It is 17th February 2019. We are in the 6th Sunday of the Ordinary time. “Be my protector, O God, a mighty stronghold to save me. For you are my rock, my stronghold. Lead me, guide me, for the sake of your name.” (Ps.31:3-4). The readings are from Jer.17:5-9.1; the second reading is from 1 Cor.15:12,16-20 and the Gospel from Luke 6:17,20-26. How to be happy and where can we find happiness is the theme of the Sunday liturgy. The world proposes the individualism and self-indulgence while the scripture suggests living in community and providing service to the humanity. Some of us have put our trust in money, technology, pleasures and influence at the verge of frustration and falling into depression. Our true and lasting happiness is found when we could make someone happy and smiling. As long as we have placed all our trust in God, so long we are blessed is the theme of the first reading. The prophet Jeremiah tells us that God has no reason to forget us. He stresses that our happiness, solely depends on our choice. If we choose God as our hope, security and wealth we will be blessed and remain happy as long as we live. When freedom of believing is abused, our trust in God is either breached and compromised. It is all about the poor Vs the rich; the blessings Vs Curses; the faithfulness Vs unfaithfulness; the ideal worship Vs idol worship; the good Vs the evil; the rewarded ones Vs the punished ones; the contented Vs the hungry; the mournful Vs the merry makers; the plenty Vs the empty; the losers Vs the winners. The responsorial Psalm praises, “Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.” St. Paul invites us to have a new relationship with the risen Lord by human interactions with one another. The beatitudes are the pattern of our living. In the Gospel Jesus clarifies the human understanding on poverty, hunger, sadness, hatred and refutes them strongly as a blessing. “Blessed are the poor in spirit. The Beatitudes reveal an order of happiness and grace, of beauty and peace. Jesus celebrates the Joy of the poor, to whom the Kingdom already belongs.” (CCC.2546). The conditions of depending on God is very high when we are poor, sad, hungry, and in pain that offers the possibility to rely on God and in themselves cannot be a blessing. The first three beatitudes are addressed to us all. The fourth one is addressed to the disciples to take up risk in following Jesus. Preferential option for the poor must be taken seriously by us in living and internalising the first three beatitudes such materially poor, the sad, and the hungry. The recent studies show that a handful of people of the world control and enjoy the entire global wealth. When people live in plenty, they have no time for those who are living below their standard. But the reading stresses the God has a special soft corner for them that cannot be bought by the power of human wealth. We have been living for the world and to impress others for a long time, let us begin living for God and to alleviate the sufferings of the others.

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