22nd Ordinary Sunday

OBEDIENCE TO GOD'S LAW

The Pharisees and the Scribes who have come from Jerusalem think that they will win a point against Jesus by pointing out to him that his disciples eat food without washing their hands. Their question is about his disciples not walking according to tradition of the elders. Jesus immediately challenges them. In fact, the Law that God has given through Moses is good but the traditions are added over time and the tradition starts taking precedence over the Law. Jesus says that traditions added over the years are not binding and hence do not force his disciples to follow it. The brilliance of Jesus comes to the fore when he says that food does not defile a person but what one nurtures in the heart actually does. Then he mentions a number of sinful acts which defile a person. Evil thoughts, sexual immorality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness find a breeding place inside a person and defile him. In the First Reading Moses exhorts the people to pay heed to the commandments God has given them. In the Second Reading St James writes that Christians should remain uncontaminated by the allurements of the world.

Liturgical materials for the Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/17eq4_WdHxRS7IAliezGxEO4SznLLeLrk?usp=sharing

Tamil Reponse Hymn - https://youtu.be/bxSoyYERWYA

21st Ordinary Sunday

THE WORDS OF ETERNAL LIFE

The lengthy discourse on the Bread of Life has come to an end and with it is also the time to decide for or against Jesus. Some listeners say that the doctrine is difficult to follow and they decide to leave Jesus. Jesus is aware that only those who have received the gift of faith can stay with Jesus. The disciples of Jesus decide to stay with him while the larger group consisting of Jews decide to leave. The confession of Peter is the most suitable reaction, he says that there is no one else to whom we can go. Jesus has the words of eternal life for he is the Holy One of God. In the First Reading Joshua summons the Israelites at Shechem and urges them to choose between Yahweh and the gods of the Amorites. In the Second Reading Paul uses the analogy of the union between husband and wife to express the bond that exists between Christ and the Church.

Liturgical materials for the Twenty First Sunday in Ordinary Time.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1bSKC2-j7T3vkHRQ5S9T8M93IjrQeLUNU?usp=sharing

Tamil Response Hymn - https://youtu.be/wRZS5smaI44

Queenship of Mary (Aug. 22)

OUR BEAUTIFUL QUEEN

Pope Pius XII established this feast in 1954. But the Blessed Virgin Mary’s queenship has roots in Scripture. At the Annunciation, Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would receive the throne of David and rule forever. At the Visitation, Elizabeth calls Mary “mother of my Lord.” As in all the mysteries of Mary’s life, she is closely associated with Jesus: Her queenship is a share in Jesus’ kingship. We can also recall that in the Old Testament the mother of the king has great influence in court. In the fourth century Saint Ephrem called Mary “Lady” and “Queen.” Later Church fathers and doctors continued to use the title. The Dominican rosary and the Franciscan crown as well as numerous invocations in Mary’s litany celebrate her queenship.

The feast is a logical follow-up to the Assumption and is now celebrated on the octave day of that feast. In his 1954 encyclical To the Queen of Heaven, Pius XII points out that Mary deserves the title because she is Mother of God, because she is closely associated as the New Eve with Jesus’ redemptive work, because of her preeminent perfection, and because of her intercessory power. As we celebrate the Queenship of Mary, Let us honour Our Mother and Queen and imitate her in the closeness of God in our lives.

Liturgy for the Feast of Queenship of Mary (August 22):

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Y40iPTPaG3ngS2fPFF51c1QzYbU1pS4-?usp=sharing

Hymn dedicated to Mary the Queen: https://youtu.be/J-9YRUUM2IA

20th Ordinary Sunday

INVITED TO DINE WITH JESUS

As Jesus continues with his discourse on the bread of life, he makes further revelations about himself. The new detail is that the bread which he will give is his own flesh. The Jews immediately come with the conclusion that Jesus cannot give his flesh to eat. The Jewish incomprehension does not discourage Jesus from carrying on with his discourse: he insists that eating his body and drinking his blood are essential conditions to attain eternal life. All that Jesus speaks about becomes a reality when Jesus institutes the Holy Eucharist. In the Eucharist Jesus is physically present and believers partake of his body and blood and pave the way to eternal life. In the First Reading the author personifies Wisdom as a female figure. She prepares a rich banquet and invites people to partake of it. She does it in order to lead them to walk in the way of God. In the Second Reading Paul exhorts the Ephesians to be wise and be filled with the Holy Spirit whereas he condemns drunkenness and sensuality.

