Father Valan Arockiaswamy

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HOMILIES

Close Dear Audience,
For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!

Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year B)

Jun 21, 2015 Views 2899 Listen 8 Downloads 0
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First Reading

A reading from the Book of Job (38:1, 8-11)

The Lord addressed Job out of the storm and said: Who shut within doors the sea, when it burst forth from the womb; when I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling bands? When I set limits for it and fastened the bar of its door, and said: Thus far shall you come but no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stilled!

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31)


(R) Give thanks to the Lord, for His love is everlasting.

They who sailed the sea in ships, trading on the deep waters, these saw the works of the Lord and His wonders in the abyss. (R)

His command raised up a storm wind which tossed its waves on high. They mounted up to heaven; they sank to the depths; their hearts melted away in their plight. (R)

They cried to the Lord in their distress; from their straits He rescued them, He hushed the storm to a gentle breeze, and the billows of the sea were stilled. (R)

They rejoiced that they were calmed, and He brought them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His kindness and His wondrous deeds to the children of men. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the First Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (5:14-17)

Brothers and sisters: The love of Christ impels us, once we have come to the conviction that one died for all; therefore, all have died. He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer. So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (4:35-41)

On that day, as evening drew on, Jesus said to his disciples; "Let us cross to the other side." Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus with them in the boat just as he was. And the other boats were with him. A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. They woke him up and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Quiet! Be still!" The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, "Why are you terrified? Do you not have faith?" They were filled with great awe and said to one another, "Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?"

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

The story of Augustine of Hippo, also known as Saint Augustine, is well-known. Most of what we know of his life comes from his autobiography, Confessions. Augustine was born in the middle of the fourth century in a small town on the northern coast of Africa, which is today known as Algeria. His father Patrick, a pagan Roman official, was converted to Christianity before he died. His mother, Monica a devout Christian, raised her three children as Christians. But Augustine lived a hedonistic, wild and immoral life until the age of thirty two before he became a Christian. There is a wonderful story about Augustine which some say is just a fiction. It is said that one day, Augustine, after his conversion, was accosted on the street by a woman presumably a prostitute or mistress. But Augustine ignored her and started walking away. The woman called out, "Augustine, it is I. Don't you recognize me?" Augustine turned and replied, "Yes, but it is not I." That's to say, "I know that it is you but I am no longer the Augustine you knew. I am a changed man."

It doesn't matter if the story is real or not. The story reflects Augustine's radical change of attitude toward God, self, others and the way he lived, which led him to be baptized, ordained a priest, made a bishop, recognized as one of the great Christian philosophers, theologians and writers of the early church and above all, proclaimed a Saint.

Another person whose conversion led to a radical change of mind and his perception of God, self, others and life is Saint Paul. In today's text, the Second Letter to the Corinthians, he speaks of a spiritual transformation that is life-changing for him and for all of us. He says, "The love of Christ impels us, once we have come to the conviction that one died for all; therefore, all have died. He indeed died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake had died and was raised", 2 Corinthians (5:14-15). The phrase "the love of Christ", refers to the love that Jesus Christ has manifested through his death on the cross for the sins of all humankind. Paul believes that when Christ died on the cross, God judged the entire humankind in him and thus Jesus died for the sins of all. Consequently, all who believe are accounted to have been judged, punished and put to death in him and, also made sinless. According to Paul this special love of God impels and motivates all believers to no longer live for themselves but to live and do great things for Christ.

Paul is convinced of God's love because he had personally experienced it. Paul was the greatest of sinners, or at least he thought himself to be, a persecutor and insolent opponent of the Christian faith. But when he was on his way to Damascus to arrest the Christians and to bring them to Jerusalem to be persecuted he met Christ in the lightning and was transformed. He found mercy, grace, love, peace and joy in the Lord Jesus Christ. In the light of his experience, Paul declares the consequences of his transformation. He says, "Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer. So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come", 2 Corinthians (5:16-17).

He says, "From now on we regard no one according to the flesh." By "flesh", Paul means not only the physical body but the material, the temporal, the worldly or the corruptible. Therefore, referring to the internal and spiritual transformation, Paul says that before their conversion, people had viewed and judged others, particularly, the Gentiles or foreigners, based on their outward appearances or looks, style, behavior, status, orientation, and material wealth but now they perceive God, self, others and their whole life differently. To explain further, Paul cites how the people had viewed Jesus while he was on Earth. He points out that they "once knew Christ according to the flesh". That is, they had looked on Jesus' outward appearance and failed to see God within, 1 Samuel (16:7). They had looked down on Jesus with disdain. For instance, John (1:43-46) writes of Nathanael who said to Philip, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" This was when he heard that they had found the person, that is Jesus, Joseph's son from Nazareth, that Moses and all the prophets had written about. Nathanael perhaps thought that the Messiah would come from a more important place than Nazareth. The people had also accused Jesus of being a glutton and a drunkard when he befriended and ate with tax collectors, prostitutes and sinners.

Another good example of the people judging Jesus according to the flesh was when his disciples experienced a storm while in a boat, as we read in today's gospel. They were afraid and cried out for help even though Jesus was with them. Jesus got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm again. In this instance, the problem stemmed from the disciple's lack of perception. They knew Jesus better than most in the flesh, yet they had failed to see who he was in the Spirit. They knew Jesus was special, but they did not realize yet that Jesus was God and, he had control over the whole of creation. However, Jesus' death and resurrection completely and permanently changed not only their perception of him but also of everything. They began to see Jesus Christ as the Son of God who sits at the right hand of the Father in power and glory. Therefore, Paul tells us that all believers have died with Christ and no longer live for themselves. They are no longer worldly; they are now spiritual. With the old things passing away, the new things have come in fullness of life and the glory of God.

What is our motivation for following Christ? When we feel inadequate, are in doubt, or complacency makes us indifferent, let's remember the crucified Jesus. Jesus did not tell his disciples to remember his miracles but instead his suffering and death. Therefore, we need to fix our eyes on Jesus crucified. Let the love of Jesus manifested on the cross motivate us to live for God and others. Let us bring glory to God not only through the so-called "religious traditions and observances", but also through a change of mind, heart and the way of life.

Let us learn to discard the world's way of perceiving God, others and ourselves. Particularly we must learn to regard others the way Jesus wants us to and treat them accordingly. Often times we fail to see the potential in others and even in ourselves because of our preoccupation with outward appearances and actions. Jesus said, "Do not keep judging according to appearances; let your judgment be according to what is right", John (7:24). Jesus also has said, "You judge by human standards; I judge no one", John (8:15). Let us not judge anybody on some assumptions and outward appearances. Rather than being judgmental and exclusive of others, let us see them as God sees them. Let us look beyond the exterior in others and ourselves such as race, color, origin, status, culture, religion, domestic circumstances, faults and sins and, bring into reality what we can be in Christ. Let us pray with confidence and faith in the power of our Lord Jesus to help us generate new wondrous feelings toward all people - a kind of love and compassion toward family and friends, strangers and enemies, and for all mankind. Let us "put off the old man with his deeds", Colossians (3:9), and put on the "new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness", Ephesians (4:24), and be filled with the mercy, grace, love, peace and joy that we have never felt before.

Prayers of Saint Augustine of Hippo:

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

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