PRAYER AND INTIMACY WITH THE LORD GIVES JOY TO MINISTRY

20160729 PRAYER AND INTIMACY WITH THE LORD GIVES JOY TO MINISTRY

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.

First reading

Jeremiah 26:1-9 ©

At the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word was addressed to Jeremiah by the Lord, ‘The Lord says this: Stand in the court of the Temple of the Lord. To all the people of the towns of Judah who come to worship in the Temple of the Lord you must speak all the words I have commanded you to tell them; do not omit one syllable. Perhaps they will listen and each turn from his evil way: if so, I shall relent and not bring the disaster on them which I intended for their misdeeds. Say to them, “The Lord says this: If you will not listen to me by following my Law which I put before you, by paying attention to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send so persistently to you, without your ever listening to them, I will treat this Temple as I treated Shiloh, and make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth.”’

  The priests and prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah say these words in the Temple of the Lord. When Jeremiah had finished saying everything that the Lord had ordered him to say to all the people, the priests and prophets seized hold of him and said, ‘You shall die! Why have you made this prophecy in the name of the Lord, “This Temple will be like Shiloh, and this city will be desolate, and uninhabited”?’ And the people were all crowding round Jeremiah in the Temple of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 68:5,8-10,14 ©

In your great love, answer me, O God.

More numerous than the hairs on my head

  are those who hate me without cause.

Those who attack me with lies

  are too much for my strength.

How can I restore

  what I have never stolen?

In your great love, answer me, O God.

It is for you that I suffer taunts,

  that shame covers my face,

that I have become a stranger to my brothers,

  an alien to my own mother’s sons.

I burn with zeal for your house

  and taunts against you fall on me.

In your great love, answer me, O God.

This is my prayer to you,

  my prayer for your favour.

In your great love, answer me, O God,

  with your help that never fails.

In your great love, answer me, O God.

Gospel Acclamation

cf.1Th2:13

Alleluia, alleluia!

Accept God’s message for what it really is:

God’s message, and not some human thinking.

Alleluia!

Or

1P1:25

Alleluia, alleluia!

The word of the Lord remains for ever:

What is this word?

It is the Good News that has been brought to you.

Alleluia!

EITHER:

Gospel

John 11:19-27 ©

Many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to sympathise with them over their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus had come she went to meet him. Mary remained sitting in the house. Martha said to Jesus, ‘If you had been here, my brother would not have died, but I know that, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will grant you.’ ‘Your brother’ said Jesus to her ‘will rise again.’ Martha said, ‘I know he will rise again at the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said:

‘I am the resurrection and the life.

If anyone believes in me, even though he dies he will live,

and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.

Do you believe this?’

‘Yes, Lord,’ she said ‘I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who was to come into this world.’

OR:

Alternative Gospel

Luke 10:38-42 ©

Jesus came to a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. She had a sister called Mary, who sat down at the Lord’s feet and listened to him speaking. Now Martha who was distracted with all the serving said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister is leaving me to do the serving all by myself? Please tell her to help me.’ But the Lord answered: ‘Martha, Martha,’ he said ‘you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.’

PRAYER AND INTIMACY WITH THE LORD GIVES JOY TO MINISTRY

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [  1JN4, 7-16; LK 10:38-42 (Alt JN 11:19-27)  ]

We tend to pit Mary against Martha as if one is better than the other.  This is because of what Jesus said about Mary, that she “has chosen the better part” and “it is not to be taken from her.”  In truth, we have to take the whole episode in perspective.  The gospel text is not teaching us that it is a greater thing to be a contemplative than an activist.  There can be no real opposition between these two.  Both are necessary in Christian life and are meant for the service of the Church and the mission of Christ.  Rather, the issue lies in the question of priority.

The mistake of Martha is not because she was active in serving Jesus.  Practising hospitality is a manifestation of love and concern.  Indeed, in the Church, we need people who are committed to service.  Giving ourselves to the service of the Church and the Christian community is an expression of our love for God.  However, this is not always the case.  Even though one might apparently be very much engaged in the service of God, we cannot always be sure or claim that it is a manifestation of our love for God.

