Friday, February 1 – Patience with your Prayer Life

01 Feb

Hi everyone!

My name is Jean Cheng and I am a new volunteer writer for OXYGEN. =) Some background information on myself, I have recently graduated from the University of Melbourne with two majors in Psychology and Media Communications, but am going back to continue my Honours in Psychology. Besides that I also enjoy reading, singing, dancing, watching TV, eating, … and I think that’s more information than what Daniel requested for.

On a more serious side, I volunteered to write for OXYGEN because I want to spend more time reflecting on scriptures and deepen my walk with Christ. I also hope that I can encourage you in your spiritual journey through my reflections and sharings.

Thanks everyone for giving me a chance to be a part of this ministry! I will do my best. =)

God bless,
Jean
____________________

2 Samuel 11:1-4a

The following spring, at the time of the year when kings usually go to war, David sent out Joab with his officers and the Israelite army; they defeated the Ammonities and besieged the city of Rabbah. But David himself stayed in Jerusalem. One day, late in the afternoon, David got up from his nap and went to the palace roof. As he walked around up there, he saw a woman taking a bath in her house. She was very beautiful. So he sent a messenger to find out who she was, and learned that she was Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite. David sent messengers to get her; they brought her to him and he made love to her.

Afterward she discovered that she was pregnant and sent a message to David to tell him. David then sent a message to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent him to David. When Uriah arrived, David asked him if Joab and the troops were well, and how the fighting was going. Then he said to Uriah, “Go on home and rest a while.” Uriah left, and David had a present sent to his home. But Uriah did not go home; instead he slept at the palace gate with the king’s guards. David was told that Uriah had not gone home.

The next day, David invited him to supper and got him drunk. But again that night Uriah did not go home; instead he slept on his blanket in the palace guardroom. The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by Uriah. He wrote: “Put Uriah in the front line, where the fighting is heaviest, then retreat and let him be killed.” So while Joab was besieging the city, he sent Uriah to a place where he knew the enemy was strong. The enemy troops came out of the city and ought Joab’s forces; some of David’s officers were killed, and so was Uriah.
____________________

Mark 4:26-34

Jesus went on to say, “The Kingdom of God is like this. A man scatters seed in his field. He sleeps at night, is up and about during the day, and all the while the seeds are sprouting and growing. Yet he does not know how it happens. The soil itself makes the plants grow and bear fruit; first the tender stalk appears, then the head, and finally the head full of grain. When the grain is ripe, the man starts cutting it with his sickle, because harvest time has come.

“What shall we say the Kingdom of God is like?” asked Jesus. “What parable shall we use to explain it? It is like this. A man takes a mustard seed, the smallest seed in the world, and plants it in the ground. After a while it grows up and becomes the biggest of all plants. It puts out such large branches that the birds come and make their nests in its shade.”

Jesus preached his message to the people, using many other parables like these; he told them as much as they could understand. He would not speak to them without using parables, but when he was along with his disciples, he would explain everything to them.
_____________________

In the first reading, we see that David has sinned when he committed adultery. However, instead of repenting, he committed a greater sin when he had Uriah, a righteous man, killed. This warns us of what can happen when we fail to repent: we can end up committing greater sins.

While we may end up committing greater sins for the purpose of covering up our previous sins, there may be another reason to us sinning further. In psychology, we learn that human beings have a need to seek consistency in their self-image. What this means is that we want to know who we are and we will tend to do things to confirm our view of who we think we are. For example, ‘messy children’ will tend to be messy because they have accepted this as their self-image.

What is the implication of this theory? If we sin and fail to repent, we can easily accept ourselves as “bad” and “condemned” and give up on the hope that we can change. We retain a negative self-image and continue – consciously or subconsciously – to commit more sins to sustain this image of ourselves. However, if we repent of our sins and ask God to help us change, we not only allow our slates to be cleansed by God but we are also refusing any negative self-images of ourselves to form or be perpetuated.

While some of us may struggle with repenting, I think many of us may struggle more with finding ourselves sinning despite our prayer life. Sinning after we have repented/prayed can make us feel disheartened and we may be tempted to lose the hope of ever becoming better individuals.

Personally, I struggle a lot with my prayer life because even after I pray, I continue to find myself committing the same sins. This frustrates me, makes me doubt the power of prayers and even makes me wonder if God truly exists.

Yet, when I look back on my life and recall the day I decided to make time for daily prayer (or at least, I try my best to), I realize that I have grown: I am committing fewer of my old sins and moving away from my old habits. Ironically, while I am moving away from old sins and habits, I am becoming increasingly aware of other sins and bad habits. As such, I can never stop repenting and asking for Jesus’ mercy and grace.

Perhaps the journey of repentance and prayer is never ending for Jesus wants to make us like Him (1 John 3:2). Instead of complaining about the never-ending list of sins I need to repent of, I must learn to thank God for consistently revealing my weaknesses to me so that I keep growing in His image.

If you are feeling impatient or upset that your prayer life seems to have stagnated, do not lose hope but hold on to Jesus’ promise in today’s Gospel: Even with faith as small as a mustard seed, we can become Jesus’ most outstanding disciples. Whether or not we are aware, we are already growing and building our foundations to become completely like Christ.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
___________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, we pray that you will help us to be patient with our growth and to hold on to your promise that we will become completely like you.

Give thanks to the Lord for: Calling us His precious children, no matter how small our faith is.

Upcoming Readings:
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Thursday, January 31 – Simplify and Relate

31 Jan – Memorial for St. John Bosco, priest

St. John Bosco (1815-1888) was the son of Venerable Margaret Bosco. His father died when he was just two years old, and as soon as he was old enough to do odd jobs, he did so for extra money for his family. Bosco would go to circuses, fairs, and carnivals, practise the tricks he saw the magicians perform, and then present one-boy shows. After his performance, while he still had an audience of boys, he would repeat the homily he had heard earlier in church.

He worked as a tailor, baker, shoemaker, and carpenter while attending college and the seminary. He was ordained in 1841. He was a teacher, and he worked with youth, finding places where they could meet, play and pray. He taught catechism to orphans and apprentices, and was chaplain in a hospice for girls.

He wrote short treatises aimed at explaining the faith to children, and then taught children how to print them. He was a friend of St. Joseph Cafasson, whose biography he wrote. He was confessor to Blessed Joseph Allamano. He founded the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) in 1859, a community of priests who work with and educate boys, under the protection of Our Lady, Help of Christians, and St. Francis de Sales. He founded the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, in 1872, and the Union of Cooperator Salesians in 1875.

