Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba Tuần 26 Thường Niên

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Ba Tuần 26 Thường Niên (Luke 9:51-56)
Hôm nay chúng ta hãy suy niệm vào tình yêu bao la của Chúa Giêsu Kitô đã ban cho chúng ta, Đó là một tình yêu có sự tôn trọng tự do cá nhân riêng của mỗi chúng ta. Những khoảnh khắc trong cuộc sống của chúng ta, đôi khi chúng ta chẳng khắc gì những người của Samaria, có những hành động kém thân thiện, không hiếu khách khi Chúa Kitô đi qua và ghé thăm chúng ta. .
Chúng ta không thể biết được là khi nào Ngài đã đến với chúng ta. Có thể Ngài đến trong hình bóng một người thấp kém nhất trong chúng ta, có thể là một em bé, lang thang bán vé sổ, có thể là người hành khất đang ăn xin trên đường mà chúng ta đã gặp trên hè phố hôm nay, có thể một người nào đó đang thiếu thốn tình thương, đang thất vọng, đang cần sự chú ý và giúp đỡ của chúng ta.! Chúa Giêsu luôn luôn đi qua trong cuộc sống của chúng ta, trong những khoảng thời gian tốt có, xấu có, Sự qua lại ghé thăm của Ngài luôn luôn là những mục đích để giúp chúng ta phát triển thêm trong đức tin, để giúp chúng ta kiên định giữ lời dạy bảo của Ngài và tìm kiếm vương quốc của Ngài là Thiên Đàng trước tiên.
Chúng ta hãy cố gắng không nên từ chối bất cứ điều gì mà có vẻ không tốt cho chúng ta, hay là một sự thất vọng, vv . Chúng ta hãy nhớ cầu nguyện xin Chúa ban cho chúng ta những ân sũng và những hồng ơn được hiểu biết và kiên nhẫn, được ơn sức mạnh tinh thần trong thời gian thử thách. Và đặc biệt nhất là hồng ân của trí tuệ để chúng ta biết phân biệt và nhận ra Chúa khi Chúa đến và đang đi qua đời chúng ta.
 
Meditation:
 Are you surprised to see two of Jesus' disciples praying for the destruction of a Samaritan village? The Jews and Samaritans had been divided for centuries. Jewish pilgrims who passed through Samaritan territory were often assaulted. Jesus did the unthinkable for a Jew. He not only decided to travel through Samaritan territory at personal risk, but he also asked for hospitality in one of their villages! Jesus' offer of friendship was rebuffed. Is there any wonder that the disciples were indignant and felt justified in wanting to see retribution done to this village? Wouldn't you respond the same way? Jesus, however, rebukes his disciples for their lack of toleration.  Jesus had "set his face toward Jerusalem" to die on a cross that Jew, Samaritan and Gentile might be reconciled with God and be united as one people in Christ.
Tolerance is a much needed virtue today. But aren't we often tolerant for the wrong thing or for the wrong motive? Christian love seeks the highest good of both one's neighbor and one's enemy. When Abraham Lincoln was criticized for his courtesy and tolerance towards his enemies during the American Civil War, he responded: "Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?" How do you treat those who cross you and cause you trouble? Do you seek their good rather than their harm?
"Lord Jesus, you are gracious, merciful, and kind. Set me free from my prejudice and intolerance towards those I find disagreeable, and widen my heart to love and to do good even to those who wish me harm or evil."
 