So what is the sign that although we are doing the work of God, we are no longer working for God but for other less noble reasons?  When we become restless and agitated!  Restlessness and anxiety are signs that we are more concerned with our ego, our desire to please and earn the recognition and appreciation of our fellowmen than the desire to serve God.  In other words, we are seeking attention and self-esteem.  This was the case of Martha.  Jesus gently chided her not because it was wrong that she was busy preparing and making Him comfortable.  Nay, it was because she “was distracted with all the serving.”  She no longer experienced the joy of service.  That she subtly began to seek for Jesus’ attention and appreciation was demonstrated in her cry to the Lord saying, “Lord, do you not care that my sister is leaving me to do the serving all by myself?  Please tell her to help me.”

Indeed, when we begin to fret and worry, we are no longer serving the Lord but we have become more anxious about our achievements.  Our focus is no longer on the Lord nor even the people we serve but on ourselves, our performance and the impression we make on others.  As a result, we become irritable, insecure, jealous and restless.  For Martha, her fear of rejection even led her to complain about Mary in order to boost her status before the Lord.  In complaining about Mary, Martha was implying to Jesus that she was a better person than Mary.  When a person becomes fearful and insecure, he or she would even belittle others in order to boost his or her ego.  Such service that results from self love of course could not bring Martha joy.  She became a slave to her pride and fears.

We, too, often fall into such situations as well.  As priests, we are often worried about what others think of us when we preach or when we assume an office.  We are worried about the projects that we have started.  We become ambitious and tend to compare ourselves with others.  When we feel that others are doing better than us, we then become jealous and envious.  This is true for people involved in so-called works of humanitarianism.  Apparently, they are serving the world by their voluntary service.  Yet, quite often, such involvement in community service is rendered in a condescending manner.   It is given in such a way that the giver seems to be greater than the recipient.  We serve or give out of pity rather than empathy and compassion.

What is the root of the problem?  It is because our ministry is not grounded in love.  We are not capable of love.  This is a reality we must first come to realize.  We are not able to love as we should.  Our love is conditional and not selfless even if we want to love selflessly.  Within this context, 1Jn4:7 provides the key to authentic service.  St John wrote, “My dear people, let us love one another since love comes from God and everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Anyone who fails to love can never have known God, because God is love.”

Consequently, the only way to heal us of our brokenness and insecurity and negative image of self is by giving ourselves to Jesus who alone can heal us with his unconditional love. Indeed, John said, “God’s love for us was revealed when God sent into the world his only Son so that we could have life through him: this is the love I mean: not our love for God, but God’s love for us when he sent his Son to be the sacrifice that takes our sins away.”

Truly, unless we have been loved by God, we cannot love unconditionally.  If not, we become irritable.  Only when we experience His love, can we share in His Spirit of love as well.  God’s love is prior to our love for others.  This is what St John is reminding us.  “My dear people, since God has loved us so much, we too should love one another. God will live in us and his love will be complete in us. We can know that we are living in him and he is living in us because he lets us share his Spirit.”  He added, “We ourselves have known and put our faith in God’s love towards ourselves. God is love and anyone who lives in love lives in God, and God lives in him.”

But how can we experience God’s love if not in prayer?  Hence, primacy must be given to prayer and a deep relationship with Jesus, which brings love.  Indeed, the gospel tells us that Jesus comes to serve and not to be served.  Before we can serve others, we must allow Jesus to serve us first.  That is what Jesus says in the parable about the faithful servant, for when the master returns, he will put on the apron to serve them.  This explains why “It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.”  Mary sat at the feet of Jesus listening to the teaching of Jesus.  Being loved by Jesus is primary.  Service and ministry flows from the love of God in us.  Sharing in His Spirit, we are empowered to love in return. Work and ministry is only the expression of love.

What should give us joy is not so much our ministry.  Rather it is our union with God and because of our union with Him, we want to express this union by loving our fellowmen.  So it is immaterial how we serve so long as whatever we do is the sharing of God’s love.

