WISHING YOU A MERRY X’MAS

Posted on December 23, 2015 | Leave a comment

This is best season of the year. It is the best of time and also the worst of time. The best of time because this is the season that God wants all human beings to share and enjoy His unconditional love and compassion. No matter what your skin colour is… no matter what your belief is…. no matter what your gender is…. no matter what your social status is and no matter how much sin you have committed, this is the season to change from the caterpillar into a butterfly. Because  with His wonderful love and grace, all things are possible.

This Christmas season is a moment of infinite possibility in the midst of terrible darkness and brokenness all over the world. Our world is literally on the edge of self-destruction caused by massive pollution and climate change as well as massive homelessness in the Middle East caused by religious extremism and intolerance.

Christmas is a time to reflect on the state of humaneness, loving-kindness and compassion that one person shows to another. The transformation of the world has to start with one person at a time. Let me be the first humanitarian to take responsibility of my life. Let the change begins with me in my heart. Let me become a more loving person this Christmas. Let me do something to make a difference in the lives of my needy fellow human beings. Merry Christmas to all.

Submitted by David YKKok

CAN WE MEASURE THE IMMENSITY OF GOD’S UNCONDITONAL LOVE FOR HUMANITY?

In my frequent reflections, I have reminded myself countless times that God’s divine love is simply too immense for me to comprehend. I am aware that this boundless Divine love simply boggles my imagination! There is no way that I can measure the infinite love of God for me. Many theologians through the ages had tried to comprehend this Divine love and some foolishly thought that they had succeeded with their eloquent words. Many theologians even have tried to circumscribe God’s love with certain moral conditions and criteria. They have succeeded in short-changing God’s love by defining it with their narrow human interpretations that are full of ifs and buts.

From my own experiences, I don’t agree with these theologians who perceive God through their narrow lenses. I have read pretty extensively on religious literature regarding God’s love and I have certainly fallen far too short on my comprehension of the immensity of this Divine love. I tend to agree with a well-known German theologian, Mister Ekhart,  who remarked several centuries ago that the eyes that you see God are the same pair of eyes that God will see you. How profound and how true! Sometimes, we need our direct experiences of God’s unconditional love to gain some understanding of His loving-kindness and His compassion. Just like the Indian philosopher, Krishnamuthi, once said that in our spiritual journeys, experience is the direct way to the truth; all else are merely preaching!

In my recent reflection, I have arrived at some personal insights that I wish to share with you. And hopefully, my philosophy of God’s love will also provide the light at the end of the tunnel for you in your search for spiritual salvation and your peace of mind.

The Bible has told me that God knew my name even before I was born- a long long time ago. Then God created me out of His boundless love. And nothing in this world can ever separate me from this Divine love! The only person that can separate me from God is myself because God has given the freewill to do that. On the part of God, He will never give up on me,  These are profound promises and assurances that the Bible has given us about the deep love and compassion of God.

God’s abiding love for me is an interactive love. His love for me is so interactive that my hidden thoughts and intention count in my relationship with God. A mere thought or intention or motive is sufficient for God to make a reciprocal response to me even though I may not put much value on my hidden thoughts. That is why it is so important to be aware of the constant presence of God’s love for us in our waking moments in life. God’s love is ever-present in our life and so is His grace. God’s unconditional love is a profound love without conditions. God loves us even though we are sinners, convicts, murderers etc. His love is always present in our lives regardless of our moral and spiritual status in life. His love is the ultimate alchemy that can transform the base matter in us into pure spiritual gold. That is why the awareness of God’s love is so important and so significant. It is much more important than our love for God. It is more important and significant that God loves us than we love God. God really does not need our professed love for Him whereas we will need the love of God for our happiness and our salvation. God’s happiness does not depend on our love whereas our salvation depends solely on God’s love and mercy. Without God’s love, we are nothing! This is the hard reality and the brutal truth! Only if we are aware of His love and only if we accept His love that we can make use of this Divine love to transform our lives to become His loving children. A lack of  awareness of God’s unconditional love is as good as a rejection of His love in our lives. If Warren Buffett is not even aware of the existence of his investment talent and expertise, do you think he can become an investment genius of our times?  Similarly, the answer is obvious for all of us.

And it is this unconditional love of God that has been my panacea for my inner healing and my recovery from my addiction and my wounded self-esteem. And it is this wonderful love of God that constantly inspires me to live a better life of love. And  it is this wonderful love of God that motivates me to share the best part of myself with others in our broken world. Hip hip hurrah for God’s unconditional love for all of us!

