Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba sau Lễ Hiển Linh

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba sau Lễ Hiển Linh (Marcô 6:34-44)

Một ít bánh mì và hai con cá, làm sao mà đủ để nuôi bao nhiêu đây người?

Những năng khiếu, tài năng và khả năng giới hạn của chúng ta sẽ không thể giúp nuôi ăn cho tất cả những người đang đói khát và giúp cho những người rách rưới có đủ mặc ấm trong mùa đông, hay giúp làm giảm bớt những sự bần cùng, nghèo khổ của con người một cách hoàn toàn! Nhưng với những hồng ân và ơn sủng của Thiên Chúa sẽ đến và một ngày nào đó sẽ không còn người đói khát, không còn những nỗi buồn, lo âu , Không còn bệnh tật, không còn những sự nghèo hèn đói khổ.

Thiên Chúa sẽ làm phép lạ và làm cho điều này được xảy ra mà không phải do chúng ta. Tuy nhiên, Thiên Chúa sẽ không làm cho chúng ta những gì mà chúng ta có thể tự làm ra được với trí thông minh và khả năng mà Chúa đã ban cho chúng ta. Vì nhũng công việc đó là tất cả những gì trong vòng phạm vi hoạt động và khả năng của chúng ta, chúng ta có thể chia sẻ những nguồn lực mà chúng ta có, “một vài ổ bánh và ba con cá” với bao nhiêu người đang trong cơn đói khát, Chúng ta có thể chia sẻ sự phong phú củaTin Mừng. Chúng ta có thể chia sẻ lòng thương xót và sự tha thứ, như Chúa Giêsu đã làm bằng lời nói và các việc làm của chúng ta, chúng ta có thể giúp mọi người hiểu được và đi đến chỗ mà họ có thể tin rằng họ được yêu thương và họ đáng yêu và đáng được ấp ủ. Chúng ta có thể làm được điều đó nếu chúng ta sẵn sàng và vui lòng chia sẻ những gì mà bản thân chúng ta đã nhận được

Lạy Chúa, Xin Chúa giúp chúng con biết sẵn lòng đem Tin Mừng của Chúa đến cho những người nghèo bằng tình yêu thương chân thành như Chính Chúa đã dành cho chúng con và thương yêu chúng con.

Tuesday after Epiphany

Some bread and some fish what good are they when so many are hungry and need to be fed? When so many are lost and in need of a shepherd but refuse to be shepherded, what are we t,o do? We can try and send them away. We can try and distance ourselves from them and their problems (which really are also our problems). We can despair. We can run. Or we can love. We can love them first. And love them again. And love them again. Which is what our God does for us over and over again.

Our limited gifts and talents and abilities are not going to feed all the hungry or clothe all the naked or completely alleviate poverty. But with God’s grace there will come a day when there will be no more hunger, no more sadness, no more illness and no more poverty. God will make it happen, not us. Yet God will not do for us what we can do for ourselves.

It is within our purview to share what meager resources we have, our few loaves of bread and fish, with those who are hungry. We can share the riches of the Gospel. We can share mercy and forgiveness. Like Jesus, by our words and actions we can help people to understand and come to believe that they are loved and lovable and cherished. We can do it if we will share what we ourselves have first received. Lord, help me to bring the Good News to the poor.

Tuesday after Epiphany 2022

Opening Prayer: Jesus, I place myself before you. I bring all that I am—my hopes and my dreams, my fears and my struggles. In this time with you, help me see your loving hand at work in my life. Increase my faith so that I desire what you desire. Increase my hope so that I trust you and live my life confident in your loving care. And increase my charity so that it is apparent in all I do and say.

Encountering Christ:

1. Like Sheep without a Shepherd: When we look at the unhappiness and tension that is so very present in society, we feel a tug in our hearts. We are moved with pity because we see people who are like sheep without a shepherd. In their wandering, they don’t find the spiritual and human nourishment they need, and they are often hurt physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Malnourished and in pain, they are sad, lonely, and angry. Yet, they resist the Shepherd’s guidance and care because they don’t know his voice. They may be afraid of him or see him as a danger to their freedom and happiness. The tug on our hearts is even stronger when we look within our own families and friendships and see those who no longer live as a member of Christ’s flock.

