"will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name."(Luke. 21:17)

"will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name."(Luke.
21:17)
***************************
Usually people would go after a leader only if they are promised with some worldly benefits such as wealth and income.

But Jesus is different.

He promises His followers

sufferings,

persecution,

imprisonment,

loss of dear ones

and finally death.

"If any man has a mind to come my way, let him renounce self, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Matthew. 16:24)

"You will be given up by parents and brethren and kinsmen and friends,"

"all the world will be hating you because you bear my name;"

The path of Jesus is not a bed of roses, but of thorns.

As is the leader so must be the followers.

Jesus' whole life was a way of the cross.

His first bed after His birth was a manger, which was meant for animals .

His last death bed was a wooden cross, which was meant for culprits.

Jesus was born to suffer and die for our sins.

Only when we suffer for the same reason Jesus suffered for we resemble Him.

All His disciples were hated and persecuted by those who hated Jesus.

All His disciples

who were called by Him to continue His work of salvation

first left their dear ones at home

and then followed Him.

Many of them became martyrs in order to be faithful to Jesus.

As we are the followers of 'suffering Christ'

we  should also be 'suffering followers.'

But we don't suffer for nothing.

If we die to this world with Him, we will rise with Him into the next world.

If we lose our life in this world for Him,

we will gain eternal life in heaven. 

Our suffering in this world is temporary.

Our reward for our suffering will be eternal.

"Blessed are those

who suffer persecution in the cause of right;

the kingdom of heaven is theirs."(Matthew.5:10)

Lourdu Selvam.

"திருப்பலி, உலகின் மையம்."

"திருப்பலி, உலகின் மையம்."
********************************

உலக வரலாற்றின் மையம் உலகை பாவத்திலிருந்து மீட்கவந்த இறை மகன் இயேசு.

வேதாகமம் உலகின் ஆன்மீக வரலாறுபற்றிய செய்திகளைத் தருகிறது.

அதில் வருகிற மக்களின் லௌகீக வாழ்க்கை வரலாறும் ஆன்மீகப் பின்னணியிலேயே எழுதப்பட்டன.

  பழைய ஏற்பாட்டில்   நமது முதல் பெற்றோர், அவர்களுடைய வம்ச வழியினர், இஸ்ரயேல் மக்கள் ஆகியோர் உலகில் வாழ்ந்த வரலாற்று மக்கள்தான்.

அவர்களைப்பற்றி எழுதப்பட்வை,  உலகப் பார்வையில் அவர்களது சமூக, அரசியல் வாழ்க்கையைப்பற்றி நமக்கு விளக்குவதற்காக எழுதப்படவில்லை.

இறைவன் அவர்கள் வழியாகத் தன்னை வெளிப்படுத்தியது, 

உலக இரட்சண்யத்திற்காக அவரகளைத் தயாரித்தது  போன்ற

ஆன்மீகப் பின்னணியில்தான் அவர்களின் உண்மையான வாழ்க்கை வரலாறு தரப்பட்டிருக்கிறது.

உலக இரட்சண்ய வரலாற்றின் (Salvation history) மையம் கிறிஸ்து.

உலப்படைப்பு,
பாவம் நுழைதல்,
இரட்சகர் பற்றிய அறிவிப்பு,
இஸ்ரேல் மக்கள்
இரட்சகர் வருகைக்காகத் தயாரிக்கப்படுதல்
ஆகிய வரலாற்று நிகழ்வுகள் கிறிஸ்து பிறப்பிற்கு முந்தியவை.

அடுத்து கிறிஸ்துவின் பிறப்பு,
வாழ்க்கை, 
போதனை,
மரணம்,
உயிர்ப்பு, 
விண்ணேற்றம்.

அடுத்து கிறிஸ்துவின் நற்செய்தி  உலகென்றும் பரவியது,
மக்களின் ஆன்மீக வாழ்வு,  இன்றையவரையிலும், எதிர்காலத்திலும்.

ஆக உலக ஆன்மீக வரலாற்றின் மையம் கிறிஸ்து.

அவரது உலக வாழ்வின் இறுதியாக இருந்தாலும்,

அவரது வாழ்வின் மையம் அவரது சிலுவைப் பலி.

சிலுவையில் தன்னை

நமது பாவங்களுக்காகப் பலியாக்கும் நோக்குடனேயே அவர் வாழ்ந்ததால்

சிலுவைப்பலியே

அவரது வாழ்வின் மையம்.  

அவரது பலியினாலேயே நாம் இரட்சிக்கப்பட்டதால்  நமது வாழ்வின் மையமும்    திருப்பலிதான்.

உலகோர் அனைவருக்காகவும் இயேசு பலியானதால் உலகின் மையமும் திருப்பலிதான். 

அனைவரும் வாழ்வதும் ஆன்மீக இரட்சண்யத்துக்காகத்தான்.

இரட்சண்யத்தின் மையம் திருப்பலி.

ஆகவே உலக மக்கள் அனைவரது வாழ்வின் மையமும் திருப்பலிதான்.

அனைத்து வழிபாடுகளும் திருப்பலியையே அதாவது இயேசுவின் மரணத்தையே மையமாகக் கொண்டுள்ளன.

உலகெங்கும் வாழும் கிறிஸ்தவ மக்களை இணைப்பது திருப்பலிதான்.

உள்நாட்டில் திருப்பலியில் கலந்து கொண்டாலும்,

வெளிநாட்டில் திருப்பலியில் கலந்து கொண்டாலும்

சொந்த ஊரில் இருப்பதுபோன்ற உணர்வைத் தருவது

ஒரேமாதிரியான திருப்பலி முறைதான்.

உலகெங்கும் பலிப்பொருளும், பலி செலுத்துபவரும் கிறிஸ்துதான்.

தன்னையே தனது பிரதிநிதிகளான குருக்கள் மூலம் பலியாக்குகிறார்.