Submitted by-  David YKK

3c-THE WAY OF JESUS IS BASED MAINLY ON HIS TOLERANT AND COMPASSIONATE ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE POOR AND THE SOCIAL REJECTS IN HIS SOCIETY.

EACH WOUNDED HUMAN BEING IS LIKE THIS WOUNDED TREE. IT IS THE SCAR THAT GIVES THIS TREE ITS UNIQUE CHARACTER AND RUGGED BEAUTY.

Life is a long journey. It is a journey in which the means are as significant as the end. It is a journey that provides multiple  crossroads at  crucial junctions along the way. This is a  journey which is a long process of personal changes and transformation. Along the way, everyone will encounter problems in relationship conflicts, adversities of all kinds, and intrapersonal problems related to our perceptions, disorders and personalities etc. These multi-faceted problems will also present us with many lessons  that will help us to become better human beings. The key point about these lessons is that we must maintain an open heart and mind without any egos to defend or any psychological games to play. If we are really objective to see the realities in our lives as they are without any blame or rationalization, then we are aware of our strengths and weaknesses. It is only with self-awareness and self-acceptance that we will find the will and desire to make improvements in our selves. This view has been strongly reinforced by the eminent psychologist, Carl Rogers: “The curious paradox is that when I accept myself  just as I am, then I can change.”

When we talk about the way of Jesus, we have to see it from different perspectives. We can see his way from the universal or macro perspective which is commonly called the `big picture.’ In other words, Jesus’ way is for every human being. It is the way of universal love and acceptance. It is the way of God’s unconditional love and grace for billions of human beings who have lived in the past and the present.

While we look at the big picture of Jesus’ way,  we should also look at the micro ways that God, in his infinite intelligence, has designed for each and every one of us. We cannot divorce ourselves from the big picture. We are tiny bits and pieces in the big puzzle of God’s design of unconditional love. While the big picture gives us the background, we have to find our own little meanings in the small pictures that God has intentionally created for us. To talk about Jesus’ way without relating it to your own little way is meaningless. The way becomes meaningful and interesting if it is travelled by yourself. It  becomes interesting if you have invested your time and your life to experience it. Only then you will be able to compose an authentic and meaningful story about your life. In her book, Passionate Presence, Catherine Ingram shares with us her insights, “Most of our worldviews are based on beliefs… Not only could we live without beliefs,  we could live with far greater clarity if we relied solely on direct experience. We would not interpret reality through the dull light of dogma. We know our own experience through having lived it… As Poonjaji would say, `A true teacher gives you only his or her experiences, all else are preachers.’    To those who say that right and wrong are arbitrary values…We know right and wrong in our own hearts. Does an action conduce to love and kindness or does it cause pain and suffering?”

To walk the way of Jesus is to become more tolerant and less judgmental towards other people as well as towards our wounded selves. Learn to cultivate an attitude of unconditional acceptance towards life. It is a strange paradox. The more you judge other people, the more you will judge yourself. This judgmental blaming mindset cuts both ways. The moment I judge another person harshly, I am also cutting myself by judging myself in my subconscious even without my awareness.  This is a common psychological process known as projection. I simply can’t condemn others without not condemning myself in some way.  All of us are living in an inter-connected universe. Because of the interconnectedness of our world, some scientists believe that even a small butterfly flapping its wings in Bali will eventually have an impact on the weather in New York some years down the road.

Let me take a simple analogy from my complex life that may clarify this concept. Just look at yourself. On a micro scale, your body is a universe by itself. If you allow your mind to judge and condemn the other parts of your body, such as your nose or your eyes or your face or other private parts of your body, this judgmental or blaming exercise will boomerang in your life. Ultimately the whole personality will pay the price of your judgmental attitude towards what may appear to be a trivial or unimportant part of your body. It is a well-known fact in psychology that what you focus in your mind expands and eventually culminates into some form of personality disorder. I remember when I was young, I had a black birth mark on my nose. When young, I tried so hard to remove this black spot in my life. I must have looked at this little irritating black spot in the mirror many times. I must have judged this trivial flaw harshly and condemned it without knowing that in the process, I had been condemning myself. Finally, I ended up with an inferiority complex that had a negative impact on my whole personality for several years. It was only with awareness and self-understanding gained through extensive readings of psychology that I have  finally accepted my `black nose’ as an essential part of myself. By accepting my flawed nose as it is eventually leads to the unconditional acceptance of myself as I am.                              I am able to accept and love my flawed body and self because Jesus has shown me the way- the way of God’s unconditional love. If God can make me as I am and more importantly, if He can love me as I am, then logically-speaking, I can also love myself as I am regardless of my flaws and mistakes. Jesus points out that his way is based on God’s  unconditional love. The Good News of Jesus’ Way is also the wholesome path for wounded human beings to gain recovery from their wounded self-esteem and negative emotions and eventually become more loving and compassionate human beings.

