Eighty Third Birthday Celebrations

 Yesterday was the celebration of my 83rd birthday. It started with my morning mass at the chapel .The main celebrant was Abp.Pamplany. At the breakfast, the Major Archbishop,Cardinal Mar George Alencherry, offered me greetings and all the bishops sang happy birthday as they were then seated for their breakfast. Later , the family gathered at my brother Bernard's house for lunch.Before lunch, we said a rosary for  all the members of the family, past and present. I did give all the ladies silver rosaries which were made specially for this event.That was the end of the celebration. The day before, at Varghese's new house blessing at Chy, they also offered me greetings for the birthday,

The Lord has blessed me to celebrate this day. I do consider these months an opportunity given by God to praise him , adore him and to offer prayers for all our friends and relatives.My heart is full of thanks to the Lord for giving me this occasion to praise and adore him again.

I would like to repeat the prayer of Thomas Merton again in this note: "My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me.I cannot know for certain where it will end.Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am knowing your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.....I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.I will not fear , for you are ever with me and you will never leave me to face my perils alone."

My heart is like a singing bird
Whose nest is in a water’d shoot;
My heart is like an apple-tree
Whose boughs are bent with thickset fruit;
My heart is like a rainbow shell
That paddles in a halcyon sea;
My heart is gladder than all these
Because the Lord is with me.( Adaptation of a poem of Christina Rossetti)

The following words of Henri Nouwen too are apt to be remembered on this occasion:

"We are God's beloved daughters and sons, not because we are worthy but because God freely chose us."

Prof.John Philip

 It was with real shock and great sorrow that I received the news of the passing away of Sri John Philip.It was Prof.Sunny Mathews who informed me from the US about the demise of John Philip. He was our classmate in MA class at S.B.college. For the two years of our course  , he was a constant companion.Everyday before the beginning of the class , he would come to my room and we would walk together to the class room. We discussed all the topics and shared them with our friends. He was very respectful and caring.  He had a positive  attitude and was always cheerful.Even though after we left the college, we have not met each other but knew in my mind and heart that he was doing well and was successful as a teacher at Bishop More college.We had a chance to meet at the celebration of the  50th anniversary of the PG Department. We had a picture taken after the meeting . I was very happy to see him at the meeting. He looked the same with no changes. He briefed me about the developments in his life. I never got a chance to visit him at his house nor to see his family. His face and smile are before me and I wish him eternal rest with the Lord.  I am sure  he is resting peacefully with  the Lord. he was a good Christian with great moral principles. May the Lord protect  and bless him in the eternal abode where there is no weeping or sorrow. What Tennyson said in In Memoriam about his friend, Hallam,  is very appropriate here: "It is better to have loved and lost than never to  have loved at all."

Do not stand at my grave and weep 
I am not there. I do not sleep. 
I am a thousand winds that blow. 
I am the diamond glints on snow. 
 
I am the sunlight on ripened grain. 
I am the gentle autumn rain. 
When you awaken in the morning’s hush 
I am the swift uplifting rush 
 
Of quiet birds in circled flight. 
I am the soft stars that shine at night. 
Do not stand at my grave and cry; (Elizabeth Frye)

Return from the US

 I returned to India on June 20th after a stay of a month and a half in the US. It was for the wedding of Ittyrachans' daughter ,Melissa and for the First Communions of Jonathan, Michael and Isabel that I left for the States.While there, I did participate in the baptism of Theres's child at St.Philomena's church. I was asked to give a talk to the Men's Club at St.Philomena's church. The talk went OK , with more than 30 people participating.The pastor was waiting at the door to receive me and he was present throughout the talk. It was a cold and rainy morning but it went OK without affecting my voice or the tone of the  presentation.I was also successful in renewing my passport while staying in NJ.Had to go to NY for an expedited issue of passport. Jogy prepared the application and I had go to the passport office with all the necessary documents. Jogy waited there until my return after an hour with the submission of the documents to the Office. The passport was ready the next day evening. I got it at 4p.m.If I had not renewed it, I would have to go through a heck of troubles to get it before the expiry.

