May I Have Your Attention Please

 Text: Numbers 6: 22-26

The Lord said to Moses,  “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:“ ‘“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you  and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’

Message

Everything is now at the tip of our fingers. We can make calls, we can chat through Whatsapp, we can access facebook, we can Tweet, we can mail and blog. We live in the age of Smarphones. Without sounding preachy let me admit that my wife gets really irritated seeing how hooked on I am to the phone. Whenever she has something to say, I am engrossed in the phone. I argue that “I am listening. I can tell everything that you just told me.” Even if it is true is that enough? Wherever we go the technology has become so intrusive that even if we are physically present among our friends and relatives, we have become absent. We exist in a parallel world. We can’t hold a proper conversation with people in front of us. We are caught up in checking who liked our photos and status updates.  It is the peril of advancement in communication that we have failed in the basic art of communication. That is to pay attention to the person or the people in front of us. The biggest evidence of love is when we give attention to people. Our attention is indirectly saying that “You are very important to me. What you are saying matters a lot.” What an affirmation. So not paying attention gives the contrary message even if we intend or not.

The passage we have in front of us is a Priestly Blessing taught by God himself. It reveals one of the greatest truths that I love. God pays attention to us. Look at it. “The Lord turn his face toward you.”(vs 26).  John Ortberg says that turning your face toward someone is to give your wholehearted, undivided attention. It is a statement where God is saying to us “I have nothing else to do. I am fully available for you. You are important to me.” What is more fascinating is “The Lord make his face shine upon you.”(vs 24) How wonderful. This blessing says God will not only turn his face towards us, he will make it “shine” on us. The shining face is an image of delight, a joy that we cannot describe. Now how do we understand a “shining face”?

Let me explain. My father by far is the best listener that I have come across. When people talk to him, he is all attention. My wife Soji is very animated in her conversations. I happened to witness a conversation between my dad and her. She was narrating an incident of great joy  and I could see my  father’s face shine. He owns the happiness of the person speaking to him. He makes his listeners feel very special. (No wonder Soji keeps asking me “How come you are like this!!!”) That is what the blessing says. God is so much involved in us that his face shines on us. We are very special to Him.

He listens to our prayers. It is important to Him. We matter to Him. When I was a teenager, I had a doubt. My question and confusion was when there are so many people around us, how is it possible for God to pay attention to each and every prayer. I asked my mother this question. She told me a story. “Once there was a man called Henry. His life was full of problems and he felt that God is not answering his prayers. He kept asking ‘When there are so many people in this world how is it possible for God to pay attention to every prayer?’ Disturbed, he walked out of his home to stroll on the beach. It was night and darkness had filled his heart. He saw no hope. The sound of the waves was symbolic of the struggles within him. But in the darkness there was a little light. The light was moon. He kept walking the length and breadth of the beach. And suddenly like a child he realized that wherever he was going the moon was right on top of his head. He started to run, the moon was following him. When he stopped the moon stopped. When he walked the moon was travelling above with him. Henry then danced and jumped. “If there are a million people standing on this beach tonight, everyone would say that the moon is on top of their head. I have found my answer. Similarly when millions and millions pray to God, they feel his presence and find God with them.” This story may be too simple but it helped me a lot. Let us be clear on one thing. We are important to God. He pays attention to us.

If the God of the universe has time for his creation, time to pay attention to them, to celebrate with them, what excuse do we have? Let us regulate the technology that we have to enhance relationships. Let the gadgets that we have help us build bonds and not weaken or break them. Let us vow not to fidget with our phones in presence of another human being. Nothing is more insulting. Let us set our priorities. Let us overcome our addiction of indulging in ourselves. Let us thank God for turning His face to us. Let us be people who have experienced that joy. After communicating with God, the face of Moses shone. When we meet our friends are they seeing our face shining? Mostly our faces are blank. We have no joy. Let us take time to take the Bible and pray, so that we see the face of God shining on us. Let us keep our gadgets away and look into the eyes of the people in front of us. Let us enjoy the beauty of conversations and relationships that God created us for. May God Bless Us.

