For Japan we pray!

Japan needs our prayers. Eathquakes,Tsunami,Volcanic activities, Nuclear fall outs all have shocked this nation at once,  big time. A nation so progressive in its technological advancements is on its knees now when it comes to nature's natural responses. It may have built buildings to withstand strong quakes but nothing is full proof and we the human race are always at the mercy of the nature which sustains us and God who created the nature.

These catastrophic incidents remind me how small we are in spite of our so called intelligence, how vulnerable we are in spite of our precautions, how fragile we are in spite of our wisdom and strength, how inhuman we are without God in our life.

God's foolishness ( if that even exists) is far wiser than all the wisdom of the human race. Lets get back to basics lets get back to God.

Prayers for all in Japan. May all the departed soul's rest in peace.

Hail Mary pray for Japan & its people......

Lenten Fasting - from what comes out of our mouth!

Dear Friends,

At the very outset of this holy season of Lent I thought to share with you about 'Lenten Fasting' that might help us all to benefit from this wonderful and holy season.

Lenten Fasting

On Ash Wednesday, the Christian faithful across the world lift up their faces to be signed with ashes.  This sign is meant to remind us both of our mortality and of the promise of new life through repentance. The ashes signal entry into the holy season of Lent, a time of fasting, an opportunity to deprive the body and consequently make room for the spirit.

While fasting from food can be good practice as an act of discipline – and nothing can be achieved without discipline – I challenge each Jesus Youth to consider another view as we journey this Lenten season.  It is as important to control what goes into our mouth as it is to control what comes out of our mouth (Mt 15:11).  During this lent we would consider fasting from what comes out of our mouth.

There are four areas we might consider in this kind of fasting.  The first is fasting from foul language.   The air around us is full of it: in movies, in TV shows, in commercials, in song lyrics, in novels and magazine articles, and in everyday conversation.  Almost everyone uses it regardless of their age, education, status, etc.   Often such foul language from children, youth and adults is meant to signal sophistication and freedom in this modern world.  Using foul, dirty language or telling a smutty joke may make you feel like a big shot.  But remember what comes out of your mouth tells what is inside your heart.   To my mind, all it signals is poverty of vocabulary and small mind and heart.  Certainly, foul language has no place in the life of a disciple of Jesus.

The second Lenten practice is to fast from judgments spilling out from our mouth.  If not every day, make a sincere effort at least on every Friday of the season, in honour of Jesus’ crucifixion.  And so for each Friday of Lent, make no judgments about people: about their motives, their goodness or badness, their social standing, their defects, their clothes, their colour, their jobs, their mistakes, …  Just see everyone as God’s children, people for whom Christ died, fellow pilgrims.

Thirdly, fast from verbal negatives that so readily come from our mouths: the put-downs, the jabs that hurt, the insults, the criticism, the condemnations, the sarcasm, the harmful gossip, the rumour that smears, …  Again, if it is too much to practice every day of Lent, make it just one day of the week.  Preferably Wednesday, as tradition holds that this was the day Judas let the words which betrayed Jesus fall from his mouth.

The fourth Lenten practice is to let the word “no” fall more often from your mouth.  After all, our “nos” define our every bit as much as our “yesses”.   Let Jesus be our model.  When Pilate questioned Jesus, he shook his head no and refused to answer, for he knew Pilate wasn’t really after the truth.  He said no to the pain-dulling hyssop offered to him on the cross.  He would go all the way for us.  Jesus said no to turn stones into bread for he did not come to serve himself.  On the other hand, when it came to giving bread to other, to the five thousand, he said yes.

So, let us be like Jesus during this journey of Lent.  Say no to lies, cheating, over-consumption, drugs, premarital sex, pornography, …   But say yes to truth, words that heal and encourage, to charitable deeds and sharing, to prayer time, to families need for your presence and time, … Say yes to all the six JY pillars.  Say yes to Jesus.

May God bless us with a grace filled holy season of Lent.

Fr. Bitaju Puthenpurackal, O.SS.T.

Pastor, JYIT

Superbia

Dear One's in Christ,                  

                              One of the truisms of the Christian journey is that the holier we get, the more sinful we discover we are. This apparent paradox is because the closer we come to God, the more spotlights God shines into our lives revealing the sin hidden in the shadows, much like a ray of sunlight in a room reveals particles of dust and debris that one would never notice otherwise.