Indeed St Augustine asks what will happen when we reach the end of our pilgrimage when there is no longer any work.  As we grow older, whether we are priests or grandparents, a time will come when we can no longer work.  Does it mean that our lives will be spent in misery because we cannot serve anymore?  Surely not!  When the time comes we will simply spend the rest of our lives in solitude contemplating on the wonders of God’s love for us and His presence.  Knowing that God is with us and that He is our all will give us more joy than all worldly enjoyments.  So, like those who retire gracefully and are no longer mobile, our joy then would be to busk in the presence of God and His love.

Today, we take courage and inspiration from St John’s gospel that God is patient with us.  He allows us to grow in faith as He did for Martha.  From an impatient person, she became a woman of faith.  Although it is true that when we meet her later in St John’s gospel, she is still the active person, for she was the one who ran out to meet Jesus, but instead of complaining that Jesus was late, she placed her faith in Jesus saying, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died, but I know that, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will grant you.”  Not only did she confess her faith in the resurrection but she also confessed her faith in Christ, saying, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who has come into this world.”  Indeed, she learnt to surrender herself to Jesus.  Instead of wanting things her way, she surrendered to the Lord.  By professing her faith in the resurrection in Christ, she is saying in love, life does not come to an end.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved

A NEW LIFE WITH GOD ENTAILS ACCEPTING OUR PAST AND BEING OPEN TO NEW POSSIBILITIES

20160728 A NEW LIFE WITH GOD ENTAILS ACCEPTING OUR PAST AND BEING OPEN TO NEW POSSIBILITIES

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading

Jeremiah 18:1-6 ©

The word that was addressed to Jeremiah by the Lord, ‘Get up and make your way down to the potter’s house; there I shall let you hear what I have to say.’ So I went down to the potter’s house; and there he was, working at the wheel. And whenever the vessel he was making came out wrong, as happens with the clay handled by potters, he would start afresh and work it into another vessel, as potters do. Then this word of the Lord was addressed to me, ‘House of Israel, can not I do to you what this potter does? – it is the Lord who speaks. Yes, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so you are in mine, House of Israel.’

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 145:2-6 ©

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.

or

Alleluia!

My soul, give praise to the Lord.

  I will praise the Lord all my days,

  make music to my God while I live.

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.

or

Alleluia!

Put no trust in princes,

  In mortal men in whom there is no help.

Take their breath, they return to clay

  and their plans that day come to nothing.

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.

or

Alleluia!

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God,

  whose hope is in the Lord his God,

who alone made heaven and earth,

  the seas and all they contain.

He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God.

or

Alleluia!

Gospel Acclamation

Jn15:15

Alleluia, alleluia!

I call you friends, says the Lord,

because I have made known to you

everything I have learnt from my Father.

Alleluia!

Or	cf.Ac16:14

Alleluia, alleluia!

Open our heart, O Lord,

to accept the words of your Son.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Matthew 13:47-53 ©

Jesus said to the crowds, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea that brings in a haul of all kinds. When it is full, the fishermen haul it ashore; then, sitting down, they collect the good ones in a basket and throw away those that are no use. This is how it will be at the end of time: the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the just to throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.

  ‘Have you understood all this?’ They said, ‘Yes.’ And he said to them, ‘Well then, every scribe who becomes a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out from his storeroom things both new and old.’

A NEW LIFE WITH GOD ENTAILS ACCEPTING OUR PAST AND BEING OPEN TO NEW POSSIBILITIES

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [  JER 18:1-6; MT 13:47-53  ]

What is most consoling about today’s scripture passages is that none of us, no matter who we are, is doomed.  Until the day of reckoning comes, as the parable of the dragnet tells us, this is a time of grace.  Indeed, both readings speak about the possibility of change and conversion so long as we are still alive.  They are not concerned with judgement.  God who is patient with the Israelites in their fidelity is also patient with us.