திருப்பலி நாம் செய்த பாவங்களுக்குப் பரிகாரமாக செலுத்தப்படுவதால்

பாவமன்னிப்பத் தேவைப்படுகின்ற அனைவரும்,

அதாவது

நாம் அனைவரும், திருப்பலியில் கலந்துகொள்ளவேண்டும்,

வெறும் பார்வையாளர்களாக அல்ல,

குருவுடன் இணைந்து பலியை ஒப்புக்கொடுப்பவர்களாக.

இறைவனுக்குப் பலி ஒப்புக்கொடுக்கும்
அனைவரும் செய்வதுபோல, 

இயேசுவைப் பலியாக ஒப்புக்கொடுத்தபின்,

இயேசுவையே நமது ஆன்மீக உணவாக அருந்துகிறோம்.

பலியிடப்பட்ட உணவை நாம் அருந்தும்போதுதான் பலி பூர்த்தியாகிறது.

பலிப்பொருளை தகுந்த தயாரிப்போடு உண்ணவேண்டும்.

பாவங்களுக்குப் பரிகாரமாக ஒப்புக்கொடுக்கப்படும் பலிப்பொருளை பாவநிலையோடு அருந்தக்கூடாது.

அது மற்றொரு பாவமாகிவிடும்.

ஆகவே

நல்ல பாவசங்கீத்தனம் செய்து

பாவமன்னிப்புப்
பெற்றபின்புதான்

இறைவிருந்தை அருந்தவேண்டும்.

தன் ஆன்ம நிலையைப் பரிசோதிக்காமல்,

பாவ நிலையில்

கூட்டத்தோடு கூட்டமாகத்

தின்பண்டத்தை வாங்குவதுபோல

கையில் வாங்கி

வாயில் போட்டுக்கொண்டு போவது,

குளிக்கப்போய்

சேற்றைப் பூசிக்கொள்வதற்குச் சமம்.

இயேசு பிறந்ததும், வாழ்ந்ததும் நமக்காகப் பலியாகிடவே.

நாம் பிறந்ததும், வாழ்வதும் இயேசுவுக்காக நாம் பலியாகிடவே.

திருப்பலியில் நடுப்பூசையில் இயேசு பலியிடப்படும்போது

நாம் நம்மையும் இயேசுவின் பலியோடு சேர்த்து பரம பிதாவிற்குப் பலியாக ஒப்புக்கொடுக்க வேண்டும்.

ஈர்ப்பு விசை மையத்தை நோக்கியே இருப்பதால்

நமது  வாழ்வும் திருப்பலியை நோக்கியே ஈர்க்கப்பட வேண்டும்.

திருப்பலிதான் நமது வாழ்வு.

லூர்து செல்வம்.

"she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.” (Luke 21:4)

"she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”  (Luke 21:4)
*******************************

Jesus,  noticing a poor widow putting in two small coins as offering to God,  said,

“I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest;"

The poor widow offered just "two small coins."

But Jesus says that she offered  'more than all the rest.'

How can it be more than what the rich folk's  gifts?

There are two points of view to decide the merit of anything :

quantitative point of view,

qualitative point of view.

Let us compare the merit of two donations,

one given by a millionaire

and the other given by a daily coolie.

The millionaire has donated fifty thousand rupees.

The Coolie  has donated just fifty rupees, that is, fifty percent of his one day income.

Whose donation is greater, the rich man's? or the poor man's?

From the quantitative point of view, the rich man's is greater.

But qualitatively?

The poor man's is greater,

because it is fifty percent of his income,

whereas,

the rich man's will fall very very low

if we consider its percentage of his income.

The poor man  is more generous than the rich man,

considering their donations' percentage of their  incomes.

In short,

the poor man has given more than he could,

whereas,

the rich man has given less than he could.

Now coming to the poor widow's offering,

she has offered all the money she had,

keeping nothing to herself.

This shows not only her generosity,

but also her full dependence on her Creator,

who,

she believes,

will provide her with her daily bread.

Suppose if you ask her,

"You have offered whatever you had. What will you do for tomorrow's sustenance?"

she would reply,

"My Heavenly Father knows how to take care of His child."

Jesus praises the poor widow

not merely for the sake of praising her,

but to teach us a lesson.

1. We fully belong to our Creator.

Whatever we have fully belong to Him.

2. We must dedicate whatever we have only for His glory.

3. We must have full confidence in his Providence.

If we fully accept the above words,

we will offer our Creator

whatever  we have,

just like the poor widow in the temple.

What are the main things that God has given us?

Our life,

our time,

our wealth.

We must live our whole life for God.

We must spend all our time for God.

We must spend all our wealth for God.

Looks curious?

No.

Quite normal.

Why were we created, according to our catechism?

358 "God created everything for man, but man in turn was created to serve and love God and to offer all creation back to him:"

Is it possible

to live our whole life,

spend all our time,

and

spend all our wealth for God?

It is not only possible, but also very  easy.

Very  easy?

Yes.

First we offer our life to God.

Once offered

we should not take it back,

which means,

we should not break away our relationship with God, 

which means,

we should not sin against God.

Every morning,

as soon as we get up,

we must offer the whole day to God.

That means,

whatever we do

we must do for the glory of God.

All our deeds done for the glory of God

become our prayer to God. 

"Jesus, I get up from my bed for your glory.

I brush my teeth for your glory,

take bath for your glory,

have my meals for your glory,

go to school for your glory,

study for your glory,

do my work for your glory."

The money we earn must be spent

not only for our personal welfare

but also for helping the poor and the needy.

What we do to others,  we do to God. 

We must  help to provide for the needs of our Holy Mother the Church.

In short, we must love God and live for Him.

This is what we learn from the poor widow

who "offered her whole livelihood" to God.

Lourdu Selvam.

"which of these will be her husband, since she was wife to all seven?"(Luke. 20:33)

"which of these will be her husband, since she was wife to all seven?"(Luke. 20:33)
*******************************

When Jesus went about preaching His Gospel,

ordinary people followed Him

to listen to His words and to get cured by Him.

