GOOD NEWS!

September 21, 2010
Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
Matthew 9:9-13

Good News and Bad News:

“Good news is bad news, bad news is good news, no news is bad news”. This is the journalistic principle on which the media firms operate. This media law implies that good news (positive stories, pleasant happenings) is bad news for media, for they do not spiral subscription (audience)ratings. Bad news (negative stories, war, kidnapping, terrorist acts, violence and sufferings) is always good news for the media firms for they have the highest viewership ratings and there by they bring in the highest revenue. Media feeds on bad news--breaking stories--on which people are hooked. No news (news blackout, status quo, peaceful situation) is bad news for the media firms because such situations bring them little revenue. This “news principle” is based on the human tendency to magnify what is perceived to be bad, evil and unacceptable. Indeed, our media today thrives on bad news. And humanity seems to be happy being hooked on to bad news.

Against such “culture of bad news”, Jesus came ushering in a culture of good news. The story of Jesus—the Gospel is the Good News. Jesus not only gave us the good news of the Kingdom of God, He also became the Good News for us. Indeed, the message and the person of Jesus are identical, and hence is the Eternal Good News for the entire human race.

We celebrate today the feast of Mathew, the Apostle and Evangelist. Mathew was drawn to the Good News that Jesus is, accepted the call of the Gospel and became a proclaimer and channel of the Good News as he encoded the Gospel for the generations to come.

But not everyone thought of Jesus as good news. When the sinners, outcasts, tax collectors and the untouchables sensed the presence of God in Jesus and were happy moving with Him, eating with Him and making friends with Him, the Pharisees and scribes saw Jesus as a bad news. They were shocked by the scandalous behavior of Jesus in being friends with the sinners and sharing intimate moments with them in their table fellowship.

The Triple Hearts:

The story of the call of Mathew is a revelation of the heart of God, the heart of the sinner and the heart of the Pharisees.

The Heart of Jesus:

Jesus is comfortable with the socially outcasts and the public sinners. He feels drawn towards the repentant sinners so much that He recognizes His purpose of incarnation as one exclusively for the sinners. He feels welcome and acceptance in their midst. He feels happy when the sinners turn to Him. He opens His heart and reveals His mercy. Merciful and compassionate is the heart of Jesus. His heart delights not so much in sacrifices and prayers, but more so in mercy and compassion. This is why He dared to do the unpopular and “scandalous” in calling Mathew, a tax collector into the inner circle of His disciples, to be with Him and to be sent out. In the call of Mathew, Jesus is calling all the sinners to Him. The heart of Jesus is the ultimate refuge and solace for all the sinners. Now I have hope, I am welcome and accepted in the presence of God. A repentant sinner is the Good News for Jesus.

The Heart of a Repentant Sinner:

Even as the repentant sinner is the delight of the Lord, the heart of the repentant sinner is open for the grace and mercy of God. Mathew knew his identity in the society as a tax-collector. He does not seem to be too happy living with that identity. His heart longed for more. And He found Jesus. Or rather, it was Jesus who found Him. At the spark of His grace, Mathew’s heart leaped for joy. Jesus called Him, he responded with gratitude. Mathew had a heart so simple, unassuming and receptive. His heart was full of gratitude for the immense mercy Jesus poured on Him. In calling a man like Mathew with a history of disrepute, Jesus did not make a mistake. The Divine heart of mercy found a receptive, humble, generous heart of a sinner. Mathew became a good news for Jesus.

The Heart of the Pharisee:

The Pharisee is a symbol of self-righteousness. His self-imposed image of being the standard bearer of the society and the prince of God makes him arrogant and rude. The norm of perfection is himself. Such great pride in his heart impels him to be a perennial critic of everyone other than himself. This is why He would think that he is holy, so holy that even God Himself is unholy. His heart feels bad that Jesus is imperfect because He makes friends with the sinners and eats with the “unclean” people. His heart is closed to the light of Christ and the streams of grace. Mercy and compassion have no place in his heart. He feels that he is so good that He does not need the grace and forgiveness of God. His heart is beyond redemption. Jesus finds helpless in saving such a heart. Indeed, His mercy is for the sinners, those who consider themselves sick, in need of His healing grace.

Points to Ponder:

What heart do I have? Do I have the heart of Jesus, a heart full of compassion, mercy and love? Do I have the heart of an Apostle and evangelist, delighting in the heart of Jesus, grateful and proclaiming His grace? How open and receptive is my heart towards the forgiving grace of the Lord? How eagerly do I long for and how spontaneously do I give up my “sinful practices” at the call of the Lord? In what areas and situations of my life do I exhibit the pharisaic heart? How do I handle the itch to criticize everyone and demand that everyone should conform to my attitudes and mentality? Am I a promoter of Good News or bad news?

IMPRESSIVE TO JESUS

August 24, 2010
Feast of Saint Bartholomew, Apostle

John 1:45-51

Nathanael was an impressive person. Andrew found him impressive and brought him to Jesus. Jesus found him impressive, even much before he came to Him, and offered him the vision of great things. Jesus was impressed with this rare quality of Nathanael: his innocence, non-duplicity and truthfulness. In the course of events, Nathanael became a changed person. He was now fully impressed with Jesus. He committed his life for Him. From a casual visit to his friend Andrew, Nathanael was led through an unimpressive story about Jesus, to the presence and gaze of Jesus, to the gift of discipleship.

Andrew became the vocation promoter of Nathanael. He employed two tactics in bringing Nathanael to Jesus: Reason and experience. Nathanael took his religion seriously. He knew the scriptures, and cared for the study of scripture. So Andrew opens before him a theological discussion. Since the time Jesus called him, Andrew moved with Jesus, stayed with Him and learned from Him. He was convinced that Jesus is the Messiah whom Israel awaited. Andrew shared with Nathanael this conviction he had, and corroborated it with the strength of scriptural references. Yet, Nathanael is not convinced. Probably he knew the scriptures much better than Andrew. So he stumps Andrew with the question, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Andrew stopped the argumentation. He now used the second tactic: Have a personal experience of Jesus—“Come, and see”. Nathanael accepted this call. He went and saw. But he was surprised to realize that even before he had “come” and “seen” Jesus, the Lord has had already “seen” him! Jesus has seen his past and present. He also reveals to him his future—that Jesus and Nathanael will have the same destiny! Nathanael complimented the vision of Jesus with His commitment to follow Jesus and make His vision true.

We are the apostles of Christ today. Like Andrew, we need to invite people—beginning with those of our friends, relatives and family members—to Jesus. Is it not our experience that we find it difficult to convince them to come to the Lord—to the church, to the daily/Sunday mass and to other sacraments? If you have tried all your catechism and failed to convince people to come to Jesus, try the second tactic of Andrew. Just tell them, “come and see”. We only need to invite them to the Lord. Once they are in His presence, they will be “impressed” by the Lord. He will change them and make them his inner circle of disciples.

As an apostle of Christ, do I take the mission of inviting people to Jesus?
How far does the comment of Jesus “A true child of God, in whom there is no duplicity” apply to me?
When was the last time I realized the gaze of Jesus in my life?