How is God everywhere?

How is God everywhere?
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God is omnipresent.

God is everywhere

"Where can I go from your spirit?

From your presence, where can I flee?

If I ascend to the heavens, you are there;

if I lie down in Sheol, there you are.

If I take the wings of dawn
and dwell beyond the sea."(Psalm.139:7-9)

God is everywhere by His attributes.

He is absolutely transcendent.

That is, He is  beyond  the range of normal or physical human experience.

God is beyond time and space.

Our time is chronological and can be measured in terms of seconds, minutes, hours, days, months and years.

But God is beyond our time and is eternal.

Eternity cannot be measured, it has no beginning and no end.

God is a Spirit and cannot occupy space and hence He is beyond space.

Only matter can occupy space; God created matter, but He is a spirit, not matter.

Time and space are concepts, applicable only to created things, not to their Creator.

He is permanently pervading and sustaining the universe.

God does not have His attributes, He is His attributes.

He does not have justice and mercy, as if these were things He could acquire or lose.

He is justice.

He is mercy.

He is greatness.

We have love, but, God does not have love,

He is love.

He is His thoughts.

Actually God does not think in the way we do.

He does not ruminate.

As His thought is complete we refer it to as the Word.

God is His Word

The Word is God ( John 1:1 ).

He is  goodness.

He is omnipotence.

He is omniscient.

Jesus did not say, "I will show you the way.''

He said,

"I am the way;

I am truth

and

life; "

He is the light of the world.

As He is everywhere, all things are in Him as He is in them.

God’s whole being is everywhere.

We witness Jesus' wholeness in Eucharist.

Each and every consecrated Host is Jesus' whole being.

We can break the Host into pieces, but we cannot break Jesus.

Jesus is fully present in each and every piece of the Host.

In the same way, God is wholly present everywhere by His attributes

truth,

goodness,

justice

mercy,

wisdom,

Power,

and

love.

Lourdu Selvam.

உண்மையான மனித நேயம்.

உண்மையான  மனித நேயம்.
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நண்பகல் 12 மணி.

எதிர் எதிர்த் திசையில் ஓடிக்கொண்டிருந்த நாற்சக்கர வாகனம் ஒன்றும், இருசக்கர வாகனம் ஒன்றும் ஒன்றோடொன்று மோதிக்கொண்டன.

இருசக்கர வாகனத்தைத் தள்ளிப்போட்டு விட்டு   நாற்சக்கர வாகனம் ஓடிப்போய்விட்டது.

இருசக்கர வாகனம் தான்மட்டும் விழவில்லை; தன்னை ஓட்டி வந்தவனோடு சேர்ந்தே விழுந்தது.

விழுந்தவன் தன் இரத்தத்தையே குளமாக்கி அதில் மிதந்து கொண்டிருந்தான்.

அவனைக் கடந்து நடந்து சென்றவர்களுள் பலர் ஆளுக்கொரு 'ஐயோ பாவத்தை' அவன்மீது போட்டுவிட்டு போய்க்கொண்டேயிருந்தார்கள்.

கடைசியில் வந்தவன் வெறும்
'ஐயோ பாவத்தோடு' நிற்காமல் அவனே நின்று, அவன் மீது இரங்கி, அவனைத் தூக்கி மருத்துவ மனைக்கு கொண்டுசென்று, தன் இரத்தத்தையே கொடுத்து வைத்தியம் செய்தான்.

வைத்திய மனையில் அவரைச் சந்தித்த ஒருவர்:

"நல்ல காரியம் செய்தீர்கள். இவர் உங்களுக்கு உறவினரா?"

"ஆம்."

"என்ன உறவு?"

"மனிதன். நான் ஒரு மனிதன், அவரும் ஒரு மனிதன். உதவி செய்ய என்னைத் தூண்டியது மனித நேயம்."

"வேறு உறவு ஏதும் இல்லை?"

"நீ என்ன பதிலை எதிர்பார்க்கிறீர்கள்?"

"சரி. கொஞ்சம் மாற்றிக் கேட்கிறேன். உங்கள் வீட்டில் உங்கள் தம்பியோடு என்ன உறவு?"

"கேள்வி வேடிக்கையாகயில்லை? தம்பி உறவு."

"அதைவிட ஆழமாக."

"உடன் பிறந்த உறவு."

"உடன் பிறந்த உறவுக்கும், மனித உறவுக்கும் என்ன வேறுபாடு? ''

"தம்பி,  கேள்வி மேல் கேள்வி கேட்பதை விட்டு விட்டு சொல்ல வந்ததைச் சொல்லுங்கள்."

