Christmas did come

Despite some predictions, Christmas did come.  Too many people around me have been just sad or negative, or worse, being overcome by a world in utter chaos, maybe even in destruct mode.  All this in the lead up to Christmas.  

Reality is that Christmas is not about upbeat me nor about a downbeat other.  It is about God who chose the plan and put it into action.  It is God's will to create the world and to love each and every person, to be an integral part of this eternal mess, we call our world.  God is here in the midst of it all, because we are here.

This is what Christmas is about and the reason why it happens every year, no matter what.  That is why hope is real and eternal.  That gives us every reason to be full of Christmas joy and celebrate it to the full. 

Christmas did come.  Literally, I was overwhelmed by the kindness, the faith, the love, the enthusiasm that I experienced at Christmas Day mass at the cathedral. Thanks to all.  Thanks be to God.  Joy to the world.  Hope is eternal.  Spirituality reigns.  Christmas did truly come.      

Ho! Ho! Ho!  

Intensive Workshop on Human Nature

I began this past week with celebrating the baptism of seven children and the reception of one adult into the Church. This is the largest number of baptisms I have had at any one time over my years at the cathedral.  For me, it stands as a milestone event.  

I found it a powerful, spiritual experience.  Following on, for the past week, I have found myself reflecting on it.  I found no easy response to the Why question, a question I am told not to ask when counselling, but, in this instance, was the big question.  It has not been a judgmental or inquisitive Why, nor should it.  Rather it has been a Why at the centre of a theological pursuit. In the end, I have no definitive or dogmatic response, nor should I have one.   

So what did I discover?  Firstly, it was a "we" experience, not an "I" one.  That speaks of who we are in solidarity as members of humanity, as members of church.  Fact is we never stand alone wherever we may be in life.  Still all these families came together from various parts of a big Bangkok.  They went to a lot of trouble to get to the cathedral and to stand with ones they never knew, ones I mainly did not know myself.  Why?  

Basically, this was about who they are, about who we are.  It is about spirituality.  The big question is not Why.  Rather it is asking who we are and how we give expression to who we are.  This is an appropriate reflection to pursue as we approach Christmas, for this is a time when we celebrate who God is and, as a result, who we are.   

As God is revealed through the birth of Jesus, so we are revealed for who we truly are as human persons.  God is God with us no matter what, through it all.  

For whatever reason, those families struggled to get their children baptised.  Life is a struggle.  God is with us in our struggle.  This struggle does not destroy us, nor ultimately pull us down.  Rather through the struggle, we remain part of something great, something greater than who we are alone.  We are participating in the divine narrative for humanity.  The coming of God through Jesus assures us of this.  So we know we are built up through life and its struggles.  

God is a mystery, of which we are an intimate part.  We live this mystery through the reality of life, its struggles, its dreams, its failures and successes.  Christmas is the perfect time for us to stand back and learn more about God and us.  At this time of the year, the Church invites us, through its liturgies, to join an intensive workshop, one on the nature of God and the nature of the human person.  Let us enter into this workshop offered to us by God, God with us, with joy and gusto.    

Be patient, be strong.

My sister would often counsel me - "Johnny, patience!"  While I am getting better at it, patience is not one of my better virtues.  My sister's words often come to mind, knowing that my impatience causes me some level of destructive thinking, which is just not healthy for anyone in my life, least of all me.  

Presently, I am facing three simple tasks.  Each is simple enough but, amazingly, each feeds into a common thread in my way of operating.   The common denominator, triggering my feeling-thinking response, is that, at the centre of each task, is a person I would question or doubt, as I experience their behaviour.  I just lack trust enough to happily accept their part in the task.  

This takes me into being impatient, leading to my bad thinking and feeling patterns.  The baseline seems to be that I am dealing with the unknown of others in my life.  I find this unknown threatening, frightening; thus causing me destructive thinking, which could have undesired consequences.  This is not good.   