Submitted by Alphonsus YKK

3-b : IN SEARCH OF JESUS’ WAY- THE PRACTICE OF HOLINESS AND SPIRITUALITY OF IMPERFECTION.

JB Phillips, in his perceptive little book, Your God is Too Small, also offers us an insight to discover the way of Jesus-

“Moving on from these distortions, Phillips then wonders how the authentic God can be known. In a similar journey to the one we’ve taken, he discovers `clues’ to God’s nature in experiences like beauty and goodness and truth. But such concepts remain abstract and unfocused. For humans to truly understand these values they need to be embodied. `We can visualize a beautiful thing, but not beauty,’ Phillips surmised, `a good man, but not goodness; a true fact but not truth…Absolute values may exist as mental concepts for the trained philosopher; but the ordinary man must see his values focused in people or things that he knows before he can grasp them. For humans  to truly understand God, Phillips then imagines, God would need to embody himself somehow. As a rose gives a face to beauty, only an embodied God could be truly comprehensible to us.”

Each person becomes a window to another world. Jesus calls each person like the sheep that has gone astray. If you believe that Jesus is the Good Shepherd, then it is possible to listen and discern his calling:

“You’re special to me,                                                                                                              I made this world especially for you. (Do you think I need a universe?)                   Your body and soul, no matter your weight or appearance, are fashioned in my image.   Beauty and pleasure are your gifts.                                                                       If you come close, I’ll whisper into your soul, my purpose for your life.                       But I will not shout to make myself heard. The ball is in your court.                           Do you really want to know me?”

(Sheridan Voysey, “Unseen Footprints”)

And if we take a moment to ponder and listen, we can discern that God is whispering  to us, through words and experiences and people. And we are confronted with a choice. We can either stop, listen and respond to God, or we can just walk away and pretend that nothing has ever happened. We can accept   the invitation to a divine relationship or just reject it.

“Within  the illusion of separation we think we see an alien world with which we have to negotiate clear `seeing,’  however, celebrates the wonders of oneness, simply as it is.” (Tony Parsons, author of `As It Is.’)

Jesus’ calling is different for each one of his followers. His core teachings are common but the devil lies in the fine prints. And today, the churches may focus more on the fine prints than on the core. If any disciple focuses too much on the individual trees in the forest, then he or she is liable to  go astray and lose his/her wholesome way to Jesus. Confused by the uncountable minor or trivial details, it is so easy for his followers to be distracted and seduced by the sensual pleasures of the world and the temptations of the devil (who is an expert in creating illusions out of realities and vice versa). Hence it is so easy for the vulnerable lonely sheep to go astray even when seeking the way of Jesus. God knows our vulnerabilities and our weaknesses. That is why Jesus is so gentle, so patient and so kind when dealing with the lost sheep.

Is Jesus Christ the unique mediator of salvation? I was one of five panelists assigned to address this question at a recent meeting of Catholic theologians. I was the first to speak and, as it turned out, the only panelist prepared to advance an unqualified affirmative response to this question.

 

J. A. Di Noia, `In First Things’

The above quotation gives us a good glimpse of differences of Catholic theologians  who are among the most conservative of Christian intellectuals. Yet these five panelists could not even come to a common agreement on the fundamental issue of Jesus and his role as Messiah.  The main problem lies in our common human condition and the ambivalence of humanity-  that our perceptions are basically flawed because we are human. Just as Ralph Waldo Emerson commented, “There is a crack in everything God has made.” It appears that it is good for us to heed the advice of Bill Wilson, one of the pioneers of the AA movement, “It seems  absolutely necessary for most of us to get over the idea that man is God.” Once we start with this erroneous concept that man is God, then we will be confronted with deep unthinkable problems. Once this flawed perception creeps into our minds, then the search for the way of Jesus is irrelevant and meaningless. We need to seek the way of Jesus because we are human and imperfect. To find the way of Jesus is to seek the authentic spirituality of the Messiah.

The authors of the book `The Spirituality of Imperfection,’ Ernest Kurtz and Katherine Ketcham share their insight on this matter: “To deny imperfection is to disown oneself, for to be human is to be imperfect. Spirituality, which is rooted in and revealed by uncertainties, inadequacies, helplessness, the lack and the failure of control, supplies a context and suggests a way of living in which our imperfections can be endured. Spiritual sensibilities begin to flower when the soil is fertilized with the understanding that `something is awry.’ There is, after all, something `wrong’ with us.”

