Suy Niệm Tin Mừng thứ Sáu Tuần 29 Thường Niên

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng thứ Sáu Tuần 29 Thường Niên

Bài Tin Mừng hôm nay nhắc nhở chúng ta là những người Kitô hữu phải nên biết sáng suốt với những lời mời gọi của Chúa trong mọi lúc. Bất kể tuổi tác, tình trạng trong cuộc sống, hoặc tập quán, của chúng ta, chúng ta luôn luôn được mời gọi để mang niềm hòa bình và sư hiệp nhất trong chúng ta ngay trong gia đình, trong trường học, trong nơi làm việc, hay trong cộng đồng và xã hội chúng ta đang sống. Một cách chính xác, là chúng ta phải làm như thế nào?, Chúng ta không cần phải nhìn xa để tìm cho câu trả lời. Phản ứng của chúng để đáp lại lời mời gọi này có thể khác với những người khác và tùy thuộc vào hoàn cảnh của chúng ta và người đó. Nhưng tiêu chuẩn của Chúa thì luôn đơn giản giống nhau đó là sự khiêm tốn, nhân từ và kiên nhẫn. Hầu như chúng ta có thể tìm thấy những đặc điểm này là nên tự giúp đỡ nhau, hướng dẫn cho nhau để hoàn tất được công việc mà Chúa Trao phó thành công một cách mỹ mãn. Sự khiêm tốn, kiên nhẫn và lòng nhân từ chính là những công cụ không mất tiền mua, khá mạnh mẽ và sắc bén có thể giúp bồi dưỡng chúng ta cho mùa gặt lớn trong vườn nho của Thiên Chúa. Chúng ta là những hạt giống. Và Thiên Chúa sẽ giúp làm cho chúng ta nẩy mầm và phát triển đức tin của chúng ta.

REFLECTION

What is asked of us by the Lord to do now? It is a simple question but we may not have the answer to it all the time. We pray hard but we may not have understood the Lord's message. Maybe we did not listen enough. Or perhaps we understood what the Lord asked of us to do but we complicate it or make different excuses not to act on it.

The gospel reminds us Christians to be discerning of the Lord's call at all times. Regardless of our age, status in life, or heritage, we are always called to bring peace and unity in our family, school, workplace, community, and society. How exactly can we make it happen? We need not look far for answer. Our response to this call may differ from one person to another and depending on the person's circumstances. But the Lord's standards are simple and always the same - be humble, gentle and patient. Hardly that we can find these traits recommended in self-help guide to get a fulfilling job or to establish a successful business. But it is a powerful inexpensive tool that we can nurture for a great harvest in the Lord's vineyard. We already have the seeds. And our dear Lord will help us make them grow and put to good use. We just need to act on our faith.

Friday Thursday 29th Week in Ordinary Time

Opening Prayer: As I come into your presence today, I make my own the prayer of today’s psalm: Teach me wisdom and knowledge, Lord, because I trust in you, who are good and bountiful. Teach me to follow you more closely, to love you more deeply, to know you more fully.

Encountering Christ:

· The Present Time: Jesus energetically pointed out to the crowds that something truly remarkable was happening right before their very eyes: in Jesus, the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies and promises was taking place. And yet, many of them simply did not see it. They failed to recognize the action of God in all that Jesus said and did. They failed to recognize the voice of God whispering to their hearts through the events unfolding all around them. They were keenly aware of worldly things like weather patterns, but for some reason, they were easily blinded to the spiritual things, to the manifestations of God’s plan of salvation. How can that be? Jesus seemed to be frustrated with these people; he even seemed to put a large amount of the blame for their blindness upon themselves: You hypocrites! Maybe we think we would have done better if we had lived in Palestine at the time. But is that true? We know, we believe, that God is at work in us and in the world around us, drawing closer to us, at every time and in every place (Catechism 1). But how often am I aware of this loving presence? How easily do I discern this loving presence in the happenings and the people that go together to weave the tapestry of my daily existence? Do I really behave as if I knew this to be true? If not, perhaps I should be slower to judge those who seem even less spiritually sensitive than myself.