But the elite like the Pharisees
and Sadducees

followed Him to find fault with Him

and trap Him by their questions.

The Sadducees had no belief in the resurrection of the dead. 

In order to trap Jesus with a question,

they came to Him with a story.

Seven brothers  die without having any children. 

After each one dies, the next takes the first brother’s wife as his own. 

In the end the woman also dies.

They ask Jesus,

“Now at the resurrection whose wife will that woman be?”

  They meant to trick  Jesus into inability to answer the question.

If He answered "wife to seven " it would be against His own teaching, "One man,  one wife."

If He answered, "Wife to the first husband"

they could challenge Him with another question,

"What about other husbands, accepted as per Mosaic law? "

But His answer undermined their attempt to trap Him.

Jesus answered, "The children of this world marry and are given in marriage;  .......

(But the children of the next world) will be as the angels in heaven are,

children of God,

now that the resurrection has given them birth."

According to Jesus we will  be  only  as children of God.

In heaven.

A husband will recognize his wife,

but both will be related to God as His children,

and they will be like Angels,

with no physical relationship with one another.

As we all will be united with  God in heaven,

we  will also be united with our loved ones

but that will a spiritual union.

How will be heaven?

St. Paul says,

"So we read of,

Things no eye has seen,

no ear has heard,

no human heart conceived,

the welcome God has prepared for those who love him."
(1 Corinthians 2:9-10) 

Heaven is not a physical place
that can be measured or located in any part of the universe.

After resurrection 

we will be like angels, or spiritual beings,

and so we won’t occupy any physical space.

According to St. John Paul II,

"heaven  will be a living, personal relationship with the Holy Trinity.

It is our meeting with the Father

which takes place in the risen Christ

through the communion of the Holy Spirit”

This perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity is called ‘heaven.’

St. Augustine says it

simply and beautifully with these words:

“Our hearts are restless, Lord, until they rest in you.”

Heaven is where we will rest totally and perpetually in God.

We began being one with Christ when we were baptized.

We made efforts to continue this union

by loving God and our neighbour,

by avoiding sin,

by our good works,

by our prayers

and

by receiving Our Lord Himself through Holy Communion.

This union will reach its perfect state only in heaven. 

At end of the world,

God will  gather to himself all his children

scattered throughout the world and history.

After the last judgment,

Jesus will say to us,

"Come,

you, that have received a blessing from my Father,

take possession of the kingdom

which has been prepared for you

since the foundation of the world."

We believe that we have been created only for heaven.

We hope that we will surely be there

at the end of our life in this world

with the grace of God.

Our only work in heaven will be

loving God

and

loving one another

in union with God

as His children.

Lourdu Selvam

And when he drew near, and caught sight of the city, he wept over it,(Luke 19:41)

And when he drew near, and caught sight of the city, he wept over it,(Luke 19:41)
*******************************

Jesus is fully God and fully man.

As God, He is beyond all emotional feelings, which give rise to laughter, weeping, anger etc.

But as a man he was like unto us in all respects, except sin.

As man,

He could  get angry as He  did in the temple,

when He saw people making it a market place.

Here we see Him weeping at the thought of Jerusalem and    its future destruction by the enemies.

You may ask, "Everything happens according to the eternal plan of God. Why should He weep at His own plan?"

The question may seem to be logical, in the absence of our knowledge about the facts that go to make the eternal plan.

God does not make a plan just like us, without knowing the future.

Some parents  plan their children's future without knowing the children's attitudes and aptitudes.
.
They get disappointed when they find it impossible to execute their plan in the absence of their children's cooperation.

But God plans differently.

He has gifted us with freedom of choice and action, into which He never interferes.

He knows from all eternity how we use our freedom,

according to His commandments

or ignoring them.

He takes into account all our free actions,

together with the corrective measures He intends to take to  correct us,

while drawing up the plan.

He knows from all eternity that the Israelites  would often act against His commandments

and God permits them sufferings in the form of enslavement

in order to correct them.

While planning creation,

God planned  to become man also

as He knew that man would sin against Him.

So, God draws His eternal plan, basing it on His eternal wisdom,

which knows 'our' past, present  and future.

God is beyond our time with its 'past, present  and future'
' aspects.

He cannot change

and cannot have emotional activities such as getting angry,  weeping etc.

But as a man, Jesus was moved to tears at the thought of its future destruction.

Suppose a child has to undergo a major operation for getting cured,

doesn't its mother  weep

being unable to see her child in a painful situation?

Of course it is she who has arranged for the operation for the good of the child.

Like this mother,  God is a loving Father who plans only for the welfare of His loving children.

When the human race begins to move in a wrong direction,

using its freedom of choice and action,

He has to arrange for some  operation like situations

as corrective measures

to turn  it towards the right direction.

Many people fail to take natural events,

which they call natural calamities,

in the correct sense.

A good teacher makes use of his cane

when the student fails to study well.

What he takes with his cane is not a punitive measure,

but corrective measure.

The student must correct himself

when he is caned

instead of blaming the teacher.

The human beings should correct themselves,

learning a lesson

from what they call natural calamities,

but which are in fact  well intentioned corrective measures. 

What lesson should we learn from (what we call) natural disasters?

1. Left to ourselves we are like 'with no air inside balloons', powerless and useless!

2. We must realize

that our Creator is our strength

and return to Him

feeling sorry for our sinful activities,

to become free from which

God permits such natural events.

3. We must realize that whatever worldly is temporary and perishable,

but whatever spiritual is permanent and everlasting.

We must return to our spiritual life, for which alone we have been created.

4. As God is the primary cause of whatever happens in this world,

we must pray to Him to keep us safe within His embrace.

5. We must realize that whatever happens is for our spiritual good and so we must always  be thankful to Him.

6.We must realize that we have been created for everlasting life and this world will one day pass away.

Jesus' weeping over Jerusalem shows that God is our loving Father.