                              The Catholic Church divides sin into two categories: "venial sins", which are relatively minor and can be forgiven through any sacramental or sacraments of the Church (as well as through prayer and acts of charity), and the more severe "grave" or mortal sins. The Seven Deadly Sins, also known as the Capital Vices or Cardinal Sins, is a classification of objectionable vices, that were originally used in early Christian teachings to educate and instruct followers concerning fallen man’s tendency to sin.

                           They are called capital because all the sins of commission and omission that we commit are said to flow from these seven capital sins.However, each of these may be venial or mortal depending on the specific case. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Mortal sin is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent” (CCC 1857)

                      In the Book of Proverbs, it is stated that the Lord specifically regards "six things the Lord hated and the seventh His soul detested." namely:

• A proud look.

• A lying tongue.

• Hands that shed innocent blood.

• A heart that devises wicked plots.

• Feet that is swift to run into mischief.

• A deceitful witness that uttered lies.

• Him that sowed discord among brethren

                           In the order used by both Pope Gregory and by Dante Alighieri in his epic poem “The Divine Comedy”, the seven deadly sins are as follows:

• luxuria (lechery/lust)

• gula (gluttony)

• avaritia (avarice/greed)

• acedia (acedia/discouragement)

• ira (wrath)

• invidia (envy)

• superbia (pride)

                                    In Colossians 3:9-10 the apostle Paul mentions the "old self" and the "new self" as he writes "Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him." He says that the old self has been put aside. Why would one want to put aside the old self, or old man? We are taught to put aside our old self because it is being corrupted.

                                 That old man who lives only for himself, arrogantly cutting himself loose from his Creator and selfishly closing his eyes to the needs of his neighbor. It is not merely a theological description: every one can readily understand this “old man” because we experience the direct effects of this nature within us, summed up in the seven capital sins: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy and gluttony.

 1.Pride (thought for this week)

                                                        He was the most beautiful of all angels. He was referred to as the Day Star, and the son of Dawn. His name itself spoke of his brightness—Lucifer, angel of light. He dreamt of ascending the heavens and raising his throne above that of God's. But he was sent crashing down to the dark recesses of the pit for committing the greatest sin of all: Pride.

                                                    That is what pride, described by theologians as the father of all sins, does to us. We end up going down even as we try to go up. It is also the most common of all sins, though strangely enough, most of us don't even realize that we are proud.

Prayer

Oh my God, at this moment I offer all the sins especially in the areas of capital sin PRIDE that I’ve addicted to. I am heartily sorry for having offended You, and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of Hell, but most of all because they offend You, my Lord, Who are all-good and deserving of all my love. I pray that even though temptation comes, help me to stand firm, to avoid the sins. Amen.

Saint Francis of Assisi  help us to overcome this sin 'Pride'.

Talking Donkey

...but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm  -  Proverbs 1:33

Dear Saints in the making,

Here's a question for you,what would you do if you found yourself in the company of a talking donkey ? I understand that even finding a normal non-talking donkey in B'lore is tough,let alone a talking donkey.In-fact I don't even remember seeing a donkey in B'lore ever (except for people sometimes behaving like donkeys that is,me included).But for a moment lets contemplate this impossible scenario,while you are thinking,here are my thoughts on this,I'll first try to understand what the donkey is saying,then if it has something interesting to say I'll indulge in a conversation with it and when it starts getting boring I'll try to sell the donkey thru eBay, if it is an uninteresting donkey I'll immediately try to sell it thru eBay (I believe there are enough schmucks in this world who would like to buy a talking donkey,interesting or un-interesting) both ways -  I'll be rich  ha ha ha very rich.... ha ha ha ha ha ha

Jokes apart,in the Bible there was this guy who found himself in the company of a talking donkey,his name was Balaam ( Numbers 22-24 ).He was a very influential diviner who, although aware of the true God YAHWEH, made his services available on a freelance basis.He was commissioned by King Balak of Moab to put a curse on the incoming Israelites (BAD IDEA - U don't mess with JEHOVAH's people.Period.) God warns him but he ignores it and chooses to follow his own plans,finally God makes his pet donkey speak to him and thereby gets his attention.Like Balaam many a times we have this inclination of not listening to God's voice and going our own ways.We do have this little voice inside telling us not to go a particular way,but we choose to ignore it.Dearly beloved,as disciples of God,we really only have one job... to follow God and only God.To do what God wants and only what God wants.To say what God would say and only what God would say. As disciples of God and followers of Christ we ought to listen to that small voice of the Holy Spirit guiding us and warning us when on a wrong path.The question is, - "Are we listening to this small voice,or would God our father have to make a donkey speak in our lives to get our attention ? "  People,are we listening ?