- Patron Saint Index
__________________

2 Samuel 7:18-19, 24-29

After Nathan had spoken to David, the King went in and, seated before the Lord, said:

‘Who am I, Lord, and what is my House, that you have led me as far as this? Yet in your sight, Lord, this is still not far enough, and you make your promises extend to the House of your servant for a far-distant future. You have constituted your people Israel to be your own people for ever; and you, Lord, have become their God. Now, Lord, always keep the promise you have made your servant and his House, and do as you have said. Your name will be exalted for ever and men will say, “The Lord of hosts is God over Israel.” The House of your servant David will be made secure in your presence, since you yourself, Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, “I will build you a House;” hence you are God indeed, your words are true and you have made this fair promise to your servant. Be pleased, then, to bless the House of your servant, that it may continue for ever in your presence; for you, Lord, have spoken; and with your blessing the House of your servant will be for ever blessed.’
____________________

Mark 4:21-25

Jesus said to the crowd: ‘Would you bring in a lamp to put it under the tub or under the bed? Surely you will put it on the lamp-stand? For there is nothing hidden but it must be disclosed, nothing kept secret except to be brought to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen to this.’

He also said to them, ‘Take notice of what you are hearing. The amount you measure out is the amount you will be given – and more besides; for the man who has will be given more; from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away.’
____________________

In an interview I had years ago, one of the panel asked me how I would explain the concept of division to someone in Primary 1. Being the biology geek that I was (and still am), I said I would tell use cell division as an example; how a cell grows bigger and it divides so one cell becomes two. They never commented on my answer beyond the cursory “thank you” but I doubt they were too impressed. I wouldn’t be. That was a lousy way of explaining a concept. To use a more advanced topic like cells to teach a basic subject like division complicates matters beyond necessity. Better it would have been to have used a simple everyday analogy like sharing a $2 equally between two people.

Communication and spreading and sharing of knowledge requires unambiguity. God is clearly aware of this. We read in the Bible that when God speaks, He never confounds those that listen. Yesterday’s first reading had Nathan conveying the message that God had for David with regards to the temple the king wanted to build for the Lord. The words of God through the prophet were clear. Through analogies and events that David could relate to, God told him that He had a bigger plan in mind. David’s response today shows that he understood the message. He acknowledged his position and blessed God for the blessing that was given him.

Christ tells us that the light we carry in us, which is His message of love is to be put out in the open, for all to see and to see by. It is our mission and one to be proud of. I am sure though we have all heard of instances where people are put off by strong-armed evangelism. Why should this be the case? This happens because such evangelists do as David did and attempt to share about God in the way they best understand. Yet others either do not have the knowledge they have or understand differently. When this happens, the lamp is placed under the bed, under the tub. Just like me and cell division. Brothers and sisters, why do we do so when things could be much simpler? Telling others about God works best when others can relate to what we are talking about. Let’s share God the way we would share $2.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Aloysius Ting)
____________________

Prayer: Lord, help us to clearly see, comprehend and disseminate Your message for us.

Give thanks to the Lord for: Teachers and educators.

Upcoming Readings:
Fri, 01 Feb – 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Mark 4:26-34
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Wednesday, January 30 – Hearts as Houses

30 Jan

St. Francis’ Spirit

Shortly after his priestly ordination, Francis Xavier was assigned to work in a hospital in Venice. The hospital was crowded with people suffering from incurable diseases. One of these was the dreaded “French disease” or syphilis, the body of the patients covered with sores full of pus causing a nauseating stench.

One day a syphilis patient whom Francis was tending asked the saint to scratch his back. Suddenly, a crippling fear seized Francis. What if he became infected with the disease from the pus? For a moment, Francis remained frozen. In a flash, he thought of Jesus and the commitment he had made to Him. Any job done to fulfil His mission would entail risks. Francis plucked up courage. He not merely scratched the patient’s back, but when the task was done, he put his fingers into his own mouth and sucked them.

That night, he dreamed that he had been infected with the sickness in his throat and kept coughing and spitting the whole night. The following day he realised that there was no sign of any sickness. From then on he lost his sense of repugnance and fear of contagion.

- What thoughts, feelings, occurred to you while you went through the story?
- What do you think is the ‘moral’ of the story?

- taken from “Persons Are Gifts”, by Hedwig Lewis, SJ
____________________

2 Samuel 7:4-17

The word of the Lord came to Nathan:

‘Go and tell my servant David, “Thus the Lord speaks: Are you the man to build me a house to dwell in? I have never stayed in a house from the day I brought the Israelites out of Egypt until today, but have always led a wanderer’s life in a tent. In all my journeying with the whole people of Israel, did I say to any one of the judges of Israel, whom I had appointed as shepherds of Israel my people: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” This is what you must say to my servant David, “The Lord of hosts says this: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be leader of my people Israel; I have been with you on all your expeditions; I have cut off all your enemies before you. I will give you fame as great as the fame of the greatest on earth. I will provide a place for my people Israel; I will plant them there and they shall dwell in that place and never be disturbed again; nor shall the wicked continue to oppress them as they did, in the days when I appointed judges over my people Israel; I will give them rest from all their enemies. The Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House. And when your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. (It is he who shall build a house for my name, and I will make his royal throne secure for ever.) I will be a father to him and he a son to me; if he does evil, I will punish him with the rod such as men use, with strokes such as mankind gives. Yet I will not withdraw my favour from him, as I withdrew it from your predecessor. Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me and your throne be established for ever.”’

Nathan related all these words to David and this whole revelation.
____________________

Mark 4:1-20

Jesus began to teach by the lakeside, but such a huge crowd gathered round him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there. The people were all along the shore, at the water’s edge. He taught them many things in parables, and in the course of his teaching he said to them, ‘Listen! Imagine a sower going out to sow. Now it happened that, as he sowed, some of the seed fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some seed fell on rocky ground where it found little soil and sprang up straightaway, because there was no depth of earth; and when the sun came up it was scorched and, not having any roots, it withered away. Some seed fell into thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it produced no crop. And some seed fell into rich soil and, growing tall and strong, produced crop; and yielded thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold.’ And he said, ‘Listen, anyone who has ears to hear.’

When he was alone, the Twelve, together with the others who formed his company, asked what the parables meant. He told them, ‘The secret of the kingdom of God is given to you, but to those who are outside everything comes in parables, so that they may see and see again, but not perceive; may hear and hear again, but not understand; otherwise they might be converted and be forgiven.’

He said to them, ‘Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand any of the parables? What the sower is sowing is the word. Those on the edge of the path where the word is sown are people who have no sooner heard it than Satan comes and carries away the word that was sown in them. Similarly, those who receive the seed on patches of rock are people who, when first they hear the word, welcome it at once with joy. But they have no root in them, they do not last; should some trial come, or some persecution on account of the word, they fall away at once. Then there are others who receive the seed in thorns. These have heard the word, but the worries of this world, the lure of riches and all the other passions come in to choke the word, and so it produces nothing. And there are those who have received the seed in rich soil: they hear the word and accept it and yield a harvest, thirty and sixty and a hundred fold.’
____________________

When Jesus came, He came to build a house – a kingdom in which He reigns. His kingdom is His house with all of us in it.

