Martin Jumbam

Catholic Meditation: Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time - Year A.

Martin Jumbam

Mother Church invites us to celebrate Sunday, July 27, 2014 as the 17^th Sunday of ordinary time, year A. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “God is in his holy dwelling; he will give a home to the lonely, he gives power and strength to his people. Amen.” Today’s first reading, from the first Book of Kings, shows Solomon asking God, not for wealth or long life, but for wisdom. Popular proverb and Old Testament tradition alike consider Solomon as the embodiment of wisdom.  In the second reading, from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans, Paul declares that when we do good, God cooperates with us. God turns everything good for those who love him. In the Gospel from Matthew, Jesus continues his discussion in parables with his disciples, explaining to them the meaning of the kingdom of heaven in terms they all can relate to.  Let us pray in the course of this Eucharist for the grace of wisdom to follow Christ more closely since he alone holds the key to our salvation.

Catholic Meditation - Sixteenth Sunday of Year A

Martin Jumbam

Mother Church invites us to celebrate Sunday, July 20, 2014, as the 16^th Sunday of ordinary time, year A. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “God himself is my help. The Lord upholds my life. I will offer you a willing sacrifice; I will praise your name, O Lord, for its goodness. Amen”. In the first reading from the book of Wisdom, the wise man tries to answer the question why God allows the bad to flourish? Why is God so patient with Israel’s enemies? He argues that God’s moderation is not a result of weakness. It is because he is a God of compassion and mercy to all. The scandal of God’s goodness and kindness towards wrongdoers appears again in Saint Matthew’s gospel of this day. In parables, Christ reveals God to his listeners as one who is good, patient, slow to anger but quick to forgive and to forget. Even though good and evil co-exist, not only in the world as a whole, but also in our hearts, God remains patient and all-forgiving. He is always ready to give us a second chance to repent. Saint Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans, in the second reading, that in our weakness, God comes to our rescue. The intercession of the Holy Spirit on our behalf enhances the intensity and efficacy of our prayer. Let us pray during this Eucharist for the grace to forgive others their trespasses as God forgives us, who are sinners, and invites us to repentance.

Catholic Meditation: Fifteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year A.

By Martin Jumbam

Mother Church celebrates Sunday, July13, 2014 as the 15^th Sunday of ordinary time, year A. The Entrance Antiphon of this day’s Holy Mass says: “In my justice I shall see your face, O Lord; when your glory appears, my joy will be full. Amen.”  The principal message of this day’s Holy Mass is that the Church must preach the Word of God, in season and out of season, whether it is in fashion or out of fashion, whether she is being listened to or not. It is about this Word of God that the readings of this day speak. God’s Word itself is a guarantee that the promise of liberation is to be accomplished. As rain makes the seeds in the earth germinate, so the Word of God produces fruits of freedom in the faithful. That is why God’s Word never comes back empty, as Isaiah tells us in the first reading. Our Lord, in Matthew’s Gospel, compares God’s Word to a seed that bears fruit according to the response of those who hear it. The seed that falls on arid soil dies off producing nothing, while the seed that falls on rich soil (that is, souls in a state of grace ready to receive God’s word) produces abundant fruit. In the second reading, Saint Paul continues to tell the Roman converts that as God’s children, they have become true brothers of Christ and heirs to God’s glory. Through baptism, we become, not only sharers of Christ’ sufferings, but also partakers of his glory. In the course of this Eucharist, let us pray for the grace to follow Christ more closely so that his word of salvation may find rich soil in our souls on which to grow to fruition.

Catholic Meditation - Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time - Year A

 By Martin Jumbam

Mother Church celebrates Sunday, July 6, 2014, as the 14^th Sunday of Ordinary Time, year A. In the Entrance Antiphon we pray: “Within your temple, we ponder your loving kindness, O God. As your name, so also your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; your right hand is filled with justice. Amen” In today’s first reading, the prophet Zechariah proclaims that the Messiah will come not like a mighty king, but as one who serves. He comes to us as a humble son of a village carpenter, riding on a donkey. But he who accepts and follows this humble king will experience true peace. The Son of God gives us the theme of this day’s Mass: “Learn from me,” he says in Matthew’s Gospel of this day, “for I am gentle and humble of heart.” Saint Paul, in the second reading from his letter to the Romans, explains that God’s friendship means that the Spirit of God dwells in the man of faith. He, however, urges us to put an end to the misdeeds of the body and stick to Jesus so as to be sharers of his resurrection and glory.