Tues 16 June What are you doing exceptional?

Matthew 5:43-48

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’

Food for thought!

What are you doing exceptional? This is the question that Jesus made then and makes now to all those, like you and me, who claim to be his followers. What more than others are we doing? Is there any difference between other people and we, Christians? Are we different in any way? Is there anything we do different? Is there any difference between you, a Christian, and your neighbour, a non-believer? This is real food for thought.
Why does Jesus demand that we be different? The reason is very simple and tremendous: it is that our role model is not just human but divine; we cannot compare ourselves to other humans, but to our Father in heaven. Our heavenly Father makes his sun to rise on the good and the bad; he sends his rain on the just and the unjust. Have you ever noticed that the rain fell on the field of A, who was righteous, and not on the field of B, who was wicked? Or that the sun rose and shone on your home and not upon your enemy's home?
Jesus says that we must have this same love of our Father in heaven. The language in which the Bible was written is not rich in adjectives; it often uses the expression “son of...” with an abstract noun where we would normally use an adjective. For instance a son of peace is a peaceful man; a son of consolation is a consoling man. So, the expression “Son of God” means a godly man. The reason why we must be godly is because of our God; and godly people can only become nothing less than sons of God.
What more than others are you doing? This same question can be applied to all other forms of life, even to our professional life, even our social life. If you run your business just like anybody else does, your business will be like anybody's business. If your life is like anybody's life, you will be like anybody. Ordinary actions get ordinary results. Most people are by definition, ordinary, they are just like anybody else. If you continue to be ordinary and act ordinarily, you will continue to get ordinary results. If you want extraordinary results in your life, your family or your business, you must act extraordinarily in that area.

Don't hit back at all!

Matthew 5:38-42

Jesus said: "Here's another old saying that deserves a second look: 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.'39 Is that going to get us anywhere? Here's what I propose: 'Don't hit back at all. 'If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. 40 If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, gift-wrap your best coat and make a present of it. 41 And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. 42 No more tit- for- tat stuff. Live generously.

Food for thought!

RESIST not evil and it will decrease. Fight it and it will increase!

Here is a statement of one of the great laws of our being. When we resist we make a mental image of the thing we are fighting, and that tends to have it created for us. When we fight our enemies we make them into heroes. When we learn to look only at what we want and never at what we do not want, we will no longer resist anything.

This is a statement of eternal truth. It means that whatever man sets in mind will be returned to him, even as he has conceived within himself and brought forth into manifestation. If we wish to transcend old thoughts and feelings we must rise above them and think higher things. When we desire only the good, the evil slips from us and returns no more.

Jesus forbade the tit for tat law because retaliation has no place in the Christian life. He gives examples.

He says that if anyone smites us on the right cheek we must turn to him the other cheek also. There is far more here than meets the eye, far more than a mere matter of blows on the face. Suppose a right-handed man is standing in front of another man, and suppose he wants to slap the other man on the right cheek, how must he do it? Unless he goes through the most complicated contortions, and unless he empties the blow of all force, he can hit the other man's cheek only in one way--with the back of his hand. Now according to Jews (Jesus' people) to hit a man with the back of the hand was very insulting. So, then, what Jesus is saying is this: "Even if a man should direct at you the most deadly and calculated insult, like slapping you with the back of the hand, you must on no account retaliate, and you must on no account resent it."

It will not happen very often, if at all, that anyone will slap us on the face, but time and time again life brings to us insults either great or small; and Jesus is here saying that the true Christian has learned to resent no insult and not to seek retaliation at all. Jesus himself was called a gluttonous man and a drunkard;  was called the friend of tax-gatherers and prostitutes, with the implication that he was like the company he kept. Jesus was even acused of being an agent of Belzebub,  the devil.

The true Christian has learned from his Master to receive insults and never to retaliate; to offer the wicked man no resistance. Now you may ask: are our enemies going to go away with it? No. Remember what the Lord says in Deuteronomy 32:35, "Vengeance is mine. I will repay." So let us not take vengeance into our hands; it is God's right and duty. Those who wrong us will pay for it in due time from the Lord.

What story shall I use to illustrate the kingdom of God?

Mark 4:26-34


“Here is another story illustrating what the Kingdom of God is like: “A farmer sowed his field and went away, and as the days went by, the seeds grew and grew without his help. For the soil made the seeds grow. First a leaf blade pushed through, and later the heads of wheat formed, and finally the grain ripened, and then the farmer came at once with his sickle and harvested it.” Jesus asked, “How can I describe the Kingdom of God? What story shall I use to illustrate it? It is like a tiny mustard seed! Though this is one of the smallest of seeds, yet it grows to become one of the largest of plants, with long branches where birds can build their nests and be sheltered.” He used many such illustrations to teach the people as much as they were ready to understand. In fact, he taught only by illustrations in his public teaching, but afterwards, when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain his meaning to them.

