Nov 14, 2022 | DAILY BREAD
Tuesday of week 33 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 19:1-10
“They all complained when they saw what was happening”. Did Jesus do something unjust? Something bad? No. Why then they all were complaining? Only because they were all jealous about the joy of Zacchaeus. They think that he does not deserve this attention of Jesus. Because they didn’t know the anxious Zacchaeus who wanted to see who Jesus is. Because they didn’t know the running Zacchaeus ahead of Jesus. Because they didn’t know the climbing Zacchaeus on the sycamore tree where Jesus was to pass by. But Jesus knew this Zacchaeus. This is the speciality of the love of Jesus. He sees our desires; He sees our attempts, and He acknowledges it. When good things happen to others, let’s not complain and let’s not judge because God sees what we don’t see. He has His plans. We must see all things in this perspective. Let’s reflect: Am I complaining in my heart when good things are happening to others?
Nov 13, 2022 | DAILY BREAD
Monday of week 33 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 18:35-43
Jesus hearing the cry of that blind man amidst all the noises of the street. The man shouting all the louder amidst the people asking him to keep quiet. Here we see a beautiful exchange in the relationship between God and man. God always hears our cry irrespective of the circumstances. And we in our heart crave for God irrespective of the challenges. This is the reality in the heart of very human person. There is nothing outside of us or inside us that can hinder this movement of our heart towards God. God always listens to our heartbeats. When He finds that we are calling louder amidst the people asking us to keep quiet, He stops. “Jesus stopped and ordered them to bring the man to him”. Jesus stops for me and asks the same persons who asked me to shut up to bring me to Him. How beautiful! Jesus stops at my cry and I am taken to Him. So, what is that hinders you to call him louder?
Nov 12, 2022 | DAILY BREAD
33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
World Day of the Poor 2022
“May this 2022 World Day of the Poor be for us a moment of grace. May it enable us to make a personal and communal examination of conscience and to ask ourselves whether the poverty of Jesus Christ is our faithful companion in life” (Pope Francis, Message for the World Day of the Poor 2022).
In the Gospel, Jesus says, ‘Take care not to be deceived,’ he said, ‘because many will come using my name and saying, “I am he” and, “The time is near at hand.” These words of Jesus are good to meditate on this World Day of the Poor. We forget the poor when we embrace the wrong person as Jesus. We forget the poor when we take the wrong idea as gospel. We fall in deception when we don’t see the poor person right next to me. We fall in deception when we talk so much and do nothing to help the needy. Again, Jesus says, “Keep this carefully in mind: you are not to prepare your defence, because I myself shall give you…” We forget the poor when we prepare our defence forgetting the role of God. We forget the poor when we prepare our plans and projects forgetting the plan of God. We forget the word of Jesus and we are busy preparing. He said that he will provide. When we forget the providence of God, we forget the poor. Let’s reflect: am I living in deception forgetting the poor near to me?
Nov 11, 2022 | DAILY BREAD
Saint Josaphat, Bishop, Martyr
Saturday of week 32 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 18:1-8
“I promise you, he will see justice done to them, and done speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?’” Do we really believe in these words of Jesus? With all the things happening around us, we don’t believe this. That is exactly why Jesus is saying it. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth? Because God is keeping his promise always, but we don’t see it or acknowledge it. With a simple discomfort we forget all the good things happened in our life. Here we see the perseverance of this widow. Before her, there were only discomforts. First the injustice she suffered. Then the judge who had neither fear of God nor respect for man. Then the continuous denial of justice. With all these challenges she continued to believe that justice will be done. This strength of mind is what we should have in prayer. This confidence in the promise of God is the faith we should have. Let’s ask this question: Do I really believe in the promise of God, that He will see justice done and done speedily, amidst the counterexamples of daily life?
Nov 10, 2022 | DAILY BREAD
Saint Martin of Tours, Bishop
Friday of week 32 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 17:26-37
“Anyone who tries to preserve his life will lose it; and anyone who loses it will keep it safe.”. This is a logic which is difficult to understand. Those who tries to preserve his life will lose it and those who loses it will keep it safe. Trying to preserve your life, you will destroy your life and trying to give it away, you will gain the life. There should be something special about this “life”, which makes it self-destructive when you try to protect it for yourselves. It should have something which makes it self-protective when you try to give it for others. This speciality of the life is that our life is meant to be lived for others. Not for ourselves. Whenever we try to live for the other, our life opens to breathe and whenever we try to live for ourselves, we suffocate our life. Our selfishness kills our life. Our love for the other protects our life. And when we live for God, we open our life to its maximum. How much am I aware about the logic of life that it must be lived for others?