Open your hearts to the Holy Spirits promptings today.

THINK THIS OUT 2DAY

God does not command us to live in hair shirts and chains, or to chastise our flesh with scourges, but to love Him above all things and our neighbor as ourselves. - --Saint Charles of Sezze

SAY THIS OUT LOUD 2DAY
My hope is in Christ, who strengthens the weakest by His Divine help. I can do all in Him who strengthens me. His Power is infinite, and if I lean on him, it will be mine. His Wisdom is infinite, and if I look to Him for counsel, I shall not be deceived. His Goodness is infinite, and if my trust is stayed in Him, I shall not be abandoned.

luv n prayers,
Piyush

Steve Jobs and Evangelization

"He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.." - Mark 16:15

Dear Saints in the making,
"The post below has borrowed heavily from the writings of Eric Sammons "

About a month back the Consumer Electronics Show was held in Las Vegas and the big buzz was for tablet computers. It seems every tech company is jumping on the craze created by Apple’s iPad. What I found fascinating was comparing the sales pitch for these new tablets with the one given by Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs last year when he announced the iPad.
When Jobs was talking about the iPad, he spoke about it being “magical” and how it is a great way to experience the Internet. He gave practical examples of using the iPad and emphasized its ease of use and how fun it is to use.
When the others introduced their tablets, they talked about how they had dual-processors, included so many gigs of memory, and ran the latest Android OS. They reiterated the great tech specs their tablet had compared to the iPad and other tablet devices.
Which do you think is the more effective sales technique? The non-Apple CEOs were selling toothpaste; Steve Jobs was selling white teeth. Instead of focusing on the details of his product, Jobs instead focuses on how his product will change people’s lives.


I think this topic tells us something about how to effectively evangelize.


If you look at the early Church, especially in New Testament times, you see that the first apostles took the “white teeth” approach to evangelizing. They proclaimed that they had seen the risen Lord and that he had transformed their lives. Again and again St. Paul speaks of the transformation his experience with Christ had on his life – and that others can have the same transformation. He did not get into the details of exactly how Christ is God or things of that nature; he spoke of the power of Christ to change lives.
When evangelizing, eventually one will need to discuss the details of the Faith: exactly what the Church teaches and why. But that is not the main thing ; instead as Jesus Youth we must proclaim that Christ has changed our lives and that He can change yours as well. Those who are in most need of Christ will be drawn to our experience and it will lead them to want to know more about this Jesus Christ and His Church that have so radically changed our lives.So today in our workplaces,our homes,our schools and our colleges,let us take the 'white teeth' approach.As Jesus Youth we have been called to demonstrate the life changing power of Christ to the people around us.There are only 4 Gospels in the New Testament,we are the 5th and sadly we could be the only Gospel that some people will ever read.So Saints,rise up to the occasion.Onward Christian Soldiers...........................


Have a spirit-filled day !


Point2Ponder:
Many, many people hereabouts are not becoming Christians for one reason only: there is nobody to make them Christians. -- St. Francis de Xavier


Prayer Intentions:
Pray for Vocations
Pray for all the prayer groups active in and around Bangalore.
 
Courtesy - Mr.Eric Sammons - http://ericsammons.com/
Composed by  - Piyush Philip

Patron Saint of Software Engineers ???