· Settling Accounts: In this section of St. Luke’s Gospel, Jesus repeatedly exhorts us to live the here-and-now of our lives in light of the inevitable realities of death and the end of history. In today’s passage, he encourages us to live in peace with those around us, to be reconciled to those whom we have offended or who have offended us. He doesn’t want us to live with loose ends that will have to be tied up after we die. He wants us to resolve here and now everything we can. We have all heard stories of people who were agitated and upset by regrets, by unfinished business, as they lay on their deathbed. Jesus doesn’t want us to be one of those people. So he tells us to settle our differences, to reconcile with our opponents, to do penance for our sins, and to make up for our negligence now before we get to our judgment day. If I knew I were going to die in one week’s time, what affairs would I settle between now and then? Whom would I ask for forgiveness? Whom would I want to forgive? What festering conflict would I want to resolve? Jesus invites me to address those things without delay, for the good of my soul here on earth as well as hereafter.

· A Tragic Mystery: We have heard the Gospel so many times. We have received the Eucharist and been to confession so many times. We have studied Church teaching and read so many spiritual books. And yet, here we still are, battling our self-centered tendencies and even falling into some of the same old sins over and over again. How can we explain this? St. Paul wrestles with this stark reality in today’s first reading: For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want… For I take delight in the law of God, in my inner self, but I see in my members another principle at war with the law of my mind, taking me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. This is our human condition: a state of contradiction, of interior battle. We need not be discouraged by the battle that rages within us. Neither need we be surprised. Human nature is fallen, and the world is fallen, and so our efforts to live by God’s grace are opposed even by ourselves. This is just the way it is. But God knows this, and he sent a Savior to redeem us from this absurdity and to show us the way to a more coherent life. Yet, the path of salvation is lifelong. For some reason, God permits the persistence of these inner contradictions throughout our lives. If even St. Paul, the great Apostle to the Gentiles, had to struggle with these interior contradictions (which is clear from today’s first reading), then we have nothing to be ashamed of when we see them surface in us. May the words of St. Paul toward the end of his life be just as relatable as were his words about the battle within: I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).

Conversing with Christ: Thank you for coming to earth to walk with us and teach us your Gospel, Lord. Thank you for giving me the gift of faith, which enlightens all my confusion and doubt. Thank you for never getting tired of reminding me to do my part to live coherently in this great Christian adventure. You know my weakness, Lord, but I know you only allow it to persist because you yourself want to be my strength.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will take a step toward reconciliation in a relationship that has been festering. If I have no such relationships, I will make a visit to the Eucharist and pray to Jesus for those who do have such relationships.

REFLECTION

We all rely on signs to confirm our beliefs. This can be as simple as believing in clouds as a sign of a coming rain. It can also be the blooming of a rose as a symbol of answered prayer. Jesus tells us today that there are signs we refuse to see. He calls us to be more aware of them. When we sense ourselves losing interest in God's word, is it due to physical fatigue or more the mental and spiritual kind? We should constantly make the effort to discern.

There will be movements leading us towards God and there will be forces against. If we remain in His grace, it'll be easier to determine what would draw us away from His path. At the same time, it will be God's grace that will keep us on course.

Reflection:

We have the opportunity every week to hear the word of God proclaimed to us in the Eucharist through the readings and the priest's homily. And sometimes we have the privilege of listening to inspirational speakers or to friends who give Christian advice. All of these are prophets giving us the Word. But most of the time, we do not heed their preaching and exhortation and do not find time to put into action the promptings of the Spirit. In the history of the people of God, many times, the Israelites also chose not to listen to God, or they postponed and set aside the words of the prophets. Like them, we can read many signs, but the real signs we need to see and recognize – the presence of the Lord in these prophets – we do not recognize. Thus, we don't understand the present times at all. It's a pity that we may risk losing everything, all the signs that the Lord sends to us through events and people – these will all go to naught. When we see that the Lord comes to suggest to us the path of reconciliation, let us not tarry, for events may overtake us, and we may not find the opportune chance again to convert or reconcile. It may be too late. Let us walk in the light while the light is with us. Let us not delay when the Holy Spirit blows our way.