Some sad events happened in the month of June with the passing away of my first cousin, Vakachan(M.P.Varghese).I was thinking of giving a call to him but within a few days after my return I got the news that he had passed away suddenly by a heart-attack. He was very gentle and kind,  religious and well versed in the knowledge of the Bible. He was leading a quiet life after his retirement from the Union Bank of India.The passing of the Former Chief Minister, Sri Oommen Chandy was another sad moment as Kerala witnessed an unprecedented outpouring of love and grief at his demise.

Trip to New York,June 8th

 For the last few says I was suffering from severe coughing and cold. Today, Santosh sent an antibiotic to be collected from the CVS.Jogy brought the medication in the morning.I feel immensely better.I hope I will get over it tomorrow as we go to  the Passport Office for an expedite issue of the passport.Today ,I got the new driver's license.By the grace of God,I feel better and the coughing is becoming lighter.All my official functions will be over by my trip to NY for the passport. The Lord has been good to me. I was blessed to make this trip and do the marriage blessing of Melissa, the daughter of Ittyrachan.It has been a long while since I did the blessing in the US.

My trip to the States

 On May 3rd, I left for the States by Emirates .My flight reached NY airport by 3pm on the sane day.The flight was OK but only things that there was no facility for lounges on this ticket although it was business class.As the flights had only a short lay over, there was no need of any lounge facility.At Kochi airport, on account of the Essaf card, I could use the lounge facility.As Jogy  was waiting at the NY airport, my arrival was smooth.I rested for a few days and then left with Jogy for Santosh's house for the First Communion of Jonathan.Everything went smoothly and I was able to concelebrate at the First Communion mass and give first communion to Jonathan.

The original plan was to leave Clarksville  for Seattle along with Johnachan.But the news came that Michael had contracted Covid from his teacher and my flight to Seattle was postponed.Since I have to be be present at the marriage of Melissa, I decided to change my plan to go to Seattle. So I missed Isabel and Michael's First Communion and also spending a few days with them at their new house. It was a real miss! Then , I returned with Jogy and decided to spend the time with him.

I was invited for the baptism of Theres's child Iris and for the reception.I was also invited by the Men's ministry of St.Philomena's church on Saturday morning. Even though it  was slightly drizzling ands chilly ,the Pastor was waiting in front of the Hall to receive me. The talk went very well and the people were very appreciative.

The next day I was supposed to go to Somerset Church and give also a talk to the CCD teachers.But Tom's wife,Lena ,got sick and he could not  give me the ride and hence the program  WAS cancelled.

Today ,May 24th, we went to the DMV office for the renewal of my license.It went very smoothly.The documents were accepted and I was given a copy of the license at the payment of 11 dollars.The new license will be mailed to me within 20 days.Tomorrow,I am going to the DC for the blessing of the marriage. I will stay in DC for three or four days and will return to NJ.Thank you,Lord, for your blessings all these days. Today I wrote a letter to all the alumni asking them to be civil and without rancor at their meeting tomorrow. I am sure they will observe the spirit of the letter.

C.S.Lewis--Mere Christianity

  This is a very good book where many of the Christian doctrines, virtues and Christian morality are explained in an understandable way .No high- flown or pedantic language. In very simple words, Christianity is presented.Many have accepted Christianity by reading this work of C.S.Lewis.He is a great apologist of the Christian faith.His full name: Clive Staples Lewis(1898-1963).A fellow and tutor in English Lit. at Oxford Uty until 1954. Then,  he was  elected  the Chair of of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge Uty.Wrote more than 39 books. Mere Christianity is  a reworked collection of a series of lectures he gave over the BBC to  inspire the faith of the soldiers in the Second World War.Kathleen Norris says : "Lewis seeks in Mere Christianity to help us see religion with fresh eyes as a radical faith."

Forgiveness:

We have to remember how He loves us.Not for any nice , attractive qualities we think we have, but just because we are the things called selves.For really there is nothing in us to love: creatures like us who actually find hatred such a pleasure that  to give it up is like giving up beer or tobacco...

