Thursday, January 31, 2019

What happens When I am alone with the Lord!!!!

This morning i was giving a talk to our student friars who will receive the ministries of Acolyte and Lector...i spoke about the reasons and causes of many young seminarians and priests abandon their vocations. There are many reasons given but the most important is the loss or lack of Faith in God is the biggest reason that is cited.....when we as priests and religious have no faith then everything else has no sense or significance in human and spiritual life. 
 The life of prayer and contemplation has taken a back seat and this is having a big toll on the young seminarians....many of them give spiritual exercises and contemplation, priority is given for work and ministry and there is no time to sit in silence before the Lord....to be alone with the Lord who speaks and builds up our communion with Him...when we are alone with Him...he fills us with new strength and energy, leads us on a right path....when we are alone with Him....he gives us courage to fight loneliness and helps us to face various challenges. 
 Alone in the presences of the Lord teaches us to appreciate the need of our space, silence and prayer, dialogue and constant communication with Him....he gives us light to go through the darkness that we face sometimes due to consumerism and secularism.....
 Alone with the Lord teaches us open up ourselves to the signs of the times...He teaches us to love Him deeply by totally surrendering ourselves.....Alone with the Lord sustains our faith and trust in Him....He allows us to dialogue and communicate with Him like a small child....
 Alone with Him in communion will never lead us to boredom and loneliness....He increases our cravings and desires to have Him always alongside us....when we have to take decisions it is He who inspires us...encourages us to lead a spiritual life....
 Time with the Lord is never enough...because we experience a love that we don't experience in the presence of our beloved ones....His love is pure which transforms and changes us....His love is never vanishes...this love that we experience in His presence makes us to grow internally and externally...
 When i am alone with the Lord...i am not frightened of the modern challenges....the crisis that other face will not scare us because we are connected with the Lord.....
 Communion that is build up in His presence will not be distorted or destroyed by any evil designs...this communion is long lasting because He is at the centre of it....
 When i am alone he teaches me the ways and paths that lead to happy and peaceful life....allows us to take control of our fragmented lives....he helps us re-arrange and re-build it....
 Let us be alone with Him...at least for sometimes in the day....it could be anywhere....He speaks to us in silence....let us be alone to listen to Him so that we may listen to others.....speak to him so that we may have a constructive communication with others....

Wednesday, January 30, 2019

What makes us different from others?

Today there is a craze to be different from the others in order to prove us. We are out to prove that we are smart, intelligent, beautiful and handsome than the others. We will go to any extent to show to the world that we are totally different in many senses, like education, culture or our rich environment. In doing so sometimes we belittle and downgrade others who are good or better than us but in a craze and desire to drive home a message which is negative that we are the best sometimes break our relationship and we go away from one another. 

 It is not our education, wealth and status that makes different from others, I believe it is our positive attitude and behaviour towards others to accept and recognize them as equal to us. It is not look down upon them because they don’t match up to our standards but to help them to come to those standards if possible. It is in extending our valuable help and sharing our knowledge with those who are not like us can really give us the worth and sense of being Human and children of God. 

 What will make us different from others is to look and see others as we would like others to see and accept us. It is in appreciating and encouraging others could make us different. It is not wearing branded clothes, shoes, perfumes etc would make us different from others. It is temporary and short lived. People may remembers us for that moment. But it does not make us different or heavenly but definitely our love, charity, compassion and understanding towards others would make us different.


 Our negative attitude and throwing our weight in the air could really separate us from others. Because one is blessed and fortunate to possess wealth that does not mean the poor does not have personality or individuality, or our wealth and status gives us right to belittle or discard them.  Some times our wealth could make us indifferent to the sufferings and needs of the others. Ingratitude towards the those unfortunate ones who serve us to earn their daily bread does not make us superior to them but it only shows who we are. 
Let us be different in our attitudes, relationships, manner of speaking and communicating. Let us leave an indelible mark on the minds and hearts of people with out positive and approachable attitudes. Let us be different by accepting the other as child of God and respect their rights to be what God has called them to be. 

Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Called to share....Sharing brings Joy

Read the story from the Life of St. Francis about sharing and how much he cared for sharing with the poor. When St. Francis was living in the palace of the Bishop of Rieti, trying to get a cure for the infirmity of his eyes, a certain poor woman from Machilone who had an infirmity similar to that of the saint came to the doctor. The saint, therefore, addressing his guardian familiarly, said something like this: "Brother guardian we must give back, what belongs to another". He replied, "Let it be given back Father, if there is such a thing here". "This mantle" he said, "which we borrowed from that poor 'women, let us give it back to her, for she has nothing in her purse to take care of her expenses". The guardian answered, "Brother, this mantle is mine and it was not lent to me by anyone. But use it as long as it pleases you, when you no longer want to use it give it back to me". Actually, the guardian had bought it a little earlier for Francis' need. The saint said to him: "Brother guardian, you have always been courteous to me and I beg you to show me the same courtesy now". The guardian replied, "Do as you wish, father, whatever the spirit suggests to you"
 after his conversion Francis believed in sharing all that he had with the poor....it became a natural habit for him....sharing not only material things but his spiritual gifts too.....Francis became an icon of sharing....sharing his wealth....giving or returning all that belonged to his father....he received tremendous joy and happiness in sharing...
 Today the Catholic church is busy sharing through charity....so many institutions started in the name of poor....they are served and cared for in our institutions....sharing brings more blessings in the name of rich benefactors who are willing to share with us so that we take all that to the poor....
 some of us might forget the founding charism and intentions of our institutions for which they have been opened....poor ones may knock on our doors and may not receive anything...they go back empty handed...they may come for advices, material help or even admissions in our prestigious schools...are we sharing with them....as i said earlier that all of us do....but here and there we know and hear that poor ones are turned away....
 Pope Francis calling us to share with the needy and homeless.....we must find out ways and means to reach out to these unfortunate ones,,,,,Jesus is present in them....Martin of Tours shared half of his mantle and in a dream he saw Jesus wearing the same half mantle shared by him......all that we do we do it for Jesus
 St. Francis of Assisi...shared with the poor and lepers...he embraced them....gave all that he possessed...God rewarded him.....lepers earlier nauseated him but the same lepers he embraced, ate with them, nursed their wounds....

Monday, January 28, 2019

Don't Chase Happiness ...it runs away....don't use force to achieve it....

In today’s world everyone seems to be running after happiness…..seeking happiness by fare means is well appreciated by everyone. Many try to be happy by being in communion with the Lord or follow the religious precepts and teachings. Most of these are really happy and contended in life as they follow the religious teaching and principles. They derive tremendous spiritual energy and strength, which really keeps happy and bonded with others. They would go any miles and extent to make others happy by doing charity or giving their precious time for the up-liftment of the others. They would never want to break the commandments of God but walk into the light of God and do His will. This kind of happiness, which derives, is something that will make them healthy and strong.



 But there are those who seek and look for happiness in bad means and ways like drugs, immoral ways etc. They just want a boost in life which they call happiness. Cheating and looting others in order to enjoy the good things of life. The happiness that they buy with their money is not the real happiness which is there for a moment and then it vanishes….They spend hours and hours in order to be contended and happy but it just escapes from their reach


As someone compared happiness to a butterfly which you cannot catch by a force. If you chase it runs away from you. If you use force then it dies. If really want the butterfly to sit on your arm or should you got be very careful in attracting towards you. Then you will see the happiness that you will receive.

 A person who with his happiness tries to make others happy will always be dancing in happiness. Such persons will keep receiving blessings from the Lord and the Lord will never take their happiness away. In Life everything cannot be achieved by hook and crook in order to be happy. Life teaches us that everything cannot become part of our existences, and if it happens then would not know the real cost of losing and gaining. Losing and gaining also can become moments of happiness.

Sunday, January 27, 2019

Wedding in the Family!!!!!!

Two family weddings in this month....Niece and Nephew......it was great to be part of the celebration...after 6 years....enjoyed the presence of so many relatives whom I met after pretty long time...
 Nieces all dressed up for the celebration.....
 Some of them are studying....some would like to wait for some time to get married.....I am praying that some may choose consecrated life too....
 Newly married couple with brothers and sisters.....
 After the Mass.....procession ...dancing ....
 Guests all arriving for the reception.....

