1st Sunday of Advent 2019

In an old song Whose Birthday is Christmas by The Statler Brothers, a little child asked, “Oh daddy just who’s birthday is Christmas, the Bible says that Jesus was born. Oh daddy please explain, I had to ask because you hear so much about Santa Clause, Silver bells and ceder smells don’t tell the story of the virgin and the manger where He lay; festive drinks and glasses klinks will not make Jesus proud to say that this is His Birthday”.

To miss the true meaning of Christmas is the evil which is sought to be avoided by any Christians. Christmas is not just about giving gifts. It is not just about love. It is the birthday of Jesus the Christ. Many people during the time of Jesus missed the day he was born. If they only learned that it was Jesus whom Mary was about to give birth, they could have offered homage to him. But they had not.

Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew 24: 37-44 said that one must be ready for the Son of man is coming at an hour he/she does not expect. This is the reason why we Catholics have this so-called Advent season. We prepare ourselves to celebrate the birthday of Jesus. It is the birthday of Jesus. What gift then can we give to him? If everything we have is from God, then what do we have to offer to Jesus who is the Son of God? Well, the only thing which does not come from God is our sins. We can offer our sins to him. We can give them up to him. In doing so, we do not miss the meaning of Christmas as the birthday of Jesus. He was born to save us from our sins. In offering our sins before him, we accept the salvation he has brought us with his birth.  

On this first Sunday of Advent, may we all have the time to confess our sins as we prepare to celebrate the birthday of our Lord Jesus. Amen.

Christ the King 2019

The story is told that Alexander and a small company of soldiers approached a strongly fortified walled city. Alexander, standing outside the walls, raised his voice and demanded to see the king. When the king arrived, Alexander insisted that the king surrender the city and its inhabitants to Alexander and his little band of fighting men.

The king laughed, "Why should I surrender to you? You can’t do us any harm!" But Alexander offered to give the king a demonstration. He ordered his men to line up single file and start marching. He marched them straight toward a sheer cliff.

The townspeople gathered on the wall and watched in shocked silence as, one by one, Alexander’s soldiers marched without hesitation right off the cliff to their deaths! After ten soldiers died, Alexander ordered the rest of the men to return to his side. The townspeople and the king immediately surrendered to Alexander the Great. They realized that if a few men were actually willing to commit suicide at the command of this dynamic leader, then nothing could stop his eventual victory.

Today, we celebrate the feast of Christ the King. If Christ is our king then we must be his people, his soldiers, his army. If we are his soldiers, then we expect to be wounded whenever we battle for him or fight with him.

In 2004, I was in my lowest point of my life when people rejected me, criticized me and even accused me of anything to excruciate me. I asked myself whether I deserved this or not by standing for the Gospel. I stood for the truth. But people spread lies about me. I was depressed. No friends approached me during those times because they were afraid to get involved with my sad fate. But one night while I was riding my motorcycle I saw one tricycle with a signboard “God loves you” and another with a signboard “God is King.” I realized that as a soldier of Christ, I must expect that I might get wounded in a battle. I realized that I must be willing to fight and die for my King. If Christ is our King, I might sustain injuries but I should still listen to his commands no matter what I feel about myself.

Today, we have to know our place. Christ is our King, we are his people, his army, his soldiers obeying his command.