We have to make a difference between the Pharisees and the Pharisaic attitude.

My imagination, very often, was captured by unnoticed, forgotten, and colourless characters in the Bible. May be it has something to do with my life, from Lot to Jonathan, Uriah to Pharisees of Jesus time. I love Pharisees because they were keen followers as well ardent listeners of Jesus. Or may be they still continue to exist through me. Only in adverse situations, very often, the best in you will be revealed. So in this sense the Pharisees helped Jesus to a certain extend to bring out the best in Him.

But how Jesus reacted to Pharisaic attitude is really frightening. We see in Mt.23:23 “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin and have neglected the weightier matters of law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you have practiced without neglecting the others.” The most important question asked by Pharisees may be a difficult one to choose. But I feel the question they asked about the foundation of the church is most important in our time.

In the gospel we see Pharisees asking Jesus Mt.19:3 “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” As they expected, Jesus defended the family saying Mt.19:6, “what God has joined let no one separate.” So when He defended the unity and indissolubility of marriage, He was building up a bulwark for family life.

The family is designed by God to be the clearest demonstration and reflection of the unity and diversity experienced within the Trinity. Therefore it is within a family that we realize, enjoy, and demonstrate in its perfection the relationship enjoyed within the Trinity. Thus the most mystical reality in Christianity is revealed – through family – in its simplest form. So also as we see in the book of ‘Song of Solomon’, – in marriage love – there is a real triad the lover, the beloved and the unifying force between them – the love.

Philosopher Pierre Teilhard De Chardin says, “God created everything out of love.” Thus everything was created in the original covenant of love. A husband and wife in this covenant of love between them and with God ‘procreate’ new life and in their procreation there is a trace, an echo, an image and sharing in the original covenant by which God created all life out of his love.

Late Pope John Paul II too says, “Love between husband and wife must be fully human, exclusive and open to a new life.” If it is there in the basic structure of the society then the main concern of everyone will be ‘how to serve?’ and not ‘how am I served?’ In this spirit St. Paul in his letter to 2nd Corinthians 12:15 say, “I will most gladly spend and be spent for you.” Therefore the orientation of anyone to one’s own self, in any walk of life, is the reversal of the order set by God.

So the question is as Christians are we able to experience God’s kingdom? Or like Pharisees do we fail to strike a balance between religiosity and spirituality and miss out what we set out for? Very often we do miss out and I can vouch for it.

In the book of Joshua chapter 24, we see Joshua helping the Israelites to walk down their memory lane and to experience, how God was with them in order to make a new covenant between God and His people. But we know they failed. Why? The answer is there in the same chapter when we read further in the verse 31 “Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of elders who outlived Joshua and had known all the work that the Lord did for Israel.” So as to say, when people with God experience vanished from them, the image of the Lord also vanished like a morning mist from their hearts and minds for good.

Are we also in the same state? Do we look for people with God experiences? If it is so, we are like the musk deer that runs the whole forest in search of fragrance unaware of the fact that it is within. Here once again Sri Aurobindo’s thought becomes relevant. He says, “‘Agni’ in Rig Veda is not mere fire but ‘A Divine Spark’.” We all have this divine spark within. All that we should do is to fan it so that the fire can engulf the whole body. Only then the unifying force that is love will be kindled in all of us. This awakening of Divine Spark within will be a second civilization for humanity as we will begin to see all relationships from a new perspective.

So indirectly Jesus says to each one of us today, when someone divorces his/her spouse or desert anyone in any relationship for that matter, the question he/she will have to face is not, ‘where is your spouse or brother?’ But the very first question that we see in the Bible, Genesis 3:9, “where are you?”

There is a certain amount of Pharisaic attitude in all of us. What we need is a character of docility to accept our short comings and grow further in life. If the little home at Nazareth was the foundation for Jesus we all need to start from our little homes and communities. As the founder of S V D, St. Arnold Janssen has dreamt for all his brothers and sisters, Let us also open our hearts to all the others without any expectation, by accepting each and everyone and thus become one heart and many faces.

- – - written by Br. Jobin Manivelil

The path we tread is important for our life ahead.

It is necessary for every one of us to examine the path we tread. This exercise is required very often, as we are prone to be lead to tread a different path than the one we ought to because of the influence of evil forces in this world. If we go through the Bible we will see that all those people who had and encounter with the Lord had treaded a different path from that very moment onwards.

