Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Hai 25 TN
Qua
bài Tin Mừng hôm nay, Chúa Giêsu đã dùng hình ảnh của một chiếc đèn để mô tả cách mà Ngài muốn các môn đệ phải sống trong ánh sáng chân lý và tình yêu
của Ngài. Cũng như ánh sáng tự nhiên soi sáng
bóng tối và cho giúp chúng ta thấy được một cách rõ
ràng những hiện vật trước mắt, vì vậy ánh sáng của Chúa Kitô tỏa sáng trong trái tim
của chúng ta và cho phép chúng ta được xem thấy
những thực tế trên
trời, trong vương quốc của Thiên Chúa.
Trong thực tế, nhiệm vụ của chúng ta là đem ánh sáng của Chúa
Kitô để cho những người
khác có thể nhìn thấy sự thật, chân lý của Tin
Mừng phúc âm và để
giải thoát sự mù quáng của tội lỗi và sự lừa dối. Chúa Giêsu cho chúng ta biết rằng không có gì có thể dấu kín hay giữ được bí mật
lâu dài. Chúng ta có
thể cố để giấu diếm người khác, hay cả chính chúng ta về những bí mật riêng của chúng ta. Nhưng
làm thế nào
chúng ta có thể giấu
được Thiên Chúa và cố nhắm mắt được với những hậu quả của con đường tội lỗi và
những thói quen xấu của chúng ta, ngay cả khi chúng ta biết những hậu quả sẽ xãy đến cho chúng ta.
Thiên Chúa biết hết tất cả mọi sự,
vì Ngài nhìn thấy tất cả và biết mọi sự trong tâm hồn thầm kín của chúng ta. Những người sống trong ánh sáng của
Thiên Chúa và những người tìm kiếm Chân
lý hay sự thật của Ngài, sẽ được hưởng sự tự do tuyệt vời và niềm vui vô tận. Những người lắng nghe Thiên Chúa và biết chú ý đến Lời
của Ngài sẽ nhận được nơi
Ngài rất nhiều sự phong
phú của trí tuệ, sự hướng dẫn, sự hòa bình, và phúc lành của Ngài
ban cho. Chúng ta có sẵn sáng và
mong được có những niềm vui
và được tự do sống trong ánh sáng của Thiên
Chúa?
Reflection
The light, in today's
gospel, is likened to Christ who came to earth to lead the way, to show the
path. When Jesus was to talking to his disciples, he was talking about himself
and he was saying that soon this prophecy of the Messiah would be realized and
the truth will be out. Those who listened and followed will learn to understand
yet those who thought they knew what they knew will soon realize the fallacy of
what they believed in. Thus, they will be stripped of their spiritual authority
and those who followed Christ will be given more responsibilities in spreading
the Word.
In our current situation, where the birth, the death and
the resurrection is part of our spiritual history, as Christians we are the
light that Christ mentioned in Luke 8:16. As we walk in faith, it is but
inevitable that people will notice us especially when we do what is opposite of
the norm. As followers of Christ, it is in our nature to act responsibly in any
situation. This we do not do boastfully or with pride but with humility and
faith that in all of this there is God whom we are serving faithfully. In turn,
it is reminding us to pay heed and not act as if we are better than other
people in our community lest we gull ourselves into believing that we are
infallible. Instead, Jesus instructs us to listen and to act. Mere listening is
a superficial act. When one does what one is told, people will see the depth of
our faith. As Christians it is very easy to fall into complacency, where we
think the mere routine of going to church, listening to homilies, getting
involved in parish socials is enough. The act of true faith is manifested in
how one openly shares with his brethren. In the Last Supper, Jesus enjoins us
to do what he does. As Jesus willingly and gratefully served others, so must we
be to our fellowmen. Have you prayed for the grace of true service lately? It
is costly, but then again Jesus did this to show
Monday 25th - Ordinary Time
Do you have much? Or little? According to Jesus’ words, if you
have much, then you will receive much more; but if you have little, then you
will lose even what you have. Does this seem fair?
Of course, our Lord is not speaking in worldly terms. He’s not
saying that if you have much money, then you will gain more, or if you are
poor, then you will become poorer. Instead, Jesus is speaking about the grace
that comes from understanding His holy Word. Notice that the passage above
begins by saying, “Take care, then, how you hear.”
To “hear” the Word of God implies that you truly receive what
Jesus teaches. Hearing is not just hearing the words spoken with your ears. One
early Church Father, Saint Bede, explains that truly hearing the Word of God
with our minds leads us to love that Word, and loving the Word leads to
understanding. This is not accomplished by an intellectual exercise alone, as
if our natural gifts are the primary means by which we comprehend all that
Jesus teaches. Rather, it comes through spiritual insight gained by the
supernatural gift of the Spirit Who teaches us all things.
