It is 09th June 2020. We celebrate the memorial of St. Ephrem, Deacon and Doctor of the Church. He was endearingly called ‘the Harp of the Holy Spirit’ and a hermit, poet, composer, teacher, orator, and defender of the faith. As he ministered to the victims of pandemic, he died.
The readings are from 1 Kgs 17:7-16; and the Gospel from Mt 5:13-16.
Good attitudes propel fruitful actions. Beatitudes adds the taste and dispel the darkness of our integral life. It is the path of happiness in life.
Attitude without action, blueprint without a building, salt without taste, ideology without reality, poem without music, life without love, spirituality without witness remains in the air.
As the brook run dry, God sends the Prophet to a widow, a minimum resourceful and dependent person.
The streams that was nourishing us so far could have dried during this pandemic, but the divine source never run dry. Love never dries up in loving.
“If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.” (Mt.10:49).
“A handful of flour in my jar and a little oil in my jug,” is enough to add taste and color to life and be contented to have the experience of “the jar of flour never go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry.”
The responsorial Psalm prays, “Lord, let your face shine on us.” (Ps.4:7).
In the Gospel Jesus sets a standard for Christian life by teaching the Beatitudes. It is the counter-culture statements made by Jesus to be realized in our life by being the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
As the salt adds taste and preserves, so we need to be with our love and care we show to one another. The influence we all make on the hearts of the other is the saltiness of our life. When we lose the flavour of God, we no longer become sensitive to the needs of the others.
Failure to do our work, duty, responsibility entrusted to us as a believer is like flavorless salt and concealed light.
Trusting in God’s care leads us to do darnest actions which we do not do normally.
Love is the salt of our life and charity is its flavour. If our life loses the flavour, love remains next to be useless.
If we have the power to add taste to the community we belong, through our perspective on life and love, then we truly have the impact, the change and the churn we ought to be.
To be salt and light around is all about our dignity, identity, mission and destiny.
“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other.” (Rev.3:15)
Can our light reflect God and dispel the ignorance?
Being the salt and light is not a favour we do to God but it is what we need to be and are created for.
In his book, Happiness in This Life: A Passionate Meditation on Earthly Existence, Pope Francis exclaims, “joy is the salt of the earth and the light of the world. It is the yeast that leavens society as a whole.”
May we have the warmth of God in our aura, and smell of God in our spiritual life. what is hiding our life to shine the light of Christ? We are the reflectors of God’s love here on earth.
I would like to wrap up our reflection with the prayer of St. Ephrem, the saint of the day: “O LORD, Master of my life, grant that I may not be infected with the spirit of slothfulness and despair, with the spirit of ambition and vain talking. Grant instead to me, your servant, the spirit of purity and of humility, the spirit of patience and neighborly love. O Lord and King, grant me the grace of being aware of my sins and of not thinking evil of those of my brethren. For you are blessed, now and ever, and forever.” May you have a good day. God bless you.