But what is even more encouraging about today’s scripture message is that the change that is envisaged will happen in such a way that it does not do violence to our natural process of growth.  God is gentle with us even when He invites us to conversion.  Indeed, the new life that God wants to give us would basically be derived from the old.  That is what the parable of the potter and the clay meant to tell us.  Like the potter who uses the same clay to re-mould the pots that he is dissatisfied with, so too God will use all our weaknesses, mistakes and limitations for our personal growth in grace.  Indeed, our sins and limitations would be the very means by which God will re-mould us into His likeness.

Consequently, we who are struggling to remain faithful to God and to the gospel life need not despair, especially when we find that the strength to change is rather weak, or when we find that we have an ugly past.  For many of us, we find it difficult to thank God for our past, especially our broken past.  Indeed many of us find it difficult to thank God for our weaknesses, especially in our struggles to be true to ourselves.  Most of us would rather hate and hide our past than admit them.

However, the scripture readings today want to remind us that we need not be ashamed of our past.  To deny our past will not help us to be whole and to be healed.  What is not exposed cannot be healed.  Hence, the only way true healing can take place is when we accept our past with gratitude and thankfulness.  Let the past be the instruments of God’s purification for us in our endeavour to find the truth.  Indeed, our weaknesses and failures would be the very means by which God will bring us to realization and true conversion.  Even sins, although abhorred by God, can be transformed into powerful means of grace.

But that is not all.  The gospel also says that we must be like the learned scribe who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.  It is not enough to dwell on our past, even if we can accept it with gratitude.  Equally important is that we must also be open to what is being offered to us.  We must be open to the new possibilities for change.  We must be open to the new movements of the Spirit in our institutions and in the world.

But there is an implicit warning here as well.  Just as not everything that is old should be discarded, conversely, we must realize that not everything that is new is necessarily good and from the Spirit.  This is where it calls for discernment.  What is old can actually be new if we perceive the reality of it.  And what is new is, more often than not, actually old; simply old ideas in new packaging.  Consequently, newness or oldness is not a reality in themselves, but they are always clothed in various ways according to the epoch of our day.  Reality cannot be new, neither can reality be old.  Reality is always as it is.  But the way we perceive reality can be new.

Thus, the fullness of life would basically be a life that is carved from the old and in view of the potential life ahead of us.  In the blending of the old and the new, we find life.  In the blending of the old and the new, we see reality as it is.  Yes, between our inherited tradition and the progressive theologies, our faith grows and becomes dynamic and renewed.   Life is never of the past or even of the future.  Life is lived only in the present – but a present that is born of the past and from the future revealed to us by Christ.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights R

PAYING THE PRICE OF BEING FAITHFUL TO OUR VOCATION

20160727 PAYING THE PRICE OF BEING FAITHFUL TO OUR VOCATION

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

First reading

Jeremiah 15:10,16-21 ©

‘Woe is me, my mother, for you have borne me

to be a man of strife and of dissension for all the land.

I neither lend nor borrow,

yet all of them curse me.

‘When your words came, I devoured them:

your word was my delight

and the joy of my heart;

for I was called by your name,

the Lord, God of Hosts.

I never took pleasure in sitting in scoffers’ company;

with your hand on me I held myself aloof,

since you had filled me with indignation.

Why is my suffering continual,

my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?

Do you mean to be for me a deceptive stream

with inconstant waters?’

To which the Lord replied,

‘If you come back,

I will take you back into my service;

and if you utter noble, not despicable, thoughts,

you shall be as my own mouth.

They will come back to you,

but you must not go back to them.

I will make you

a bronze wall fortified against this people.

They will fight against you

but they will not overcome you,

because I am with you

to save you and to deliver you

– it is the Lord who speaks.

I mean to deliver you from the hands of the wicked

and redeem you from the clutches of the violent.’

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 58:2-5,10-11,17-18 ©

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

Rescue me, God, from my foes;

  protect me from those who attack me.

O rescue me from those who do evil

  and save me from blood-thirsty men.

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

See, they lie in wait for my life;

  powerful men band together against me.

For no offence, no sin of mine, Lord,

  for no guilt of mine they rush to take their stand.

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

O my Strength, it is you to whom I turn,

  for you, O God, are my stronghold,

  the God who shows me love.