Tuesday of the Twenty-Sixth Week in Ordinary Time
When the days for Jesus to be taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him. Luke 9:51–52
Shortly after Jesus spoke to His disciples about His pending suffering, death and resurrection, we read that Jesus “resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem.” There is much to reflect upon in that short statement.
First of all, Jerusalem was the place of the Temple where the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament took place as a prefiguration of the one and ultimate sacrifice to come. Jesus came into this world as the Lamb of God, the Sacrificial Victim Who would die for our sins. He knew His ultimate end in this world, and He knew it would require much suffering. This knowledge of His future suffering is the foundational context of this passage today.
As Jesus’ suffering and death drew close, He became more and more determined in His human will to fulfill the will of the Father by laying down His life. Of course, Jesus always fulfilled the will of the Father, but little by little the human manifestation of Jesus’s determination became more and more pronounced. The specific human virtue that slowly became manifest was courage. Spiritual courage is the supernatural ability to embrace the will of the Father when His will leads a person into a life of sacrifice. Within our fallen human nature, we tend to avoid sacrifice. We often work to avoid conflict and suffering and to embrace the easy way in life. Therefore, to come face-to-face with some future suffering brings forth a temptation to fear—and that fear requires courage to overcome it. As His suffering drew closer, the temptation to fear grew stronger and, as a result, His perfect virtue of courage became more manifest. Note that Jesus not only decided to go to Jerusalem to offer His life sacrificially, He “resolutely determined” to do so. There was no wavering, no doubting the Father’s will, no hesitancy, no fear. His perfect sacrificial love slowly became manifest for all to see.
Another reason Jesus became resolute in His determination to travel to Jerusalem was to witness His love to His disciples. They needed courage themselves.  So, as they listened to Jesus speak about what was coming in Jerusalem and as they witnessed His unwavering determination, they were also encouraged and were strengthened to overcome the temptations to fear. Of course, they only perfected that virtue later in their lives when they also followed in the footsteps of our Lord, laying down their own lives as martyrs.
Reflect, today, upon that which causes fear and anxiety in your own life. If that suffering is of your own making, then seek to rectify it. But if that suffering is a cross that our Lord is calling you to embrace with love, then do so sacrificially and with much determination. Do not be cowed by the heaviness of the cross you are given in life. The crosses we are called to embrace are always able to be transformed into grace. Allow courage to grow within you and allow the witness of our Lord to encourage you as you seek to imitate His sacrificial love.
My courageous Lord, You faced Your suffering with much courage, strength, surrender and hope. You saw the value of Your free embrace of Your suffering and chose it with all the power of your soul. Give me the grace I need, dear Lord, to also resolutely determine to journey toward the cross I am called to embrace in life, so that my free embrace of my cross will unite me more fully with You. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Tuesday 26th Sunday Ordinary Time
Opening Prayer: Jesus, my heart thirsts for an encounter with you, but so often I want to meet you on my own turf, according to my own terms. Open my heart to allow myself to be challenged by your word to journey wherever you are leading, not setting the conditions myself, but allowing you to invite me deeper.
Encountering Christ:
·         Determined to Journey to Jerusalem: Through intimate prayer with his Father, Jesus came to a clear understanding of the Father’s will. Once he knew his Father’s will, there was not the slightest hesitation on his part. His resolute determination did not arise from a personal attraction to what lay ahead. He was in no way deceived as to the excruciating suffering that awaited him in Jerusalem. Yet, his determination was unfailing. In her writings, St. Teresa of Avila speaks of the importance of having a “determined determination” never to give up prayer. How “determinedly determined” are we to become a saint? How “determinedly determined” are we to fulfill God’s will in our life no matter what?
·         He Sent Messengers Ahead of Him: The Samaritans would not welcome Jesus because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. Their motives were based on cultural tensions of the times: Samaritans and Jews purely and simply did not mix. Yet, what these Samaritans did not realize was that they were turning away their Lord God and Savior for something as trivial as a centuries-old tradition of resentment and prejudice. How often for us, too, a multitude of reasons present themselves for turning away the Lord’s advances in our lives. Jesus’s steps were pointed in the direction of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem was the place of the cross. We easily find excuses to refuse Our Lord’s invitations because they bring us uncomfortably close to the cross. We forget that the “Jerusalem” Jesus invites us to can also be the source of the fullness of life for us.
·         Fire to Consume Them?: James and John, together with the rest of the apostles, had still not come to see things as God sees them. They failed to understand that God does not work in human hearts, or in the world at large, by force. The only force he uses is that of love. The Samaritans were not to be converted through a show of brute power. In fact, Jesus knew that the way to transform their hearts lay precisely in continuing down the road to their redemption, to the point of drinking the chalice that was his to drink. Let us join Our Lord on his path toward Jerusalem, and perhaps, instead of focusing on the attitudes of those around us, allow God to transform our hearts and teach us to love to the ultimate consequences, as he did. 
Conversing with Christ: Jesus, you journeyed resolutely toward Jerusalem, knowing that your Passion and death awaited you there. Grant me a “determined determination” to embrace the invitation to follow you to its final consequences. Give me the strength to desire not only holiness but also the path necessary to reach it. Help me to keep my eyes set on you no matter what.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will practice fortitude as the opportunity presents itself in my day.
 
REFLECTION
     To "become like little children" in the Gospel reading does not mean to be ignorant and weak, helpless and gullible. To "become like little children" means to be little children totally dependent on their parents and elders in our relationship with our heavenly Father. It means we should be "innocent," with the pure innocence of little children, trusting, obedient and dependent on our Father in heaven in the way of little children with their parents. It means we somehow let go of our pride, arrogance and complete confidence in ourselves.
      In the first reading Yahweh, God of Israel, faithful to his covenant, reiterates his love for Israel and promises their return to Jerusalem, "I am going to save my people ... They will be my people and I shall be their God."   Are we able to "become like little children" before our heavenly Father? Are we able to have complete trust and confidence that our heavenly Father will take care of us? "If God so clothes the grass in the field which blooms today and is to be burned tomorrow in an oven, how much more will he clothe you?" (Mt 6: 30) "As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!" (Mt 7: 11)
 
REFLECTION Tuesday 26th Ordinary Time Luke 9:51-56
Let us reflect today on the immense love of Jesus Christ for us – a love that respects your freedom. Many moments in our life we, like the people of Samaria, act in the same hostile way, not knowing it is the Lord who is passing by and visiting us. What are some of the moments that Jesus could be passing by? He often takes the form of a little one, someone of no importance to whom we do not pay attention and whom we can easily reject. A poor one perhaps? Or a relative who needs consolation? Someone sick who may need medical help? Or a situation that is not expected? A failure in life? Jesus is always passing in our lives, in good times and bad times. This passing is always to help us grow stronger in faith, for us to hold steadfast to his teachings and to seek first his kingdom. Let us not reject anything that does not seem good for us, an irritation to our plans, a disappointment, etc. Let us pray instead for the gift of understanding and patience - the gift of fortitude in times of trials. And most especially the gift of wisdom to discern when the Lord is passing.