"என்னைத் தம்பி என்றீர்களே, எப்படி? "

"நானும் மனிதன், நீங்களும் மனிதன்."

"அதாவது எல்லா மனிதர்களும் ஒரே குடும்பம். சரியா?"

"சரி, அதுக்கு என்ன இப்போ?"

"நாம் எல்லோரும் ஒரே குடும்பம்னா நாம் எல்லோரும் ஒரே அப்பா, அம்மாவின் வாரிசுகளாகத்தானே இருக்கணும்."

"அதுக்கு என்ன இப்போ?"

"நமம முதல் பெற்றோர் எப்படி வந்தாங்க?"

"ஹலோ! போதும்.  நீங்க எங்க வரீங்கென்னு புரியுது."

இப்படித்தான் அநேகரருக்கு உண்மை பக்கம் வர பயமாயிருக்கு.

மனிதநேயம் பற்றி  பேசுபவர்கள் அதற்கு ஆதாரமான இறை நேயத்தை மறந்து விடக்கூடாது. 

உண்மையில் இறை நேயம் இல்லாத இடத்தில் உண்மையான மனித நேயம் இருக்க முடியாது.

நமது வாழ்வுக்கு ஆதாரமான இறைவனை நேசிக்க வேண்டும்.

இறைவன் நமது தந்தை.

மனிதர் நமது தந்தையால் படைக்கப்பட்டதால் நமது சகோதரர்கள்.

அவர்கள்மீது நாம் கொண்டுள்ள நேயம் வெறும் மனித நேயமல்ல, சகோதர பாசம்.

வெறும் மனித நேயத்தைவிட சகோதர பாசம் மேலானது.

ஏனெனில் அது நம் மீது அளவற்ற பாசம் கொண்ட இறைவனின் பாசத்தோடு கலந்தது. 

இறைவனுக்காக மற்றவர்களை நேசிக்கும்போது இறைவனையே நேசிக்கிறோம்.

இறையன்பும் பிறர் அன்பும் இணையும்போதுதான் அன்பு முழுமை பெறுகிறது.

இந்த முழுமையான
அன்பின் அடிப்படையில் நாம் செய்யும் பிறரன்புப் பணிகளே இறைவனுக்கு ஏற்றவை.

இறையன்பு இணையாத மனிதநேயப்பணிகள் இறைவன் முன் பயனற்றவை.

இறைவனை நேசிப்போம்.

அவர் பெயரார் பிறர் பணி செய்வோம்.

லூர்து செல்வம்.

கடவுளைக் கண்களால் பார்க்க முடியும்.

கடவுளைக் கண்களால் பார்க்க முடியும்.
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மூவொரு இறைவனை நமது ஊனக்கண்களால் பார்க்க முடியுமா?

முடியும்.

நமது விசுவாசக் கண்களின் துணை இருந்தால் நமது ஊனக்கண்களாலும் இறைவனைக் காண முடீயும்.

எப்படி?

இயேசு  தந்தையுள் இருக்கிறார்; தந்தை இயேசுவுக்குள் இருக்கிறார்.

இதை இயேசுவே கூறியுள்ளார்.

"நான் தந்தையுள் இருக்கிறேன்;

தந்தை என்னுள் இருக்கிறார்.

நான் சொல்வதை நம்புங்கள்;"(யோவான்.14:11)

நீங்கள் என்னை அறிந்திருந்தால் என் தந்தையையும் அறிந்திருப்பீர்கள். இது முதல் நீங்கள் தந்தையை அறிந்திருக்கிறீர்கள். அவரைக் கண்டுமிருக்கிறீர்கள்”

"என்னைக் காண்பது தந்தையைக் காண்பது ஆகும். "(யோவான். 14:9)

அவ்வாறே பரிசுத்த ஆவி தந்தையுள்ளும், இயேசுவுக்குள்ளும் இருக்கிறார்.

அபடியானால் இயேசுவைப் பார்க்கும்போது நாம் மூவொரு இறைவனையே பார்க்கிறோம்.

மனித சுபாவத்தில் இயேசுவை ஊனக்கண்களால் பார்க்க முடியும்.

33 ஆண்டுகள் இயேசு இவ்வுலகில் வாழ்ந்தபோது மக்கள் அவரைக் கண்களால் கண்டார்கள், அவரோடு உரையாடினார்கள்.

இப்போதும் அதே இயேசுவை நமது கண்களால் பார்க்க முடியும், நமது ஊனக்கண்களோடு நமது விசுவாசக் கண்களும் சேர்ந்துகொண்டால்.