That is why self-honesty is so important in the search of the way of Jesus. It is so vital to see Jesus’ teachings as they are and not according to the color lenses of some prejudiced theologians who may lead us astray with their warped ways instead of the authentic  way of Jesus.

Submitted by Alphonsus YKK

3a- TODAY, THERE ARE AT LEAST 1000 CHRISTIAN CHURCHES WITH MORE THAN 1000 WAYS TO FOLLOW JESUS. BUT WHICH IS THE REAL WAY?

Jesus proclaims that he is the Way.  How can we find Jesus’ way of spirituality?  Obviously, we can discern Jesus’ way from his teachings and his interactions with his disciples as recorded in the New Testament or from the epistles by St. Paul as written in the New Testament.

However, judging from the prevalent practices and teachings of the various Christian churches, the way of Jesus  is not that clear-cut or so straightforward as we expect. Why is Jesus’ way so elusive and so difficult to attain? The major problems are related to conflicting interpretations of profound spiritual concepts of Jesus by various religious leaders and theologians of different eras. Interpretations are significantly complicated by the theologians who come from different cultures living in different countries. The human mind is capable of seeing infinite shades of meanings behind abstract concepts. Between the polarity of black and white lies a virtual uncountable shades of gray. Even the white has different kinds of white and the same applies to the black colour! Now the complexity becomes more chaotic when different personal perceptions and agendas are blended with different historical eras of more than 2000 years. It is no wonder that one author claims that there are as many as a thousand different forms of Christianity that have their origins in Protestantism. Jesus’ teachings have come to us from the three mainstream branches of Christianity- the Roman Catholic Church, Greek Orthodox Church & the Protestant churches.  Where do we go from here? In Latin, `Qua Vadis?’

After being a practicing Christian for more than 50 years, I gradually realize that the authentic way of Jesus can be really paradoxical; it is so simple, yet so profound; so near, yet so far; so easy, yet so complex; so white, yet so grayish!  To be a meaningful exercise, the infinite God will provide the grace and inspiration for different individuals to  fine-tune their personal  search of Jesus’ way.

In the search of the authentic way of Jesus, we may have to go back to  the Bible to have a second look at Jesus’ teachings. We may have to recast our questions to ponder on Jesus’ core teachings on faith, love and compassion. Do we really believe that Jesus is the Messiah or the Son of God or just another prophet or sage? Ponder carefully of your answers because they will define your beliefs and conviction about Jesus. If you believe that Jesus is your Messiah or the Son of God, then the way of Jesus will be of great significance to you. On the other hand, if Jesus is seen as merely another sage or prophet, then your quest for his way may not assume the kind of priority or importance in your spiritual life. Then logically, Jesus’ way may not assume a higher priority  than that  of Lao Tzu or Confucius or Buddha. In the quest of the authentic way of Jesus, we have to look at the observer’s mind that is  pondering and thinking about Jesus’ way.  Just as the German mystic, Meister Eckhart, believes that the eyes that you use to see God are the same pair of eyes that God uses to look at you.  In quantum physics, the theory of observer-participantcy comes alive- the way you see the object inevitably affects the outcome of the observation or the experiment. In other words, if you choose to see light as the wave, the experiment will prove conclusively that light is made up of waves. But if you intend to prove that light is made up of particles, then the particles will show up convincingly in your experiment that light is composed of particles. You, as the observer, will determine how the way of Jesus turns out by your perception and your intentions. Your perception will create your form of reality of the importance or significance of the way of Jesus. Nobody can control your perception or your mindset or your attitude towards the way of Jesus because God has, to a certain extent, compromised  his control over your destiny by granting you the free will. You are certainly not separate from the object of your quest- the way of Jesus. How you see Jesus will, to a large extent, determine the significance and meaning of the way and what it means to you personally. Is the way of Jesus the road to the Kingdom of God or is it the way to your personal improvement for greater success  in the world or is it the way to personal contentment? The subject is closely interlinked with the object. That is what we have learned from quantum mechanics today. Therefore it is essential that you know yourself as you are before you embark on this search for the way of Jesus.  This personal quest of the way must be carried out with an honest mindset- without any personal selfish agenda except to really follow Jesus’ authentic footsteps with an ultimate intention to be united to Jesus spiritually.

Submitted by Alphonsus YKK

2e- THE LIGHT OF JESUS SHOWS US THE WAY TO BECOME MORE LOVING HUMAN BEINGS IN OUR BROKEN WORLD.