2. Give Them Some Food Yourselves: In this parable, Jesus began to teach those who came to him, but he asked his disciples to provide them with food. Did Jesus need the disciples' help to provide for the physical needs of the crowd? Of course not. However, Our Lord chooses to work through human instruments. Just as he asked his disciples to feed the crowd, he asks us to feed those in need today through the corporal and spiritual acts of mercy. When we see a need, it may be easier to tell someone else about it than it is to try to address it ourselves; however, Jesus asks each of us to actively care for others according to our personal call and mission. As St. John Paul II wrote, “lay people as well are personally called by the Lord, from whom they receive a mission on behalf of the Church and the world” (Christifideles Laici: On the Vocation and the Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World, n. 2). St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, whose feast day we celebrate today, was a wife and mother who converted to Catholicism. She was widowed and founded the religious congregation of the Sisters of Charity. Further, she is considered the mother of the parochial school system in the U.S. She saw a need—a big need; with trust in God’s loving provision, she had the courage to address this need.

3. They Ate and Were Satisfied: When Jesus told the disciples to feed the people, they protested that they didn’t have what was necessary. Jesus didn’t accept that answer. He asked the disciples what resources they did have and told them, “Go and see.” How often it is that we, too, feel inadequate in the face of the needs around us. Problems may seem too big for us to address. We may see a lack of resources or feel unprepared, and we may experience a sense of hopelessness. However, just as Jesus blessed and multiplied the gifts the disciples brought to him, he will bless those efforts that he calls us to make in his name. We need to take stock of what we do have to offer (our gifts and talents) and to what we feel called (what causes a particular tug on our hearts). When we bring all this to Jesus, he will show us how to distribute what we have to offer to meet the real needs around us.

Conversing with Christ: My Lord, there are so many needs all around me—in my family, friends, and society. You have called me to help build the Kingdom by loving my neighbor in real, tangible ways, but it seems that I have so little to offer. Help me keep my eyes on you, on what you can do through me, rather than what I am capable of or prepared for. Help me see the gifts and talents you have given me to be used in the mission to which you call me. I want to see as you see and love as you love, my Lord. I want to be your faithful instrument in the reality of today’s world. Sacred Heart of Jesus, burning furnace of love, I place my trust in you.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will spend five minutes in prayer for those who seem to be lost sheep in society, that they will hear the Shepherd’s voice and return to his loving care.

Tuesday after Epiphany 2021

Opening Prayer:

Lord, thank you for bringing me to this moment of prayer. Please open my heart to listen closely to your word, that I may receive all of the graces that you wish to grant unto me during our time together.

Encountering Christ:

1. Mercy Comes First: The disciples must have been dismayed when they saw the large crowd waiting for Jesus on the shore. They’d just reported to Jesus all that they had done in his name, and they were hungry and exhausted. “It’s our day of rest,” they must have thought. “Surely the Master will turn the crowd away.” Instead, Jesus put aside their original plan and started ministering to the crowd. For him, mercy came before everything else, even time for much-needed rest. Sometimes, our own plans and schedules can be interrupted by people who need our assistance. Our child might start crying when we’re about to go to bed. A colleague might need a listening ear in the middle of a busy workday. We are often called to extend ourselves and minister to them, just as Our Lord did with the crowd.

2. Give Them Something to Eat: Not only did the disciples lose their day of rest, but when they asked Jesus to send the people away to buy food, he responded, “You give them something to eat.” Were the disciples thinking, “Master, you can’t be serious. How are we supposed to do that?” Imagine how pleased the Lord would have been if they had turned to him and said, “We trust that you can provide for all of us, Lord. Tell us what we should do.” When we feel overwhelmed by all of the demands that we face, we can pray as did Sr. Faustina: “Jesus I trust in you.” We can then be confident he will be honored and pleased by our humble submission, and empower us to fulfill his will in that moment.

3. Offering the Little That We Have: The five loaves and two fish that the disciples found were practically nothing in the face of five thousand hungry people. Just like the disciples, there will be times when we feel that we have very little, even nothing, to offer to the Lord. But as we have seen in the Gospel, God accepts whatever we can offer to him, however small or humble it may be in our own eyes, and multiplies it into something that can feed a multitude. As St. Therese of Lisieux says, even the smallest act of penance or charity can bring about an abundance of grace if done out of love for God and neighbor. How beautiful it is to offer Christ our nothingness, and to watch with wonder as he blesses it and turns it into something that gives life to others!