திருப்பலியின்போது, மரியாளிடமிருந்து  பிறந்த அதே இயேசு,  நமக்காக சிலுவையில் உயிர்நீத்த அதே இயேசு அப்ப, ரச வடிவில் இறங்கிவருகிறார்.

நமது ஊனக்கண்களுக்கு அப்ப ரசம் தோன்றினாலும், அவை அப்ப ரசம் அல்ல, இயேசுதான் அந்த வடிவில் இருக்கிறார்.

நமது விசுவாசக் கண்களால் இயேசுவையே பார்க்கிறோம்.

இயேசுவைப் பார்க்கும்போது திரிஏக இறைவனையே பார்க்கிறோம்.

திவ்ய நற்கருணையை நமது ஊனக் கண்களால் பார்க்கும்போது நாம் கடவுளைத்தான் பார்க்கிறோம்.

விசுவாசத்தினால் எல்லாம் ஆகும்.

லூர்து செல்வம்.

The most deadly capital vice.

The most deadly capital vice.
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Pride is the most deadly of the seven capital vices.

While the other capital vices originated from human beings, pride originated from Satan.

Before his fall he was Lucifer, one of the brightest Angels, created by God, before the creation of man.

His brightness and beauty were free gifts of God to him.

But he began to think himself greater than God.

His pride brought about his downfall.

Lucifer became Satan.

Yielding to his temptation our first parents brought about our downfall.

Pride was the first sin committed by the created beings against their Creator.

It is the king of all the vices.

Satan, which tricked Eve into sin, continues his work even now.

He tries to play his tricks on the servants of God.

When they  do their service in the vineyard of God sincerely, people who are benefited by their service begin to applaud them.

   The applause goes straight to God because it is He who is behind the service.

No good work can be done without God's grace.

But Satan tempts the servants to think that the applause is for them.

Imagine the donkey that Jesus used to ride into Jerusalem thinking that the crowd had turned out for him!

Satan will tempt the servants to do the service for getting public applause.

They should at that time
remember the prayer taught by Our Lord: " Father, lead us not into temptation."

At every moment of their service "Glory be to God" must be their activating force.

The proud man does not teach to enlighten,

but

rather to  impress,

and

to appear as the authority.

So the Pharisees laid heavy moral burdens upon the shoulders of the people without lifting a finger to help them (Mat 23:4).

They coveted the title of “teacher” (“rabbi”)

and

“father” (teachers in the ancient world were regarded as spiritual fathers),

but

really did not want the responsibility.

When Jesus says to avoid being called “teacher” and “father,” He did not refer to the titles, but to the attitude.

Humble persons realize that the wisdom of the teachers comes from God.

It is God who instructs others through their mouths.

They know that the applause ultimately is for Him.

They are glad to redirect it back to Him as Mary does when she is praised by her cousin Elizabeth (Luke 1: 42-55).

Pride is deadly because it is so insidious.

In course of time it will make its owner spiritually blind.

The humble person, on the other hand, is secure in the love of God.

  He is not afraid to look at his own littleness, because he knows that he is a loving child of Almighty God.

Lourdu Selvam.

Queen of all the virtues.

Queen of all the virtues.
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Humility is a virtue that enables us to see us as we really are before God.

God created us from nothing and nothing cannot possess anything by itself.

Hence whatever we have, including our body and soul, belong to Him.

Not even a single cell in our body belongs to us.

The freedom of will and choice we enjoy is His gift for us.

The talents we have also are His gifts to us.

We cannot be proud of anything good in us.

We can accept what is good in us, but  as only God's gift to us.

Humility is not thinking low of us, but accepting us as we really are.

We must be thankful to God for the gifts He has blessed us with.

Our Lady is the perfect model of real humility.

"Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; "

When she was offered the honour of being the Mother of God, she accepted herself being the servant of God.

Servantship was her reality and motherhood was a gift and Our Lady accepted this fact with humility.

"And Mary said, My soul magnifies the Lord;  my spirit has found joy in God, who is my Saviour,  because he has looked graciously upon the lowliness of his handmaid." 

This is how Our Lady offers her thanks and praise to God who has blessed her with the gift of  being the mother of God Himself.

She magnifies God for whatever He has done to her.

We should follow the example of our Mother in our life.

Humility is the virtue of the Queen of Heaven and earth.

So it is worthy of being called 'the queen of all the virtues.'

Humble people will never feel proud of the talents God has given them, but will use them with  utmost sincerity in His  service, for His greater glory, not for self glorification.

Jesus, whose followers we are, is Almighty God.