I still remember my mother's tearful eyes, looking at me when I was suffering from ordinary fever.

Mother's tears  at our sufferings express her love for us.

So were Jesus' tears.

Lourdu Selvam.

“Son of David, have pity on me!” (Luke 18:39)

“Son of David, have pity on me!”  (Luke 18:39)
*********************************-***

We can learn useful things for our life from anybody, even from a blind beggar.

What is important is the lesson learnt,

not the status of the person from whom we learn it.

When Jesus was nearing Jericho,  a blind man was sitting  by the way-side begging.

His eyes were blind, but, ears keen.

Hearing the sound made by the multitude following Jesus, he enquired and learnt that Jesus was passing by.

At once, he started to cry, “Son of David, have pity on me!” 

He refused to be silenced by anybody.

Hearing his cry, Jesus ordered to bring him before Him.

Jesus asked him what he wanted Him to do for him.

He replied, "give me back my sight."

Jesus cured him.

With full eye sight, he followed Jesus, glorifying God.

What do we learn from the blind man, except that he was miraculously cured by Jesus?

As soon as he came to know that Jesus was 'going past' he cried out,

" Son of David, have pity on me!” 

He did not call Him by His name 'Jesus' .

He called Him,  "Son of David",

which means that he knew Him to be the expected Messiah,

who was to  be of the lineage of David.

A blind beggar knowing a very important Biblical truth!

A mini meditation for just a fraction of a second will drive us into the Holy Bible!

The very first prayer he said to Jesus was, "have pity on me.", a prayer very pleasing to Jesus.

Jesus appreciated the publican's prayer,

"God, be merciful to me;

I am a sinner."

 According to Jesus, "this man went back home higher in God’s favour than the other; "

One liner prayers like,

"Have pity on me."

"Have mercy on me."

are more powerful than long prayers,

for reasons

Jesus likes humility and prayers that are inspired by humility,

concentration on what we pray is very easy,

sometimes they serve as emergency calls.

Suppose we meet with unexpected dangerous situations, we will cry out without a pre-thought

"Jesus ...Jesus!"

"Jesus! Have mercy on me."

"Lord ....save me."

Such one liners will come from the depth of our hearts.

One liners can be said at any time, they take just one second.

"Jesus, I love you."

"Solve this problem, Jesus."

"Bless my meals, Jesus."

"Thank you, Jesus, for being with me."

"I love my Mom, bless her please, Jesus."

"I am going to school, please come with me, Jesus."

"You have given me my wife, help me to keep her happy, please! "

"I don't know what to do, please help me, Jesus."

One liners will be helpful at any situation of life.

Another lesson we have to learn from the blind beggar  is perseverance.

If our first prayer doesn't seem to be heard, we should not give up, but continue to pray till we are heard.

The blind man could not be silenced by others.

We should not be discouraged even if others discourage us.

Perseverance in prayer will bring about positive results.

  When  Jesus asked him what he wanted Him to do for him,

he replied, "give me back my sight."

Just note his request.

It doesn't seem to be request at all.

It looks like a demand of a son.

Suppose you had taken away from your son his bag  for some reason.

He comes to you and ask,

"Dad, give me back my bag."

Doesn't it seem to be a filial demand,

a rightful request, 

only a son can make?

The blind man's request seems to me like this :

"Jesus, you are my God.

You have every right over me.

You can give me anything, and take it away if you please.

You gave me eyesight at my birth.

You took it away from me, I don't know why.

Now I want it back.

give me back my sight."

It seems to be filial demand or request, which only a loving son can make.

Jesus accepted the demand.

 Jesus said to him,

"Receive thy sight; thy faith has brought thee recovery."

After getting cured, the man  glorified God and followed Jesus.

We must learn this important lesson from the (no more) blind man.

We must glorify God for all the helps we receive from Him.

We must follow Jesus all our life, because He is our life.

Many a times we are spiritually blind.

We are unable to see the  spiritual values of things and events.

Suppose we fail in any of our efforts.

We are mentally upset at the failure, without being able to recognize its spiritual value.

Success or failure,

everything happens as per God's eternal plan,

as such we must accept whatever happens in our life

with a thankful heart.

We must request our heavenly Father to cure us of our spiritual blindness.

We must see things in the light of our Faith.

Lourdu Selvam.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Mark 13:31)

Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Mark 13:31)
************************************
We are living in a passing world. 

It had a beginning and will have an end.

Moreover, earthly wealth and possessions will offer only  a temporary satisfaction to our lives.

   They can  never give us  a permanent satisfaction. 

Our life in this world is temporary.

The world also is temporary.

How can a temporary thing give another temporary thing permanent satisfaction?

A time will come when  all the things of this world will  disappear. 

So, if we work to build up only earthly wealth and possessions,

all those things will eventually pass away and we would be left with nothing.

Unlike the world,  God, its Creator, is eternal.

So the words of God too are eternal.

Our soul was created to live for ever,

unlike our body,

which is temporary and will return to earth, when we die.

God's words,

revealing Himself,

are meant for our soul,

to believe and live by.

By embracing His Word,

clinging to it,

entering into it,

believing it

and letting it change us,

we are embracing the eternal. 

Jesus says that His “words will not pass away.”

Whatever He said will come true, with eternal effects.

We must hold on to His words as they have eternal value.

"Jesus said to him, If thou hast a mind to be perfect, go home and sell all that belongs to thee; give it to the poor, and so the treasure thou hast shall be in heaven."
(Matthew. 19:21)

Jesus says

that

if we give all our belongings to the poor,

our  treasure  shall be in heaven.

Jesus' words are true.

Our worldly wealth is perishable.

But if we give the perishable wealth to the poor,

God will reward us with eternal treasure in heaven.

By forgoing perishable wealth,
we gain eternal wealth!

Our earthly earnings and possessions will pass away one day,

they won't come with us when we leave this world to enter eternity.