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

As for me, I will sing of your strength

  and each morning acclaim your love

for you have been my stronghold,

  a refuge in the day of my distress.

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

O my Strength, it is you to whom I turn,

  for you, O God, are my stronghold,

  the God who shows me love.

O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.

Gospel Acclamation

Ps118:105

Alleluia, alleluia!

Your word is a lamp for my steps

and a light for my path.

Alleluia!

Or

Jn15:15

Alleluia, alleluia!

I call you friends, says the Lord,

because I have made known to you

everything I have learnt from my Father.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Matthew 13:44-46 ©

Jesus said to the crowds, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off happy, sells everything he owns and buys the field.

  ‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls; when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.’

PAYING THE PRICE OF BEING FAITHFUL TO OUR VOCATION

SCRIPTURE READINGS: [  JER 15:10, 16-21; MT 13:44-46  ]

If you have found a pearl of great value in life, are you willing to pay the price, just as the merchant did when he sold everything he had to buy it?  To risk everything for this one particular thing means to give your life to it.  These parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great value found only in St Matthew’s gospel could be the evangelist’s way of suggesting that finding Jesus was better than all the money he made through his position as a tax-collector. Indeed, this has been the case for thousands of Christians who have given up their lives to become a priest, religious or a missionary for Christ.  The joy of knowing and serving Jesus is greater than everything else in this world, so much so that those who found Him were willing to give up everything to follow Him.

What about us?  Is Jesus the pearl that we are willing to give up everything for?  Are we willing to pay the price to be with Jesus? The stark reality is that, too often, we consider Jesus to be not like a treasure or an incomparable pearl but some item from a clearance sale.  We do not mind having Jesus if the price is not too high.  We desire to have both, if possible.  We want the world and also Jesus, provided He can give us the worldly things as well.  And the truth is that many Christians come to Christ under the pretext of loving and serving Him when in fact they want to serve themselves. They come to Christ to get something from Him, not to give Him something. If they give anything to Him, it is provided they receive back ten-fold or more.  So they do not give Him their wealth or resources out of love.  It is more a kind of investment for worldly things.  In truth, we are more willing to make sacrifices for earthly things and worldly honour than serving Jesus in our lives.

Yet, the fact remains that for heavenly things, there is a price to be paid.  It is not given to those swines, as Jesus remarked, because they will step on them and destroy them.  Anything that is truly worthwhile deserves to be given our whole heart, mind and soul and strength. What could anything be greater than worldly power and worldly wealth if not love?  The Song of Songs has this to say, “Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it.  If a man offered for love all the wealth of his house, it would be utterly scorned.”  (Songs 8:7) Truly, those who have experienced human love will appreciate even more the love of God, the love described by the mystics who have arrived at the stage of nuptial love, a love that is transforming, when they experience it.  For the sake of love, many of us are willing to sacrifice even our wealth, status and position in life. What more if we come to experience the unconditional and overwhelming love of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit?

Jeremiah himself came to understand the price of sharing in the life of God.  In the first reading he recognized the joy of receiving the Word and being called by Him.  He said, “When your words came, I devoured them: your word was my delight and the joy of my heart; for I was called by your name.”  However, the privilege of being called also implies the invitation to suffering.  Five times in the book of Jeremiah (11:18-12:6, 15:10-21, 17:12-18, 18:18-23, 20:7-18), he complained to God because of the inner anguish he suffered under the weight of the prophetic office. He cursed his birth and lamented the sufferings on account of his vocation.

In our own ways, we too are like Jeremiah.  Although, our trials and tribulations cannot be compared to his, yet, how often, in times of difficulty and when the weight of our vocation is overwhelming, we feel like quitting, especially when the going gets tough!  This is particularly so when we are misunderstood, taken for granted, wrongly accused and treated unjustly. Many of us feel that our loved ones take advantage of us.  We are always at their beck and call, more like their servants and financiers than their loved ones.  Surely, many times in our lives, when we are going through a rough patch with our spouse or loved ones, don’t we instinctively want to give up?