       "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled" - Mat 5:6

Dear Saints in the making,

A few months back I was having trouble with the delivery of a piece of software.I was assigned the development of a particular set of code and the way things were going I didn't see the delivery happening on the specified date.I mean 1 woman + 9 months - 1 child possible but 9 women + 1 month - no child,common-sense,eh ? But,its all part of my job...and after many days and nights of slogging I tried to take in some extra help...special help.I thought I'll find the patron saint of software engineers,and ask for his/her intercession.So here I was,googling 'Patron Saint of Software Engineers'....I searched,I searched and then I searched some more...but to no avail.I mean there is St. Isidore of Seville,but he is the 'Patron Saint of the Internet',its too generic,I wanted someone specific and I wanted someone quick.But no such luck,apparently we don't have a 'Patron Saint of Software Engineers' as of now.So I called on my old and trusted friend 'St.Jude Thaddaeus' the 'Patron of Hopeless Cases' and hopeless I was.As expected,I got my inspiration through his intercession and I am happy to say that things went smooth and everything happened with clockwork precision. All God's grace.

This brings me to an important point - aren't all of us supposed to strive for sainthood ? BTW who is a saint ? The dictionary definition - 'person of exceptional holiness' . The goal of all Christians should be to become as holy and perfect as Jesus,our Lord and Saviour.The Masses we attend,the prayer groups we go to,the Confessions we do,the Rosaries we say,all of them have a common purpose - to help us on our road to sainthood.Dearly beloved,this is my challenge for you today - that all of us strive for sainthood.So humble yourself before the Lord and ask for this very special grace.I consider myself to be a work in progress and to tell you the truth I intend to become 'The Patron Saint of Software Engineers'. { NOTE - This position already has a contender - ME,my advice - FIND YOUR OWN NICHE } What's so funny ? The position as you know is vacant I may as well try for it,right ? And yes on our walk we may fall,but always remember this adage,'every saint had a past and every sinner has a future'. So,keep walking ! Hope and pray that you enjoy your road to sainthood.

Have a righteous day in the Lord !

Point2Ponder :

"Ultimately life holds only one tragedy - not to have been a saint." - Charles Péguy

Prayer Intentions:

• Holy Father's Prayer Intention(General) - That the family may be respected by all in its identity and that its irreplaceable contribution to all of society be recognized.
• Holy Father's Prayer Intention(Mission) - That in the mission territories where the struggle against disease is most urgent, Christian communities may witness to the presence of Christ to those who suffer.
• Pray that every Jesus Youth strives for holiness and righteousness.

Written by - Piyush Philip , Bangalore Jesus Youth

Shopping Malls

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me - 2 Corinthians 12:9

Dear Saints in the making,

Yesterday afternoon  I went to Total Mall on the Old-Airport Road.As it was 26th-Jan a public holiday , the place was flooded with shoppers and lots of children.It reminded me of a sermon I had heard long ago in a church (don't really remember whether in a prayer meeting or during mass),which I am internalizing/sharing below. Anyways next time when u r in a mall,just sit down somewhere and watch the children . You will observer parent-children bonding @ three different levels.First,there are the kids who are running ahead of their parents,until they suddenly realize that they are lost among the great multitude of shoppers. Secondly,children who are walking along holding their parents' hand and finally the little ones who are totally exhausted and are resting in their parents’ arms.They are dead tired and their parents are carrying them.In fact many a times the kid is fast asleep on his/her parents' arms.

Those children in the mall are a picture of how we experience God in a deeper and deeper way.First,we’re ambling about not really thinking or caring about God until we royally mess-up and realize that we’re lost and God our Father finds us. Then its level-2 ,we decide to walk along with Him holding His hands allowing Him to help us.We have realized that we can't do it alone,but we assume and presume that we are  walking on our own strength.Everything is fine till now,then something goes wrong,something  that levels us.A profound feeling of powerlessness . That’s when we realize that we have a strong God.Not just one who redeems or heals ,but a Father who carries us.Now its all about Him !And do you realize this - we can go farther and faster
in His arms than we could ever go on our legs  !! So now you ain't powerless anymore.You see this is the point where you are about to taste God’s grace and strength as only week people can,and your TEST will become a TESTimony about  a God who's grace is sufficient to carry you through .Maybe you are trying to fulfill your destiny on your own and finding yourself short of your goals .Dearly beloved,this is the time to look up and say,” Dad,carry me”. Because you’re never stronger than when your Dad is carrying you.

Have a boast-worthy day in the Lord !

Point2Ponder 

      It's never too late to be what you might have been. - George Eliot

Prayer Intentions:

• Pray for vocations
• Pray for all the priests n nuns in Bangalore

Written by - Piyush Philip , JYBangalore , Professional Ministry