Food for thought!

Wow! Are we that helpless? Jesus today is both revealing our helplessness and our hopefulness. We are helpless in that there are things we don't know and we can't know; there are things we have no idea how they happen. Look at the farmer in the gospel reading: de does not make the seed grow, he does not even understand how it grows. This knowledge is hidden from the farmer. It is the secret of life. Nobody has ever possessed the secret of life; no one has ever created anything in the full sense of the term "create". We can discover things; we can rearrange them; we can develop them; but creating them we cannot. This is how helpless we are.

I want you to look at the Book of Revelation, chapter 5 to see our helplessness. «I saw a scroll in the right hand of the One Seated on the Throne. It was written on both sides, fastened with seven seals. I also saw a powerful Angel, calling out in a voice like thunder, «Is there anyone who can open the scroll, who can break its seals?» There was no one—no one in Heaven, no one on earth, no one from the underworld—able to break open the scroll and read it. I wept and wept and wept that no one was found able to open the scroll, able to read it. One of the Elders said, «Do not cry! The Lion of the tribe of Judah has won the battle. He is the Root of David. He is able to break the seven seals and open the scroll.»

This is why today's gospel reading says that Jesus «taught only by illustrations in his public teaching, but afterwards, when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain his meaning to them.» It means that each one of us is a story, he is a parable, a difficult parable, that only Jesus can explain to us. We are a sealed book that no one can unseal, not even ourselves; only Jesus. All our ups and downs, all our victories, all our failures, all our sins, all that happens in OUR life, is a parable waiting to be revealed by Jesus. Yes, like he did long ago to his disciples,  Jesus can explain everything to us, in private. Yes, it is in private that he will tell you. Imagine if the Lord told in public what each of us is and has ever done in our life! Thank God that he only tells us in private, so that no one else come to know us except the Lord. To him be our praise and honor and thanksgiving and glory, for ever.

Joseph, the silent man

Luke 2:41-51!

Every year the parents of Jesus used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up for the feast as usual. When they were on their way home after the feast, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem without his parents knowing it. They assumed he was with the caravan, and it was only after a day’s journey that they went to look for him among their relations and acquaintances. When they failed to find him they went back to Jerusalem looking for him everywhere. Three days later, they found him in the Temple, sitting among the doctors, listening to them, and asking them questions; and all those who heard him were astounded at his intelligence and his replies. They were overcome when they saw him, and his mother said to him, ‘My child, why have, you done this to us? See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.’ ‘Why were you looking for me?’ he replied ‘Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?’ But they did not understand what he meant. He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority.

Food for thought!

Today, let's remember and celebrate St. Joseph, the patron of silence and silent people. In all the Gospels we don't find any word ever spoken by Joseph; he speaks by his silence. St. Joseph reminds us of the gift of silence, the importance of silence, the use of silence. Yes, even silent people can talk to us, not by mouth and words but by their silence.

In today's Gospel reading, who does the talking is the woman, Mary. The gospel says, "When his parents saw him, they were astonished." Both Joseph and Mary were astonished; both wondered, but only Mary spoke out. Yes, Mary was an outspoken lady. Women, don't be afraid to talk; men, don't be afraid not to talk. Let your Mary do the talking because many times she knows better. Jesus' mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you." Your father and I! Isn't this amazing? That Mary talks in the name and on behalf of Joseph!

Back to silence and silent people. Joseph should remind us that sometimes the best response is silence; that sometimes we do well to stay silent; that we don't have to open our mouth all the time. In fact, the lesss you say, the more profound and mysterious you appear. You have more power when you shut up.

By saying less than necessary you create the appearance of meaning and power. Also, the less you say, the less risk you run of saying something foolish, even dangerous. Learn the lesson: once the words are out, you cannot take them back. So like Joseph, keep your words under control.

Those who are attentive enough, like Mary was attentive to Joseph, can understand our words of silence and our silent words and our silent suffering and our silent anxiety. St. Joseph, patron of silence and of silent people, pray for us, now and at the hour of our death. St. Joseph is also the patron of the dying!

He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins!

