This Sermon is prepared by

Rev.Fr.Peter Jayakanthan sss
Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament
Corpus Christi Catholic Church,
Houston, Texas, US



ஞாயிறு மறையுரைகள்

மதிப்பிற்குரிய அருட்பணியாளர்களே, துறவிகளே, அருட் கன்னியரே, உங்கள் ஞாயிறு மறையுரைகளை எமது இணையத்தளத்தின் ஆன்மீக வலத்தில் பிரசுரித்து, ஆண்டவர் இயேசுவின் நற்செய்தியை எல்லோருக்கும் அறிவிக்க விரும்பினால், info@tamilcatholicnews.com என்ற எமது மின்னஞ்சலுக்கு உங்களுடைய ஆக்கங்களை அனுப்பிவைக்கவும். உங்கள் மறையுரைகள் உலகெங்கும் இருக்கும் அனைத்து தமிழ் உள்ளங்களையும் சென்றடையும்.



இதோ! ஓநாய்களிடையே ஆடுகளை அனுப்புவதைப்போல நான் உங்களை அனுப்புகிறேன். எனவே பாம்புகளைப்போல முன்மதி உடையவர்களாகவும் புறாக்களைப்போலக் கபடு அற்றவர்களாகவும் இருங்கள்.
(மத்தேயு 10:16)

நீங்கள் போய் எல்லா மக்களினத்தாரையும் சீடராக்குங்கள்; தந்தை, மகன், தூய ஆவியார் பெயரால் திருமுழுக்குக் கொடுங்கள். நான் உங்களுக்குக் கட்டளையிட்ட யாவையும் அவர்களும் கடைப்பிடிக்கும்படி கற்பியுங்கள். இதோ! உலக முடிவுவரை எந்நாளும் நான் உங்களுடன் இருக்கிறேன்
(மத்தேயு 28:19-20)

நீ அவற்றை உன் பிள்ளைகளின் உள்ளத்தில் பதியுமாறு சொல். உன் வீட்டில் இருக்கும்போதும், உன் வழிப்பயணத்தின் போதும், நீ படுக்கும்போது, எழும்போதும் அவற்றைப் பற்றிப் பேசு.
(இணைச்சட்டம் 6:7)








16th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Live with Mixed bag of Good and Evil!
Don’t leave Evil....Evil will leave you

Wis 12:13, 16-19; Rom 8:26-27; Mt13:24-43

Dear Sisters, Brothers and Children, I welcome you once again to celebrate our life by being part of the Eucharistic banquet. “Do not let Sunday be taken from you. If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes an orphan”-Albert Schweitzer. It is true that our Sunday’s participation and celebration of Eucharist offers us a great sense of belonging to a particular community. We shall make all efforts to sustain the joy, peace and faith in our community and in our homes.

I will not pass through Russia during my travels…….I decide not to travel by Malaysian airlines…… It is cruel that the plane was hit by a human made missile. It seems it is always Malaysian airlines. This is second time. We say, enough of travelling because, travelling is not safe. We want to run away and leave from evil, but evil follows us. What shall we do? Will there be evil always? Why does evil exist in the God created World?

There is unending war in the Middle East……..now in the region of Gaza ….innocent children are killed brutally…why is there evil? Thousands are unborn and are killed mercilessly…why this evil? There is killing within community and family…why do we become evil? Is God silent or absent? God is neither silent nor absent, rather God is lenient and clement. God allows evil though he does not will. He is tolerant and accommodative with evil so that it changes or empowers. God does not separate good and evil, hoping that it will die off if not willing to be part of good.