But Jesus shows us a way how we can gain eternal treasures with the help of  our perishable possessions.

Very simple.

Give them to the poor and the needy for the glory of God.

We will get  eternal treasure in heaven which we can enjoy for all eternity.

We can abide by the words of Jesus, because they will never pass sway.

They will sustain us for all eternity.

"And my counsel to you is,

make use of your base wealth

to win yourselves friends,

who,

when you leave it behind,

will welcome you into eternal habitations."(Luke.16:9)

Lourdu Selvam.

“Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it.” (Luke 17:33)

“Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it.” (Luke 17:33)
********************************

We cannot gain without losing.

An analogy.

Suppose a man has a large amount of money and he wants to have it doubled.

What should he do?

He must lose it first,

that is,

he must allow it to go off his hands first.

In other words, he must invest it in some business.

Investment means temporary loss for a permanent gain.

When we invest the amount we allow it to go off from our hands to return with  returns!

Suppose we keep the amount safe without investing it, that is, without losing it, the money will cease to be currency, but will become mere useless pieces of paper.

Loss and gain of life.

Our life in this world has two aspects, spiritual  and temporal.

It is because of our having a soul and a body.

The spiritual aspect is permanent,

to be continued into eternity

even after our life on this world comes to an end at death.

But the temporal aspect will not continue into eternity.

It will follow the body into the earth to get decomposed with it.

So, the life of our soul is our real life, as it has been created  to live for ever.

We must be ready to lose our temporal life in order to gain our spiritual life.

While living in this world

we must be ready to give up our material comforts

for the  sake of our spiritual welfare.

Voluntary loss of temporal comforts is an investment which will yield abundant spiritual returns.

That is why we give  importance to  acts like   fasting and penance, which hurt the body, but nourish our soul.

It we give up just one cup of coffee for Jesus,

thousand cups of bliss will be ready for us in  heaven!

Martyrs give up their life for Jesus, gaining at the same time eternal life.

By losing their material life

they save  their spiritual life.

When we give importance to material comforts we live our life for ourselves,

When we give importance to spiritual life, we live for Christ.

By calling us to “lose” our life,

Jesus is telling us that we must abandon ourselves to Him. 

We must allow Him to be  our spiritual  director and guide to enable us to live according to
His most holy will. 

This is the only way to save our life.

  We save it by letting go of our own will and letting God take over.

Let us be lost in Jesus, never to get out of Him.

By losing ourselves in Him, let us be united with Him, never to be separated.

By  losing our material wealth in helping the poor for the glory of God,

we invest the same in heaven to give us abundant and eternal  spiritual returns.

In short,

lose materially,

gain spiritually.

Let us get lost in Christ,

we will be safe eternally.

Lourdu Selvam.

And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. (Luke 17:15-16)

And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. 
(Luke 17:15-16)
**************************
Ten lepers cried to Jesus, on His way to Jerusalem,

"Jesus, Master, have pity on us."

Jesus said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests; "

Having faith in Jesus, they obeyed.

On their way to the priests they were cured.

Of the ten, one, a Samaritan returned to Jesus to thank Him for having cured him.

The rest went on their way to the priests

as having been asked

without any feeling of gratitude to Jesus

who had cured them.

The Samaritan expressed his gratitude  in a very passionate way.

First, he “returned, glorifying God in a loud voice.” 

  He  praised and worshipped God

Then he “fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked Him.” 

First he praised God for having cured him.

  He glorified   God out of sincere and deep gratitude.

He knew that  it was Jesus who had cured him.

It means he accepted Jesus as God.

By falling at the feet of Jesus, he sincerely accepted his own humility,

a feeling which comes when we accept our utter nothingness before God who is our everything. 

We must learn a lesson from the Samaritan's act.

Profound and humble gratitude must always be our sincere  response to the goodness of God.

How about us?

  How deep is our gratitude toward God? 

Are we fully aware of all that God does for us every day? 

If not,

let us  imitate this leper.

We will discover the same joy that he discovered.

Lourdu Selvam

When you have done all you have been commanded, say, “We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.” (Luke 17:10)

When you have done all you have been commanded, say, “We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.”  (Luke 17:10)
**************************************

God is love.

He created us in His image by sharing His attributes with us.

We are like Him because of our love, which is His gift to us.

Love is always active, doing something for the person loved.

It is because of the Providence of God,

which is love in action,

that we continue to live with whatever is needed for our life.

As we have been created in the image of God,

our love too must be active like God's.

God's love in action is called 'Providence'.

Our love in action is called 'service'.

That is why we say that we have been created to love and serve God and our neighbour.

Love and service go together.

'Love God'

and

'Love your neighbours'

are two commandments of God

and as such we are duty bound to love and serve.

By the words quoted at the top,

Jesus makes it clear

that our Christian service to others,

be it in the family or in some other context,

must be primarily motivated by a certain duty of service. 

We must serve out of love.

There may be times when our service may not be acknowledged with gratitude by the persons whom we have served.

It is common experience that many children fail to be grateful to their parents in their old age.

If the parents point out to the  love and care with which they brought  them up,

the children simply answer,

"That is your duty. Even pigs take care of their piglings."

At such times parents must remember our Lord's words,

"We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.” 

and be satisfied with our 'well- done- duty'.

God will reward our service.

In fact it is for Him, for His glory that we serve others.

  Whether others   express gratitude for our work or not,

  we  should not  change our commitment to service.

We must serve and fulfill our Christian duty

simply because it is the right thing to do

and because it is what God wants of us.

But we must be grateful to God for His kind providence

and to others for the service done to us,  however small it may be.

"Jesus,

help me to serve my neighbours freely and wholeheartedly

out of love for You and others. 

Help me to offer  my service

regardless of the reaction of others

and to find satisfaction in this act of love alone. 

Jesus,

whatever I do,

I do for you alone.

Help me also to be grateful to you for your kind Providence for me

and to others for their service for me.

Amen."

Lourdu Selvam. 