Conversing with Christ: Lord, I lay down all that I am and all that I have at your feet. Please multiply it, as you did with the loaves and the fish, so that I can share your grace with my brothers and sisters who are in need of love and mercy.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will offer an Our Father when I am feeling discouraged or stressed, as a reminder of your providential love for me.

REFLECTION 2019

One of the difficulties of our Christian journey is to have to understand the teachings of Jesus, given our limited human capability to understand. How can we never be hungry and never be thirsty? Even with the scientific advancements of the 21st century, there hasn't been a discovery of a certain food or drink that can sustain us forever.

But what Jesus tells us is not about the sustenance of the body but rather, food for the soul. What seems to be universal is the hunger that is felt from within. We reach a time in our lives when we search for something more.

If we allow ourselves to listen to our souls, we embark on a journey to find that which can fill that hunger within. And we do not have to go far. Jesus showed us the way. He said, "Whoever comes to me shall never be hungry and whoever believes in me shall never be thirsty."

St. Augustine expressed this hunger hauntingly with these words: "Thou hast created us for Thyself, and our heart is not quiet until it rests in Thee."

Let us pray that we may accept Jesus Christ, the Bread of life, and that we accept him not just in our minds but rather have the courage to live as he commanded us.

Reflection 1/5/2016)

The theme of both the first reading and the Gospel reading is love. The First Letter of John encourages us to love one another as God loves us, just as Jesus shows us in the Gospel.

In the Gospel, Jesus shows love and compassion for the crowd that is desperate for a leader who will care for them. Perhaps the people viewed both their political and spiritual leaders as unconcerned with their condition: "they were like sheep without a shepherd". So Jesus showed how he cared for them by feeding them spiritually and physically.

He nourished them spiritually when he "began a long teaching session with them". He nourished them physically with bread and fish. The disciples' solution to the physical hunger of the crowd was for Jesus to dismiss them. Instead, Jesus told his disciples "You yourselves give them something to eat."

After the resurrection, Jesus himself nourishes us through his Word and the Eucharist. Have there been opportunities when we could have nourished people spiritually? When we are faced with the hungry poor, do we think that it is someone else's problem and not ours? What can we do within our means to help with the physical hunger around us? Do I allow Jesus to nourish me through the Eucharist?

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba sau Lễ Hiển Linh (2015)

Trong bài đọc thứ Nhất hôm nay, Thánh Gioan nhắc nhở chúng ta rằng Thiên Chúa là Đấng đã yêu thương chúng ta, Vì yêu thương chúng ta mà Thiên Chúa đã sai Con của Ngài xuống làm người như chúng ta, để thông phần đau khổ, và chịu chết như chúng ta là để cứu chúng ta khỏi tội lỗi, và giải thoát chúng ta khỏi phải sự chết đời đời. Vì yêu thương chúng ta mà Ngài đã vượt qua cái chết và sống lại để đưa chúng ta đến với Chúa trong sự sống mãi mãi.

Thiên Chúa mời gọi chúng ta dành thời gian của chúng ta trên trái đất này là để đáp lại với tình yêu đấy. Tuy nhiên, yêu thương chính mình đã khó mà yêu thương người khác thì lại càng không phải là việc dễ dàng bởi vì nó đòi hõi chúng ta phải có sự hy sinh; có nghĩa là đón nhận và phải chấp nhận rủi ro. Các tông đồ khi xưa cũng không hiểu được cách mà Chúa Giêsu đã làm việc và cũng không biết với cách nào để họ có thế có đủ bánh, đủ cá để nuôi ăn hơn năm ngàn người (chỉ đếm đầu đàn ông thôi, chưa kể đàn bà, con nít). Lòng tin và Nguồn lực vật chất của họ dường như quá ít oi.