John 19:31-37

Since it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a very important day) the Jews asked Pilate to break their limbs, and to have the bodies removed. So the soldiers came, and they broke the limbs of the first criminal, and of the other who had been crucified with him. When they came to Jesus, and when they saw that he was already dead, they did not break his limbs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately water and blood came forth. And he who saw it is a witness to this, and his word is true. And he knows that he is speaking the truth, that you also may believe. These things happened that the passage of scripture which says: &His bone shall not be broken,& should be fulfilled. And again another passage says: "They shall see him whom they have pierced."

Food for thought!


In one thing the Jews were more merciful than the Romans. When the Romans carried out crucifixion under their own customs, the victim was simply left to die on the cross. He might hang for days in the heat of the midday sun and the cold of the night, tortured by thirst and tortured also by the gnats and the flies crawling in the weals on his torn back. Often men died raving mad on their crosses. Nor did the Romans bury the bodies of crucified criminals. They simply took them down and let the vultures and the crows and the dogs feed upon them.

A grim method was used to despatch criminals who lingered on. Their limbs were smashed with a mallet. That was done to the criminals who were crucified with Jesus, but mercifully he was spared that, for he was already dead. The sparing of Jesus is a fulfillment of an Old Testament passage. It was laid down of the Passover lamb that not a bone of it should be broken (Num.9:12). Jesus was indeed our Passover Lamb who delivers his people from death.

There is something that happened with Jesus at death. When the soldiers saw that Jesus was already dead they did not break his limbs with the mallet; but one of them, it must have been to make doubly sure that Jesus was dead, thrust a spear into his side. And there flowed out water and blood. This too was in fulfilment of the prophecy in Zech.12:10: "They look on him whom they have pierced."

We cannot be sure why blood and water flowed together out of Jesus' heart. It may well be that Jesus died literally of a broken heart. Normally, of course, the body of a dead man will not bleed. It is possible that what happened was that Jesus' experiences, physical and emotional, were so terrible that his heart was ruptured. When that happened the blood of the heart mingled with the fluid of the pericardium which surrounds the heart. The spear of the soldier pierced the pericardium and the mingled fluid and blood came forth. It is quite possible that Jesus, in the literal sense of the term, died of a broken heart. And if so, it was the final, unanswerable proof that Jesus was a real man with a real body. Here was proof that Jesus was bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh.

So, today as we mark today the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,  let us be thankful of Jesus and his sacrifice for us. For as Isaiah 53:4-6 says,

"It was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all."

You have learnt but Jesus says...!

Matthew 5:20-26



*Jesus said to his disciples, If your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven. ‘You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not kill; and if anyone does kill he must answer for it before the court. But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, "You fool!" shall be liable to the hell of fire. So then, if you are bringing your offering to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, go and be reconciled with your brother first, and then come back and present your offering. Come to terms with your opponent in good time while you are still on the way to the court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I tell you solemnly, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.’*

Food for thought!

"You have learnt … But I say to you."

In these few words, Jesus shows us that he knows that we have other teachers, other instructors, besides him. He says, "You have learnt!" This means that indeed, there are other teachers in this world, besides Jesus. He knows it. This is not the point, however. The point is that notwithstanding what we have learnt from whoever has taught us, Jesus wants us to drop that teaching and adopt his teaching. That is why he says:
"You gave learnt... But I say to you."

This saying means that regardles of what we have learnt, regardles of what the world says…Jesus teaches us something else. Yes, Jesus sometimes contradicts us in what we know, in what we do. For instance, Jesus is saying that it is not enough not to commit murder, not to still, not to speak evil of others; it is equally important not to think of murder, not to think of stealing, not to think evil of others. It may be that we have never struck another person; but who can say that he never wished to strike another person? It was Jesus' teaching that thoughts are just as important as deeds, and that it is not enough not to commit a sin; the only thing that is enough is not to wish to commit sin in the first place.

It is Jesus' teaching that we are not judged only by our deeds; we are judged even more by our thoughts which never translate into deeds. By the world's standards a man is a good man, if he never does a forbidden thing. By Jesus' standards, goodness and evil start not with our deeds but with our thoughts. **Jesus is intensely concerned with our thoughts, with what goes on in our mind. **

Pause to examine your thought patterns from time to time. As Henry H. Buckley said, “Keep your thoughts right—for as you think, so you are. Thoughts are things, therefore, think only the things that will make the world better and you unashamed.” The Bible says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). And a proverb from the Buddhist Tripitaka reminds us, “All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts and is made up of our thoughts.”

Almost everything that we use and come in contact with each day was originally a thought. For example, the pens, chewing gum, magazines, textbooks, candy, ice cream, telephones, television, radios and computers, houses and schools, churches, and so much more, were once thoughts, ideas, theories, and dreams; they all came into being as thoughts in someone’s mind.