In the Gospel reading, we can also see our hearts as houses for seeds that are the word of God. Can our hearts allow these seeds to grow and produce fruit for His kingdom? If not, how can we ensure that they become good environments for these seeds to grow?

God is fruitful. A heart in which He dwells will be fruitful. Thus, to nurture the seed that is the Word, we have to let God into our hearts.

Let us look beyond ourselves. Do we let God into our relationships? God’s Word can also be sown and grown in relationships with friends and family, where He can also be fruitful. Let us ask Jesus to come into our hearts and relationships today, so that our lives and the lives of others are fruitful.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Regina Xie)
____________________

Prayer: Lord, come into our hearts to help us bear fruit for Your kingdom.

Give thanks to the Lord for: His sovereignty.

Upcoming Readings:
Thu, 31 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:18-19, 24-29; Mark 4:21-25; Memorial for St. John Bosco, priest, religious founder
Fri, 01 Feb – 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Mark 4:26-34
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Tuesday, January 29 – Death and Taxes

29 Jan

The Beggar’s Joy

When Norman Vincent Peale, the famous pastor, speaker and author, was very young, he learned a lesson for life from his father. The elder Peale, a clergyman, was a large-hearted person who made no distinction between people. He had respect and esteem for every individual, not going by external appearances but looking at people as they really were.

It was Christmas Eve and Norman was out with his father doing some late Christmas shopping, he reveals in his book The Amazing Results of Positive Thinking. He was loaded down with packages and felt tired and irritable. He was thinking how good it would be to get home when a beggar, a bleary-eyed, unshaved, dirty old man came up to him, touched his hand with his and asked for money. Norman recoiled from his soiled hand and rather impatiently brushed him aside.

“You shouldn’t treat a man that way, Norman,” said his father as soon as they were out of earshot.

“But, Dad, he’s nothing but a bum,” replied Norman.

“Bum?” he said. “There’s no such thing as a bum. He is a child of God, my boy. Maybe he hasn’t made the most of himself but he is a child of God, nonetheless. We must always look upon a man with esteem. Now, I want you to go and give him this.” His father pulled out his pocketbook and handed him a dollar, which was all he could afford. “And do exactly the way I tell you. Go up to him, hand him this dollar, and speak to him with respect. Tell him you are giving him this dollar in the name of Christ.”

“Oh,” objected Norman. “I don’t want to do that.”

His father insisted, “Go and do as I tell you.”

So Norman ran after the old man, caught up with him and said, “Excuse me, sir. I give you this dollar in the name of Christ.”

The old man looked at him in absolute surprise. Then a wonderful smile spread over his face. A smile that made the boy forget the beggar was dirty and unshaven. Normal could see the real face of the man through the streaks of grime – his essential nobility. Graciously, with a sort of bow, the beggar said, “I thank you, young sir, in the name of Christ.”

Norman sums up the experience thus: My irritation and annoyance faded like magic. And suddenly I was happy. The very street seemed beautiful. In fact, I believe that in the moment I held that man in full and complete esteem, I came very close to Christ Himself. And that, of course, is one of the most joyful experiences any person can ever have.

- What thoughts, feelings, occurred to you while you went through the story?
- What do you think is the ‘moral’ of the story?

- taken from “Persons Are Gifts”, by Hedwig Lewis, SJ
____________________

2 Samuel 6:12-15, 17-19

David went and brought the ark of God up from Obed-edom’s house to the Citadel of David with great rejoicing. When the bearers of the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fat sheep. And David danced whirling round before the Lord with all his might, wearing a linen loincloth round him. Thus David and all the House of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with acclaim and the sound of the horn. They brought the ark of the Lord and pt it in position inside the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered holocausts before the Lord, and communion sacrifices. And when David had finished offering holocausts and communion sacrifices, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts. He then distributed among all the people, among the whole multitude of Israelites, men and women, a roll of bread to each, a portion of dates, and a raisin cake. Then they all went away, each to his own house.
____________________

Mark 3:31-35

The mother and brothers of Jesus arrived and, standing outside, sent in a message asking for him. A crowd was sitting round him at the time the message was passed to him, “Your mother and brothers and sisters are outside asking for you.” He replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking round at those sitting in a circle about him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of God, that person is my brother and my sister and mother.”
____________________

About a year ago, when I had been working in my job for over a year, I was faced with the unfamiliar task of filing my income tax. I had no experience in this at all, and was simply told to check out the IRAS (Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore) website to find out more. I found out that below a certain income level, I did not need to pay income tax. One day, I remarked to my father that I was keeping my income below that level so that I did not have to pay income tax. What he said to me then has left a deep impression on me.

He said: “Don’t worry about having to pay income tax, but be grateful that you have enough money so that you can be taxed.” Since that time, I no longer worried about keeping my income tax below a certain level, because I also came to realise why we have taxes – so that the government who collects the revenue may distribute them fairly. At least that’s the way it’s supposed to work, but sadly is not true in a number of other countries.

This is exactly what David did – as king, he collected the wealth of the people through taxes and later, he distributed the revenue to all people so as to ensure that everyone had a little piece of the pie that was rightfully theirs. In the past, the priest who celebrates Mass used to distribute the offertory collections to all the people, especially to those most in need. This is the beauty of communion – when everyone belongs to the same community, we look out for one another. This is also why tax evaders are punished by the state – because through their selfishness, they harm the good of the community.

Does the Catholic Church have something similar? Yes, we do. We have what is called indulgences. Millions of people do good deeds and pray for the pope and the Church everyday. What happens to these results of these good deeds and prayers? They go into what is called the storehouse of merit, which is kind of like a spiritual treasury, which also ‘stores’ the merits that Christ has won for the salvation of all mankind. Hence our merits are united in communion with that of Christ.

These merits are then distributed to those who are in need of it e.g. those who pray for help, etc. (Fortunately for us, it is all automated. I don’t know how it works, perhaps angels have something to do with it.) Wikipedia has a good list of acts for which indulgence is granted, so you don’t have to wait for a special occasion to receive indulgences.

In any case, once in a while, the pope, like David, has the authority to distribute the wealth of the treasury to all who fulfil certain conditions. In the case of David and his people, the people had to be there to receive the shares. In the same way, the pope’s conditions usually require us to be at a certain location in order to receive the shares.