Nhưng vì lòng tin tưởng, họ biết nghe lời Chúa, họ quyết định đặt niềm tin của họ và Chúa và biết lắng nghe Chúa Giêsu. Trong tay của Chúa Giêsu, những miếng bánh, những phần cá tuy có ít ỏi, (vào trong thời điểm đó năm cái bánh và hai con cá chẳng có nghĩa lý gì) nhưng Chúa đã biến hoá ra nhiều hơn, nhiều để đủ nuôi ăn hơn năm ngàn người không kể đàn bà con nít. Qua bữa ăn no nê đó, mà họ đã phát hiện ra được rằng: tình yêu của Thiên Chúa quá thật là quá rộng lượng, hào phóng, tình yêu quá lớn hơn so với những gì mà họ có thể tưởng tượng được. Trong cuộc sống hiện tại, những nhu cầu của thế giới của chúng ta hôm nay có thể như đang gặp phải khó khăn, bế tắc. Nhưng, bằng với niềm tin yêu vào Thiên Chúa, Chúng ta thực sự có thể làm thay đổi cho xã hội này được tốt hơn.

Qua bài đọc hôm nay, Chúng ta được mời gọi để tin rằng Thiên Chúa là Đấng đã yêu thương chúng ta và Ngài muốn đến để thay đổi và làm cho cuộc sống của chúng ta được trở nên tốt hơn, Đó cũng là vì tình yêu của Thiên Chúa mà Ngài muốn làm thay đổi thế giới của chúng ta, xã hội, gia đình và cuộc sống của chúng ta. Chúng ta được mời gọi để cùng tham dự, dành thời gian giới hạn, khả năng và những lời cầu nguyện của chúng ta để Thiên Chúa làm việc qua chúng ta.

Lạy Chúa, con tin tưởng vào tình yêu của Chúa. Xin Chúc lành cho những ai mà hôm nay biết nghe lời Chúa qua những lời chúng con nói, việc chúng con làm và bằng những hành động của chúng con mỗi ngày.

Reflection (SG)

Today the first letter of John reminds us that it is God who has loved us first. God sent his Son to us in love to save us from our sins and lead us to be with God forever. God invites us to spend this time on earth as a response to this love. Yet loving others is not easy. It involves sacrifice; it often means taking a risk. The apostles do not understand how they are to feed so many people. Their resources seem too few.

In the end, however, they decide to trust and listen to Jesus. In Jesus’ hands, the limited gifts they have at the time — five loaves and two fishes — become more than enough to feed the people. They discover that the love of God is generous, it is greater than what they can imagine. The needs of our world can seem daunting. Can things truly change for the better? We are called to believe that it is God who has loved us first.

It is God’s love that will change our world, our society, our family and our lives. We are invited to take a risk, to offer our limited time, abilities and prayers to God and to let God work through them.

Lord, I trust in Your love. Bless someone today through my words, deeds or presence.

REFLECTION

Today's gospel is for us to recognize the true person of Jesus, and thereby understand His mission. Jesus' teaching astounded the multitude in the synagogue. He taught with authority. He spoke the word of God as no one had spoken it before. By His words, He had authority even over demons. No wonder the crowd reacted with amazement and wonder but not with recognition. They are amazed by His actions, but they don't recognize who He is. They are intrigued by His words, but they do not know from where the authority comes. But Jesus was authority incarnate - the Word of God made flesh. When He spoke, God spoke. When He commanded even the demons obeyed.

However, Jesus was also guarding against the dangerous possibility that He would be recognized as a political Messiah. Jesus had to silence the unclean spirit for proclaiming Him as the Holy One of God for fear that people would seek Him as a political leader who would deliver them from the oppressive foreign forces occupying Palestine. This mistaken view would jeopardize His mission, which was to inaugurate the kingdom of God. For Jesus, the Kingdom of God would only become a reality if sinners would repent and convert themselves to Christ. Undergoing personal conversion to Christ would allow them to defeat Satan. As Jesus would say, "But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." (Mt 12: 28)

"Lord, your word is power and life. May I never doubt your saving love and mercy, and the power of your word to bring healing and deliverance to those in need."

Reflection:

What drives you?" This is a question posed in a TV advertisement of a fuel company. The ad shows people from various walks of life giving their best efforts in what they are doing -- in sports, in one's profession, while driving a sports car or while just playing with one's children.