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

The Miracle of 'Touch' and the Infection of Life

Text: Mark 1: 40-45

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.”  Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

Message

Leviticus 13 and 14 gave the Jews rules to follow when it came to skin diseases. They were to come to the priest and get examined. There is a laundry list of things that that the priest will look over and in the end pronounce him unclean. If that person had leprosy that meant that had to follow Leviticus 13:45,46 "The person with such an infectious disease must wear torn clothes, let his hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of his face and cry out, 'Unclean! Unclean!' As long as he has the infection he remains unclean. He must live alone; he must live outside the camp.” So this was the state of the man who came in front of Jesus. He lived alone. He yelled “Unclean! Unclean!” That is what he thought of himself.

In those days a Rabbi was considered holy because of the distance he kept from mundane affairs. He was perceived to be closer to God because he avoided association with sinners and unclean people. One could only be holy if one distanced themselves from the common people. But here was the Rabbi of Rabbis who was God in the incarnate form, who had what one could call the “Miracle of Approachability”. Jesus was available for everyone. If being Holy means to keep distance from people and the world, the one is definitely not following Jesus. His gift to the people was His availability. As a Priest, I always feel tempted to be aloof and disengaged from mundane affairs. But I need to constantly ask myself, am I approachable? Am I available to people? Am I following Jesus.

It is this availability of Jesus that compelled the person with Leprosy to come out of his isolation. The law demanded that such people should never come out in public and never appear in front of rabbis. But this Man did come out. He knew that Jesus could cleanse him and heal him. But he was not sure if Jesus would engage with him. That is why he says  “If you choose, you can make me clean.” What did Jesus do?

Navjeevan Centre, Mumbai is a rehabilitation Centre for children of Commercial Sex workers. Most of the children had something about them where we could call it the “touch-deficit” inscribed on them. Either they were touched for all the wrong reasons or were not touched at all. This affected their self-esteem and confidence. There was a phenomenon that I saw when the then Director Rev Dr Moni Mathew came to the Centre. Children would run towards him. Was he giving gifts for them to flock. Yes. He was giving them the biggest gift that he could give. The gift of ‘touch’. He would hold them, affirm them, pat them and encourage them. Children loved that moment of eternity where they were respected and touched as humans. To be honest it is that day it dawned to me how important a human touch is. A touch means the world to people who are deprived of it. It is the touch that makes them feel human.

This man with Leprosy was one who nobody touched. Imagine a life where no one touched you. No one held your hands. No one patted your back and said “Well done.” No one hugged. No one kissed. No one put hands on your shoulder and said “Do not worry. Everything will be fine.” It is here we understand the “Miracle of Touch” that Jesus uses. He could have just said “be healed” and that would have been enough. But he chose to touch him. He affirmed the man his dignity. And then he says “I do choose. Be made clean!”. The man’s biggest struggle was the fact that he was unclean. It bothered him more than being a leper.  Jesus addresses his deepest struggle and made him clean.

What is the most fascinating part of this miracle? The man with Leprosy was believed to be infected. His disease was believed to be contagious. But here the Leper did not infect Jesus with his sickness. Jesus infected the Leper with his life. How beautiful! Jesus is life. And the life he has is infectious. When Jesus touched him it is said in vs 42 ‘Immediately the leprosy[e] left him, and he was made clean.’ The infection of life was so strong that even when Jesus warned the man with Leprosy to not tell this to anyone, But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word. He was filled with a new life that compelled him to spread the infection of life that Jesus promised.

When I am on facebook I come out feeling very miserable. There is so much of hatred, abuses, and negative comments all over. In our daily life we are faced with so much of anger in bus, work places and roads. We are all infected with hatred and we too are spreading this infection. I remember when in college, my best friend Sherin Abraham came and hugged me. I did not know what the matter was. Then he narrated to me a story. “I was riding my bike. I came to a signal where there was this old man. I partially nudged him and his tiffin fell on the ground and his food was all over the road. The people nearby yelled out in anger. I knew that was it. Then I looked at the old man who I had wronged. He looked and smiled at me. You know I was in tears. And he told me to go. He had every right to be angry. But he chose to smile. It was such a huge lesson of grace for me. He just ended the cycle of anger there and then.” In a time where prejudices, hatred and anger are so contagious and spreading like wild fire, Jesus is asking us to be contagious with life. Spread the joy of love. Celebrate life.  Spread the infection of being human. Let us spread the joy of life.  Life is truly wonderful.