If you want “more” understanding of the mysteries of God, then
commit yourself to engaging the holy Scriptures with your mind. Read the
Scriptures, ponder them and pray with them. It’s easy to forget that the Word
of God is a Living Word. This means that when we prayerfully immerse ourselves
in the Scriptures, we are prayerfully encountering God Himself. God is alive in
His holy Word. We meet Him, personally, and this happens only by a special
grace that we must be open to receive.
The beautiful aspect of this teaching of Jesus is that the more we
understand His Word by this grace, the more we will immerse ourselves in it,
and it will continue to grow within us. If, however, we devote little time to
engaging the Word of God in prayer, we will begin to “forget,” so to speak, the
spiritual depths of the wisdom of God. We will lose the little understanding we
have and when this happens, we will be prone to engaging and accepting the many
confusions and deceptions alive in our world.
Reflect, today, upon your practice of prayerfully meditating upon
the Scriptures. If this is not your current practice, resolve to make it so.
Perhaps start with one of the Gospels and commit yourself to prayerfully
reading it little by little every day. The goal is not to get through the books
of the Bible. The goal is to enter into each book. Every chapter and every line
provides us with a depth of spiritual insight and understanding just waiting to
be given and received. Commit yourself to this holy practice, and you will be
amazed at the spiritual riches our Lord bestows upon you.
Living Word of God, my Lord and my King, I thank You for the way
in which You come to me and all Your children through Your written Word. Fill
me with a love for that Word so that I will daily engage my mind in the deep
truths revealed within it. May I meet You, dear Lord, and grow in an
understanding of Who You are and what You wish to reveal to me. Jesus, I trust
in You.
Monday 25th - Ordinary Time 2024
Encountering
the Word of God
1. The
Light of Christ: Everything we have done and all that we do in our lives
will be revealed. The wicked mistakenly think that their evil deeds will go
unnoticed. Jesus corrects this view: “For there is nothing hidden that will not
become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light.”
If our deeds are good, then we have no reason to fear. In fact, in our deeds
and actions, we are called to be a light for the world. We are not the ultimate
source of the light, for Jesus is the light that enlightens all men (John 1:9).
At the same time when we walk in the light of Christ, we are called to share
and communicate this light to others. Jesus also teaches that to those who
have, more will be given. And so, when we receive Jesus and the Holy Spirit,
when we immerse ourselves in divine wisdom, and when we let the light of Christ
shine through us, even more will be given to us. Our knowledge of God will be
even more profound; our love for God will be even deeper.
2. Two
Ways of Life according to Proverbs: The First Reading is from the Book of
Proverbs. The book is like a “treasury of wisdom for successful living, ...
[that] aims at the formation of character by imparting values and encouraging
virtues” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: Proverbs, 14). The beginning
and foundation of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. “Since wisdom ultimately
comes from God (2:6), one can hardly be called wise who fails to revere the
Lord. Everyone is obliged to discern the lessons of life by use of reason and
to conform to the order that God's wisdom has built into creation” (Ignatius
Catholic Study Bible: Proverbs, 14). Proverbs sees that human beings follow
one of two ways: the righteous follow the way of wisdom and life; the senseless
follow the way of foolishness and death.
3. The
Call to Wisdom: Today’s First Reading (Proverbs 3:27-34) is taken from the
first collection of Wisdom Discourses (Proverbs 1:8-9:18). The first chapters
of Proverbs invite the reader to not consent to the enticements of sinners and
to not walk with them or in their ways. Wisdom calls out in the streets of the
city for men and women to listen to her words. If they receive her words, they
will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. By heeding
wisdom, they will understand righteousness and justice and follow a good path;
they will be delivered from the way of evil. The one who listens to wisdom
trusts in the Lord with all their heart, honors the Lord with their work, and
does not despise the Lord’s discipline. Happy is the man who finds wisdom.
Today’s First Reading tells us that the wise man is just: He gives to others
their due and does not envy the wicked man who commits injustices. The reading
also tells us that the wise man is humble and that they receive favor from God.
The wise, the just, and the humble receive blessings from God, while the wicked
bring down curses upon themselves.
Conversing
with Christ: Lord Jesus, I am your
disciple. Teach me to see all things from a divine perspective and to
contemplate all things in the light of eternity. Help me to know what is
lasting and of true value and to relativize what is passing and temporal.
Monday
25th -
Ordinary Time
To Hide or Not to Hide?: “No one who lights a lamp conceals it… rather, he
places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light.”
Nevertheless, in another passage, Our Lord said, “But when you pray, go to your
inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father
who sees in secret will repay you” (Matthew 6:6). Still another passage says,
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father” (Matthew
6:1). So, do we or do we not hide our prayer and good actions from others? The
decisive issue here is our intention. We should not perform good deeds “in
order to be seen,” but rather for the love of God and neighbor. Otherwise, we run
the risk of doing something that is inherently good for the sake of vanity, for
the mere approval of others.
No comments:
Post a Comment