 Girls are having a Ball
 I am posing with some relatives
My entire family....we five brothers on the left and Sisters-in-Law on the left....two-sons-in-law....three daughters-in-law....rest all nephews and nieces..grand nephews and nieces....

Friday, January 25, 2019

Great India Celebrates Republic Day. Mother India may soar Higher and Higher!!!!

“At the dawn of history India started on her unending quest, and trackless centuries are filled with her striving and the grandeur of her success and her failures. Through good and ill fortune alike she [India] has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength.” » Jawaharlal Nehru
 “A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people.” » Mahatma Gandhi. 
This republic was not established by cowards; and cowards will not preserve it.”» Elmer Davis
 “In the great books of India, an empire spoke to us, nothing small or unworthy, but large, serene, consistent, the voice of an old intelligence, which in another age and climate had pondered and thus disposed of the questions that exercise us.” » Ralph Waldo Emerson
 “A man’s feet must be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world.” George Santayana. 
“Let new India arise out of peasants’ cottage, grasping the plough, out of huts, cobbler and sweeper.” » Swami Vivekananda
It is impossible not to be astonished by India. Nowhere on Earth does humanity present itself in such a dizzying, creative burst of cultures and religions, races and tongues. Enriched by successive waves of migration and marauders from distant lands, every one of them left an indelible imprint which was absorbed into the Indian way of life. Every aspect of the country presents itself on a massive, exaggerated scale, worthy in comparison only to the superlative mountains that overshadow it. It is this variety which provides a breathtaking ensemble for experiences that is uniquely Indian. Perhaps the only thing more difficult than to be indifferent to India would be to describe or understand India completely. There are perhaps very few nations in the world with the enormous variety that India has to offer. Modern day India represents the largest democracy in the world with a seamless picture of unity in diversity unparalleled anywhere else.” » A Rough Guide to India

Thursday, January 24, 2019

Don't Hold on but just drop it!!!!!

Many of us are suffering from unwanted psychological or psychosomatic sickness because we hold on in our inner life, mind and heart many unwanted events and incidents. These events which we hold on, cling on does not leave us to live peaceful and happy lives. what do we hold on is anger, wrong informations or something against our family members and friends....sometimes it is kept inside for years and years...there is no release of it....people who do not go to confessions keep brooding on it...they expect the miracle of conversion but does not happen because we are not willing to let go..

When we drop the negative feelings then we see that the pain disappears and we realize that the pain is only till we hold on to those negative feelings and emotions.
The crow followed the instructions of Garuda and dropped the piece of meat, and there you go, all the eagles flew towards the falling meat.

 We fly to different places with all those negative feelings from the clutches of those events we don't have any respite...we think that those things will allow us to grow but it stops our spiritual, emotional and psychological growth.
Those events chase and disturb us and we are fully aware of it.....we become anxious about it and then we decide to go away from it to higher places.....running away......there is pain and suffering that we experience and others can see it...but we ignore it and keep going higher and higher....running form the real situation and truth.....
 Those who see our suffering come to our help and support us but we are so full of us that we don't want to hear anything about it.....we know that letting go of those burdens and loads will bring a lot of pain.....we think that those events, negative feelings and people who did harm to us are chasing and after us to kill but it is not true......it is our imagination...

 But we meet friends, spiritual directors, family members who speak to us and willing to offer us that wisdom and light to drop those things which we hold on in our hearts and minds......just drop and the miracle will happen...good things begin to roll out for us.....we just need to follow the instructions which we allow us to walk freely and happily...
 People carry  the huge burden called "Ego," which creates a false identity about us, that we create for ourselves saying "I need love, I need to be invited, I am so and so.. "etc..." Just Drop ....

People get irritated fast by "others actions" it can be my friend, My parent, My children, My colleague, My life partner... and I get the fumes of "anger "..."Just Drop....


3. People compare themselves with others.. in beauty, wealth, life style, marks, talent and appraisals and feel disturbed... We must be grateful with what we have ... comparisons, negative emotions .." Just Drop...