But He humbled Himself to the level of a man by His birth through a human Mother in order to raise us from our sin

We can call ourselves His followers only if we serve Him with humility.

Satan is very tricky in his activities, aimed at drawing us away from God.

If he fails to succeed in his attempt to make us  do sin he will allow us to do good.

But at the end he will try to pluck away the fruits of our good work by tempting us to feel proud of our work.

We should be careful not to fall a prey to such a temptation.

Only good works done with humility are meritorious before God.

A good work can be done only with the grace of God.

So merit for the good work goes to God.

God in His generosity gifts us the merit together with reward for it.

We do the good work for the glory of God and are rewarded for it.

Lourdu Selvam.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."(Matthew 5:3)

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."(Matthew 5:3)
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There were two friends,  one very rich and the other very poor.

For the outsiders the poor man seemed to be rich as he spent money lavishly using the rich man's purse.

But the rich man seemed to be poor as he spent money thriftily for himself, at the same time leaving his purse at the disposal of the poor man.

The poor man was very much attached to money, though it was not his. (He should have followed his friend.)

But the rich man was very
much detached from money though it was his.

The poor man was rich in spirit.

The rich man was poor in spirit.

Jesus is the Creator of the whole universe.

The whole universe belongs to Him.

But He chose poor Mary to be
His Mother.

When people created by Him were living in palaces and big houses Jesus chose a cattle stable to be born a human baby.

He chose a manger for bed.

"Jesus told him, 'Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air their resting-places; the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head'."( Luke.9:58)

We know that these words were said by Jesus Himself.

He became the poorest of the poor to save us from sin.

He was born poor, lived poor, died poor and buried poor.

He was born in a stable that was meant for cattle.

He was buried in a tomb that was meant for Joseph of Arimathea.

He Himself was poor in spirit before He taught us to be so

He didn't merely advise us to be poor in spirit, He practiced His precept Himself.

We call ourselves 'followers of Jesus'.

Do we really follow Him or go our own way, merely proclaiming ourselves to be His followers,?

Let us just compare our life style with that of Jesus to see if we are really following Jesus.

Some may argue that Jesus lived in the first century and we are living in the twenty first and times have changed.

Times may have changed, but neither Jesus nor His teachings have changed.

We sit in cushioned chairs and meditate on the crucifixion of Jesus!

We pray, "Give us our 'daily' bread"  at the same time amassing wealth to last for many generations!

We talk about the poverty of Jesus at the same time spending many crores on building Churches for Him!

In many Churches we have given one side of the Altar for our living Jesus, giving the centre of the Altar  to His worded message!

We spend thousands to celebrate the poor birth of Jesus!

Just for a few minutes thought:

"How much have you spent for Christmas dress?"

"Around twenty thousand."

"How much for Jesus?"

"For Jesus?"

"Yes. For the poor and needy around you."

"???"

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for

theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

If we are not poor in spirit?

Infer the answer from the words, "theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Lourdu Selvam.

"Give them eternal rest in peace."

"Give them eternal rest in peace."
********************************

As God is perfect in His holiness and purity, only souls with perfect purity can see Him face to face in Heaven.

So souls who leave the earth in the state of sanctifying grace have to have themselves completely purified before entering into beatific vision.

They have to be purified perfectly in purgatory.

Just as we have our legs washed before entering our house, we have our souls to be washed before entering our eternal home.

Purgatory is the threshold of Heaven and hence a part of it.

It is joyful, not gloomy.

The purifying pains of purgatory are incomparably more desirable than the most ecstatic pleasures on earth.

How can pain be joyful?

Pain for purification; joy in the thought of Heaven after the pain.

Purgatory is for sanctification, not justification.

How long will we have to be in purgatory?

In this world our calculation of time is subject to 'chronological time' concept.

But the moment we leave this world due to death we go out of this time concept.

So we cannot calculate our time  in purgatory in terms of hours, months and years.

At most we can say, "We will be in purgatory till we are purified".

The souls in purgatory can pray for us, but not for themselves.

We may request them to pray for us.

We must pray for them.

We can speed up their purification by our prayers.

We must pray for them not only in November, but also throughout the year.

Souls in Heaven, purgatory and we are one family.

Members of the same family must be helpful to one another.

We, together with our brethren in Heaven, must be helpful to our brethren in purgatory through our prayers.

"O most sweet Jesus,

through the unbearable pains

which Thou didst bear

during Thy

most cruel Crucifixion,

have mercy

on our dear brothers

in purgatory

and

give them

eternal rest,

and

your beatific vision

in Heaven.

Amen."

Lourdu Selvam.