Like this windmill, no matter how your life cycle turns, the sun is always shining upon you.

Jesus comes as a light to the wounded humanity living in a dark  world. This divine light is similar to the unconditional love of God. It is freely offered to all humanity. In his book, `One Minute Wisdom,’ Anthony de Mello, S.J., narrates a short anecdote of a disciple who was trying very hard to attain enlightenment until he became very weak. Seeing the futility of all his efforts, the Master hinted to him by sharing his insight on enlightenment, “ A ray of light can be grasped- but not with your hands. Enlightenment can be attained- but not by your efforts.”

The puzzled disciple replied, “But did you not tell me to strive  to become empty? That is what I am attempting to do.”

Then the Master responded in his laughter, “So now you are full of effort trying to be empty!”

When Jesus offers his light to all of us, it is not necessary to try to find your place to bask in the sun.  From Jesus’ perspective,  enlightenment, like faith and love, is a free gift from God. Enlightenment cannot be attained by any amount of human effort. It is a paradox that the harder one tries, the elusive enlightenment becomes. When one is aware of one’s emptiness, one becomes more humble. Coupled with simplicity and patience, humility certainly prepares the right mental mindset to receive the truth.

I recall that many years ago, in my visit to Switzerland, I had yearned to appreciate the wonder of this famous mountain. A visitor needed some luck to catch a good glimpse of this beautiful mountain. When my family arrived in the late afternoon, the mountain was hidden in clouds. So we checked into a room with a window facing the mountain. Probably in the midst of my excitement, I did not sleep well. I got up and looked at the mountain from time to time. What I could see was a dull gray colour of the mountain. I can still remember seeing the dull gray colour of the mountain wall just before dawn. One minute, the wall was pale and gray. But the next minute, when the morning  sun splashed its rays on it, Matterhorn suddenly became gloriously golden! It was certainly an awesome moment for me. And very enlightening indeed! The miraculous transformation was so sudden, unexpected and unpredictable. From my limited human perspective, I believe this is how enlightenment would come to any human being who is seriously interested in his/her quest of the truth.

Jesus came to preach his gospel of the Good News to awaken our awareness. With his light, Jesus intends to clarify the vision of  every human being so that he/she can see the priority issues in life from the trivial ones. The top priority issue that Jesus wants to enlighten us is the awareness of the unconditional love of God. In his book, “Nine Faces of God,”, Peter Hannan, S.J., believes that “this Good News opens up the fullness of life which Jesus comes to give us…It is this love that is the most creative force in our lives. It is what makes and sustains us…If we are to accept the truth… we will have to face a revolutionary change. Whereas most of us were taught  that being loving is the essential of Christian living, the emphasis in the Bible is on our being loved. The image of God in us is primarily a potential to take in the love of God. It is from taking in love that the energy to give out love must come.

`God is all bounty while we are all need.’ (St. Augustine)

This focusing of our attention on being loved, rather than on being loving, will be revolutionary for most people. Tony de Mello said that when he was leaving his noviceship, his Novice Master said to him, `Tony, remember that the revolution will take place in your life when you realize that it is not so much your love for God that matters as the fact that God loves you.’  Our ability to accept fully the love of God, which formed us and sustains us, is very tied up with our own image of ourselves. We are easily dominated by the voice of our own insignificance. This is the tragic illusion that results when a small, dark fraction of our lives becomes   the whole picture  we see of ourselves. Seeing things in this way makes it very difficult for us to accept a vision of God as love and of ourselves as lovable in his eyes. As a result, our acceptance of the essential invitation of Christ, to believe the Good News of God’s love and providence, is very limited.”

Now we can appreciate the great significance of the Light that Jesus brings into the world so that  each one of us becomes more aware of God’s great love for us is free with no string attached. God loves us just as we are –wounded and scarred spiritually and emotionally in our self-esteem. What any broken human being should do it to accept this unconditionally love of God. This divine love is the great panacea of our wounded self-esteem and flawed human condition. The tragedy or the paradox of our human condition is that our complex human minds cannot accept the simplicity of this great spiritual insight. It is simply too good to be true! Most of us have been brought up to believe otherwise. We have to earn love and respect via our good deeds and merits. That is why Jesus’ light is revolutionary and if we believe and accept it, then we will certainly experience a paradigm shift in our spirituality.

(An excerpt from an upcoming book “In Search of Jesus and His Way”)

Submitted by Alphonsus YKKok

2d- FOR HUMAN BEINGS, ENLIGHTENMENT IS EQUIVALENT TO BECOMING COMPLETE HUMANE,LOVING AND COMPASSIONATE BEINGS.

