one repents of his wickedness, saying, ‘What have I done!’” On this Good Friday let us show the good will and generosity to ask God’s forgiveness for our sins.

On the cross, he entrusted his mother to John asking him to take care of her. Today on the cross he is asking us too who have older or lonely parents to take special care of them in the name of Jesus.   We may be surprised to find why Jesus addresses his loving mother as “woman”.  To understand the significance of this word, we need to read Genesis 3:15: where God says to Satan, I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

Jesus was pointing to that prophecy that he is the offspring of “the woman” who bruised the head of Satan by his death on the cross and Satan bruised Jesus’ heel on the cross by the envy of nails.

Jesus accepted death freeing a convicted criminal, Barabbas. Barabbas was supposed to die, but Jesus was chosen in his place. We are all Barabbas-es condemned to die for our sins. But Jesus frees us from our death by dying in our place.

 Let us learn to love the cross of Christ, venerate it and draw daily inspiration from it for our Christian life. “We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.”

HOLY THURSDAY- (Ex 12:1-8, 11-14; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Jn 13:1-15)

We all have trouble remembering things. When a mother asks her children, "Did you clean up your room?" or "Did you take out the trash like I told you to?"  The usual answer would be “I forgot". People have a lot of ways to help them to remember things. One of the oldest memory tricks is a simple piece of string. People tie a string around their finger and every time they look at the string, they remember that they were supposed to...hmm, I forgot what it was I was supposed to remember. That's why someone invented post-it notes. With post-it notes, you can write down what it is you need to remember. The only trouble with post-it notes is that we sometimes forget to look at the notes! Now, there is a really hi-tech way to help you remember things. It is an electronic pocket scheduler. You can put in what you are supposed to remember and set an alarm. When it is time for you to do it, the alarm goes off and you can read on the display what it is you are supposed to do. The same thing you can do on your high-tech cell phones nowadays.

When Buddha was on his deathbed, his disciple Anand asked him for a memorial and Buddha gave him a Jasmine flower. However, as the flower dried up, the memory of Buddha also dwindled. But Jesus Christ instituted a lasting memorial of his sacrificial death and asked his disciples to keep the remembrance of it every day.

On Holy Thursday, we celebrate three anniversaries: 1) the anniversary of the first Holy Mass, 2) the anniversary of the institution of ministerial priesthood, 3) the anniversary of the promulgation of Jesus’ new commandment of love: “Love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 13:34). Today we remember how Jesus transformed the Jewish Passover into the New Testament Passover.  Jesus began his Passover celebration by washing the feet of his disciples (a service assigned to household servants), as a lesson in humble service, proving that he “came to the world not to be served but to serve.” (Mark 10:45). He instituted the Holy Eucharist as the sign and reality of God’s perpetual presence with His people as their living, heavenly food.  This was followed by the institution of the priesthood with the command, “Do this in memory of me."   Jesus concluded the ceremony with a long speech incorporating his command of love:  “Love one another as I have loved you”(Jn 13:34).  He served as both the Host and the Victim of a sacrifice.  He became the Lamb of God, as John the Baptist had previously predicted (John 1:29, 36), who would “take away the sins of the world.”  Thus he presents himself at the last supper as a lamb and as a servant. As a lamb he sheds his blood in reparation for others’ sins and as a servant he washes the feet of the weak and takes upon himself the pains and weakness of them.

Lamb was an important symbol in expiation of sins. In Leviticus we read the account of transferring the sin of the society onto the lamb. “The High Priest is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites – all their sins – and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the desert in the care of a man appointed for the task. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a solitary place (Lev.16:21-22).” The goat bore their sins and disappeared into the desert. This gave the Israelites a visual image to “see” God forgiving their sins. Before the scapegoat was sent out, the high priest had sacrificed a goat and made atonement as a sin offering for the nation of Israel. The law prescribed, “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. (Lev 16:15). The reconciliation with God has been accomplished for the year.

In John’s Gospel there is no account of the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.  Instead we are told about his washing the disciples’ feet. Because it was very significant in the context of the last supper.  After washing the feet he sat down and said, “If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet.”  In equivalent words, “Do this in memory of me.” 

There is something more than a lesson in humility in the Master's gesture. It is like an anticipation, like a symbol of his Passion, of the total humiliation He has to suffer to save all men.

Theologian Romano Guardini says that “the attitude of our littleness bowing down in front of the great is not yet an attitude of humility. It is simply, an attitude to truth. But when the great bows down before our littleness that is true humility”. This is why Jesus Christ is really humble.

Last year, as detained men and women wept openly when Pope Francis washed their feet, Francis told them “The love that Jesus has for us is so big that he became a slave to serve us, to take care of us, to purify us.” 

Our celebration of the Eucharist requires that we wash one another’s feet, i.e., serve one another, and revere Christ's presence in other persons.   To wash the feet of others is to love them, even when they don't deserve our love. It is to do good to them, even if they don't return the favor. It is to consider others' needs to be as important as our own. It is to forgive others from the heart, even if they don't say, "I'm sorry."

In Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Last Supper everybody is on one side of the table? The other side is empty. "Why's that?" someone asked the great artist. His answer was simple. "So that there may be plenty of room for us to join them."

Jesus demonstrates so clearly that I am to serve others, not necessarily by washing their feet—though there are plenty of opportunities for practical care—but by listening well and responding openly to others. May we see in our “washing another’s feet” the dignity of the person we face and also the tender reality of our own humbled dignity as servants.  “As I have done for you, you should do also.”