Let us forgive and be forgiven.

Forgive and be forgiven.
**************************

When we make anything, we make it with a purpose.

Vehicles are manufactured for the purpose of traveling in them.

Food is cooked for the purpose of eating.

Houses are built for the purpose of living in.

When the produced things lose their ability to serve the purpose for which they were produced , they become trash.

God created us with a purpose.

The only purpose for which we were created is ‘to love.’

That is why, God has given us two sweet commandments:

1. Love me.
  2.  Love your your neighbours  as you love yourself.

To love ourselves doesn’t need a commandment, it is taken for granted.

One who loves automatically serves the person whom he loves.

Another thing that automatically follows love is forgiveness.

When our first parents broke God’s commandment, He immediately promised to send them a redeemer to amend for their sin.

His love for us is so great that He sent His only Son to amend for our sins by sacrificing Himself on the Cross.

He forgives our sins the moment we feel sorry for them.
Just as He forgives us, He expects us to forgive our neighbours.

Unless we forgive our neighbours we have no right to ask God to forgive us.

God’s love is real, so He is ready to forgive us how many so ever times we sin against Him.

If we are not ready to forgive our neighbours, it only means that our love for them is not real.

Unreal love is no love.

A man with no love is equal to a car with no engine, both are useless.

Before asking God to forgive our sin, we must make an examination of conscience to see whether we have forgiven those who have trespassed against us.

If we have forgiven ,we can proceed to ask God to forgive our sins.

If we have not ,we must feel sorry for our failure and forgive them first and then we must request God to forgive our sins.

Jesus Himself has asked us to pray to our Heavenly Father,

“Father, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us.”        

To err is human,

but , to forgive is divine.

God is love.

Love loves us so that we may also love.

From love proceeds mercy and forgiveness.

From mercy proceed service and good works.

From forgiveness proceeds peace.

If we accept God who resides in our heart ,

which is the seat of love,

we will also love and be merciful.

Just as God forgives us, let us forgive our neighbours.

Let us love.

Let us forgive and be forgiven.

Lourdu Selvam.

"உம்முடைய சித்தம் பரலோகத்தில் செய்யப்படுவதுபோல, பூலோகத்திலும் செய்யப்படுவதாக."

"உம்முடைய சித்தம் பரலோகத்தில் செய்யப்படுவதுபோல, பூலோகத்திலும் செய்யப்படுவதாக."

*************************************

நமது விண்ணகத் தந்தையை நோக்கி நாம் தினமும் அடிக்கடி வேண்டும் செபம் இது.

'அவனன்றி அணுவும் அசையாது.
எல்லாம் இறைவன் சித்தப்படிதான் நடக்கும்' என்று நமக்குத் தெரிந்திருந்தும்

நாம் ஏன் எல்லாம் நமது சொற்படி நடப்பதுபோல

"உம்முடைய சித்தம்......... செய்யப்படுவதாக"

என்று வேண்டுகிறோம்?

நூற்றுக்கு நூறு உண்மை,

நாம் கேட்டாலும், கேட்காவிட்டாலும்

இறைவன் சித்தப்படிதான் எல்லாம் நடக்கும்.

தனது மட்டற்ற அன்பின் காரணமாக நம்மைக் கேட்காமல்தான் நம்மைப் படைத்தார்.

நாம்கூட நமது பிள்ளைகளைக் கேட்டு அவர்களது அனுமதியுடனா அவர்களைப் பெற்றோம்?

நம்மைப் படைக்க வேண்டுமென்பது அவரது நித்தியத் திட்டம்,

அவராகவே யாருடைய ஆலோசனையுமின்றி,

(அவருக்கு ஆலோசனை கொடுக்க அவரைத்தவிர வேறுயாரும் நித்திய காலமாக இல்லை.)

நித்திய காலமாக வகுத்தத் திட்டம்.

தன் மாறாத திட்டத்தின்படி செயல்படுபவரை நமது செபத்தின்மூலம் எப்படி மாற்ற முடியும்?

அவர் மாறாதவர், தன் சித்தப்படியே செயல்படுபவர்.

ஒரு சின்ன உதாரணம்.

ஒரு தகப்பனுக்கு ஐந்து பிள்ளைகள் இருப்பதாக வைத்துக்கொள்வோம்.

அவன் அவர்களை அழைத்து,"உங்களுடைய எதிர் கால ஆசைகளை வெளிப்படையாகக் கூறுங்கள். அவற்றை நிறைவேற்றுவதற்கான திட்டங்களை முன்கூட்டியே வகுக்கவேண்டும்." என்று கூறுகிறான். அவர்களும் கூறுகிறார்கள். அவர்களது விருப்பத்தின் அடிப்படையில் திட்டங்களை வகுத்து திட்டப்படி செயல்படுத்துகிறான்.

இப்போது இறைத்திட்டத்திற்கு வருவோம்.

இறைவன் நம்மைப் படைக்கும்போது முழுச்சுதந்திரத்தோடு படைத்தார்.

நாம் செய்யவேண்டிய காரியங்களைத் தீர்மானித்துச் செயல்பட முழுச் சுதந்திரத்தைக் கொடுத்தார்.

God has given us full freedom of choice and action.

நமது சுதந்திரதில் அவர் தலையிடுவதில்லை.

நம்மை அவருக்காகவே

(அவரை அன்பு செய்யவும் அவரது கட்டளைப்படி நடந்து அவருக்குப்  பணி புரியவும்)

படைத்தார்.

ஆனால் அவரை ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளவோ, ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளாதிருக்கவோ நமக்கு முழு உரிமை உண்டு.

ஏற்றுக்கொண்டால் பரிசு, ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளாவிட்டால் பரிசு இல்லை.

அவர் சர்வ வல்லவராகையால் நமக்கு வேண்டியதை அவரிடம் கேட்க முழு உரிமை உண்டு.