What do we mean when we pray for enlightenment in our lives? To be enlightened in this world means to be able to perceive the truth as it is without any self-denial or distortion. This is the special gift that Jesus brings to all wounded human beings- the gift of enlightenment that will remove the cataracts from our eyes so that we can have the light to see our special missions in this world as human beings.

Being the Light of the world, Jesus wants to impress upon all human beings in general and Christians in particular that our God is the God of unconditional love. His Good News is the special message of love to wounded people on their journey of transformation of becoming more loving human beings. Love is the core of Jesus’ Good News. The victims of suffering in our broken world should not focus too much attention and energy on the negative aspects of their lives but instead to discern the meanings and lessons behind their adversities and suffering.

With the light of Jesus’ gospel, one should be able to break through the cocoon and bear with one’s suffering to complete the self-transformation process  from the caterpillar into the butterfly. Love is the essential nature of God. Love is the primary purpose why God created the world of human beings. Love  is the central tenet of Jesus’ teaching. If we remove love from Christianity, then the religion will wither and fade away without meaning or purpose. That is why Jesus stresses so much on love to his disciples to the extent that even in his last days on earth, he emphasized  on the importance of  loving one another during the last supper. Love becomes the defining quality of Jesus’ disciples. Then he focused and reinforced on love by his special action by promising paradise to the repentant thief even when dying of acute thirst and suffering on the cross. St. Paul seemed to really understand his Master when he reinforced the importance of love by saying that love is even more important than faith and that love has the capacity to cover a multitude of sins. Now tell me, how important are all the dogmas and doctrines of Christianity in the absence of love in the churches? They are like worthless paper currency that is not guaranteed by the central bank in a bankrupt country ruined by wars and financial catastrophes!

Jesus’ light will certainly enlighten all human beings sooner or later- either in this world or in the next. Love is the alpha and the omega! Love is the beginning and the end of our world! Love is the starting point of the human race and the finishing line for mankind.  Human beings tend to be confused in their discernment of the real priorities of life in this complex world that has too many pseudo-prophets and too many fuzzy moral teachings. Mankind is again confronted by Jesus’ challenging question- `What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul?’  That is why Jesus needs authentic disciples to disseminate his teachings on love and compassion because it is through love and compassion that the world will be saved. The following story of Henri Nouwen is a classic example.

In 1987, Henri Nouwen, a priest and author, was struck in the back by the protruding mirror  of a passing truck while he was walking along the side of a road in Toronto, Canada. His spleen was badly ruptured and suddenly he was pushed to the brink of death. In his near-death experience, he narrated that he was walking through the sea whose waves had been rolled away as he moved to the opposite shore.  Then he experienced a very personal, gentle, and nonjudgmental presence which he discerned as divine yet human.  His whole life had been devoted to follow Jesus and to live His Gospel. To him, Jesus had been  very intimate, yet distant; a friend yet a stranger; a source of hope yet a source of fear, guilt and shame. But now, as Nouwen moved towards the brink of death, he became enlightened with no more ambiguity about his life. He had received the spiritual light of Christ because death lost its fearful power over Nouwen in the presence of God’s unconditional love. When he recovered from his life-saving operation, Nouwen  discerned convincingly of his unique mission- that he had been sent by God to disseminate His all-embracing love to all human beings. Nouwen continued to live another ten years and devoted the rest of his life to writing and teaching about God’s unconditional love to all human beings.

Anthony de Mello prompts us to ponder on God’s unconditional love and grace for wounded human beings: “One of the disconcerting- and delightful- teachings of the Master was: God is closer to sinners than  to saints.”

Submitted by Alphonsus YKKok (Excerpt from his upcoming book, “In Search of Jesus and His Way.”

 

2c- THE LIGHT OF JESUS IS MEANT TO ILLUMINATE OUR PERSONAL WAYS AND GUIDE US THROUGH THE VALLEY OF DARKNESS.

The Master proclaims that he is the Light of the world.  Yet why do so many of us fail  to see the Light of Jesus?Why is there so much spiritual blindness in spite of the illumination provided by the Master’s light? We need to ponder on this significant question and then apply this question in our daily life.

