GRACE...!

At the time of Jesus, the people sought for signs from God to understand the second coming of the savior. Paradoxically today’s generation seems to be looking for miracles to believe in God. This tendency postulates the absence of faith and presence of godlessness attitude. I wish I am wrong in making this premise.  Of late I was shocked when a couple of graduate students told me that they do not believe in God. I was shocked not because they do not believe in God but what would be their reason to say this, despite years of formation and seminary life. I really wonder whether they understood what they said. Perhaps the change of times and the change of cultures and change of belief systems could have influenced them. Let us not forget the fact that there is nothing certain except the change itself. Yes change is the only certainty. So it is the change that influences the mind of the young today. The speed of change is tremendous. Just to put you in context……Years ago th...

We know it was Heraclitus who said that the world is full of flux/change. For him change is certain and nothing else. What ever it is, what I would like to draw your attention to is that there are Christians being persecuted in the name of God. There are number of Christians being killed by the terrorists and those who perpetuate violence by their deeds and acts of unkindness. Oh God when is the end to such religious attacks of the innocent. It is not in one corner of the world nor one corner of the country. Today religious violence is prevalent every where in the world. It has become a common phenomenon of the daily newspapers ad news channels. Even in India in BJP's reign religious problems are becoming everyday's issues. In the name of God  Reconversions , Achadin and Ghar Vapsi  are just luring every non-Hindu citizen to embrace Hinduism. If not we know what would be the consequences of such behaviour. There are also cases where Christians and Muslims being reconvert...

On 18th Feb, 2015 Random Reflection from one of my students during Hermeneutics Oral Exam: He said "A bad person sees a bad person bad; because he doesn't trust the other.  but a good person sees a bad person good; because he trusts the other." So it is TRUST that builds our Relationships, Family and Community. Beautiful....

Today evening I was with my students working in the Mango Garden. While working we noticed that out of so many flowers that bloomed are down now. Most of the flowering has been withered away due to some natural conditions and situations. What ever would be the reason....I was wondering why only some trees can be planted by the seed, others by the stem and few others by the flower and the rest neither of them but by a formulae... Have you ever thought about it? First of all they bloom, flower and bare fruits not just by their instinct and natural condition. But they do have the instinctual desires to propagate themselves and spread their roots across just like humanity strive to procreate and propagate. That's why all the trees and plants (flora and fauna) when they feel that they are going to die or perish then they start flowering and then bearing fruits. This was shared by one of the senior Salesian members of my community. I was really thrilled to know this wonderful secret of...

Don Bosco is a creative and innovative saint. The church honored by calling him as the father and friend of youth . His greatness lies in the unique and creative method called Preventive System . By this effective pedagogical system he taught young people the values and the virtues of heart beside imparting education and offering employment. Hence the church recognized him as the creative saint of the young people. Don Bosco is a catalyst among the boys on the streets who were disposed to all sorts of social and economic evils. Despite the fact that the boys were at threat both physically deteriorating their health and spiritually making them go astray he resolved and committed that his life would be meant only for them. He wished first to save their worldly life and then lead them to Christ by his arresting slogan “ Give me souls and take away the rest. ” There were a handful of boys who were attracted to his slogan of soul and became saints from his own oratories.  His mi...

           As I was taking an oral exam with my students; I asked one of my students about what is/was God for him? He answer saying that God is complete to which we cannot neither add anything nor subtract anything from him. Beautiful answer and I began think over it.          Today as I was reading a book Awareness by Anthony de Mello I came across a similar ideas about God. He quotes Meister Echart, "God is not attained by a process of addition to anything in the soul, but by a process of subtraction." We don't do anything to be free, we just drop something of the self then we are free. This has been an eye opener for me to think of God's greatness and my limitedness. In his greatness is our strenght. But not by our will and power. God is therefore, complete in himself and pervades everywhere. 

           Dear Friendz, Today the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. This feast reminds us dat mother Mary suffered mentally, psychologically and spiritually. She suffered not for herself but for us. The pain and suffering of our Blessed Mother tells us that, if we suffer for ourselves it is endurance but if we suffer for others it is noble and meaningful. This is the kind of suffering our mother experienced in her earthly life. For suffering is a mystery. Suffering is God's visit to us in disguise. Praise God for having brought Christ through our Blessed Mother. May she intercede for us dat we may imbibe her virtues of patience and purity.     The feast of our lady of sorrows reminds us that the cause of joy is painful but the fruit of suffering is sweet like the salvation brought by Jesus by his death on the cross. Pain is never desired by anybody but the truth is that we all of us have face some sort of pain and s...