We have a gospel today where Matthew offers three parables of Jesus. Parables are a pictorial presentation of reality, for better, easier and clear understanding of common people. We pick up the weed among the wheat parable for our reflection today. Jesus was in the midst of the groups who separated and segregated tax collectors, Samaritans, sinners and sick people as evil, outcast and unclean. Pharisees, scribes and leaders of that time could not imagine Jesus mingling and dining with sinners, tax collectors, Samaritans and the sick people. Jesus addresses these groups who created separation, and to the confused crowds of followers, that we are called to live with good and evil without labeling and leaving them away. It is like wheat growing in the midst of weeds. While growing one cannot identify, instead we may misjudge so by the mature time of harvest, the weed will die off itself. So it is prudent and wise to allow weeds instead of uprooting them. Good and evil co-exist. We live with good and evil. There is good and evil or wheat and weed in society, in politics, in our personal relationships and within each one of us. How our approach and attitude has been? Do we separate or run away? Do we make an effort to live with it? Jesus did not judge at all, He accommodated and tolerated that brought changes too. Tax collectors Matthew and Zacchaeus become good from their evil practice, Mary Magdalene, Samaritan woman, woman caught in adultery, many who were in sin became good from their life of evil. When you are tolerant, lenient and accommodative, you are not judgmental rather you become very patient that enables you to change or empower the evil into good, it challenges the evil. If there is no change…if good continues…then evil dies off. Judas was one among the twelve, Jesus allowed the evil hoping that Judas might change, but he lost the opportunity. Our first reading of today shows the picture of God’s leniency and clemency over the people of Israel. The author of this book of Wisdom might be a Jew, he was writing to the Jews who were in diaspora in the region of Alexandria in Egypt. They were exposed to the new cultural thinking of Hellenistic philosophy. It paved the way to pagan worship to various animals. The chosen people of Israel were wondering about this new modern thinking, life-style and culture which offered prosperity and progress. There were reminded of God’s tolerant and lenient approach. The author challenges them to be there in the midst of this evil path, but worshipping Yahweh alone, and assures that pagan worship will die off or those who follow will join them.

St. Paul in his letter to 2Cor12:9, says, “My power is made perfect in weakness. He lived with the enmity of his own fellow Jewish people and empowered many. From Jerusalem to Rome, there was always violent opposition to the followers of Christ, People who faced martyrdom by shedding blood empowered evil. There were various heresies, the Church faced every one of them, the Church faced world wars, crusades, Marxism and now facing scandals, but Church stands firm.

Pope Emeritus Benedict expressed at the World youth 2006 in Germany, “The Church can be criticized because it contains both grain and weeds, it actually is consoling to realize that there are weeds in the Church. In this way, despite all our defects we can still hope to be counted among the disciples of Jesus who came to call sinners”. Later In 2010, 9th October referring to this text spoke in his weekly general audience, “the wheat and weeds exist in close proximity”.

Thomas Aquinas said, “Good can exist without evil, whereas evil cannot exist without good”.It was in the year 1770, at a small Italian Church, two altar boys were preparing for Benediction; they were Annibale Della Genga and Francesco Castiglioni. In a short time they started their argument on who would stand on the priest’s right for procession; it became a fight as Castiglioni cracked Della Genga over the head with his candlestick. Blood was dripping out of Della’s forehead; People and Parishioners rushed in and asked the Priest to throw them out; though the priest stopped them that day, he allowed them to continue to serve. It is hard to believe, however Cardinal Della Genga become Pope in 1823 with the name Leo XII in later Cardinal Castiglioni succeeded his sacristy friend as Pope Pius VIII in 1829. Everything is possible if we are non-judgmental and patient.

Do we label and separate our children as evil and bad in our families or persons in communities? Shall we become aware that good and evil co-exist and tolerate in order to empower the evil situation, habit or persons?
Bishop Fulton Sheen said in one of his radio speeches: “The history of the world would have been different if the Christian authorities had shown compassion, patience and mercy instead of expelling Hitler and Mussolini from the schools and Stalin from the seminary in disgrace as weeds.”
Our questions should be: not why does evil or evil persons exist? But how I live with and empower them?
Our approach must be: not segregating children and persons rather accommodating to challenge them.
Our thoughts could be: not critical instead Positive that Change is always possible if not it will die off. Can we carry the mixed bag to build the mixed kingdom-Amen.