Philippians (4:8), *“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”*

Remember by Telling!

Matthew 5:17-19

Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Do not imagine that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete them. I tell you solemnly, till heaven and earth disappear, not one dot, not one little stroke, shall disappear from the Law until its purpose is achieved. Therefore, the man who infringes even one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be considered the least in the kingdom of heaven; but the man who keeps them and teaches them will be considered great in the kingdom of heaven.’ Trivialize even the smallest item in God's Law and you will only have trivialized yourself. But take it seriously, tell it to others, and you will find honor in the kingdom.
 

In the Old Testament, we find this reading from Deuteronomy 4:1,5-9

Moses said to the people: Now listen, Israel, listen carefully to the rules and regulations that I am teaching you to follow so that you may live and enter and take possession of the land that God, the God-of-Your-Fathers, is giving to you. 5-6 Pay attention: I'm teaching you the rules and regulations that God commanded me, so that you may live by them in the land you are entering to take up ownership. Keep them. Practice them. You'll become wise and understanding. When people hear and see what's going on, they'll say, "What a great nation! So wise, so understanding! We've never seen anything like it."

9 Just make sure you stay alert. Keep close watch over yourselves. Don't forget anything of what you've seen. Don't let your heart wander off. Stay vigilant as long as you live. Teach what you've seen and heard to your children and grandchildren.

Food for thought!

I am sure many people are like me: they forget the readings moments after listening to them; research shows that most people do forget the reading of the day shortly after listening, and by noon many people do forget the things they even asked the Lord in the morning. If you are like me, the readings of toady are about not forgeting the things the Lord does for us or tells us.

And the best way is by telling others what the Lord has done for us or has told us. As the gospel put it, it is by telling that we remember: «But take it seriously, tell it to others, and you will find honor in the kingdom.»

«Don't forget anything of what you've seen. Don't let your heart wander off. Stay vigilant as long as you live. Teach what you've seen and heard to your children and grandchildren.»

In other words, the best way to remember the things the Lord tells us is by sharing them with the others. Or better, REMEMBER BY TELLING!

You're salt & light!

Matthew 5:13-16

Jesus told his disciples,  "Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Food for thought!

In the Bible Jesus calls himself various names like, I am the Goodshepherd, I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, I am the Vine, I am the Gate, and many others. But other times Jesus calls us names, like today he is referring to us as "salt" and "light". What is Jesus telling us about us?

Jesus calls us salt because of our preserving ability; we preserve society from going rotten; from going bad; from getting destroyed. Do you remember the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19? Those people could have been saved if there had been just 10 righteous men or Christians in Sodom and Gomorrah; but there were nobody, and the whole city was destroyed. So please don't go bad if and when everybody around you goes or does evil. If at your workplace you see everybody cutting the corners, please, don't follow suit; the presence and the prayers of "salty" Christians preserves and saves the rest from catastrophe.

Do you remember the message of Genesis 50: 20 and the heart of Joseph’s story? Joseph told his brother,   "As for you , you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." His brothers hated him and could not speak peaceably to him . . . they hated him even more . . . they hated him . . . his brothers envied him” (37: 4– 5, 8, 11). "They stripped Joseph of his tunic . . . they took him and cast him into a pit” (vv. 23– 24).

To cut a long story short, Joseph never gave up. Bitterness never staked its claim. Anger never metastasized into hatred. His heart never hardened; his resolve never vanished. He not only survived; he thrived. He ascended like a helium balloon. An Egyptian official promoted him to chief servant. The prison warden placed him over the inmates. And Pharaoh, the highest ruler on the planet, shoulder-tapped Joseph to serve as his prime minister. By the end of his life, Joseph was the second most powerful man of his generation. It is not hyperbole to state that he saved the world from starvation.

This is what means being salt of the earth; it means being the Joseph of today, the Joseph in your place of living; the Joseph that saves the world from starvation and death.

Happiness according to Jesus!

Matthew 5:1-12


One day as the crowds were gathering, Jesus went up the hillside with his disciples and sat down and taught them there. “Humble men are very fortunate!” he told them, “for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them. Those who mourn are fortunate! for they shall be comforted. The meek and lowly are fortunate! for the whole wide world belongs to them. “Happy are those who long to be just and good, for they shall be completely satisfied. Happy are the kind and merciful, for they shall be shown mercy. Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God. Happy are those who strive for peace—they shall be called the sons of God. Happy are those who are persecuted because they are good, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. “When you are reviled and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers—wonderful! Be happy about it! Be very glad! for a tremendous reward awaits you up in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted too.