Perhaps the most important part about these indulgences is that they can not only be used for ourselves, but for the souls of others, in particular, the souls in Purgatory who cannot do anything to earn merit, but have to rely on us who are still living to pray for them. They are, as Christ said, our brothers and sisters and our mother because the very fact that they are in Purgatory shows us that they did the will of God and are destined for Heaven. That is why it is such an important duty of Catholics to pray for the souls in Purgatory. It can be equated to charitable works that are done for the poor who likewise can do nothing to get out of their poverty, but are equally our brothers and sisters, as we are all children of God.

Let us make an effort to gain a plenary indulgence for a soul in Purgatory today, by praying the Rosary in a church, in a family, or in a religious community, and by receiving the Sacraments of Penance and Holy Communion.
___________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, we pray that more Catholics may come to realise their share in the great spiritual treasury of the Church, to receive from that treasury, and to share their own material and spiritual wealth with those who are lacking in either. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: The spiritual treasury of merits that never runs out.

Upcoming Readings:
Wed, 30 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:4-17; Mark 4:1-20
Thu, 31 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:18-19, 24-29; Mark 4:21-25; Memorial for St. John Bosco, priest, religious founder
Fri, 01 Feb – 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Mark 4:26-34
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Monday, January 28 – When Ministry Is Messy

28 Jan – Memorial for St. Thomas Aquinas, priest, religious, doctor

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) was the son of the Count of Aquino, and was born in the family castle of Lombardy near Naples. He was educated by Benedictine monks at Monte Cassino, and at the University of Naples. He secretly joined the mendicant Dominican friars in 1244. His noble family kidnapped and imprisoned him for a year to keep him out of sight and to deprogramme him, but he rejoined the order in 1245.

He studied in Paris from 1245-1248 under St. Albert the Great, then accompanied Albertus to Cologne. He was ordained in 1250, then returned to Paris to teach. He taught theology at the University of Paris, and wrote defenses of the mendicant orders, commentaries on Aristotle and Lombard’s Sentences, and some bible-related works, usually by dictating to secretaries. He won his doctorate, and taught in several Italian cities. He was recalled by the king and the university to Paris in 1269, then recalled to Naples in 1272 where he was appointed regent of studies while working on the Summa Theologica.

On Dec 6, 1273, he experienced a divine revelation which so enraptured him that he abandoned the Summa, saying that it and his other writings were so much straw in the wind compared to the reality of the divine glory. He died four months later while en route to the Council of Lyons, overweight an with his health broken by overwork.

His works have been seminal to the thinking of the Church ever since. They systemized her great thoughts and teaching, and combined Greek wisdom and scholarship methods with the truth of Christianity. Pope Leo VIII commanded that his teachings be studied by all theology students. He was proclaimed Doctor of the Church in 1567.

- Patron Saint Index
____________________

2 Samuel 5:1-7, 10

All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron. “Look,” they said, “we are your own flesh and blood. In days past when Saul was our king, it was you who led Israel in all their exploits; and the Lord said to you, ‘You are the man who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you shall be the leader of Israel.’” So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a pact with them at Hebron in the presence of the Lord, and they anointed David king of Israel.

David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty years. He reigned in Hebron over Judah for seven years and six months; then he reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel and Judah for thirty-three years.

David and his men marched on Jerusalem against the Jebusites living there. These said to David, “You will not get in here. The blind and the lame will hold you off.” (That is to say: David will never get in here.) But David captured the fortress of Zion, that is, the Citadel of David.

He grew greater and greater, and the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him.
____________________

Mark 3:22-30

The scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, “Beelzebul is in him” and, “It is through the prince of devils that he casts devils out.” So Jesus called them to him and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot last. And if a household is divided against itself, that household can never stand. Now if Satan has rebelled against himself and is divided, he cannot stand either – it is the end of him. But no one can make his way into a strong man’s house and burgle his property unless he has tied up the strong man first. Only then can he burgle his house.

“I tell you solemnly, all men’s sins will be forgiven, and all their blasphemies; but let anyone blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and he will never have forgiveness: he is guilty of an eternal sin.” This was because they were saying, “An unclean spirit is in him.”
____________________

I’ve just finished reading a book called “When Ministry Is Messy” by Richard C. Brown, Ph.D, and I wonder why such a book is not made known to all Christians who are in ministry. In this book, the author speaks of the three reasons why conflicts in ministry take place – natural personality differences, emotional illness, and sin. And he put forward three ways in which we can resolve or prevent ministry conflict – servanthood (putting the needs of the others above your own); logic (using reason to find out the truth); and loving forgiveness (to resolve hurts).

In today’s readings, we see Jesus dealing precisely with that – conflict in ministry. In his case, the ministry concerned is that of preaching. Jesus’ response in this case was one that used logic, or reason. Using simple reasoning, he showed his accusers that what they were claiming about him was untrue, simply because it didn’t make sense when put to the test.

In the first reading, we see that David’s enemies, the Jebusites, considered their position impregnable, so much so that even cripples could defend it. This pride that the Jebusites had was another area in which conflict in ministry occurs, and it falls under the category of sin. In both cases, logic can be used to address the problem, but the sin of pride also causes the problem of hardness of heart, which Jesus was to point out in another passage in the gospels. This is where logic fails, because in the face of hardness of heart, nothing can be done to help the person see the truth.

This then is the unforgivable sin that Jesus speaks of, for the Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth. A person who denies the truth even in the face of rationality is one who acts irrationally. We see this taking place frequently in our ministries, don’t we? Sometimes we hear others (or ourselves) give irrational reasons such as: “This is the right way, because I’m a priest and I say so” or “Do this my way, because I’ve been around far longer than you have”.

It is here that we must apply Jesus’ own solutions to ministry conflict, most importantly, the first thing he said when he was crucified: Forgive them for they know not what they do. Indeed that is all we can do, even as we are being crucified – to pray to our Lord and ask forgiveness for others on their behalf, and to ask the Lord to give them a change of heart.

Take some time to reflect on the people in your ministry who have cause you hurt and whose behaviour have resulted in conflicts in your ministry, and ask the Lord to forgive them.
____________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, I pray for those who have caused me hurt in my ministry, and I ask you to forgive them for they know not what they do. Help them to have a change of heart, and that they may repent and receive your reign in their hearts. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: A wonderful present.

Upcoming Readings:
Wed, 30 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:4-17; Mark 4:1-20
Thu, 31 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:18-19, 24-29; Mark 4:21-25; Memorial for St. John Bosco, priest, religious founder
Fri, 01 Feb – 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Mark 4:26-34
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Sunday, January 27 – How To Be A Better Christian

27 Jan – Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jesus, The Light Of The World

The Good News we have heard is like a beacon light which draws men irresistibly to Christ. We must not be content with lesser lights.