Before giving the Holy Body and Holy Blood at the Eucharist, the Mar Thoma Liturgy has a passage where the Priest holds the Holy elements and turns to the congregation and says “Daivamaya karthaave Kaanapedavtha-alaatha Ninte Valath Kai Neeti……” (Lord Stretch out your invisible right hand…). We at the table of our Lord are infected with anger, jealousy, hatred and pride. The Priest beseeches Christ to Stretch out his hands like he stretched out to the Leper, so that we may be cleansed and be infected with the Life that only Christ can give. May Christ Stretch out His Invisible Right Hand and touch us. Let us hear him say "I do choose. Be made clean." Amen

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

Stop. Stop. Stop. Let us 'See' the Burning Bush

Text: Exodus 3: 1-6

Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.”

“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Then he said, “I am the God of your father,[a] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.

Message

Rev Abraham Varghese in his Documentary “Kick Kill Kinder” shows the impact of video games on youths and children. Apart from the violence it simulates and celebrates, the greatest impact of it is that children and youths have no excitement and wonder that makes life meaningful. The world of Virtual Reality is so spectacular and splendid that the world we live in fails to stimulate or excite. Everything is boring. In a recent survey done in Tokyo, Japan, Psychologist expressed shock that children under 12 have lost awe and wonder for everything. Even the prospect of travelling to the moon does not excite them. Similarly in a world of 24/7 News and Reality TV we have become numb to life. Nothing shocks us. Nothing excites us. Everything is normal. Nothing shakes us up. We have got used to people dying in bomb blasts. We are bored of the statistics of children dying of hunger. To shock us we need something more catastrophic.

In such a context we understand that Moses was out on a very mundane task of tending the flock. Burning bushes were a common feature then. It was everywhere. Moses could have easily missed it. But Moses slows down and says “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” This strange sight excited him. He was filled with wonder. This awe and wonder is the initiating point into his great ministry of liberating Israelites from slavery. Just for a moment imagine if Moses had missed the Burning Bush? Moses saw the Burning Bush. God spoke to him through this burning bush. God commissioned Moses to liberate Israelites at the Burning Bush. Seeing the Burning Bush was important.

Let us look at the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus is talking about Judgment. “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,  I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ (Matthew 25: 41-45)

In this passage the problem with people was that they did not see the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the sick and the prisoner. Funny part the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the sick and the prisoner were all  over the place. It was a routine sight. Nothing new or exciting. They got used to it. The pain and need of the people did not challenge them into action. The Judgment was on the excuse that they had eyes and they did not ‘See’.

Today we live in a world of spectacles. We are saturated with information and visuals. Nothing excites us. We have become apathetic to our neighbourhood. There are many burning bushes around us. But we do not bother to stop. We do not wait to see. We have become blind. Jesus commands us to slow down. He says “Take a break you who are in a mad rush. Slow down you who are determined by deadlines. Look around you who have eyes but do not see. Listen up, you who have ears but do not hear.” Let us stop for a while and ask ourselves, are we missing our Burning Bush. I will leave you with a parable that has helped me a lot. I have used it in many of my sermons as I feel it talks to all of us.

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. With music on and the glasses rolled up he was enjoying the bliss of speed. But suddenly  a brick smashed into the Jag's side door! He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?" The young boy was apologetic. "Please, mister...please! I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do," he pleaded. "I threw the brick because no one else would stop. I have been asking for help for the past two hours!" With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the child pointed to a spot just around a parked car. "It's my brother," he said. "He rolled off and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up." Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, "Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me." Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and nursed the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay. "Thank you and May God bless you," the grateful child told the stranger. Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home. It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent When the friends at office asked him why he was not repairing the dent, He answered.  “I need that dent to remind me not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!"

John Ortberg, the author of ‘The Life You’ve Always Wanted’ says that when he went to his spiritual mentor for an advice to have a more meaningful and spiritual life. His mentor gave him just one advice. “Learn the Art of Slowing Down. Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” Let us stop. Let us ‘See’ the Burning Bush.