Hang on!  I tell myself, that I must stand back and take count.  It is best that I take time to name and own my pattern in dealing with the unknown or unwanted in my life.  I recognize that I am too easily threatened by such possibilities; too easily directed by my own assumptions and thinking that then arise in my internal response.  Truth is no one is making any plausible threat against me, unless I know it for sure.  My unhealthy behaviour arises due to my own biased feelings, which lead to distorted thinking.  Stop it!  Stop being reactive!  Be proactive!  

Be creative, I tell myself, by turning my feeling thing into a spiritual thing.  Instant responses do not work.  The world does not operate as I want it to operate.  Life does not turn out in ways I want.  It is not all that simple, nor should it be.  The world is much bigger than I.  

So act with God and others, never against.  What does this mean?  It is not just passively following the other's lead.  Life is not about being glibly led by others, nor being undiscerning in making decisions, nor just being passively accepting.  That road is just naive and unwise.  

Rather, I tell myself, be strong in oneself, be patient.  It is more healthy being with God, and thus being with the other.  This is about holiness.  In his Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, Pope Francis gives us a simple, five point rule to follow.  It goes like this:

Be grounded in God.  Spirituality does matter. 

Live with passion.  Be passionate about life.

Live with joy. 

Pray constantly. 

Be part of the community.     

The bottom line to Francis' programme is that he is aiming at the every day life of any human being.  Holiness is not for experts.  It is for all of us.  So I too can be patient.  First, I be and remain strong in purpose and faith.  In the midst of all, life is humbling, and therein lies the key to it all.  Be patient, be strong; but first be humble.  

Time for a Check-up

In the last week, I went for my six monthly dental check.  After the dentist, it struck me that this is Advent, a good time for a spiritual check-up.  So I turn to no other than Dr Teresa of Avila, for what better physician for a timely, spiritual check-up? 

Dr Teresa's basic premise for spiritual health is that we follow the way of the Crucified Christ.  This way reveals the true presence of God.  

So, we ask.

1)  Do we have the humility to follow the way of Jesus?  

2)  Do we listen to the God revealed by the Scriptures?  

3)  Do we contemplate the Mystery of God, God dwelling within us?  

4)  Do we appreciate the mystery of the divine presence within each of us?  

        -and so, the deep relationship to which we are called?   

        -and so, the transformation to which we are called?  

5)  Do we seek the One who loves us to the end of time, in the midst of what is and who we are?  

Do we appreciate and believe this?  

6)  Our journey in life is to be united in love with God.  How are we going? 

Prayer is its way.  Do we pray?  

7)  Are we humble enough for the journey?  

        -for it is God's way, not ours;

        -for it is not about what we do;  

        -for it is a way of suffering; 

        -for it is a way of love and intimacy.  

All of this can be threatening.  

8)  Are we free just to be with God, our intimate friend?  

9)  Are we free to enter into spiritual intimacy with God?  

The three key principles of Dr Teresa, for building up spiritual health, are 

1)  Prayer leads to service.  It does not exist for the sake of some self-seeking trip.  Prayer and service together lead us to God.  We go within so as to go out.  

2)  Humility is the foundation, for the Jesus of the Gospel is the humble Christ. 

3)  God is always near.  Let us never take our gaze off Jesus, the true revealer of God.    

Dr Teresa of Avila is 100% in line with St Paul, who writes in Galatians:    

"I have been crucified with Christ.  I live, not I, but Christ lives in me."

So we reach full spiritual health and attain a life that is fulfilled and truly nourished. 

We are ever on the way.    

Let a new year begin

As they say in the movies, bring it on!  As a new liturgical year of the Church begins with this First Sunday of Advent, I say the same.   Advent leads right into Christmas and so unfolds my favourite time of year, a time full of expectation and excitement, with Christmas Day as its climax. Thjs time of year acts like a rocket booster for life in my annual calendar, reminding me how good life could be and should be.  This time happens during Advent when a key gospel message for us is to stay awake.  