Food for thought


The gospel reading begins by saying, "One day as the crowds were gathering, Jesus went up the hillside with his disciples and sat down and taught them there." It all started by seeing the crowds gathering up around Jesus.  When we come to Jesus, Jesus comes to us; he is not indifferent to those who come to him. What did Jesus tell those people who gathered around Him? 

Many people think that those who go to Jesus or to the church to pray are the poor, the cursed or the sick. Jesus thinks the opposite. What Jesus sees is a blessing, a happiness, a joy that is beyond all suffering and poverty. Jesus sees happiness even in the suffering, in the poor. In us there is something special; yes, in all of us there is a happiness buried under problems and worry and suffering. We need to learn to see through the eyes of Jesus in order to see happiness.

We normally judge people according to what they have and own. For us, the happy people are the rich; the rich people are the happy. But this is not always true; happiness is not tangible, it is not material, it is not visible. Happiness is spiritual because it is in the spirit. And since God created us in his own image and likeness, so the likeness of man is in his being spiritual. That is why it is possible to be happy and poor, to be happy despite suffering, to be happy in gentleness, to be happy in the hardships of life.

Have you ever noticed how some people seem to be happy no matter what is taking place in their lives? There is a buoyancy to their spirit and a sparkle to their personalities. A kind of glowing field of energy seems to radiate from their faces, their words, and from their works. There are others who seem to be predisposed to gloomy, negative thoughts. They seem to live in a perpetual shower of unhappiness.

The happiest people are those who are working to give happiness to others. Happiness is not found by seeking it; it is a by-product of trying to help others. "Happiness is by-product of an effort to make someone else happy." (Getter Palmer).

Jesus knows how you feel!

(In some parts of the world, today is Corpus Christi feast. If so, use last Thursday's food for thought)

Mark 3:20-35


When Jesus returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Jesus summoned these men and asked them (using proverbs they all understood), “How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided against itself will collapse. A home filled with strife and division destroys itself. And if Satan is fighting against himself, how can he accomplish anything? He would never survive. Satan must be bound before his demons are cast out, just as a strong man must be tied up before his house can be ransacked and his property robbed. “I solemnly declare that any sin of man can be forgiven, even blasphemy against me; but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin.” He told them this because they were saying he did his miracles by Satan’s power instead of acknowledging it was by the Holy Spirit’s power. Now his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them. “Your mother and brothers are outside and want to see you,” he was told. He replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Looking at those around him he said, “These are my mother and brothers! Anyone who does God’s will is my brother, and my sister, and my mother.”

Food for thought!

There is a day in the life of Jesus that you and me need to know about. Aside from the Crucifixion, it is probably the most difficult day of his life. It was a day of roaring sequence of bad events. It all started as soon as he came home for a long deserved rest. But instead of rest, the crowds pressed. The people demanded. The enemies accused. The relatives doubted. All in one day.

Life can go from calm to chaos in a matter of moments. No warnings. No announcements. No preparation. The gospel says, "When he returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon it was so full of visitors that he couldn’t even find time to eat. When his friends heard what was happening, they came to try to take him home with them. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. But the Jewish teachers of religion who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “His trouble is that he’s possessed by Satan, king of demons. That’s why demons obey him.” Then his mother and brothers arrived at the crowded house where he was teaching, and they sent word for him to come out and talk with them.

The demands of the crowds, the friends consider him out of his mind, the Jewish teachers of religion take him to be possessed by Satan, and his own mother and brothers want him to stop whatever he is doing and go home. Whatever you call it, call it real. Call it a day in which Jesus experiences more stress than he will any other day of his life — aside from his crucifixion.

If you’ve ever had a day in which you’ve been suffocating from your workplace's demands, a day you have been misunderstood by the people you try your best to help, a day you have been misunderstood even by your family, relatives and friends, a day you wonder if God in heaven can relate to you on earth, then read and reread today's gospel about this pressure-packed day in the life of Christ. And take heart. Jesus knows how you feel. He was labeled to be out mind, to be an agent of Satan, to be crazy. And probably you too have been labeled many things. Take courage.

Today's food for thought is that Jesus knows how you feel, when you're accused, when you're misunderstood, when your world goes from calm to chaos. So whenever your life seem to fall apart, go to him and let him comfort you. (Hebrews 4:16) "So let us come boldly to the very throne of God and stay there to receive his mercy and to find grace to help us in our times of need."