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

Shubhkono: A Call for Reconciliation

Text:  Matthew 5: 21-26

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’  But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’[d] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you,  leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”

Message

In Greek, there are several words for anger to choose from. The word used here for anger is not Thymos.  This is an anger that flares up toward a person for something they have done, but fades and goes away.Someone comes into the room, talking loudly while you are trying to hear something on television...the anger flares up and you yell “Shut up!” That is Thymos anger. It flares up, but you won’t hold on to it for long. Jesus is also not talking about the anger at a situation or injustice. You see something wrong around you and it makes you angry.

The anger Jesus is describing is relational in nature,  it’s a deep anger towards a person. Jesus uses a very specific word for anger that means a brooding, simmering anger. This is the anger we hold on to, nurture, feed and lovingly care for, because we want to be angry at the person.And it is this anger that leads us to say “Raca” or “You fool!” to our brothers or sisters. This anger is rooted when our ego is offended. This anger leads to severing of communication with the particular person. It further leads us to gossip about this person to others by assassinating his/ her character. When we harbor this kind of anger it affects our relationships with others, and therefore affects our relationship with God. This was the Kind of anger Cain had towards Abel which eventually lead him to murder his brother.Jesus here is making very clear about the anger that distances us from our fellow human beings.

Let me illustrate this with a story that is very popular on Facebook for all the right reason.

A Hindu saint and his disciples were visiting the Ganges river, where they found a group of family members on the banks shouting in anger at each other. Turning to his disciples, the saint smiled and asked, ‘Why do people in anger shout at each other?’

His disciples thought for a while. One of them finally said, ‘Because when we lose our calm, we shout.’

 ‘But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you?’ countered the saint. ‘You can just as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner.’ His disciples thought about it some more, but could not come up with a satisfactory answer. Finally the saint explained,

‘When two people are angry at each other, their hearts distance a lot. To cover that distance they must shout to be able to hear each other. The angrier they are, the stronger they will have to shout to hear each other, in order to cover that great distance.

But what happens when two people fall in love? They don’t shout at each other but instead talk very softly because their hearts are very close. The distance between them is either nonexistent or very small. And when they love each other even more, what happens? They do not speak, only whisper and they get even closer to each other in their love. Finally they even need not whisper, they only need to look at each other and that’s all. That is how close two people are when they love each other.

So when you argue, do not let your hearts get distant, do not say words that distance each other more, or else there will come a day when the distance is so great that you will not find the path to return.’

Jesus further says, “if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

The people who heard Jesus must have felt this as a crazy talk. For the people used to walk for 4 days and nights to reach Jerusalem from Galilee to offer their gifts at the Jerusalem temple. So to them jesus is asking to walk back to their hometown, reconcile with their brothers and sisters and then walk again back to Jerusalem to offer their gifts on the Altar. Also note that It is not that whether you have anything against your brother or sister but if they have anything against you, you need to take up this journey. Let us be very aware that Jesus lived in a time where honour was given prime importance. In this context Jesus is asking to swallow our pride and honour to reconcile. The emphasis of Jesus is that no price is too high when one considers the joy of restoration of relationship.

Today we live in a time where we all have fragile egos. We all live by guarding our honour. And the moment we feel offended or we offend people we deem it unnecessary to reconcile. The mantra we live by is “If anybody has a problem with me. Too bad. It is his/her problem. Not mine.” Therefore our relations today have become distant and beyond repair.

The great Lent starts with a Service called the “Shubhkono” which means reconciliation. In this we have a liturgy where the Priest asks forgiveness to the Parish members and the parish members ask forgiveness to the Priest and fellow members. This is then followed by the Kiss of peace.  Our focus generally during lent is about abstinence from food. This is important. But the main focus is to get our relation right with Our God and to be reconciled to our brothers and sisters.

Let us ask ourselves if we have hurt somebody with our words, actions or deeds. Have we been so angry with someone that our hearts have grown too distant? In this time of lent remember God demands that we reconcile ourselves with people who we have distanced. 