இறைவன் நித்திய காலமாக திட்டம் வகுக்கும்போது

நாம் நமது சுதந்திரத்தைப் பயன்படுத்தும் முறையையும்,

நாம் செய்யும் செபங்களையும்  கணக்கில் எடுத்துக்கொள்கிறார்.

ஆகவே அவரது நித்திய திட்டத்தில் நமக்கும் ஒரு பங்கு உண்டு.

இறைவன் தன் அளவில்லாத ஞானத்தால் முக்காலத்தையும் அறிகிறார்.

நமக்குதான் இறந்த காலம், நிகழ் காலம், எதிர் காலம் என்று முக்காலங்கள் உண்டு.

நமது காலங்களுக்கு அப்பாற்பட்ட அவருக்கு நித்திய காலம் மட்டும்தான்.

நித்திய காலமாகவே அவருக்கு சகலமும்

(நமது சுதந்திர செயல்பாடுகள், நமது வேண்டுதல்கள் போன்றவை)

தெரியுமாகையால்

அந்த ஞானத்தின் அடிப்படையில் நித்திய திட்டம் (Eternal plan) வகுக்கப்பட்டு செயல்படுத்ப்படுகிறது.

ஆதாம், ஏவாளைப் படைக்க
இறைவன் நித்திய திட்டமிட்டபோதே

அவர்கள் தங்கள் சுதந்திரத்தைத் தவறாகப் பயன்படுத்திப்

பாவம் செய்வார்கள் என்று இறைவனுக்குத் தெரியும்.

ஆகவே பாவத்திலிருந்து மனிதனை மீட்பதற்கான திட்டமும் நித்திய காலமாகத் தீட்டப்பட்டது.

நாம் இறைவனிடம் வேண்டுவது நித்திய காலமாக இறைவனுக்குத் தெரியும்.

அதற்கான பதிலும் நித்திய காலமாகத் தீட்டப்பட்டிருக்கும்.

நாம் இப்போது வேண்டாவிட்டால் நித்திய திட்டத்தில் அது இடம் பெற்றிருக்காது.

ஆகவே நாம் இறைவனிடம் வேண்டவேண்டும்.

நமது வேண்டுதலுக்காக நித்தியமாக இறைவனிடம் தயாராக இருக்கும் பதில் உரிய நேரத்தில் நமக்குக் கிடைக்கும்.

நமக்காக வேண்டுவது சரி, இறைவனது சித்தம் நிறைவேற ஏன் வேண்டுகிறோம்?

நமது வேண்டுதல் இன்றி அவரது சித்தம் நிறைவேறாதா?

நிறைவேறும்.

ஆனாலும் இவ்வாறு வேண்டும்போது

இறைவனது சித்தத்தை நாம் ஏற்றுக்கொள்வதாக அறிவித்து,

அதற்கான அருள்வரத்தை வேண்டுகீறோம். 

"தந்தையே! விண்ணகவாசிகள் உமது சித்தத்தை ஏற்றுக்கொள்கிறார்கள்.

பாவிகளாகிய நாங்களும் உமது சித்தத்தை ஏற்று அதன்படி நடக்க ஆசிக்கிறோம்.

அந்த ஆசை நிறைவேற உமது அருள்வரம் வேண்டி மன்றாடுகிறோம்."

ஆசைப்பட்டால்மட்டும் போதாது, அதன்படி நடப்போமாக!

இறைவன் சித்தம், நமது பாக்கியம்.

லூர்து செல்வம்.

Let us live for God and gain gain Him as our Eternal Reward."

"Let us live for God and gain gain Him as our Eternal Reward."
*******--***********--************

We were nothing before we were created.

At creation we were something.

It is God's desire that we become everything,

that lasts  for ever and ever.

To give an analogy, we were not born matured grown-ups as we  are now.

We were born only as small babies, unable even to lift our heads.

Our growth was slow, but steady as we were  taken care of our loving parents.

The same thing is with our spiritual life.

God created us body and soul.

Here we are concerned about our souls alone.

By 'At creation we were something',

I mean to say that we had a very humble beginning.

So I can say spiritual life starts with humility.

The child knows how far it is able.

Dependence,

with the full knowledge of inability to stand by oneself,

is essential for humility.

In our spiritual life

we must first realize

that we are nothing by ourselves

and we are cent per cent dependent on God

for our existence and growth.

Our dependence on God springs forth from the truth

that we have been created for God and God alone.

God is our life's starting point
and finishing point.

At the starting point we are we,

at the finishing point,

we become one with God.

God is an independent and Almighty being.

We cannot fly.

If we  get into an aeroplane, we can fly.

We are weak.

When we depend on God we become strong. 

By ourselves we are nothing, with God we are everything.

To become everything with God

we must first realize and accept

that we are nothing without God, and everything with Him,

and believe that when we unite ourselves with Him,

He shares His attributes with us.

"One who humbles himself before Him  will be raised up by Him.''

But if people  begin to feel proud of themselves

without realizing that they  are created beings,

depending on their  Creator for their  existence and growth,

their spiritual life will be a zero,

not meriting anything

for which they have been created.

If they ,

forgetting that they  are creatures,

begin their life independent of God,

they  will be self centred people,

living for their  own selves,

forgetting the fact

that  they themselves  don't belong to them.

Such people  will try to become big people by themselves,

not believing in or ignoring God,

and their  aim of life will be different from the one

for which they  have been created for.

Worldly wealth,

self glory,

pleasure,

and such related things will be their aim of life.

As they neither love nor live for God,

they do not seek Him for any help.

Life's starting point of such people is self reliance.

Finishing point will be

loss of eternal reward.

Let us live for God and gain gain Him as our Eternal Reward.

Lourdu Selvam.

Hi! Satan!

Hi! Satan!
********----***************--*****

Hi! Satan, my friend!

Surprised at my calling you a friend?

No, you won't be surprised.

You know the truth.

Though with no love, you have helped me many a times to near God.

One who helps us can be called a friend, I think.