This 'stay awake' is a good reminder call, telling us to live life to the full, to treat it as a banquet, not as a food snack, taken on the run.  Truth is we can too often be so mean in life, being overcome by all that is wrong in the world, sharing a communal sense of despair, not enjoying what is on offer in our world.  This line of thinking is not to define life.  Life is not limited by what is measured out by others, nor by what we passively accept or are forced to accept.  It is beyond all that weighs us down.  I keep telling myself this and know it to be true.  It must be so. This is not the thought of some deluded idealist.   

Yes, life is a struggle, but it is not defined by the struggle, mess or chaos we may know in our reality.  Life is so much more.  This is revealed to us when approached within the perspective of the grand, human narrative, the divine narrative, and not confined within my own, small narrative.  Let us take the risk, step out of our narrow worlds, engage the wider world, encounter others.  Life is an adventure, a journey.  Carpe diem!  Happy New Year!  

 

As another year ends

The welcome band at the House of Compassion

Yes, it is already the end of another year - the Church, liturgical year. This happens because the Church likes to do things differently, and so it has its own calendar.  Like the end of any year, it is a good opportunity to think back and reflect.  I will not bore you with photos and stories galore from the past year.  Instead, I just share one memory that stands out for me.  

It is from my recent visit to CLUMP (Communal Life of Love and Unity of the Mountain People), a mission of a devoted, Thai, religious brother up in the north of Thailand.  It was a rich time of learning from one man's Gospel vision.  It is a vision that inspires and nourishes him, as he lives it out, by helping the poor and marginalized.  For me, it was a time that was simply inspirational and life-giving.  

It was here, I visited the House of Compassion, a rehabilitation centre for males suffering drug addiction.  Yes, I mentioned it last week, but in a different context.  It was such a powerful experience.  I name it as the memory of my past year, for it is an enduring sign to me of God's compassion.  As always, the goodness of the vulnerable is an incredible voice for procliming the goodness of humanity, for witnessing to the presence of a God of love in the midst of our crazy, even ridiculous, world.  

A simple song lovingly offered by these young men, in the midst of their struggles, deeply touched me and so stays with me.  Their music, their singing, their presence resonate in my heart.  It was pure surprise and gift which continues to impact me with God's love.  

God is truly God with us.  We know this in the midst of our poverty as we humbly open up to God, who chooses to speak to us and touch us, using whomever he chooses.  

He looks on us, his servants, in our lowliness.       

 

Being Poor is Freeing

"What we need to consider is the value that we put on money: it cannot become our absolute and chief purpose in life. Attachment to money prevents us from seeing everyday life with realism; it clouds our gaze and blinds us to the needs of others. Nothing worse could happen to a Christian and to a community than to be dazzled by the idol of wealth, which ends up chaining us to an ephemeral and bankrupt vision of life."   (Pope Francis - Message for World Day of the Poor, 2022)

Last week, it was my great honour and privilege to visit a rehabilitation centre for males suffering addictions, run by the church. I went there, with my two travelling companions, where we were treated royally by the young, male residents, who happily shared their talents with a musical performance.  The whole experience touched me, for here were men being torn apart by the pain and emptiness of their addiction, but not being held back in reaching out to us, welcoming us, entertaining us.  Their kindness brought a tear to my eye.  Their actions told me that, in the midst of despair, lives hope.  

We can too easily be overcome by what weighs us down, addiction is one such weight.  Reading Francis' message, I think of wealth as another weight.  Wealth is not bad in itself, but, if abused, it can also weigh us down, oppressing us, making us into who we are not meant to be.  Wealth, power, addiction, anger - the list can go on - can blind us to the simple goodness and joys of life.  In Proverbs, we read that the people without a vision will perish.  

Let us not perish, blinded by despair or all that does not reallly matter.  Let us focus rather on what matters in life, that we are all together in this world and can act ogether to make life and our world so much better, so joyous.  Why don't we?  

Maybe, we are too easily weighed down by the woes of the world and life.  Instead, let us keep our eye on the Christian Project, which is based on human optimism. Its message is clear.  Let us not be dazzled by what is false.