- the Sunday Missal
____________________

The Heir’s Portrait

A very wealthy man was heartbroken when his wife died leaving behind their young son. Fortunately, he could depend on a very affable housekeeper who took care of the child as her own. When the lad was barely twenty, however, he met with a tragic death. His father was so grief-stricken that his health began to dwindle, and he too died a few months later, in the loving arms of the housekeeper. He had, no doubt, made adequate provision for her.

The millionaire left no will, and since no living heir to his enormous estate could be trace, the whole property was taken over by the state. Eventually, an auction was arranged to dispose of the personal effects of the mansion.

The old housekeeper was present at the auction, not so much to bid for anything as to have a last glance at the things she had been familiar with for years. Among the several objects on display, there was one that attracted her attention; it was the photograph of the boy in his late teens. It was practically the only item that had no takers, so the woman paid the amount the auctioneer demanded and bought it for keepsakes.

When she dusted the frame at home, some papers fell out the back. They looked important, so she showed them to a lawyer-friend. The lawyer could not believe what he saw. He looked at the woman and said cheerfully: “You’ve hit the jackpot, dear. Your old master has left all his property and savings to the person who loved his son enough to buy the picture.”

- What thoughts, feelings, occurred to you while you went through the story?
- What do you think is the ‘moral’ of the story?

- taken from “Persons Are Gifts”, by Hedwig Lewis, SJ
____________________

Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3

In days past the Lord humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in days to come he will confer glory on the Way of the Sea on the far side of Jordan, province of the nations.

The people that walked in darkness
has been a great light,
on those who live in a land of deep shadow
a light has shone.
You have made their gladness greater,
you have made their joy increase;
they rejoice in your presence
as men rejoice at harvest time,
as men are happy when they are dividing the spoils.

For the yoke that was weighing on him,
the bar across his shoulders,
the rod of his oppressor,
these you break as on the day of Midian.
____________________

1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17

I appeal to you, brothers, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, to make up the differences between you, and instead of disagreeing among yourselves, to be united again in your belief and practice. From what Chloe’s people have been telling me, my dear brothers, it is clear that there are serious differences among you. What I mean are all these slogans that you have, like: “I am for Paul”, “I am for Apollo”, “I am for Cephas”, “I am for Christ”. Has Christ been parcelled out? Was it Paul that was crucified for you? Were you baptised in the name of Paul?

For Christ did not send me to baptise, but to preach the Good News, and not to preach that in the terms of philosophy in which the crucifixion of Christ cannot be expressed.
____________________

Matthew 4:12-23

Hearing that John had been arrested Jesus went back to Galilee, and leaving Nazareth he went and settled in Capernaum, a lakeside town on the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali. In this way the prophecy of Isaiah was to be fulfilled:

Land of Zebulun! Land of Naphtali!
Way of the sea on the far side of Jordan,
Galilee of the nations!
The people that lived in darkness
has seen a great light;
on those who dwell in the land of shadow of death
a light has dawned.

From that moment Jesus began preaching with the message, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.”

As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee he saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew; they were making a cast in the lake with their net, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” And they left their nets at once and followed him.

Going on from there he saw another pair of brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John; they were in their boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. At once, leaving the boat and their father, they followed him.

He went round the whole of Galilee teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and sickness among the people.
____________________

Many of us have heard the terms “Liberation Theology” and “Prosperity Gospel” before. Do we know what these terms mean, and why some parts of them are not compatible with the Good News?

Liberation Theology essentially focuses on Jesus as a political saviour, as someone who saves an oppressed people from their oppressor. The good of the people is valued above the good of the individual person, and personal sin becomes neglected. In other words, “It doesn’t matter whether I am a sinful person, so long as I am doing working to free my people from the oppressor.” Perhaps what is most important in the context of today’s reflection, is that Jesus is not seen in his full light, but only as someone who frees a people from their oppressors.

Prosperity Gospel teaches that prosperity, particularly financial prosperity and success in business or person life is external providence of God’s favour. Consequently, the richer you are, the more blessed by God you are. I am not entirely familiar with it, but from what I understand, it reduces Christianity to a form of materialism.

These two forms of Christian doctrine are what would be described by the introduction of today’s theme as “lesser lights”. While there is some truth in these two doctrines, there is also much that is mistaken, primarily that of focusing Christianity into one or two points, and missing out the rest. In today’s context, we are very much surrounded by these lesser lights. From everywhere around us, we are being bombarded by lesser lights that tries to get us to focus on one or two particular aspects of Christianity while the rest of the message is hidden in darkness.

As Christians, it is our duty to learn as much as we can about all aspects of our faith. We cannot, for example, focus on only one aspect of our faith, say liturgy, and forget about everything else. Nor can we focus on, say, sexuality, and neglect everything else about our faith. This is the trap that many of us, including myself, tend to fall into. And this is what brings about conflict in the Church. This is something that is not new to the history of the Church as we see from the second reading. Conflicts within the Church arise because people are too focused on the area that they specialize in, and they neglect to see the bigger picture.

This invitation in today’s reflection is therefore an invitation to see the big picture. Just as Jesus invited his first disciples to follow him, the light, we too are invited to drop whatever we are familiar with, and follow the light of Christ into the world and see the big picture of God’s plan for humanity. Here’s a secret that the Lord has revealed to us already: The big picture of God’s plan for humanity is Jesus. As for what this secret means, well, we have to step out of our comfort zone and follow Jesus to find out.

This week, let us make the effort to try our hand at something in our faith that we are not familiar with, even if we might look stupid or feel uncomfortable, for it is only when we are out of our comfort zone that we can grow and develop into better persons.
__________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, we ask you to show us the bigger picture of your plan as we offer this week to you, and do our best to explore unfamiliar territory. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: Opportunities to grow.

Upcoming Readings:
Mon, 28 Jan – 2 Samuel 5:1-7, 10; Mark 3:22-30; Memorial for St. Thomas Aquinas, priest, religious, doctor
Tue, 29 Jan – 2 Samuel 6:12b-15, 17-19; Mark 3:31-35
Wed, 30 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:4-17; Mark 4:1-20
Thu, 31 Jan – 2 Samuel 7:18-19, 24-29; Mark 4:21-25; Memorial for St. John Bosco, priest, religious founder
Fri, 01 Feb – 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17; Mark 4:26-34
Sat, 02 Feb – Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Saturday, January 26 – Peace & Happiness

26 Jan – Memorial for Sts. Timothy and Titus, bishops

Timothy’s father was a Greek gentile, his mother Eunice was Jewish. He was converted to Christianity by St. Paul around the year 47. He was a partner, assistant and close friend of Paul. He was a missionary as well, and became head of the Church in Ephesus. He was the recipient of two canonical letters from St. Paul, and was stoned to death in 97 for opposing the worship of Dionysius.

