On the occasion of the call of Matthew the Tax Collector (in Matthew 9:9-13), a number of tax collectors and sinners were gathered at table with Jesus in Matthew's house. The Pharisees and Scribes of course complained that Jesus who was supposed to be a holy man, a prophet and a Rabbi would associate closely with such a public sinner. But Jesus told them: "It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. Go and learn the meaning of the words (of Scripture): What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I came to call, not the upright, but sinners." Such is the human face of God as revealed in Christ Jesus whom Matthew got to know and love very dearly. He not only became an apostle, but also used his writing skills to put on record all he knew and heard about Jesus. That is why we have today the Gospel of St. Matthew.
In several other gospel stories, Jesus is presented to us as the compassionate One who brings God to His people, and leads the people to their God. He is the Good Samaritan who demonstrates selfless love to a total stranger; the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for his sheep; the servant-leader who comes not to be served, but to serve; the master who stoops down to wash the feet of his disciples. Jesus is the Liberator who saves the woman caught in adultery from her callous would-be executioners; the Healer who brings health to the sick; and the Redeemer who gives life back to sinners who were doomed for death. The Gospels demonstrate sufficiently that Jesus is indeed the true face of a loving, merciful and compassionate God.
And how do we react to this? How are we supposed to relate to a God whose other name is love? Let invite all those who are alienated from God by virtue of a life of sin see how dearly our compassionate God loves them. Yes, let all those who do not love God, know that the good Lord nevertheless loves them dearly. Let all those who do not believe in God know that the merciful God never ceases believing in them. Let all those who live practically like atheists, or who declare themselves atheists, know that the God of Jesus Christ nonetheless believes in them.
The love of our God is long-suffering and his patience is persevering for everyone. So even if on account of a prolonged life of sin we consider ourselves lost, and others like the Pharisees and the Scribes of old consider us lost, God's love continues to energise his hope that one day we would return to him, like the prodigal son. He is a Father who never gives up on any of his children. This is why he has sent his Son into the world to die for our sins.
The parables of Jesus regarding God's boundless love and compassion, including the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin and the Parable of the Lost Son, (Luke 15:1-31) should provoke a deep sentiment of gratitude within us towards God who is so generous with forgiveness and wasteful with love. The parables should also generate within us a commitment to the quality of love and forgiveness demonstrated by the heavenly Father, towards our fellowmen and women.
As Christians we must never lose sight of the fact that Christ came into the world, suffered and died on the Cross, and rose again in order to establish a new civilization that is characterized by loving forgiveness, mercy and compassion. Christian discipleship means - among other elements - giving loud witness to God's mercy, forgiveness and compassion in our own lives.
I have been thinking a great deal about my experience at Reconciliation this past Saturday. I felt an intense and unexplainable urge to go and confess my sins when I woke up that morning. I try to go every six weeks or so, but this was no routine visit to the priest for me. I needed to unburden myself of the numerous venial sins I had committed since I last participated in this Sacrament.
Purest Gold: God's Refining Fire in our Lives »
After salvation, many young Christians wonder if there's anything more to their newfound faith than just the security blanket of "being a Christian." Time and time again, God shows himself as a "refiner," and our lives are as gold. God started leading me in this study to understand what He was doing in my life, as well as in the lives of others.
Picking up my pen to write this column, I couldn’t imagine how time flies. Since the last publication of this column I have gone through a lot, especially the loss of my dear mother to whom I dedicate this article. Not only her, but seems I lost a whole generation of my close family.
How to Achieve Business Excellence »
“Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before Kings; He will not stand before unknown men.” Proverbs 22:29
Spiritual Development for our Youth »
Most of us youth in today's fast moving world are easily thrown off by difficulties and worries.
The theme of conversion is a thread that runs all through Lent, but conversion takes on different aspects throughout the phases of Lent. The first two and a half weeks focused on the interior turning of hearts; the liturgy urges the faithful to reflect and examine consciences thoroughly.
Saint Josephine Bakhita »
Feast Day: February 8
Patron Saint Of: Sudan
Saint Josephine Margaret Bakhita was born around 1869 in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of Sudan. She was a member of the Daju people and her uncle was a tribal chief. Due to her family lineage, she grew up happy and relatively prosperous, saying that as a child, she did not know suffering.
Catholics Must Fast More Intensely This Lent»
The Norbertine Canons of St. Michael's Abbey have created this digital Lenten retreat so that you can journey through this holy season alongside them. If you want to have one of your best Lenten seasons yet, join us in our Lenten Program "The Great Fast" - https://theabbotscircle.com/the-great-fast-join
When Your Faith Is Put to the Test - Bishop Barron's Sunday Sermon»
Friends, we come now to the Second Sunday of Lent, and we’re on both dangerous and very holy ground with the first reading from the twenty-second chapter of Genesis. The ancient Israelites referred to it as the “Akedah,” which means the “binding”: Abraham binds and is ready to sacrifice Isaac at God’s command.
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