The year before last,  I had a major misunderstanding with one of my college time friends. We were the best of friends but had different point of views. Once when I wrote something favoring the struggle of northeast, he called me a traitor. He said that I did not value the sacrifice of army men. We got into a very terrible argument. We decided never to talk to each other. For a year we did not communicate. I was not ready to reconcile. The truth is even I had hurt him. It hurt me that our friendship evaporated in a fit of anger. The anger had distanced us. But after a year I started calling him never to get a response. I left many messages that showed I was ready to resolve. Last December he finally called and we laughed at our stupidity. I cannot express my joy. No grudge is worth nurturing. From experience now I know there is no greater joy than reconciliation. I am fully aware it is not easy but Jesus says that no cost is too costly for the restoration of relationships.

Brothers and sisters reading this, may I ask you, if there is anyone you have wronged or are angry with, to take the first step towards reconciliation. Lent is the time to put relationships in perspective. May God grant us the magnanimity to ask for forgiveness and the openness of heart to forgive. Amen.

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

Our Wine Has Run Dry: Preparation For The Great Lent

Text: John 2: 1-11

On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there,  and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.  Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him

Message

Jesus after his baptism goes to a Wedding at Cana. He starts his ministry by being part of a feast. It is said that Jewish weddings are a weeklong affair with all merriment and celebrations. Wine is very important part of the celebration. And guess what? The Wine ran out? How irresponsible of the host? What was he thinking of? What calculation did he do? But now the fact is “Wine has run out”. It has put the hosts in a fix. Their honor is at stake. Here is where Mary the mother of Jesus comes into the picture. She senses the discomfort and approaches Jesus to fix the problem. And Jesus responded. “My Hour has not yet come” What does the hour got to do with the problem? Why did Jesus say his “Hour” has not yet come? One needs to realize that Jesus is very reluctant in performing miracles. When the Satan tempted him to turn stone into bread, he refused. (Matthew 4: 3). Here too he felt that a problem of “wine running out” is not good enough for his intervention. Before we go further we have to find out what exactly did Jesus mean by the “Hour”. For that we have to read further. John 12: 20-25 says.

Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.  Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

When the Greeks wanted to see Jesus, He says the “Hour has come….”  Why so? We have to remember Jesus at this juncture was moving towards the Cross and was on his way to Jerusalem. Greeks love great teachers and posed an option to Jesus I presume to come to Athens, the seat of Knowledge. This was the urge of self-preservation. Here Jesus makes the choice of the Cross over the Seat of knowledge. Before he exemplified his sacrifice on the Cross he stated “Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” Jesus challenges our understanding of life where we feel securing ourselves and preserving our lives is the goal and objective of living.  Jesus showed that life is understood in sharing, sacrificing and letting go of things that we cling to.” After saying this he immediately demonstrated what he meant

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. (John 13: 3-5) For him power meant to share and to serve.

Now let us look at our lives. We are chasing our career. Good. We did the best course. Good. We got our dream Job. Good. But still we feel burnt out. We still dread Mondays. The most common complaint on facebook is the dread of Mondays. Why? Our wine has run dry.

We have married our dream partners. We have had a wonderful wedding and a great honeymoon. Life seems on a song. But still loving looks more of a work than play. There are tensions about children growing up. Tension in parent-child relationship. Our wine has run dry.

As a child we were taught to share. We laughed. We cried. When we became adults we have lost touch with all these factors. Obsessed with getting ahead in life we are on our own.   We can’t share. We can’t laugh. We can’t cry. Our calculations have gone for a toss. We have hit the wall. Our Wine has run dry.

What does Mary do? She tells the servants “Do whatever he tells you?” Exactly. Do whatever Jesus tells us to do when the wine has run dry. And what does he say? “…, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” The ritual cleansing was so important that 6 jars were separated only for that. Jesus asks the servants to forget about ritual cleansing. These jars are used so that water is filled to the brim. It is this water that Jesus turns to wine for sharing and celebration. It is in giving up, sharing and celebration we find the true meaning of life. Human effort can gather water. That we must do. But it is the transformative touch of Jesus that turns water into wine. Our life is like the water. It is good enough. It serves the purpose. We can carry on. But that is not what God wants. He does not want good enough. He wants the best. But only by doing what Jesus asks us, by sharing, caring and celebrating, the water will be transformed into wine.