Titus (d. 96) was also a disciple of St. Paul and was the recipient of a canonical letter from him. He was the first bishop of the Church in Crete.
___________________

Titus 1:1-5

From Paul, servant of God, an apostle of Jesus Christ to bring those whom God has chosen to faith and to the knowledge of the truth that leads to true religion; and to give them the hope of the eternal life that was promised so long ago by God. He does not lie and so, at the appointed time, he revealed his decision, and, by the command of God our saviour, I have been commissioned to proclaim it. To Titus, true child of mine in the faith that we share, wishing you grace and peace from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our saviour.

The reason I left you behind in Crete was for you to get everything organised there and appoint elders in every town, in the way that I told you.
____________________

Luke 10:1-9

The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you”.
____________________

I have always admired my Muslim friends for their greeting of peace to fellow Muslims. It is a gesture that extends the peace of God to fellow brethren and reminds me of the sign of Peace that we exchange just before Holy Communion. Indeed, the fragmented and broken world that we live in is in need of peace.

St. Paul, in today’s first reading, extends to Bishop Titus a greeting of “grace and peace from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Saviour.” Titus and Timothy were St. Paul’s close and faithful companions and became bishops over the faithful in Crete and Ephesus respectively. As bishops and shepherds of the flock of God, they were men of peace and unity amongst the troubles that faced the early Christian church. They put into practice what Christ commanded his apostles in today’s Gospel to be “lambs among wolves”.

We live in a world today that is marked by much persecution from a “culture of death”. Yet it is precisely in such an environment that we need to be examples of peace to those living in the world. Only by living out the value of peace can we genuinely proclaim with all our hearts the message that “The kingdom of God is very near to you.”

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nick Chia)
____________________

We pray that the Holy Spirit enter into our hearts and give us a peace that nothing in the world can give.

We give thanks to the Lord for our Archbishop Nicholas Chia who works tirelessly for the unity of the Archdiocese of Singapore.

Upcoming Readings:
Sun, 27 Jan – Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17; Matthew 4:12-23; Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Friday, January 25 – The Courageous Disciple

25 Jan – Feast of the Conversion of Paul, apostle

St. Paul (3-65) was a Jewish Talmudic student and a Pharisee. He was a tent-maker by trade. Saul the Jew hated and persecuted Christians as heretical, even assisting at the stoning of St. Stephen the Martyr. On his way to Damascus to arrest another group of them, he was knocked to the ground, struck blind by a heavenly light, and given the message that in persecuting Christians, he was persecuting Christ. The experience had a profound spiritual effect on him, causing his conversion to Christianity. He was baptised, changed his name to Paul to reflect his new persona, and began travelling and preaching. He died a martyr for his faith.

Prayer to St. Paul
O Glorious Saint Paul, after persecuting the Church you became by God’s grace its most zealous Apostle. To carry the knowledge of Jesus, our divine Saviour, to the uttermost parts of the earth you joyfully endured prison, scourgings, stonings, and shipwreck, as well as all manner of persecutions culminating in the shedding of the last drop of your blood for our Lord Jesus Christ.

Obtain for us the grace to labour strenuously to being the faith to others and to accept any trials and tribulations that may come our way. Help us to be inspired by your Epistles and to partake of your indomitable love for Jesus, so that after we have finished our course we may join you in praising him in heaven for all eternity. Amen.

- Patron Saint Index
__________________

Acts of the Apostles 9:1-22

Saul was still breathing threats to slaughter the Lord’s disciples. He had gone to the high priests and asked for letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, that would authorise him to arrest and take to Jerusalem any followers of the Way, men or women, that he could find.

Suddenly, while he was travelling to Damascus and just before he reached the city, there came a light from heaven all round him. He fell to the ground, and then he heard a voice saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, Lord?” he asked, and the voice answered him, “I am Jesus, and you are persecuting me. Get up now and go into the city, and you will be told what you have to do.” The men travelling with Saul stood there speechless, for though they heard the voice they could see no one. Saul got up from the ground, but even with his eyes wide open he could see nothing at all, and they had to lead him into Damascus by the hand. For three days he was without his sight, and took neither food nor drink.

A disciple called Ananias who lived in Damascus had a vision in which he heard the Lord say to him, “Ananias!” When he replied, “Here I am, Lord”, the Lord said, “You must go to Straight Street and ask at the house of Judas for someone named Saul, who comes from Tarsus. At this moment he is praying, having had a vision of a man called Ananias coming in and laying hands on him to give him back his sight.”

When he heard that, Ananias said, “Lord, several people have told me about this man and all the harm he has been doing to the saints in Jerusalem. He has only come here because he holds a warrant from the chief priests to arrest everybody who invokes your name.” The Lord replied, “You must go all the same, because this man is my chosen instrument to bring my name before pagans and pagan kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he himself must suffer for my name.” Then Ananias went. He entered the house, and at once laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, I have been sent by the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on your way here so that you may recover your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately it was as though scales fell away from Saul’s eyes and he could see again. So he was baptised there and then, and after taking some food he regained strength.

After he spent only a few days with the disciples in Damascus, he began preaching in the synagogues, “Jesus is the Son of God.” All his hearers were amazed. “Surely,” they said, “this is the man who organised the attack in Jerusalem against the people who invoke this name, and who came here for the sole purpose of arresting them to have them tried by the chief priests?” Saul’s power increased steadily, and he was able to throw the Jewish colony into complete confusion by the way he demonstrated that Jesus was the Christ.
____________________

Mark 16:15-18

Jesus showed himself to the Eleven and said to them, “Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation. He who believes and is baptised will be saved; he who does not believe will be condemned. These are the signs that will be associated with believers: in my name they will cast out devils; they will have the gift of tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and be unharmed should they drink deadly poison; they will lay their hands on the sick, who will recover.”
____________________

We have just celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which began on Jan 18 and ends today. We had two prayer services for Christian Unity, the first held at Barker Road Methodist Church, which drew about 150 people, mostly Catholics, and the second held at Church of the Risen Christ, which drew a large crowd, but again mostly Catholics. Aside from the religious leaders of the various faith traditions, where were all the other Christians? Did the Catholics who attended not try to bring their non-Catholic Christian friends to attend these prayer services? Why not?

Perhaps we are afraid. I know I can be quite intimidated when I meet non-Catholic Christians – which probably explains why I no longer have any! It can be intimidating because they can really put me on the spot when they ask me certain questions about the Catholic faith, especially those that require long explanations that I am usually not prepared to give on the spot!