After visiting Baby Jesus in the manger, the three wise men returned to their Country by another road (Mat.2:12). The path they tread earlier to reach Bethlehem was through King Herod; which now they realized was not the right path to return. In fact, the Lord had warned them not to go back to Herod. All the disciples of Jesus left their old profession, family and other earthly attachments behind them and followed Jesus blindly. In other words, they have deliberately changed their path.

The life of St. Paul, the greatest among the Evangelists, after his encounter with the Lord is a good example of this transformation. A great miracle took place in the life of Zacchaeus after he met Jesus. His very attitude towards life, his life style itself, and the path he tread thereafter were completely changed, quite contrary to the one he followed hitherto. We read in Mark 10:46-52, that the blind Bartimaeus followed Jesus immediately after he was blessed with sight.

The Samaritan Woman became an Evangelist just immediately after meeting Jesus, unexpectedly, at the well. She went around with great enthusiasm telling people that she met the Messiah (John 4:28:30). Let us also examine ourselves whether we are treading the right path. If we are not, it is time that we come back to the right path so that we will safely reach our actual destination.

We have to change our attitude towards others, our own behavior pattern, actions, attachments, priorities etc. Such an exercise will be highly beneficial for the soul as well as the body. Then, we will be able to experience the presence of the Lord within us and this experience will enable us to always tread the right path and become catalysts to change other lives.

Like Moses who when, pleading with the Lord to accompany him and his people, we should be able to say, “Your presence with us will distinguish us from any other people on earth” (Ex. 33:16). In order to obtain the necessary grace for this let us join the Psalmist and confess: “Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path” (Ps.119:105).

So examine the path you tread. Is it the right one? If not, come…lets change the path we tread.

- – - written by N. A. Thomas, Chennai

Those who live a double standard life are bringing blame to the cross of Christ.

For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ – Philippians 3:18. We need to examine ourselves that are we living as enemies of cross of Christ in our day-to-day living? Bible has cited four reasons in Phil 3:19.

First reason is that those who live as enemies of Cross, for them destiny is destruction. Second they think their God is their stomach. Third is that they give glory to their shame and lastly their mind is on earthly things.

Destiny is destruction

We see the life of Judas. He knew Jesus very closely that too in person. He ate and drank with Him. He listened to the preachings of Jesus. Even then he betrayed Jesus by a kiss. His destiny we all know. The point is that we humans who receive Jesus in mass every Sunday; can we afford to cling to sin? Sin is pleasurable. We need to examine our conscience and make a confession. We can pray that the blood of Jesus may cleanse our body , mind and soul. We can also ask Jesus to interfere in our life so that HIS will may be done and HIS kingdom comes on this earth.

God is their stomach

Today the rich are getting richer. The thirst to be wealthy is like water flowing out of the mug. Our stomach is not full. People are not content with what they have. They want more and more. We need to trust Jesus in HIS providence. Everyday we say ‘Give us today our daily bread’. We need to be content with what God gives us. We also need to make sure that we are giving one-tenth of the income to our Lord’s house. It is a challenge to fill our mind with the Word of God. Because mind controls the stomach.

Glory is their shame

Am I a hypocrite? We need to ask this question to ourselves. Are we living two lives. One is that we regularly attend Sunday mass and outside Church we live a sinful life. Whom are we pleasing? Whom are we fooling? It is time to pull our strings and say no to sin. Living a double standard life is abateful. We Christians are more answerable to Lord on our judgement day. Do not glorify yourself after committing a sin instead we need to repent so that angels can glorify over a repentant sinner.

Mind on earthly things

Many of us have cravings on earthly things. What are earthly things? Is it food, clothes, house, job? Why are we worried about earthly things? We are called to live Christ like life. The challenge is how to set our mind on heavenly things rather than on earthly things. The answer to this challenge is by constantly praising and worshiping HIM. By giving praise and worship to the Lord, the Lord will set all things right without our knowledge. We should also understand that the wavelength of thinking of God and ours is different. The wavelength is equal to the difference between the land and the sky.

Download the Enemies of the Cross of Christ PDF

Whatever happens in our life, is for good. We need to patiently wait upon the Lord for HIS glory to fall on us. St. Paul tells us to love and embrace the cross. Living as enemies of the cross is self-indulging. Take a look at these Calvary Cross Pictures of Jesus Christ.

- – - written by Merly Simon