Sexual Morality:

While the rule of chastity is the same for all Christians, the rule of propriety changes. The difference in the dress of a girl in the pacific islands and of a Victorian lady.

Perfect chasity  like perfect charity will not be attained by any merely human efforts.You must ask for God's help...After each failure, ask forgivenss,pick yourself up, and try again.Very often what God first helps us towards is not the virtue itself but just this power of always trying again....It cures our illusions about ourselves and teaches us to depend on God...We need not despair in our worst for our failures are forgiven.

The sins of the flesh are bad, but they are the least bad of all sins.All the worst pleasure are purely  spiritual

There two things inside me ,competing with the human self which I must try to become.The Animal self and the diabolical self.the diabolical self is the worst of the two.That is why a cold, self-righteous prig who goes regularly to church may be far nearer to hell than a prostitute.

Holy Thursday,2023

•                             Jesus washing the feet of the Apostles and instituting the Eucharist.
• Bread was always in the thoughts of Jesus--physical as well as spiritual.
• He did not want his people to go hungry 
• Multiplied bread twice to feed the crowd of 5000 fist and that of 7000, later.
• On the last night of his life, he made the bread to become the food not not for just a group of people but for all his believers;not for a day but for all the days in their lives.
• Not for the  satiation of their  physical needs but for all their needs.
• Offering not bread that has a limited life but his own life and blood that has no time limits.
• Jesus becoming wholly and totally a part of our lives.
• This  transformation is powerful and overwhelming---Jesus becoming present in our lives, everyday of our lives.
• Our reflections:
• My Jesus, You are everything that my life craves for.I find joy in your presence.Your presence will make me more available to others and help me to wash their feet. Lord , wash my feet and fill me with your life.
• Henri Nouwen: "Lord, I promise I will not run away , not give up, not stop praying, even when all seems useless,pointless and a waste of time and effort.I want to let you know that I love You even though I do not feel loved by you and that I hope in you even though I often experience despair.Let this be a little dying I can do with You.
•  Fulton J.Sheen: "All my sermons are prepared in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. As recreation is most pleasant and profitable in the sun, so homiletic creativity is best nourished before the Eucharist. The most brilliant ideas come from meeting God face to face. The Holy Spirit that presided at the Incarnation is the best atmosphere for illumination. Pope John Paul II keeps a small desk or writing pad near him whenever he is in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament; and I have done this all my life - I am sure for the same reason he does, because a lover always works better when the beloved is with him."

•  St.John Chrysostom: "How many of you say: I should like to see His face, His garments, His shoes. You do see Him, you touch Him, you eat Him. He gives Himself to you, not only that you may see Him, but also to be your food and nourishment"

• St Thomas Aquinas: “The Eucharist is the sacrament of love: it signifies love, it produces love. The Eucharist is the consummation of the whole spiritual life.”

  St Euphrasia: “To speak of the Blessed Sacrament is to speak of what is most sacred. How often, when we are in a state of distress, those to whom we look for help leave us; or what is worse, add to our affliction by heaping fresh troubles upon us. He is ever there, waiting to help us.”

• t Francis de Sales: “When the bee has gathered the dew of heaven and the earth’s sweetest nectar from the flowers, it turns it into honey, then hastens to its hive. In the same way, the priest, having taken from the altar the Son of God (who is as the dew from heaven, and true son of Mary, flower of our humanity), gives him to you as delicious food

• St John Chrysostom: “It is not the man who is responsible for the offerings as they become Christ’s Body and Blood; it is Christ Himself who was crucified for us. The standing figure belongs to the priest who speaks these words. The power and the grace belong to God. ‘This is My Body,’ he says. And these words transform the offerings.”

  St Cyril of Jerusalem: “Since Christ Himself has said, ‘This is My Body,’ who shall dare to doubt that it is His Body?”

• Little Flower on her First Communion: " That day our meeting was more than simple recognition, it was perfect union..We were no longer two.Therese had disappeared like a drop of water lost in the immensity of the ocean; Jesus alone remained.He was the master, the King."