It is well-known that our Christian brothers and sisters have far more evangelical zeal that we Catholics do… maybe that’s why they call themselves evangelical Christians. There are, at times, Christians who carry their evangelical zeal too far and turn into zealots or fanatics. Just yesterday, a priest related the story of how a Taoist lady was so distressed when her recently converted Christian relative took advantage of her absence in the house to dismantle the family altar and throw away all the parts.

Indeed it is not very uncommon to hear some Christians claim unashamedly that their unbaptized mother is going to be condemned to hell because she has not accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Surely this is not what Jesus meant when he said what he said to the Eleven in the gospel reading today!

What then are we Catholics to do? Well, firstly, we need to recognise and acknowledge that we have a fear of speaking to non-Catholic Christians. As I shared on Wednesday, fear is only a feeling. Each of us is called to act on our faith, in spite of our fear, just like Ananias did when he approached Paul to give him his sight. And what happened after Saul received his sight? He spent some time with the disciples of the Lord, and immediately went to preach and convert other people.

When we pray for Christian Unity, we often say that we focus on what we have in similar, and ignore the differences between our faith traditions. But that is not true ecumenism, for to ignore the differences is to ignore the reasons why the faith traditions were separated in the first place. Rather, true ecumenism acknowledges the differences and requires Catholics to share our faith tradition with other Christians just as we respectfully listen to theirs.

The majority of non-Catholic Christians are not Catholics not because they choose to be, but because they have never been evangelized by Catholics. This happens when we ignore the differences between our faith traditions. Some of the most famous Catholic apologists, like Scott Hahn and Cardinal John Henry Newman were converts to the Catholic faith from other Christian faith traditions. Like St. Paul, the ‘scales’ fell from their eyes and after their conversion, they retained their religious zeal and channelled it towards spreading the Catholic faith to all who have not yet heard of it.

My friends, as we close the week of Prayer for Christian Unity, let us remember St. Paul’s own conversion, and the courage of Ananias who stepped up, in spite of his fear, to follow the Lord’s command and bring healing and sight to the blind. Let us continue to share our Catholic faith bravely, even to our Christian brothers and sisters, for some may not have heard of it or have heard a distorted version of it and, through no fault of their own, continue to persecute the Lord Jesus.
____________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, grant us the courage to speak openly, loudly, and publicly about our Catholic faith, especially to our Christian brethren who have not had the opportunity to hear the truth. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: The people who have been instrumental in healing the spiritual blindness of others.

Upcoming Readings:
Sat, 26 Jan – 2 Timothy 1:1-8 or Timothy 1:1-5; Luke 10:1-9; Memorial for Sts. Timothy and Titus, bishops
Sun, 27 Jan – Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17; Matthew 4:12-23; Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Thursday, January 24 – Voices

24 Jan – Memorial for St. Francis de Sales, bishop, doctor of the Church

Salvation is shown to faith, it is prepared for hope, but it is given only to charity. Faith points out the way to the land of promise as a pillar of fire hope feeds us with its manna of sweetness, but charity actually introduces us into the Promised Land.
- Saint Francis de Sales

St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622) was born in a castle to a well-placed family. His parents intended him to become a lawyer, enter politics, and carry on the family line and power. He studied at La Roche, Annecy, Clermont College in Paris, and law at the University of Padua. He became a Doctor of Law, returned home, and found a position as Senate advocate.

It was at this point that he received a message telling him to “Leave all and follow Me”. He took this as a call to the priesthood, a move his family fiercely opposed. However, he pursued a devoted prayer life, and his gentle ways won over the family.

He became a priest, and a provost in the diocese of Geneva, Switzerland, a stronghold of Calvinists. He was a preacher, writer and spiritual director in the distrcit of Chablais. His simple, clear explanations of Catholic doctrine, and his gentle way with everyone, brought many back to the Roman Church.

He was ordained Bishop of Geneva at the age of 35. He travelled and evangelized throughout the Duchy of Savoy, working with children whenever he could. He was a friend of St. Vincent de Paul. He turned down a wealthy French bishopric. He helped found the Order of the Visitation with St. Jeanne de Chantal. He was a prolific correspondent. He was declared a Doctor of the Church.

Prayer of St. Francis de Sales
Lord, I am yours,
and I must belong to no one but you.
My soul is yours,
and must live only by you.
My will is yours,
and must love only for you.
I must love you as my first cause,
since I am from you.
I must love you as my end and rest,
since I am for you.
I must love you more than my own being,
since my being subsists by you.
I must love you more than myself,
since I am all yours and all in you.
AMEN.

- Patron Saint Index
__________________

1 Samuel 18:6-19:1-7

On their way back, as David was returning after killing the Philistine, the women came out to meet King Saul from all the towns of Israel, singing and dancing to the sound of tambourine and lyre and cries of joy; and as they danced the women sang:

‘Saul has killed his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands.’

Saul was very angry; the incident was not to his liking. ‘They have given David the tens of thousands,’ he said, ‘but me only the thousands; he has all but the kingship now.’ And Saul turned a jealous eye on David from that day forward.

Saul told Jonathan his son and all his servants of his intention to kill David. Now Jonathan, Saul’s son, held David in great affection; and so Jonathan warned David; ‘My father Saul is looking for a way to kill you,’ he said, ‘so be on your guard tomorrow morning; hide away in some secret place. Then I will go and keep my father company in the fields where you are hiding, and will talk to my father about you; I will find out what the situation is and let you know.’

So Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father; he said, ‘Let not the king sin against his servant David, for he has not sinned against you, and what he has done has been greatly to your advantage. He took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine, and the Lord brought about a great victory for all Israel. You saw it yourself and rejoiced; why then sin against innocent blood in killing David without cause?’ Saul was impressed by Jonathan’s words and took and oath, ‘As the Lord lives, I will not kill him.’ Jonathan called David and told him all these things. Then Jonathan brought him to Saul, and David attended on him as before.
____________________

Mark 3:7-12

Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lakeside, and great crowds from Galilee followed him. From Judaea, Jerusalem, Idumaea, Transjordania and the region of Tyre and Sidon, great numbers who had heard of all he was doing came to him. And he asked his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, to keep him from being crushed. For he had cured so many that all who were afflicted in any way were crowding forward to touch him. And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, would fall down before him and shout, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he warned them strongly not to make him known.
____________________

Speech is a gift unique to the human species. Some might argue the cases of dolphins and chimpanzees as well but those are still a very grey area. Spoken words allow us to express our thoughts and feelings in a clear and concise that others can understand. Well, that is the theoretical ideal anyway. Things are often not the case.