There is an old Nigerian folk tale...

The tale tells of how the tribal chief sent out his messengers to invite all of the people of the tribe to a great feast.  “All of the food will be provided,” they announced, “but each family must bring one jug of palm wine.”  One of the men of the tribe, Ezra, wanted to attend the great festival very much, but he had no wine.  He paced the floor trying to think of a solution for his dilemma.  Finally his wife suggested, “You could buy a jug of wine.  It is not too expensive for such a great occasion.”  “How foolish,” Ezra cried, “to spend money when there is a way to go free.”  Once again he paced until he came upon a plan.  “Rather than wine I will carry water in my jug.  Several hundred men will attend the festival.  What will it hurt to add one jug of water to the great pot of wine?” On the day of the feast the tribal drums began to beat early in the morning, reminding the people of the great festival.  All of the people came dressed in their finest clothes, gathering by midmorning at the home of the chief.  As each man entered the tribal ground, he poured his jug of wine into a large earthen pot. Ezra carefully poured the contents of his container into the pot, greeted the chief, and joined the dancers.   When all of the guests had arrived, the chief commanded the music to cease and ordered the servants to fill everyone’s glass with wine.  As the chief spoke the opening words of the festival, all of the guests raised their glasses and drank.  Suddenly a cry of disbelief arose from the crowd, and they quickly drank again.  What they tasted was not wine, but water. It seems each guest had decided that his one jug of water could not spoil the great pot of palm wine.

In our life of fellowship and community we need to serve, we need to share; we need to contribute, we need to sacrifice, and to give up. Or else the wine will run dry. In the society we live in, we like to condemn and blame the society. But we are not ready to invest or contribute to build the Kingdom of God.

“Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” John 12: 25. Friends the Great Lent is the time to stop. To take a pause. To know why the wine has gone dry. It is a time to re-orient our lives. To do what Jesus says. To serve. To care. To share. This lent let us find out how we can share. How we can serve. How we can make a difference. How we can build relationships. May the Lord Bless us in our journey. Amen.  

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

Ephphatha: Lord Open Us UP

Text: Mark 7: 24- 37

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet.  The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs. “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.”  She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue.  He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”).  At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Message

There are two miracles that we are going to deal with. In the first part Jesus is in the Gentile area of Tyre. One must assume Jesus was here on a retreat, to rest. His weariness was very evident in his response too. It was in such a context that a Syro- Phoenician woman arrives for the healing of her daughter.  It is said that she begs Jesus. We will have also read Matthew 15: 21- 28. To the request of the woman there response of Jesus was,Jesus did not answer a word (Matthew 15: 23). Here Jesus behaves as if he had not heard the woman’s plea. When the disciples insist he answered “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” (Matthew 15: 24) When the woman insists and pleads further Jesus answered “First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” (Mark 7: 27). What? Jesus said that? We have to understand that Jesus is fully God and fully Man. Here Jesus displays his self-understanding and mission which was till then only restricted to the Jews. There is where the answer of the Syro- Phoenician woman is important. “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” ( Mark 7: 28). This is what moves Jesus to heal the daughter of a Gentile woman. This is the “Ephphatha” moment for Jesus where he opens up from his ethnic understanding of ministry. He reaches out. In a way when Jesus was acting deaf towards her, the woman opened up Jesus ears. When Jesus spoke words that did not heal, the woman loosened his tongue to proclaim words of healing. The greatness of Jesus was he was ready to be opened by a gentile woman.

After this encounter Jesus goes to again a Gentile area of Decapolis. Here some people bring a deaf man who can hardly speak so that Jesus can heal. There are all possibilities that this man was a gentile. Jesus took him away from the crowd and put his fingers into the deaf man’s ear. Here Jesus is communicating with the deaf man. By putting his fingers he was communicating the act of healing. His spit on the tongue signified loosening so that the man with labored speech could speak clearly. Then Jesus looked up to heaven with a deep sigh and said “Ephphatha” which was the Aramic word for open up. My humble observation is that these two miracles are interlinked where the first miracle is the Syro- Phoenician Woman facilitated the “Ephphatha” of Jesus ministry and attitudes. The second miracle helped Jesus to reach out the gentiles and open up the Deaf man who had a labored speech.