First, though you played a major role in the fall of our race,

you compensated it by playing an equally major role in our rise!

My spiritual Father has advised me to look even at negative elements positively.

The positive good in the negative fall is an opportunity to rise!

  How did you  play a  major role in our rise!

You have enabled us to be saved from sin

by being helpful in the process of crucifixion

whereby  Our Lord  sacrificed Himself

for the  amendment of our sins!

Can we forget your inducing the Jewish elders, the scribes and the Pharisees

to plot for and execute the Crucifixion of Our Lord?

You found your way into the heart of Judas,

one of the twelve

and made him betray Jesus to the plotters.

So you played a major role in our salvation history.

Even now you are busy helping us.

Every time you tempt us to do a sin, we turn to Jesus for help.

It is our nature to turn to God only when we are in difficulties.

You are creating innumerable situations for us to turn to God.

As many temptations,

so many additional opportunities

to pray to God

to give us the strength to overcome them.

Only weak students seek their teacher most.

Only the ill see their doctor often.

Only the most tempted will need God's grace abundantly.

Your temptations have the positive effect of our seeking God for the grace needed to overcome them.

You are always tempting us means we are always with God.

How nice of you!

When we are  sure  that there are spiritual enemies around us, 

do you think  that we  will leave our souls unprotected?

What do you think that Jesus has instituted seven sacraments for?

Just for fun or merely for celebrations?

No, for our souls' protection from your attacks.

As Long as we are under the protection of sacraments,

especially confession and Eucharist,

any number of Satans cannot touch us. 

You have mentioned in your letter that you have decided upon a new strategy.

No strategy will work, because  our church is build  on a rock.

"And I tell thee this in my turn,

that thou art Peter, and it is upon this rock that I will build my church;

and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; "

Mind you, these are the words of Jesus.

If you continue your labour even after reading these lines,

there cannot be a greater fool than you anywhere!

Your statement that nowadays you are spending more time
in churches trying to damage the spirituality of the church goers is true to a certain extent.

I accept my inability to advise anybody in this respect

because people,

even big people,

argue

that dress is a personal affair

into which no outsider is permitted to enter.

They forget than anything that affects the public is a public affair.

I know that it is to cover up their modernism,

which is your product.

But God permits evil when there is some greater good can be drawn out of it.

What is that good, I don't know.

But don't be overjoyed on your success, it will backfire on you one-day.

How?  God alone knows.

That Jesus came in search of sinners is true, because we are all sinners.

Sin is your work on us,

But it is to make them holy,  thereby defeat your efforts.

When you say that you have come in search of holy people,

I know that you have some mischievous idea at the back of your head.

But Jesus is always with us and His Providence will make all your efforts fruitless.

In fact,  I sympathise with you you.

Poor Satan, wasting energy for nothing.

Bye!

Lourdu Selvam.

A furious letter from Satan.

A furious letter from Satan.
*****************************
Mister  Lourdu Selvam,

I have addressed you 'Mister, not out of respect for you,

of which you are not in the least worthy,

but with offensive emphasis.

You have offended me  in your last article

by saying that my  plan for putting an end to the Kingdom of God backfired on me.

I am in the least worried about it.

I was once a servant to my Creator,

but I am now the  king of hell.

I am more  proud of being the king of hell,

than being  a servant in heaven.

You think that I would be ashamed of my being  backfired.

Not in the least.

That is my life.

The first backfiring occurred before you people were created.

Do you know why I rebelled against God?

Once I was the Commander-in-Chief of the celestial forces.

Millions of angel forces were at my command.

I was very proud of my position.

Something happened that wounded my pride.

We were informed that God was going to create man, lower in status when compared with Angels.

We were also told that The Second Person of The Holy Trinity had planned to become a man, by being born of a Virgin.

This infuriated me, because l would have to adore a man, who is also God.

Adoring God is alright,  but,  adoring man?

The Incarnation  forced me to lower myself,

first,  before a woman who would be the Mother of God-made-man

and, additionally, in front of her offspring.

I considered that  mission would be too humiliating for me and did not want to do it. 

That was why I gave my cry of rebellion,

“I WILL NOT SERVE,”

and together with me, many other angels refused to continue to serve God and His plan of love. 

We separated ourselves  from the light,

and immediately, without any possibility of going back,

we  became darkness

because of our pride, selfishness and disobedience. 

By opting for darkness we were thrown out of Heaven and out of the light.  

If I had not rebelled,  I would not have become Satan.

My plan to rebel against God backfired on me, making me eternally damned.

But I am in the least ashamed of it,

because I am a king now

and commander- in- chief of the infernal forces.

I tried my level best to erase Christ's Church from the face of the earth

by killing Christians and shedding their blood with the help the rulers of the nations,

but this too backfired on me

making my efforts having contrary effects.

The number of Christians went on increasing,

as from every drop of blood shed rose a Christian.

Now,  I have decided upon a different strategy.

I have decided to feign like an angel  and accompany pious people inspiring them
'good -looking' ideas which will have opposite effects.

For instance,  I will inspire them to celebrate feasts of saints  in a very grand manner collecting monetary contributions.

In the course of celebrations I will make them fall a prey to Self glory,  pomp, desire for money and related evils.

There will be everything except piety.

Just as sumptuous food is eaten for its taste, not for nutrition,

feasts will be celebrated for enjoyment, not for piety.

Such people may be Christians in name, really they are mine.

Mind you, this strategy will not backfire.

Mister Lourdu Selvam, nowadays I spend more time in churches than in hell.

Just notice,

People who come to the church indecently dressed are my people.

Those who receive Holy Communion without proper preparation are mine.

Those who stand outside the Church chatting during Mass are mine.

Those who never go for confession are mine.

They may not be fully mine now, but I will slowly draw them towards me.

I finish with three  lines.

Jesus came to the world in search of sinners.

I have come in search of holy people.

The war is in progress.

Satan.

My reply is under way.

Lourdu Selvam.