The images shown and the question posed strike us at our core: "What drives us?" The answer is simple: that one cannot totally commit himself to a task, a profession, unless one is driven by something pure, compelling and convincing, by something truly as important as one's life itself.

In today's reading from the First Letter of John, we are given the compelling answer to the question, "What drives us?" The real answer is "love." We do not have to study the many spiritual writers and practitioners who support John's reply. If we look back at our own life experiences, we notice that the moments and times we are so alive, bold and courageous and so fulfilled are when we are ignited and moved by love. One could think of the moment one proposed to his wife. Or accepted the proposal from one's future husband. One could think of the times we went out of our usual comfort zone to reach out to a friend, office-mate or even a stranger in great need. These are key moments in our human life and experience which can only be driven by love.

For John, the disciple Jesus loved, these experiences driven by love make God really present in our lives; they are true encounters with God-with-us.

Today, as we celebrate the Christmas season of God's gift of his Son to us, let us reflect and ask ourselves "What drives us?" Which parts of our lives are not ruled and driven by love? Pray to the Lord to touch those parts of our lives that he may rule there.

WAU- Meditation: 1 John 4:7-10 Saint André Bessette, Religious

We love because God first loved us. (1 John 4:19)

A farmer goes into the field at planting time. He tills the soil, then carefully works the seed into the ground and waters it, hoping for a bumper crop. In a similar way, our heavenly Father has planted the seed of his divine love into each of us. As he waters and nurtures this seed, he rejoices at the crop it produces—a harvest of love for one another.

It’s funny that, as deep as the gospel message is, it can still be expressed in three simple words: God is love. We can live in love because he has loved us first and planted the seed of his love into our hearts.

But how does this seed grow? John is very clear about this in today’s first reading. Love comes from God, and if we know God and are open to his love, then the seed sprouts, and we are able to love. If we turn away from God’s love, we find it a lot harder to love the people around us. Anyone who has been in love knows that love isn’t something we generate on our own power. It rises up within us, a wonderful gift from God and a taste of his divine love. It only stands to reason that the more we come into contact with his love for us, the more we will be able to love everyone else—even when we don’t feel like it!

God longs to see us love one another. We may struggle with hurts from the past, but we can lay these issues at the feet of Jesus and come to know his peace over time. We may not know how to show our love, but the Holy Spirit can teach us and show us the way.

Your heavenly Father is speaking to you right now. He is asking you to open your heart to his love, which is endless and strong. Let it wash over you now. Release everything to him, and let him fill you!

“Father, I know you have placed the seed of your love and your life in my heart. I trust in the power of that love to shape me and lift me up. May this same love also flow out of me to my brothers and sisters.”

Comment: Fr. Xavier SOBREVÍA i Vidal (Castelldefels, Spain)

They were like sheep without a shepherd

Today, Jesus shows Himself to be sensitive to the needs of people who are in search of Him. He just cannot remain indifferent to the needs of those he meets on the way. He feels compassion when He sees the great crowd that has been following Him «like sheep without a shepherd» (Mk 6:34). The Master leaves His immediate plans aside and starts preaching. How many times have we allowed urgency or impatience manage our behavior? How many times have we not wanted to change our plans in order to help with immediate and unforeseen needs? Jesus gives us an example of flexibility, of the ability to modify plans and be available for the people who follow Him.

Time goes by quickly. When you love, it is easy for time to go by very quickly. And Jesus, who loves much, preaches at length. It gets late, the disciples remind the Master so. What worries them is how the crowd is going to feed itself. Then Jesus makes an implausible proposal: «You yourselves give them something to eat» (Mk 6:37). He is not only worried about spiritual bread but also about bodily food. The disciples find it difficult, very difficult. And it is true!: the cost would be «two hundred silver coins' worth of bread» (Mk 6:37). They see the material difficulties, but their eyes do not still recognize that He who speaks to them is almighty; they need more faith.

Jesus does not make them stand in line, he organizes them in groups. They rest and share together as a community. He asked the disciples for the food they had: only five loaves and two fish. Jesus takes them, invokes God's blessing and distributes them. Such a small amount of food will feed thousands of people and twelve baskets will exceed. This miracle introduces the spiritual bread of the Eucharist. The Bread of life that spreads freely to all the people of the Earth in order to give life and eternal life.