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Planning to get married in Goa? www.weddingsetcgoa.com Making your 'dream wedding' possible ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 11-Oct-2009 Dear Friend, Many people desire to be great, to be at the top, and to excel in their field of work. While having some ambition in life can be a motivating force, being too ambitious is like a hunger; it obeys no law but its appetite. Most of the trouble in the world is caused by people wanting to be important. Paradoxically, those who are truly great do not need to prove themselves at the expense of others. They are most ready to serve and wait upon others! Have a reflective weekend thanking God, who everyday is ready to serve us! Fr. Jude Sunday Reflections: Twenty-ninth Sunday of the year ‘To Serve not to be served!’ 18-Oct-2009 Isaiah 53: 10-11; Hebrews 4: 14-16; Mark 10: 35-45; The first reading is an excerpt from Isaiah’s fourth servant song. The servant offers his life in atonement for the sins of the people. He takes on himself the sins of the people. His death will be the beginning of glorification for him and a source of blessings to many. By reflecting on passages such as this, the early Christians came to an understanding of the sufferings and death of Jesus. Shining Example The following story is told about John Ruskin, the 18th century English writer, when he was quite old. He was visiting with a friend, and he was standing looking out the front window of the house. It was night-time, and the lamp-lighter was lighting the street lamps. From the window one could see only the lamps that were being lit, and the light the lamp-lighter was carrying from one lamp to another. The lamp-lighter himself could not be seen. Ruskin remarked that the lamp-lighter was a good example of the genuine Christian. His way was clearly lit by the lights he lit, and the light he kept burning, even though he himself may not be known or seen. At the beginning of the gospel, Jesus said that he was the light that had come into the world. Today, he tells us that we are to become that light for others….. Jack Mc Ardle in ‘And that’s the Gospel Truth’ The second reading from the letter to the Hebrews tells us that we can approach Jesus with confidence because he is our high priest who knows our weaknesses and was like us in all things but sin. He can intercede on our behalf as he is fully qualified to be the high priest because he shares our humanity, enabling him to sympathize with us in our weakness. He knows what we are from his own personal experiences. We should therefore boldly approach him. Incarnating God’s Love When the great Japanese Christian Kagawa first heard about the life of Jesus, he cried out, “O God, make me like your Christ!” To be more like Christ, Kagawa left a comfortable home and went to live in the slums of Tokyo. There he shared himself and his possessions with whoever needed help. In his book Famous Life Decisions, Cecil Northcott says that Kagawa once gave away all his clothing. He was left standing in only a tattered kimono. On another occasion, even though deathly sick, he continued to preach to people in the rain, repeating over and over: ‘God is love! God is love! God is love! Where love is, there is God.” William Barclay gives us an insight into the heart and mind of Kagawa when he quotes the great man as saying: “God dwells among the lowliest of men. He is there with beggars. He is among the sick, he stands with the unemployed. Therefore let him who would meet God visit the prison cell before going to the temple. Before he goes to church let him visit the hospital. Before he reads his Bible let him help the beggar.” Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’ Jesus, time and again, reminded the disciples of the cost of discipleship but they still did not seem to understand His call. They could not accept the challenge of sacrifice that the following of Jesus demanded. We see how far the apostles were from the spirit of sacrifice. In today’s reading we are told that James and John approach Jesus with a request that they be given top places in his kingdom. Obviously they thought that his kingdom would be modelled on worldly kingdoms, where those in high places enjoy honour, power and glory. When the other ten disciples heard of the request of James and John they were indignant because they also had similar dreams of getting the best places in the kingdom. Jesus tells them that his disciples are not to imitate the Gentiles, whose rulers lord it over the people. In his kingdom, service is what makes one great. “Anyone wants to be great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be slave to all.” He would set the example himself. He came ‘not to be served but to serve, and to give himself as a ransom for many.’ James and John and the others as well wanted important positions in Jesus’ kingdom in order to wield power and authority. They felt that power would make them feel important, it would give them prestige, they could dominate and control others. Jesus challenges them to follow his example of greatness; readiness to give up power and willingness to serve and be at the service of others. In order to serve one has to be ready to drink the cup that Jesus drank -the cup of sacrifice and suffering. Jesus abolished the distance between the master and the servant. In him the two become one. To drink the cup of life, especially the cup made difficult by a life of sacrifice and service of others, is to follow Christ. Jesus does not promise us a jolly good time if we follow him but a meaningful life! To Each His Own….. One day a watch was crossing the town square just as the big clock on the church steeple was chiming twelve noon. The watch looked up at the big clock and said, ‘you think you’re better than the rest of us, don’t you? You ought to take a look at yourself. Your face is so common, your hands so clumsy, and your voice so coarse!’ But the big clock calmly replied, ‘Come up here, my little brother, and I’ll show you something.’ The little watch climbed up the long stairs, and at last stood beside the big clock. What a view there was from here. But pretty soon it realised that it was dangerous up there, very exposed, and ever so lonely. ‘Little brother, there is a man down there who wants to know the time. Why don’t you tell him?’ said the big clock. ‘Oh, I couldn’t make him hear me from here or see me either,’ the watch replied. ‘So you can’t tell him,’ said the big clock. ‘But I can tell him. We each have a job to do. I can do what you can’t do. You can do what I can’t do. Let us therefore not criticize one another. Instead, let each of us in our own way, and from our own place, tell people the time. In that way, we will not only be equal but brothers as well.’ Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sundays and Holy Day Liturgies’ “Scarcely has Jesus, for the third time, recalled the destiny that awaits him in Jerusalem, than the disciples’ ambition gets the better of their momentary fear. After Peter’s confession at Caesarea and the dispute along the road as to which of them was the greatest, it is easy to imagine the ambition of the sons of Zebedee to secure for themselves two good places in the messianic kingdom approaching at the end of time. In the race for favoured positions, they know what they want, and so do the other disciples, in spite of their virtuous indignation. But no, they do not know, and Jesus reveals it to them. It is about another ministry that he speaks, correcting in passing their popular conception of merit, according to which man acquires rights over God. The true disciple can aspire to only one thing: to share the passion of his master. As for the reward, it eludes every possible claim. God is free to do what he likes with his gifts. The Christian likewise will have his share in the condition of servant which was that of Jesus: that is to say, he will participate in the life and death of Jesus ‘for others’. For true Christian greatness consists in serving, and not in playing the master. Such are the bases of government of a Church which is built up by the work of ministry. Ministry after the example of the Son of God who, like a slave, washes the feet of his disciples, and offers for the multitudes the Suffering Servant’s sacrifice of atonement. According to the gospel, the way of ruling is to serve: our king himself has shown that to us. ‘Princes of the Church’, if they exist, ought to have no other ambition.” -Glenstal Bible Missal True Greatness Nobel prizes are awarded every year in literature, economics and science. People who have made outstanding contributions in these fields are given due recognition for their achieved greatness. Excellence is recognized in the sports world, too. For example, when Pete Rose surpassed Ty Cobb’s record number of hits in 1985, he assured himself a place in baseball’s Hall of Fame. We all aspire to greatness in some form or another. It is a desire which our Lord addresses in today’s gospel. But if we look deeper into enduring examples of greatness, we see that the Lord is right. Alexander the great was a remarkable leader because he stood by his men in battle. Albert the Great was an intellectual giant because he disciplined himself for study. Beethoven was a master composer because he struggled long hours to get the right note. Martin Luther was a great reformer because he persisted in spite of opposition. Albert Cylwicki in ‘His Word Resounds’ Inflated Ego Some American tourists one day visited the home of Beethoven. A young woman among them sat down at the great composer’s piano and began to play his Moonlight Sonata. After she had finished, she turned to the old caretaker and said: “I presume a great many musicians visit this place every year.” “Yes,” he replied. “Paderewski was here last year.” “And did he play on Beethoven’s piano?” “No,” he said, “he wasn’t worthy.” Anonymous Following in His footsteps, may we seek to serve rather than be served! Fr. Jude Botelho [email protected] PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections. These reflections are also available on my remodelled web site www.netforlife.net Thank you. Now, send attachments up to 25MB with Yahoo! India Mail. Learn how. http://in.overview.mail.yahoo.com/photos