I remember that when I joined for Masters in Social Work (M.S.W.)in 2003 I had so many prejudices that made me a very closed person. There were many students who were from the rural belt of Maharashtra and I as an urbanite felt it was below my dignity to interact with them. When everybody in the class ate lunch sitting on the floor I decided to sit on the chair. I only associated myself with the English speaking urban people. Best thing was I was not even aware of this discriminatory behavior of mine. It is when one of my friends Sangharsh challenged me at this point. He observed this inherent contradiction in my behavior and confronted me. This confrontation was not easy to digest. I also was in no mood to accept that I had done something wrong. Sangharsh is a person filled with passion for justice for the people who are oppressed. During our course itself he started living in the slums to understand the problem of the people.  It is in association with him and his commitment to the Dalits and needy that I could slowly accept my closed behavior. My friendship with him was the Ephphatha moment for me in my life. This helped me overcome my elitism in some sense. It helped me realize my disability sprouted from my attitude towards people. If one wishes to be effective Christians and human beings we have to open up. We have to realize that the prejudices that we hold against people and communities does not reflect who they are but is just a mirror reflection of who we are.

As a church too we need to open up. We love to have mission fields in far off places like Tibetan border, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. We are also ready to support it. But how far have we been able to make an impact in the places where we have our churches. The questions posed by Rev Sunil George Mathew at the Delhi Diocese Clergy Conference were:  How are we associated with the larger benefits of the Society? How many from the church are ready to send their children as doctors to places where there is no medical facility? How many are ready to send their children as social activists and social workers? As writers who challenge the system? What are we doing to address the spectrum of disabilities that the society is facing? With the rise in sexual crime against women, how have we responded?Are we using the Government Welfare Schemes for the larger benefit? Are we engaging with the panchayat? Before the Great lent begins, let these questions challenge us.

 Let us pray. “Lord we have turned Lukewarm. Our hearts are closed. Our eyes are closed. Our ears are closed. Our Mouth is shut. Lord we pray that you touch our heart. You touch our eyes. You put your fingers in our ears. Lord with your spit, loosen our tongues. Let us hear you say “Ephphatha”. Lord open us up. Amen”

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Guwahati

Daiva Suthar: Children of God

Text:Romans 8: 12- 17

Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba,Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Message

This passage shows the Trinitarian nature of God. Trinity is a very important doctrine, so let me emphasize it before I concentrate on the passage above. There is always trouble in understanding the Trinity. Trinity emphasizes that God is one in three persons. That sounds like a paradox. The Infinity of God is beyond our understanding. But in the Three persons, God reveals three aspects of God-head, so that we can comprehend him. Bishop Kalistose Ware in his book The Orthodox Way explains the 3 Aspects or Persons in the following manner:

A) God Who is Beyond Us. God said to Moses, “I am who I am.[a] This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3: 14) This answer will help us understand that Moses here was trying to make God more tangible for the people. He wanted to accommodate God in the concepts of humans. But God cannot be domesticated or accommodated in our boxes of thoughts. “I am That I Am” can also be translated from Hebrew as “I Will Be Who I Will Be”. It points to a Dynamic God who is on the move and beyond our grasp. There are many things in our life that makes no sense to us. Many things is beyond our reach. We did not decide to be born on our own terms choosing our parents. We do not even choose our death. It is beyond us. When everything is fine in our lives something disturbing happens and we just do not know what the meaning of this is. There are so many aspects of our planning that has gone for a toss. We have to have the humility to accept that “God is beyond us and our understandings”. This is not a very comforting thought for a control freak generation like us. But accepting this reality helps us to open ourselves to many realities in lives. It helps us to fight against our patterned thinking and minds filled with hatred.