Liturgical materials for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time. You can access them through the following link:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/118G6aANNPoKS0PgT2wU629nDQZ2Mogl_?usp=sharing

Tamil Response Hymn - https://youtu.be/C-caKO08MDY

Twin Feasts - August 15

FREEDOM FROM THE STRUGGLES

Today we are celebrating the twin feasts, Assumption of our Lady, and Independence Day. Our Lady, after going through immense emotional and physical trials was liberated bodily from the shackles of this world to eternal life which she richly deserved. Mary’s assumption is a natural consequence of her immaculate state, being free from sin, as well as of her vocation as the Mother of God. She became the tabernacle of God for she brought forth from her own body Jesus, the Saviour of the world. Thus, her body cannot be subjected to corruption and decay of the grave. In Mary we have a person who is truly liberated. Today, as we celebrate Independence Day after a long-drawn-out struggle for freedom from oppressive rule, we need to ask ourselves Are we really free or still slaves to the power and position? Let us in today’s Eucharist Pray through the intercession of Our Lady that the citizens of our country may learn to cherish the freedom that was given to them and that we as Christians may be free from the shackles of our sins that bind us here to earth.

Liturgy for the Solemnity of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary & Indian Independence Day (August 15).

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1WVE2HfEsqCIWx1kX-rB70G6hVO9KIzVb?usp=sharing

Indian Patriotic Song - https://youtu.be/zpcs8iUawYI

19th Ordinary Sunday

LIVING BY THIS BREAD

Jesus’ claim that he is the bread that has come down from heaven does not go well with his Jewish listeners. Unable to understand that Jesus is the incarnate Son of God, they start speaking about his earthly origins. They say that he is the Son of Joseph whom they know. Jesus does not give into their thoughts but reminds them that they ought to believe in him for eternal life. Both the past and the present belong to God. God provided for the people in the past but God now provides something new. We cannot dwell on the past but must accept what is coming new. Jesus is the new answer that God is providing for us and we need to accept him. Those who ate the manna died. But those who believe in Jesus and partake of his body and blood live for ever. That is why the Eucharist is the central point of our life. In the First Reading Elijah becomes desperate without food and water that he wishes to die. In the Second Reading Paul tells the Ephesians to avoid bitterness, anger and slander, and asks them instead to be tender-hearted, kind and forgiving one another.

Liturgical materials for the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1urIO_x4yIA8OHkcjU9_jslYcxdf4SnFj?usp=sharing

Tamil Response Hymn - https://youtu.be/c6KfmVLSDZQ

Transfiguration of the Lord

CALL TO HOLINESS

The Transfiguration of Jesus is one of the major mysteries in the life of Jesus. Jesus takes with him the trio Peter, James and John, up the mountain of Tabor and reveals to them the glory of his true identity as the Son of God. The experience gives the threesome a foretaste of heaven. This is signified by his dazzling white clothes. Peter wants to preserve the moment. He wants to erect tents. He is overwhelmed and terrified by the experience, yet he does not want it to end. The experience strengthens the faith of the disciples Peter, James and John. Their experience is narrated to us so that we too can deepen our faith. Let us pray that our faith may be increased and thus we may experience the Lord in the celebration of this Holy Eucharist and in the events of our everyday life.

Liturgy for the Feast of Transfiguration (August 6) -

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1paHnnjJMmQp9Tjm0edKNwDj5OuU44jou?usp=sharing

18th Ordinary Sunday

THE BREAD OF PURPOSEFUL LIVING

It is natural for people to seek Jesus for they have eaten food free of charge. But the attitude of the people begins to change when Jesus challenges them not to go after perishable food but seek after the food which endures to eternal life. Jesus intends to bring the people to a higher level – from the physical to the spiritual. The real issue concerns the person of Jesus, for he is the bread that has come from heaven to give life to the world. The listeners immediately turn their attention to the manna that their fathers ate and survived in the wilderness. Even here Jesus corrects their understanding that it was not Moses who gave bread but God the Father. The point is clear: God the Father Who provided food when people were hungry in the wilderness now sends His Son as the bread of life. In the First Reading the murmurings of the people for food in the wilderness results in the spectacular provision of manna. In the Second Reading Paul exhorts the Ephesians to abandon the old and sinful way of living to embrace the new way consisting of righteousness and holiness.

Liturgical materials for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1b9_MFJo5FgdsZlgMK9CWfDK3Y3TzIOdH?usp=sharing

Tamil Response Hymn - https://youtu.be/jXXu1MiPIzk