Surely when the Master tells us that he is the Light of the world, he does not mean that he gives the light for our physical vision. Jesus uses the metaphor `light’ to refer to the essential illumination for our spiritual blindness through the valley of darkness in this world. It is a paradox that even when the eyes do see the physical reality of things, the spirit simply begs to differ. This was particularly true in the days of Jesus when with all the incredible miracles being performed before their very eyes, many of the Jewish religious elites chose to see things as they wished to see. They did not want to see things as they were- the miracles of Jesus as visible symbols of the divine revelation of the coming of the Messiah. To support their distorted vision and flawed interpretations according to their personal agendas, they picked and chose some Bible verses to justify their perspectives. The Bible is a massive book that contains all kinds of life stories for the good, the bad and the ugly. If people choose to quote from the Bible to support their bad and ugly agendas, they would get plenty of ammunition to shoot at their enemies. Even Satan himself did that to Jesus during his temptations in the desert! This is the crux of the problem facing the modern Christian disciples. How do we see the core of Jesus’ teachings? Where do we choose to focus the light of Jesus? On the good or the bad or the ugly? Wherever you choose to focus the searchlight of Jesus, that is where you will interpret Jesus’ teachings. If you focus on the ugly aspects of Christianity, you can find plenty of that ugliness in the church history.

What we need to realize is that Jesus’ light is meant to provide illumination for the personal inner journey of each individual. Jesus’ light is meaningful and enlightening if, and only if, you use it to illuminate the darkness in your own life journey. Unfortunately what most of us have done is to use Jesus’ light to shine the spotlight onto our neighbor’s failings or dark spots in their  personal lives. By doing so, we fall into the danger of focusing predominantly on our neighbor’s black spots while conveniently neglecting to remove the huge ugly plank in front of our eyes!

This is the great danger that is conveniently ignored  when we practice self-righteousness towards others. This prevalent spiritual blind-spot has been highlighted by the psychologist, Dr. Robert Anthony, in his book, “Total Self-Confidence” with his insight, “Nothing can destroy a relationship or break off communications faster than value-judging. If you wish to develop a positive self-esteem, it is imperative that you stop all value-judging…You must cease value-judging yourself, then you will cease value-judging others, and start loving both yourself and others… The secret of loving and being loved is to stop value-judging forever!”

Wow! This writer has been illuminated by the Light of Jesus when he interprets the core teaching of the Gospel on unconditional love in the right perspective. Stop using the Light of Jesus to look for the black spots in other people’s lives; instead focus the light on your own life so that the light will lead to the right practice of repentance and wholesome spirituality in your life.

(Excerpt from my upcoming book, “In Search of Jesus- His Way & His Truth for those with Wounded Self-Esteem.”)

Submitted by Alphonsus YKK

2b- JESUS PROCLAIMS THAT HE IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD TO ILLUMINATE OUR WAYS SO THAT WE CAN SEPARATE MIRAGES FROM REALITY AND LIES FROM THE TRUTH.

When Jesus proclaims to his disciples that he is the Light of the world, most of us may not have grasped the full significance of the Light of Jesus.We can see the Light of Jesus from different perspectives.

In his well-read book, “Psycho-Cybernetic Principles For Creative Living,” the author, Maxwell Maltz, narrates a true story that dates back to the dark days of World War II. He told his readers that in Alsace-Lorraine, bordering France and Germany, an advanced column of American infantrymen met with ferocious resistance from the Nazi defenders. There was little progress with soldiers moving from house to house, locked in deadly hand combats. There were rumours that the enemy would launch a counterattack  during the night. At dusk, an American sergeant and his squad were holed up in a house at the edge of a main street. They were alert and were on a nervous lookout for an imminent counterattack which would probably crumble their defence and endanger their lives. As the night progressed, visibility was reduced to zero but still there was no sign of hostile forces in the vicinity.

The sergeant continued to post guards at every window. This was a difficult assignment in the dark, but one sentry said that he had possibly heard some rustling noises outside in the street. Immediately, the sergeant consulted with his headquarters on his walkie-talkie  and they commanded him to send a flare into the night sky. In the momentary illumination, he could see that dozens of German soldiers were poised to attack their vulnerable position. While momentarily stunned by the flare, the Germans scrambled back behind cover on the other side of the street.

The Americans did not let down their vigilance throughout the night. The sergeant organized a systematic series of continued harassing tactics to keep the Germans on their toes.Flares were used periodically to light up the dark vicinity and to monitor the enemy movements with intermittent rifle fire and volleys of grenades exploding continuously. This effective strategy was adopted throughout the night until the return of visibility the next day. The Germans did not have their chance to counterattack because another squad of American infantrymen came and took them prisoners.