My brothers and sisters, how many times a day do our sentences carry subtleties and nuances that run contrary to the actual message. Sarcasm is an example of that. Going further, how many times have we spoken well to a person in front of them and ill about him or her when we are with others? Worse still, how many times do we ‘bless’ someone openly but ‘curse’ them in our hearts?

I have done all of that, more often than I would like to admit. We have to ask ourselves if this is how we use our gift of speech. We see in the first reading just how effective speech can be if used for good and to express true things. Jonathan’s words saved David’s life. He had good cause to side with his father since David was a threat to his own inheritance of the throne. Instead of this however, he sang David’s well deserved praises and won him favor with Saul.

To sincerely profess good things about someone; to chastise tactfully when necessary is to bear witness to truth and to act as the voice of God. Even the unclean spirits cast out by Christ were compelled to proclaim the glory of Christ with their words. My sisters and brothers, should we do no less than these?

(Today’s OXYGEN by Aloysius Ting)
____________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, help us to speak with Your words to those we meet each day. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: Tongues

Upcoming Readings:
Fri, 25 Jan – Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22; Mark 16:15-18; Feast of the Conversion of Paul, apostle
Sat, 26 Jan – 2 Timothy 1:1-8 or Timothy 1:1-5; Luke 10:1-9; Memorial for Sts. Timothy and Titus, bishops
Sun, 27 Jan – Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17; Matthew 4:12-23; Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Wednesday, January 23 – Fear is only a feeling

24 Jan

The Cockroach

There is a tragic story entitled Metamorphosis, by the celebrated Czechoslovakian writer Franz Kafka. It is about an unmarried man, Gregor, who lives with his parents and sister. Gregor works as a clerk in a store. As a good salesman, he tries to project a pleasant image to his customers, but he is a deeply unhappy man. He suffers much from an overpowering boss and an unsympathetic family – both treating him like an insect.

Eventually he begins to have nightmares about his insect-like life. One morning he wakes up to discover that his nightmares have become a reality: he has been transformed into an insect – a giant cockroach!

Just as fairy tales go, Gregor can become human again only if he is loved and nurtured by humans, particularly members of his family. However, since his appearance is revolting, this does not happen.

Gregor makes several pathetic efforts to express himself to his family, to appeal to them to show some affection, all in vain.

Ultimately, he simply gives up and dies, remaining a cockroach until the end.

- What thoughts, feelings, occurred to you while you went through the story?
- What do you think is the ‘moral’ of the story?

- taken from “Persons Are Gifts”, by Hedwig Lewis, SJ
____________________

1 Samuel 17:32-33, 37, 40-51

David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on his account; your servant will go and fight this Philistine.” But Saul answered, “You cannot go and fight the Philistine; you are only a boy and he has been a warrior from his youth.” The Lord who rescued me from the claws of lion and bear,” David said, “will rescue me from the power of this Philistine.” Then Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

He took his staff on his hand, picked five smooth stones from the river bed, put them in his shepherd’s bag, in his pouch, and with his sling in his hand he went to meet the Philistine. The Philistine, his shield-bearer in front of him, came nearer and nearer to David; and the Philistine looked at David, and what he saw filled him with scorn, because David was only a youth, a boy of fresh complexion and pleasant bearing. The Philistine said to him, “Am I a dog for you to come against me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. The Philistine said to David, “Come over hear and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field.” But David answered the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the god of the armies of Israel that you have dared to insult. Today the Lord will deliver you into my hand and I shall kill you; I will cut off your head, and this very day I will give your dead body and the bodies of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that it is not by sword or by spear that the Lord gives the victory, for he is lord of the battle and he will deliver you into our power.”

No sooner had the Philistine started forward to confront David than David left the line of battle and ran to meet the Philistine. Putting his hand in his bag, he took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead; the stone penetrated his forehead and he fell on his face to the ground. Thus David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone and struck the Philistine down and killed him. David had no sword in his hand. Then David ran and, standing over the Philistine, seized his sword and drew it from the scabbard, and with this he killed him, cutting off his head. The Philistines saw that their champion was dead and took to flight.
____________________

Mark 3:1-6

Jesus went into a synagogue, and there was a man there who had a withered hand. And they were watching him to see if he would cure him on the sabbath day, hoping for something to use against him. He said to the man with the withered hand, “Stand up out in the middle!” Then he said to them, “Is it against the law on the sabbath day to do good or to do evil; to save life, or to kill?” But they said nothing. Then, grieved to find them so obstinate, he looked angrily round at them, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out and his hand was better. The Pharisees went out and at once began to plot with the Herodians against him, discussing how to destroy him.
_____________________

What gave David the confidence to go up against Goliath? Are we to assume that David was simply a brave fool who would go out in front of a warrior trained from his youth? After all, the only experience David has had in fighting battles was against wild beasts when he was a shepherd. Are we to call David courageous or a fool? Do you think David was afraid when he went up against Goliath?

I believe so. I believe David certainly was afraid, but certainly not a fool. To fear when facing a being larger than ourselves is a normal reaction. But David recognised that fear was but a feeling. Wise people recognise this and act in spite of the feeling; fools let fear prevent them from acting. And act, David did.

However, David acted in faith despite the fear. What was his faith based on? An abstract idea of God? A loose definition of God, since David himself never studied philosophy or theology? No. David’s faith was based on experience. He had personally experienced the saving power of God in his life before, and that is why he knew that God would continue to protect him in the face of Goliath. David acted on faith in the Lord, and he came up triumphant over Goliath who acted on faith in his own strength.

In contrast to this battle between David and Goliath, we see in the gospel reading another battle taking place. Jesus invited the Pharisees to respond to his question, but the Pharisees, being fearful of Jesus – possibly afraid of being humiliated in public – did not act. They let their fear, for whatever reason, prevent them from acting there and then. We know that the Pharisees certainly did fear Jesus, which is why they plotted to eliminate him.

Let us remember, my friends, that fear is only a feeling and that if we have past experience on which our faith is based, let us act on that faith, in spite of the fear, to stand up and receive the challenge that God is calling us to today.
____________________

Prayer:
Dear Lord, we pray for the courage to act on faith in You where there is need of justice, and not let fear prevent us from acting. Amen.

Give Thanks to the Lord for: Those who act for what is right and just, in spite of their fear.

Upcoming Readings:
Thu, 24 Jan – 1 Samuel 18:6-9, 19:1-7; Mark 3:7-12; Memorial for St. Francis de Sales, bishop, doctor of the Church
Fri, 25 Jan – Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22; Mark 16:15-18; Feast of the Conversion of Paul, apostle
Sat, 26 Jan – 2 Timothy 1:1-8 or Timothy 1:1-5; Luke 10:1-9; Memorial for Sts. Timothy and Titus, bishops
Sun, 27 Jan – Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17; Matthew 4:12-23; Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com