B) God Who is With Us. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. (John 1: 14 a). This passage like Matthew 1: 17 shows Emmanuel: God with us. Humans always struggle with uncertainties and change. If God Beyond us helps us to accept this reality, God who is with us helps us to deal with this reality. God has given assurance that he is always with us. God who suffers with us, who cries with us, who celebrates with us. In a world where we see purposelessness written writ all over the place, God who is with us gives meaning and purpose to our life.  Viktor Frankl says that “in the madness of the concentration camp where humans became beasts, the God who was with me helped me to carry on. I was not alone. I had hope. Friends we live in times where feeling lonely and alienated is very easy. With the boom in technology and communication one realizes that this does not assure fellowship and brotherhood but has pushed people to depression and acute loneliness. Let us remember that we are not alone. We have a God who is travelling with us. We are not alone.

C) God who is Within us: Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. ( 1 Corinthians 6: 19.) Philip Yancey says that on the day of the Pentecost, the Holy Spirit took residence in our flawed and sinful human body. Holy Spirit lives within us. It is the Holy Spirit that helps us discern the presence of God in world that denies the very existence of God. There are moments in life that devastate us. We do not know what to do. We do not know what to pray for. We doubt ourselves. In such a moment the verse that gives me comfort and assurance is “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” (Romans 8: 26)

Well with that let us focus on the passage before us. Paul is talking about our slavery to flesh. We are slaves of our desires and think only of ourselves. This leads to a slavery of self-gratification where fellowship and relationship is just a means to fulfill our desires. It is here where Paul reminds us that by the Spirit of God we become the Children of God. “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ( Romans 8: 15). The Holy Spirit has called us to be Sons and Daughters of God. It has called us to be in relationship and in perpetual love. My mentor Rev Sunny George says that the chant before the Holy Qurbana “Daiva Suthar……” conveys this meaning of adoption. “Daiva Suthar Naam Aayiduvaan, Jeevigalayi Nadanapol”. It says of the work of the Holy Spirit that has called us from our state of beastly nature (Jeevigalayi) to the possibility and grace of being the Children of God (Daiva Suthar).

After the Delhi rape case, Cousin of my wife, Vanessa updated on facebook as follows “Well the World did not end on 21st December 2012. So what? Humanity ended long ago. We live in times where calling humans as beasts is an insult to the beasts. It is in such times Paul reminds us that the Holy Spirit has transformed us to be Children of God. This is just not a word of comfort. It is a call to be responsible human beings.

Yesterday when I was travelling in the train I happened to see the movie Schindler’s List. I was so moved by this movie of a man who was a Nazi official. He was a German industrialist who exploited the German invasion of Poland. He used the opportunities in Krakow by employing Jews in an enamel ware factory. He made a fortune out of sheer ambition. He bribed and looted people to get away in his business. His only reason to employ Jews was nothing noble. Jewish labour cost less. He was a favorite of the Nazi SS and was their frequent guest. While witnessing a 1943 raid on the Kraków Ghetto, where soldiers were used to round up the inhabitants for shipment to the concentration camp at Płaszów, Schindler was appalled by the murder of many of the Jews who had been working for him. This encounter changed him. He now tried to save the Jews who worked for him. He bribed and used his influence to get his work done. In the context of war he had to shut down the Factory of enamel ware. He therefore schemed to start an Ammunition factory where he had a list of Jews typed by his assistant Ishaq Stern. He listed 1, 100 Jews and they became part of his factory. Wives, children, and even persons with disability were shown to be necessary mechanics and metalworkers. His factory was a place where Jews were treated with utmost dignity, they were allowed to pray and follow the Sabbath. What was the most moving part of the movie was when in the end Schindler had to escape he cries as he believes he could have saved more Jews. He says “If I had sold my car I could have saved 10 more Jews”. Oskar Schindler died as a penniless man but solely responsible for the survival of a generation of Jews called the Schindler Jews.

We live in times where we see no hope. But the Holy Spirit calls us to be “Daiva Suthar”. It is a comfort but moreover it is a commission and a responsibility to realize the Kingdom of God. As it is said “Today we do not need successful people. We need people who are comforters, healers, story tellers and prophets.” May Triune God lead us on.

Rev Merin Mathew

Mar Thoma Syrian Church
Guwahati