Maxwell Maltz narrates this story to highlight  the moral behind it – a tale of opportunity.It is about the use of light to clear up our vision. In his own words, “It’s a story about opportunity. It’s about illuminating your enemy, negative feelings, before you can turn a crisis into a creative opportunity. It’s about your personal campaign to outflank your enemy, placing your negative feelings on the defensive, so you can counterattack and move upon your goals. Your greatest need is light to penetrate your inner darkness, to reveal your sabotaging inner forces so that you can survive crisis and seize opportunity.”

Every human being, sooner or later, will have to confront his/her moments of darkness when everything seems dark and hopeless. It is during such despairing moments that you  can easily become your own worst enemy. During such dark times,  the Light of Jesus will bring great comfort and security. His light will illuminate your way and your  mind so that your clouded perceptions will be clarified to view and assess what is priority and what is not; what is  good and what is evil; what is white and what is black.  His light will illuminate your fuzzy mind to see the way ahead and imbue your spirit with inner calm and tranquility because you will know what is within your control and what is not. If things are not within your control, then you know that you can trust your Heavenly Father do handle them.

Submitted by Alphonsus YKKok

(Excerpt from an upcoming book entitled “In Search of Jesus And His Ways.”

2a- JESUS CALLS HIS TRUE DISCIPLES TO BE MINUTE FRAGMENTS OF GLASS TO MIRROR HIS LIGHT & UNCONDITIONAL LOVE IN OUR BROKEN WORLD.

Seen from Jesus’ perspective, all his disciples are actually tiny fragments doing their best to reflect God’s love, compassion and grace by sharing our insights and  reflections of our experiences. With an awakened awareness, we can see ourselves as the tiny  mirror fragments reflecting Jesus’ or God’s unconditional love. Filled with a true Christian spirit,  we will ensure that our mirror surfaces are not distorted by sins or evil so that we can disseminate the truth and love of Jesus more accurately and authentically. The unvarnished and undistorted truth that is reflected to others may also serve to reinforce Jesus’ gospel of love. That is why we should live our lives with love, compassion and humility in a conscious and intentional way so that our lamps will do the job well to give light to others in a  world of darkness and brokenness. Jesus proclaims that he is the Light of the World. What better roles can his disciples play than to be called upon to be the mirrors of this holy Light! Unfortunately most of the Christian followers of Jesus take light for granted. Very few of us have gone through the traumatic experience of groping in the dark that is pregnant with fear, anxiety and insecurity.

Ed Schmitt is one of the fortunate survivors of the September 11 attack and collapse of the twin towers in New York in 2001. His insights based on his personal experiences of September 11 would enlighten us on the great importance of the light in a world of darkness. Because of the earlier failed attack on the World Trade Centre in 1993, the New York City officials conducted an exhaustive study of what went right and what went wrong in the evacuation that followed the blast. Based on the findings and recommendations, they began to rectify the flaws of the two towers by providing handrails for the stairways. Another more important improvement was the lighting. In the book, `Simplexity’, the author, Jeffrey Kluger, reveals that “Light, any light at all, has a calming effect on frightened people, all the more so when it’s applied in a reassuring shape that points the way out of the danger.” In the book, the September 11 survivor Ed Schmitt, in his struggle to escape through the stairway from the 97th floor, was quoted in his own words, “Looking down and seeing it, even when the lights were on, was one of the most helpful things.”

Wow! What a rare piece of insight from a survivor who came out of the jaw of death! In the midst of our difficulties, helplessness and hopelessness in coping with life, light often comes in the form of love, compassion, friendship and empathy that are shown and shared with one another in our broken world. I remember a very trivial incident at a difficult time in my life when I was shattered by gossips that generated in me  a  deep sense of loneliness and social rejection. On that day, I was traveling  to Kuala Lumpur that would take about three to four hours. There was a lunch break along the long journey at the place called Tapah. At the canteen, I remember a fellow parishioner called Peter, came forward and shook my hands with sincere smile across his face just to exchange a few words of greeting. A simple gesture of kindness and friendship conveyed so much psychological and spiritual support that could not be measured in terms of money or other worldly standards. This one simple incident stands out in my mind that can be compared in a small way to the light experienced by Ed Schmitt. Such a simple act, yet so profound because Peter was really the piece of fragment that reflected God’s unconditional love for me during my vulnerable moment  that was pregnant with fears of social rejection. From this unforgettable simple act of love and friendship, I have learned an important lesson as a piece of glass fragment to reflect God’s love in the life of some needy souls. This is what the Christian gospel is about. This is what Jesus asks his disciples to do- “Love one another as I love you; by this will others know that you are my disciples.”

Submitted by Alphonsus KokYK