Then there are those of us who are torn between two loves.  Many a man wants to be a priest but is forced to choose between his vocation to serve Christ and someone whom he really loves.  There is a great price to pay to serve the Lord in the priesthood and religious life.  Certainly, in our pain and loneliness, many of us feel like giving up a responsibility given to us, to resign from some position or some project because we face many obstacles and challenges.  This is even true in Church ministry when we have to deal with wounded Church members who are jealous of our position.  We give up so easily because we are not quite ready to pay the price for the great pearl of life.  So quickly, like Jeremiah, we allow the joy and fulfillment we received through what we do to be overshadowed by our sufferings.

In such moments, like Jeremiah, we cry out to God.  Like the psalmist we plead with the Lord, “Rescue me, God from my foes; protect me from those who attack me.  See they lie in wait for my life; powerful men band together against me.  For no offence, no sin of mine, Lord, for no guilt of mine, they rush to take their stand.”  But the reply from the Lord at times, as Jeremiah found out, might not seem to be overly sympathetic.  Instead of showing mercy, the Lord reprimanded him.  God’s reply was certainly not overly sympathetic, insisting on Jeremiah’s repentance for his nearly blasphemous complaints.  God said, “If you come back, I will take you back into my service; and if you utter noble, not despicable, thoughts, you shall be as my own mouth.”

Why repentance? God wanted Jeremiah to purify his love in serving Him and His people.  More often than not, our service comes from our selfishness.  As I have mentioned earlier, very few of us come to the Lord or serve Him out of pure love for Him and His love for us.  We come to Him only because we desire something from Him.  We do not truly love Him for His sake but we love Him for our sake.  The moment, we feel we are not getting anything from Him we dump Him.  Isn’t this what the purification of the dark night of the senses and the spirit is all about?  In prayer, we come to the Lord only if we experience consolation, like having nice feelings of His presence and love, insights and visions.  But when we experience desolation, His absence and darkness, we immediately give up praying.  Because we serve the Lord for less than noble reasons, the Lord invites us to reflect for ourselves and repent of our own sins, rather than trying to justify ourselves for our sufferings.  Not all sufferings that come from our so-called enemies, or those whom we serve, are because of their injustice or lack of love.  More often than not, maybe we are the ones who are at fault.  We do not see our mistakes or lack of love.

The call to repentance really is a call to be faithful to one’s identity.  Taking the easy way out or copping out will not give us happiness.  It means infidelity to oneself.  Those of us who watched the Lion King movie will understand how Simba was trying to escape from his identity and his calling to be the King.  Only by accepting his calling and being true to himself, could he find himself.  To abandon our vocation and our calling in life is not only about abandoning God, but it is tantamount to being unfilial to oneself.  Such a person will only live a life of regret, for he cannot find true happiness except when he is being himself and the person God has destined him to be.  But if we stand up for God and for the love of Him, like Jeremiah, we will find life and love.

So whilst God might appear to be indifferent to Jeremiah’s cries, He was actually renewing Jeremiah’s vocation.  He promised him His divine protection if Jeremiah remained faithful to Him.  Similarly, God is inviting us all again, especially those of us who are hesitating in our vocation in life.  He is re-calling us to fidelity in our vocation and promising the protection of His presence.  No matter what difficulties we encounter, we will find God with us when we are faithful to His call.

Where will His fidelity be found? God’s fidelity comes in the form of offering words of encouragement from scripture through contemplative prayer; through the sacraments, especially of reconciliation and the Eucharist.   Quite often He comes through friends who console us even when they do not know our problems or send people to help us carry our problems. God never leaves us alone. He will always send an angel to support us in our vocation and be faithful to the end.  At times, He confirms us by giving success to the work of our hands.  With His assurance of fidelity and love we can carry on.  Like the psalmist we only need to pray, “O my Strength, it is you to whom I turn, for you, O God are my stronghold, the God who shows me love.  As for me, I will sing of your strength and each morning acclaim your love for you have been my stronghold, a refuge in the day of my distress.”  Freedom, as Confucius says, comes from being faithful to our vocation, not the praises or criticisms of men.  Only then are we truly free.

Written by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved